Orr legislation would require greater disclosure
By By Staff Reports, Hartselle Enquirer
State Sen. Arthur Orr, R – Decatur, and State Rep. Mike Ball, R – Madison, are teaming up once again to introduce a package of legislation designed to bring a higher standard of transparency and accountability to Alabama's government, elections and public officials.
"With the 2010 election cycle fast approaching, many incumbent legislators are already campaigning on ethics and accountability issues, and this package of bills gives them the opportunity to prove their commitment," Orr said. "Too many scandals have occurred and too many ethical questions remain unanswered because Alabama's laws do not demand the level of transparency that they should. The Legislature can begin correcting that omission by approving this package."
Ball, a retired state trooper, noted that public interest groups consistently award Alabama an "F" grade for its lack of transparency and reporting demands on public officials. One recent study conducted by the Campaign Disclosure Project, a joint venture of the UCLA School of Law, the Center for Governmental Studies, the Pew Charitable Trusts and other groups, ranked the state 49th out of fifty in campaign reporting and disclosure requirements.
"With the internet providing instant information on so many topics and in so many areas, it is embarrassing that Alabama citizens have to struggle to find basic information about their own state government," Ball said. "Demanding transparency also forces our public officials to act more ethically because it is difficult to engage in corruption when you are no longer cloaked in darkness, fog and shadows."
Among the bills included in the package, which Orr and Ball will sponsor in both legislative houses are:
A measure requiring campaign finance reports filed with the Secretary of State to include the occupation and employer of each contributor donating $100 or more to a political campaign.
Legislation mandating that last-minute campaign contributions be electronically filed with the Secretary of State's office for public disclosure immediately prior to an election. Current rules allow candidates to close their campaigns' financial books and make final disclosures two weeks before an election takes place. The legislation would also require all campaign and PAC reports to be included in a searchable database available to the public via the Internet.
A requirement for the Secretary of State's office to post all proposed statewide constitutional amendments on its website along with an electronic forum that allows public comment in an interactive format.
A bill prohibiting candidates who fail to file campaign finance reports from seeking future offices.
Yet another proposal expands upon a bill passed by the legislators last year that required the state comptroller to create a searchable Internet database of all state expenditures, contracts, legislative grants and state grants. The new bill expands the database to include public disclosure of subcontractors and purchase orders.
The two legislators were also successful in passing another transparency bill last session which mandated that all candidates for public office, whether they face opposition or not, comply with each deadline for publicly disclosing campaign contributions to the Secretary of State's Office. Several senators became involved in lawsuits following the 2006 primary elections because they failed to file campaign finance disclosures. Many of the same senators funneled thousands of dollars in largely untraceable contributions to other candidates on the ballot while claiming that long-standing tradition did not require unopposed candidates to file finance reports in certain elections.
