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Dear Friends, Recently, the Pennsylvania Senate has been working on a number of reforms aimed at changing the culture in Harrisburg and bringing more transparency to state government. Recently, a Grand Jury investigating illegal activity in state government included in its report a list of recommendations for reforming the General Assembly such as eliminating political caucuses and opening leadership accounts to public record. Click here to read my responses to the Grand Jury report. From my first day in Harrisburg, I have worked to reform state government. During the 1977-78 legislative session, I introduced legislation with the intent to abolish legislative leadership positions, i.e. caucuses. In addition, I introduced legislation in 1994 to create a public television network to broadcast all state government activities. My concept was developed by the cable industry through the creation of the Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN). In 2000 I introduced legislation that would have revised Pennsylvania's outdated Right-to-Know Law to reverse the burden of proof from citizens to the state to prove why a government record cannot be made public. In 2008 a similar bill was adopted, creating a clearing house for records known as the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records. The legislation was the first expansion of the state's Right-to-Know Law in over 50 years. In this e-mail update, I would like to share with you some of the latest news on government reform. For more information, please visit my website, www.senatorgreenleaf.com. Senate Approves Rules of Ethical Conduct: During the 2010 legislative session, the Senate approved Senate Resolution 228, the Senate Rules of Ethical Conduct.
Any alleged violations of the Senate Rules of Ethical Conduct would first be investigated by the Secretary of the Senate. If a more detailed investigation is warranted and the subject of the report is a senator, the matter will be referred to the Senate Committee on Ethics and Official Conduct. If the subject of the report is an employee, an independent party will conduct the investigation. Sanctions for violations by an employee can range from a warning to termination of employment, depending on the circumstances. Sanctions for violations by a senator can range from a warning to requiring restitution and any other sanction provided for under the Pennsylvania Constitution. Pending Reform Legislation: Efforts to change the culture of state government are ongoing. Several pieces of legislation are underway to restore confidence in state government by making it more open and accountable to its citizens. During the previous legislative session, 9 out 10 bills focused on reform passed the Senate, but failed to gain final legislative approval. These bills have been reintroduced in the 2009-2010 legislative session:
Recently Adopted Reforms: All roll call votes are posted on the Internet no later than 24 hours after a vote and committee votes on bills are posted within 48 hours of the vote. This allows citizens to read the bills that are being voted on, and see how senators are voting. To give the public insight on why certain votes were cast, the Senate's Legislative Journal – which includes the full text of all floor debates – are posted on the Internet upon Senate approval of the Journal or within 45 days, whichever is earlier. To prevent late-night votes, session is now limited to the hours between 8 a.m. and 11 p.m. The Senate is now required to wait at least six hours before voting on an amended bill or a conference committee report, and amendments are posted to the Internet before being offered on the Senate floor. This allows legislators and the public time to understand changes to a bill before it comes up for vote. An updated fiscal note is now prepared if a bill is amended after consideration by the Senate Appropriations Committee and if the amendment is expected to have a financial impact. Lobbying Disclosure: Lobbyists, whether representing industry, professional associations, or non-profit organizations, play a significant role in state government and the public should be able to see who is lobbying elected officials. In 2006, the Senate passed landmark legislation requiring lobbyists to file regular reports detailing who is lobbying the Legislature and the Governor's Office and which issues they are supporting. Act 134 of 2006 (House Bill 700), as amended by the Senate, states that every lobbyist, lobbying firm and the groups that hired them are required to register and disclose their spending each quarter. The reports must include a list of funds spent on communication, gifts, hospitality, transportation and lodging. These reports must then be filed with the Department of State, which will provide a directory to the public of all registered lobbyists by May 1 of each odd-numbered year. Random audits will be conducted on the registrations every two years. Lobbyists who violate the law will be subject to civil fines of up to $2,000 and the possibility of being prohibited from paid lobbying for up to five years. Groups that retain lobbyists and intentionally violate the law could receive a fine of up to $25,000. To read the Department of State's annual lobbying
disclosure report, visit
www.pasen.gov and select "Department of State Lobbying
Disclosure" under the heading "Topics of Special Interest". |
Offices Harrisburg Office District Office | |
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