Government reform survey
Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell and Republican opponent Lynn Swann outlined their positions on government reform in a survey conducted by Democracy Rising PA, a coalition of government watchdog groups. For the full survey, visit online at www.democracyrisingpa.com Excerpts from their answers to reform proposals are as follows:
Should Pennsylvania have the highest standards of public integrity in the nation?
Rendell: Yes. We must work together to strengthen our democratic system in order to ensure that citizens have confidence that their government is operating on their behalf
Swann: Yes, it is my commitment to the citizens of the Commonwealth that my administration will work in a way that guarantees open and transparent behavior.
Lobbyist disclosure: require lobbyists to register and report spending to influence state government.
Rendell: After the General Assembly failed to pass legislation on this important issue … I (signed) an executive order requiring that those who lobby the Executive Branch register and report their lobbying expenditures. The General Assembly needs to follow suit by passing meaningful lobbyist disclosure that requires anyone who lobbies to register and complete itemized expenditure reports. These reports must identify who is lobbying, on what issues, how much they have spent to lobby, whether they have given any gifts to members, and, if so, how much and to whom.
Swann: A lobbyist disclosure measure must indicate what is being spent by whom and there must be strong penalties for those who refuse to comply. Every document filed must be available for viewing on the Web. I will ensure that a strong lobbyist law is one of the first bills I sign.
Term limits
Rendell: We must also end permanent incumbency by introducing 8-year term limits for legislators which is consistent with the 8-year gubernatorial term limit. I believe that term limits will free legislators to vote their conscience on major issues facing the Commonwealth without worrying about the effect on their careers in the GA.
Swann: Does not mention in survey but supports.
Redistricting
Rendell: It is essential to reform the process for drawing state legislative boundaries so that redistricting is conducted by a nonpartisan independent commission that can ensure that appropriate representation is the sole driving force behind the creation of legislative districts.
Swann: No position.
Open records law for state government
Rendell: “I support … appropriate extension of the open records law to include the Legislature and Judiciary.”
Swann: Does not mention in survey but supports.
Reducing size of the Legislature
Rendell: Pennsylvania should right-size the Legislature to reduce costs and increase the General Assembly’s productivity. I propose using other similarly sized states as a model for determining the appropriate number of members for Pennsylvania’s House and Senate (average size in the five states with larger population than Pennsylvania is 124, compared to 203 in PA).
Swann: Supports.
Campaign finance reform
Rendell: Too much money is spent on political campaigns. Without limits on contributions, candidates are often obligated to raise large sums of money in total from individual donors. The system runs the risk of creating appearances that can be damaging to the public trust. Pennsylvania should enact limits on how much can be donated to campaigns, using the federal limit as a model.
Swann: Does not mention in survey.
Stealth legislation
Rendell: Does not mention in survey.
Swann: I have proposed a 72-hour waiting period before I would sign any piece of legislation, provided that it does not deal with a state of emergency issue. This will immediately change the way the executive office performs its functions. This three day waiting period will allow the people of Pennsylvania to publicly weigh in on any piece of legislation. Imagine the pressure the governor would have had to veto the pay raise bill if it was open for public discussion for three days after passage.
All laws on Internet
Rendell: I support publishing all laws on the Internet so that citizens have access to the laws they live under and appropriate extension of the open records law to include the Legislature and Judiciary.
Swann: Bills and Acts should be freely accessible to all individuals on the Internet or in hard copy. I believe that we should make both available in order to reach all residents. … I believe that state government has for too long made it financially impossible to copy documents from our many agencies. We must ensure that those who request the documents are charged reasonable and affordable rates.
Constitutional convention
Rendell: Pennsylvania already has a process by which the necessary legislative and constitutional changes can occur… If these efforts are blocked and we are unable to enact meaningful reform, then a constitutional convention that is limited in scope to these specific issues may be appropriate.
Swann: Anger with the General Assembly and the governor should be focused on the removal of those elected officials who are not working for the public good. I would much prefer this approach over allowing an entirely separate group of people to make possibly questionable changes to our constitution which is a document that has generally served us quite well.