Here is the full text of the press release issued by the Assembly Majority office on Joe Roberts’ Clean Elections bill. Notice how it ignores the bill’s very real flaws and limitations and paints a rosey picture.
But I’ll let the reader judge.
Here it is:
CLEAN ELECTIONS 2007 REAUTHORIZATION BILL
CLEARS COMMITTEE
Legislation Would Expand Project for 2007,
Institute Changes to Enhance Chances for Program’s Success(TRENTON) – The Assembly State Government Committee today approved bipartisan legislation Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts Jr. sponsored to reauthorize the state’s Clean Elections program for 2007.
The campaign finance reform measure aims to enhance the ability of candidates to qualify for public campaign financing, extend the window for garnering qualifying contributions, and increase funding for voter outreach to educate the public on the program.
“This new Clean Elections approach will make New Jersey’s program more meaningful for candidates and voters alike,” said Roberts (D-Camden). “If enacted, these reforms will help prove that public financing can strengthen the democratic process by keeping special interest money out of election campaigns.”
The framework of recommendations is based on findings of a four-member bipartisan working group that the Assembly Speaker established in September and a report issued earlier this year by the New Jersey Citizens’ Clean Elections Commission. The Assembly working group members were: Assemblyman Louis Greenwald (D-Camden), Assemblywoman Linda Greenstein (D-Middlesex), Assemblyman Bill Baroni (R-Mercer), and Assemblywoman Amy Handlin (R-Monmouth) – all of whom have signed on as sponsors of the reauthorization measure.
“Clean Elections continues to hold the greatest promise for removing the influence of special interest money in the political governmental process,” said Greenstein, a champion of the initial public financing program. “These reforms will help ensure that the public’s interest and not the special interests are kept front-and-center in legislative campaigns.”
“This legislation creates a program that hopefully will start the process of weeding big money out of the political process,” said Baroni (R-Mercer/Middlesex). “One of the best ways to chip away at the culture of corruption is to do away with campaign contributions from those who seek to peddle influence.”
The legislation proposes the following changes be made for the Clean Elections program in 2007:
· Lower the number of necessary qualifying contributions from 1,500 to 800, and set a flat $10 donation level for qualifying donations – as recommended by the New Jersey Citizens’ Clean Elections Commission;
· Allow a candidate who reaches at least 50 percent of the qualification level to be certified as a “clean candidate”;
· Provide increased funding to the state’s Election Law Enforcement Commission for voter outreach, education, and communication – more than was previously recommended by the Clean Elections Commission;
· More than triple, to $10,000, the amount of seed money a candidate can collect to help finance their efforts to qualify as a “clean candidate”;
· Expand the number of districts participating in the program from two to three – including a competitive “split” legislative district; and
· Make it easier for residents to contribute to candidates seeking to qualify under the program (cash, online donations, etc.).
Under the measure, the participating legislative districts would be selected by the legislative leadership of each party. A current Democratic-controlled district would be selected jointly by the Senate President and Assembly Speaker; the Senate and Assembly minority leaders would select one Republican-controlled district. A third district with split representation would be agreed upon by all four legislative leaders.
“These changes will remove many of the stumbling blocks that hampered the ability of Clean Elections to really take hold in the last election cycle,” said Greenwald, who was one of only two candidates to qualify for public financing under the program in 2005. “While qualification standards should be challenging to attain, they must not be so stringent as to be unachievable. These revisions will enhance the ability of dedicated candidates to run under the Clean Elections banner.”
“Our task force worked hard to come up with a proposal that will improve on the clean elections pilot program from the last election,” said Handlin. “It is my hope that this program will make it easier for candidates to participate and more likely to achieve its goal of producing elections that are not dominated by the corrupting influence of large campaign donations.”
The working group examined existing Clean Elections legislative measures and the findings and recommendations of the New Jersey Citizens’ Clean Elections Commission, which issued a report and recommendations for the 2007 Fair and Clean Elections Pilot Project as the basis for formulating the legislative proposal.
New Jersey became the first state to legislatively enact a Clean Elections program in 2004.
The bill is scheduled for an Assembly floor vote on Monday, December 11.
South Brunswick Post, The Cranbury Press
The Blog of South Brunswick
Hank Kalet 