Voter Blog
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Apr03
WV House Passes Legislation to Make Permanent Judicial Clean Elections System
The West Virginia House of Delegates passed legislation Wednesday to make permanent the state’s judicial public financing system for elections to the state's highest court, the Supreme Court of Appeals. HB 2085 passed the House on a vote of 70 to 29.
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Apr03
Clips Round-up for 4/3/13
New York
WBFO: State Senator arrested on corruption charges
NY State Senator Malcolm Smith was arrested yesterday on corruption charges. Citizen Action of New York's Karen Scharff: "New Yorkers don’t really need another scandal to know that big money has a corrupting influence in politics and in Albany."Apr02Easter Has Friends on K Street
It seems that even the Easter Bunny hangs out with K Street lobbyists. Those associated with the holiday that brings us baskets of eggs and sweet, sugary snacks have been working overtime to gain influence with lawmakers.
According to the Center for Public Integrity, lobbying expenditures by the National Confectioners Association and United Egg Producers have risen dramatically in recent years.
Apr02Clips Round-up for 4/2/13
Yesterday, the New York Times reported on a new TV ad campaign launching in New York. Here's the ad.
David Donnelly in HuffPost: "The drumbeat to pass comprehensive campaign reform in New York this year is getting louder and louder."
Apr01Bipartisan Bill Introduced to Bolster Maine Clean Elections
A group of bipartisan lawmakers have joined together to introduce new legislation in Maine that would increase funding for the state's Clean Elections' law and further strengthen the popular system.
Apr01Clips Round-up for 4/1/13
The drumbeat for reform in New York is getting louder. Today's New York Times: "In an effort to build public support for reining in the flood of money in politics, advocates of overhauling New York State’s political fund-raising laws will spend over $800,000 on a new advertising campaign to begin on Monday."
Mar29Dow 30 Spend Big on Lobbying as Tax Rates Fall
The Washington Post published a front page story on Wednesday looking at the plummeting tax rates paid by the 30 firms represented in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, providing a microcosm of the rampant tax avoidance by corporate America.
Mar29Clips Round-up for 3/29/13
Mar28Clips Round-up for 3/28/13
Huffington Post's Paul Blumenthal on last night's great OFA call in New York that featured Jon Carson, David Donnelly, and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman: "President Barack Obama's reformatted campaign organization held a conference call with New York state supporters Wednesday night to stoke grassroots support for public campaign
Mar27Second Hawaii Senate Committee Holds Hearing on Small Donor Empowerment Bill
On Thursday, the Hawaii Senate Ways and Means Committee will hold a hearing on House Bill 1481, legislation that would create a small donor public financing system for state legislative races.
Under the system, which could still see changes before final passage, candidates would collect a set number of signatures and qualifying contributions to show broad-based community support. Once qualified, candidates would receive a public grant to fund their campaigns.