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Platform Update

December 2007

ACTION ITEMS

How The Public Views the Clean Elections Program: The Platform for Progress Government Reform Initiative teamed up with Fairleigh Dickinson University’s PublicMind Poll and the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers to gauge public attitudes about the clean election initiative. A series of voter surveys conducted during the recent election reveals some interesting public observations, including:

 

  • People in the clean election districts were more likely than the rest of the state to say the race had a focus on issues;
  • People in the clean election districts were more likely to say they heard something about the election, and;
  • Twice as many likely voters in the clean elections districts had heard quite a lot or some about the clean elections legislation compared to the state as a whole.

 

As was the case previously, the goal is to use these findings to make the program more successful. You can read both the recent survey results and the survey results from the 2005 election by visiting www.publicmind.fdu.edu

 

Clean Elections II: The Clean Elections Citizens Advisory Committee, organized by Ingrid Reed, has started its deliberations associated with the clean elections pilot and how to improve on the project. Recommendations from the committee, which includes representatives from the Government Reform Initiative, will be presented to the Election Law Enforcement Commission and the legislature over the next few weeks. Initiative partners will also have access to the report when it is finalized.

 

The Courier Post, among other media outlets, opined on why this type of program was so valuable. Click here

for a full copy of their editorial.

 

Gift Ban Passes the Senate: Continuing their efforts toward government reform, the Senate on Monday (12/10) passed legislation which would restrict members of the Legislature and legislative staff from accepting gifts of value from lobbyists. The legislation, which was supported by the Government Reform Initiative, previously passed the General Assembly and now heads to the Governor’s desk for his signature.

 

Ethics Report Released by the Rutgers: The Prudential Business Ethics Center at Rutgers took aim at the issue of government ethics with its recently released report calling for reform. Several members of the Government Reform Initiative were active partners on this project and contributed to its success.

 

A full copy of the report can be viewed here.

 

ITEMS OF INTEREST

Reform Down South: Retired Congressman Billy Touzin once issued this description of his home state: “Half of Louisiana is under water and the other half is under indictment.” And while this comment might have been an exaggeration, the feeling stems from years of political corruption dating back to the pirate Lafitte. In fact, former Governor Huey Long was so proud of his questionable actions that he once stated, “I steal money. But a lot of what I stole has spilled over in no-toll bridges, hospitals, and to build this university (LSU).”

So it is no wonder voters of Louisiana backed Governor-Elect Bobby Jindal, who campaigned on a promise to rid his state of corruption. The 36-year-old Congressman has found change difficult, but looks forward to turning the reputation of his state around. National Public Radio’s Morning Edition discussed the Governor-Elect and his challenges during a recent broadcast.

Click here for a transcript or to hear the story in its entirety.

 

Dual Office Holding: Soon after passing legislation that would ban dual office holding for members of the legislature, the leaders on both sides of the aisle and in the front office indicated an interest in doing more. Current law, which impacts members of the legislature who take office after February 2008, would ban them from holding another elected position. Tom O’Neill (former President of the Partnership for New Jersey) and Bill Schluter (former Senator and Assemblyman) teamed up to show just how far the dual office holding issue goes in their report “How Much is Enough?”, which was published over the summer. In the piece, O’Neill and Schluter document the over 700 elected officials who also hold another, non-elected public sector position. It is expected that the findings in this piece will serve as a foundation for additional reform of dual office holding in the upcoming legislative session. To read the entire report, visit http://www.njpp.org/rpt_enough.html

Click here for the previous update.

Jim Leonard
Vice President, Government Relations
New Jersey Chamber of Commerce
216 West State Street
Trenton, NJ 08608
Phone: (609)989-7888 Ext. 118
Fax: (609)989-9696
Jim.Leonard@njchamber.com