Do you want proof that the legislature hates to be challenged? Want proof that the powers that be don’t like to hear the people speak up? Wonder if they like to throw their weight around and get upset when they don’t get their way? Well I would like to direct you to SB 275 – [...]
Archive for the ‘ethics and corruption’ Category
Bills to Watch: HJR 15 – Joint Resolution on Legislative Ethics Commission, D. Clark
There has been much hullabaloo concerning ethics reform in this legislative session. Indeed, it is quite obvious that the Utahns for Ethical Government have gotten under the skin of many-a-legislator. In an attempt to quell some of this, none other than the Speaker of the House, Representative Dave Clark (R – Santa Clara – District [...]
Bill to Watch: HB 247 – Lobbyist Restriction Modifications, C. Moss
I always find ethics reform on the hill a rather fascinating exercise and I liken it to a wheel spinning in the mud – sure, there is a lot of noise and movement but, ultimately, nothing gets done. What makes this year interesting is that Republicans have vowed to put ethics reform on the agenda [...]
Bills to Watch: HB 56 – Amended Campaign Financial Statements, S. Allen
I have worked on many campaigns in my life, and I can tell you that one of the most stressful things you can do is file your financial reports to the state. Stressful, not so much because you have done anything dishonest, but stressful because a good campaigner wants to be honest with the citizens [...]
Salt Lake Trib – Redistricting initiative group hires executive director
(link)
Fair Boundaries ยป Petition drive group taps Curtis Haring, leader of the Young Democrats of Utah.
By Cathy McKitrick
The group pushing an initiative to create an independent advisory commission for redrawing boundaries for Utah’s congressional and state legislative districts has hired an executive director.
Since organizing in April, Fair Boundaries has functioned on volunteer power. But initiative [...]
Speaker Clark – A Show of Hubris and A Rejection of Democracy
Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives, David Clark, recently posted a poll on his political blog “Speaker Clark” asking his readers who they thought would be best fit to handle the redistricting process: The Governor, The Legislature, The Supreme Court, or An Independent Commission. Clark, being a strong supporter of the Legislative option, clearly [...]
How YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook will Change the World
Iranian College Student’s computer, destroyed by militia forces
The tumultuous times in Iran are of major importance to our world, and these events do deserve their own recognition. But once the dust settles, for better or for worse, one thing will become clear: this was the internets first example of its true potential.
Over the past [...]
Ethics bills – Part two
As I was putting together my most recent “Status of Bills to Watch” post, I noticed something rather interesting – ethics bills that have not moved since the start of the session suddenly had been resurrected from a quite and undignified death only to…not…move.
So why bother? Simple: it is an election ploy.
Let us take Phil [...]
The Status of the Various Ethics Bills
This past Thursday I was spending my time up on the hill doing a little bit of lobbying for the Young Democrats. While up there we sat in on the House Democrats caucus meeting and delivered a letter to the governor urging him to veto S.B. 16. While there we also lobbied for ethics in [...]
Bills to Watch: H.B. 159 – Ethics Provisions – S. Allen
So, remember a while ago when I was talking about Representative Phil Riesen’s ethics law and how it needs to pass? Well I have come across what I feel is an even better law concerning ethics and our legislature.
As proposed by Sheryl Allen (R – Bountiful, District 19), H.B. 159 not only establishes an [...]
