House passes reform bill critics say falls short

by Frank James

House Democrats have been patting themselves on the back today for passing lobbying reform legislation while Republicans have been chiding Democrats for not going far enough, blasting one Democrat in particular, Rep. Jack Murtha of Pennsylvania, friend to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, for being one of only eight House members to vote nay.

Under the new rules, lobbyists will have to disclose their efforts four times a year to an electronic database that will be searchable by the public using the Internet. Certain groups that didn't have to disclose lobbying efforts before, like some associations, would be required to do so under the bill.

A congressional spouse who becomes a lobbyist after the election of the lawmaker married to that spouse would be barred from lobbying the lawmaker or anyone in the lawmaker's office. Of course, if a spouse was a lobbyist before the lawmaker's election, he or she could presumably lobby away.

House Judiciary Chair John Conyers, issued a press release with the floor speech he gave today in support of the legislation. His speech provides a summary of some of the bill's major features. Here's the press release.

(Washington, DC)- Today, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed S. 1, "The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007" - a compromise measure between the House and Senate. The bill passed 411-8. House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr., author of the original House measure, made the following remarks today on the House floor in support of the measure:

If there was one message that was abundantly clear based on the results of last year’s election results, it was that the American people want us to end the culture of corruption that has enveloped the legislative process. For far too long, Americans have seen business as usual where time and time again special interests trump the public interest.We heard that message, loud and clear. For the past several months, the House and the Senate have diligently worked together to fuse a legislative response that combines the best of the measures passed by both Houses earlier this year.

The measure that we consider today will go a long way toward bringing back accountability to the Congress and to restoring the trust of the American people in their government.S. 1 accomplishes these critical goals in four basic ways:First, S. 1 puts an end to the K Street Project, an insidious effort that employed threats and intimidation to control the legislative process. S. 1 ensures that such efforts will no longer be permitted. It specifically prohibits Members and senior staff from influencing hiring decisions or practices of private entities for partisan political gain.

Second, S. 1 shines a disinfecting spotlight on lobbying activities by mandating full and enhanced public disclosure on these activities. Pursuant to this measure, lobbyists will have to:

file reports on their lobbying activities twice as often each year. disclose their contacts with Congress; certify that they did not give a gift or pay for travel in violation of the rules;
and, for the first time, file these reports electronically in a public, searchable database so that anyone can review them.

Third, S. 1 closes loopholes in the current law that have been exploited to avoid the clear intent of the Lobbying Disclosure Act. It does this by mandating the disclosure of contributions in excess of $5,000 by businesses or organizations that actively lobby through certain coalitions and associations. And, it also requires the disclosure of the past executive and Congressional employment of registered lobbyists.

Importantly, S. 1 prohibits a Member’s spouse who becomes a lobbyist after the Member's election from making direct lobbying contacts to the Member or the Member's office.In addition, the bill addresses the process by which political contributions are bundled by campaign committees. It requires each committee to disclose to the Federal Election Commission, on a semiannual basis, specified information for each currently registered lobbyist who has either forwarded or been credited for raising contributions totaling at least $15,000 during the reporting period.

Fourth, and perhaps most significantly, S. 1 puts real teeth into enforcement. It increases the penalties for violations of the Lobbying Disclosure Act to deter and punish corrupt activity. It substantially increases civil penalties from the current level of $50,000 to $200,000 and provides for the imposition of criminal penalties of up to five years for knowing and corrupt violations of the Act.

These are just some of the major reforms that S. 1 offers. This bill recognizes the importance of lobbying to responsive and effective congressional and executive decision-making. And, these reforms will help strengthen the sound foundation of the Lobbying Disclosure Act and go a long way toward restoring the trust of the American people in our system of government. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act and I reserve the balance of my time.

S. 1 is a major accomplishment. It finally ends the cynical business as usual environment where big business and special interests dominate the legislative process to the detriment of the public interest. A vote for the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act is a vote to end the culture of corruption. The time for S. 1 is now. Accordingly, I urge my colleagues to support S. 1 and I yield back the balance of my time.

Rep. John Shimkis (R-Ill.) issued a press release that emphasized some different provisions of the bill.

SHIMKUS VOTES FOR EARMARK & LOBBYING REFORMS

Washington, DC…..Congressman John Shimkus (R, Illinois-19) voted for the
Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 (S. 1). This bill follows
votes earlier this year and last year on reform legislation; however, the House and Senate
passed versions were different. This is the new language that will be voted on in both
the House and Senate this week.

“I support making members of the House and Senate and our staff more accountable
for our actions,” Shimkus said. “I also support making those who contribute to our
campaigns disclose information if they are a lobbyist. Much of this legislation was
contained in our Republican reform legislation that passed in the last Congress,
which was more restrictive in some areas than this bill is.”

Some of the major provisions of the bill are:

+ Senior members of the Executive Branch are restricted from lobbying for two years
after leaving their employment; Senators are restricted from lobbying two years after
their term ends; and Members of the House are restricted from lobbying for one year,
which is already in place.

+ Lobbyists will be required to file quarterly reports (up from two per year) that
include information on their contributions to federal candidates and political action
committees. These reports will be accessible on the Internet.

+ Requires reports filed on travel by Members of the House and staff to be available
on the Internet.

+ Strips the pension of Members convicted of felonies related to their service in
Congress.

+ Language to a bill may not be added to a Conference Report if that language was
not in either the House or Senate bill, and provisions that passed in both versions
must remain in the Conference Report.

+ Candidates must use commercial airplanes for election use; chartered flights must
be reimbursed at fair market value; and trips on private planes are prohibited.

###

The Reform Institute, a non-partisan group that seeks changes to make Congress more accountablel and effective, wasn't as glowing as Conyers was about what was accomplished today.

It essentially said that while it was all well and good that the House passed the legislation, the fact that it took seven months to do so and that ethics reform continued to be caught up in Congres's constant partisan sniping, weren't good.

Here's the institute's press release:

Positive Steps, More Work Still Ahead
Passage of Lobbying Bill Shows Progress Towards Reform,
But Long Way to Go for Real Change in How Congress Works

WASHINGTON, DC – The Reform Institute, a nonpartisan public policy organization, hails the passage today of lobbying and ethics reform legislation in the House of Representatives, but also cautions that the protracted route the legislation has taken signifies the long road ahead for truly changing how Congress operates.

“The bill represents a strong reform package, but the fact that it took seven months to reach this point and that the conference committee was bypassed sends the message that it will take much more for Congress to truly change its ways,” said Reform Institute Executive Director Cecilia Martinez.

The bill includes rules requiring disclosure of earmarks requested by lawmakers and of campaign contributions “bundled” by lobbyists. The Reform Institute offered a comprehensive set of recommendations that included more transparency in earmarking and in the interactions between legislators and lobbyists in the report, Restoring Order: Practical Solutions to Congressional Dysfunction. The report was authored by Congressional scholars and Institute Advisory Committee members Thomas Mann of the Brookings Institution and Norman Ornstein of the American Enterprise Institute.

Partisan bickering and gamesmanship delayed action on the bill as each side attempted to peg the other as not strong enough on reform. Indications are that some Senate Republicans will not support the bill because they seek stronger earmarks provisions. Lawmakers have ample motivation to act on reform. Voters in the last election indicated in an exit poll that corruption was the top issue for them. Democrats swept into the majority after making changing the “culture of corruption” in Washington a primary campaign theme. Recent polls pegging Congress with record-low approval ratings are an indication that Americans are disappointed with the progress Congress has made so far.

“This legislation is an important step, one essential to the restoration of trust in the first branch of government, but more than simple rule changes are needed. Congress must change its culture to emphasize integrity, comity between the parties, and results,” stated Dr. Mann. “Congress needs to return to a regular order that promotes genuine deliberation and debate and protects the rights of the minority party.”

“The next step is to ensure meaningful, independent enforcement of the rules through the establishment of an independent ethics commission,” according to Dr. Ornstein. “An independent commission including former members of Congress would bring credibility to the process.”

“Ultimately, reform will only work if both sides are committed to working together in protecting the integrity of Congress and in conducting the people’s business,” added Ms. Martinez.

-end-