A flier sent to every member of the General Assembly on Wednesday assails supporters of legislation that would require many unpaid activists who advocate at the Capitol to register as lobbyists.
The mailer says it was prepared by the Trust Your Georgia Legislators Committee. No such committee is registered with the state’s ethics commission.
Singled out in the flier for allegedly trying to bar citizens from exercising their First Amendment rights were Trip Martin and Jet Toney, two influential veteran lobbyists at the Capitol, along with Rick Thompson, the former commission chairman who now helps elected officials follow ethics rules.
All three were quoted in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution last week as House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, rolled out his plans for changes in state ethics laws. Ralston’s bill, House Bill 142, would ban lobbyist gifts to individual lawmakers, but it also would greatly broaden the definition of a lobbyist.
The perceived impact would be to require those who come to the Capitol in an attempt to influence legislation to register as lobbyists, pay $320, wear a badge and file disclosure reports.
The proposal met fierce criticism at a subcommittee hearing last week. A revised version, expected to make clear that average Georgians are free to speak to legislators, will be released today and will be considered by the subcommittee at 1 p.m.
Martin called the anonymous flier “a cowardly act.”
Martin said registering as a lobbyist allows the public to know who he represents.
“I have always made it a practice to sit down with my opponents on an issue and discuss our differences,” Martin said. “The people who secretly produced this flier are the same people who are afraid to step into the sunshine and register. I look forward to the opportunity to meet them face to face. I will seek them out.”
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