2009.10.26
Close a disclosure loophole in Virginia's conflict of interest law
Eight of Virginia's part-time legislators also work for one or other of its colleges and universities, setting up the potential for conflicts of interests: Lawmakers could try to pad their incomes in exchange for promises to use their influence to get legislative favors. Monday's news story examining these relationships revealed no smoking gun, but it did spotlight a loaded one: Disclosure provisions of the state's conflict of interest law specifically exclude salary or wages paid by state or local government. In an editorial to run later in the week, we'll urge the General Assembly to close that loophole.
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You can urge the General Assembly to close that loophole, but what good will it do?
Politicians of every party are all of the same stripe: self-serving weasels who have found a way to unlimited financial gain via politics.
Why not urge that privatization contract costs be compared with similar in-house jobs? Why not urge that studies using the cost of these private firms over the last ten years be publicized and the "savings" be quantified?
Why not ask why the General Assembly, since pushing for Privatization of the state work force for the last 30 years, and now having the majority of such work out under contract, with at least a 15 year history, have some studies run to see why, instead of a shrinking expenditure for services, the costs have instead exploded?
Then ask why there are not questions on the financial disclosure forms that these politicians fill out, asking about social and financial relationships to sub-contractors doing work for contractors that have contracts with the state?
The one really big question: how much do these politicians get in the form of campaign contributions, perks such as free transportation to "sponsored" events, and other perks such as free or reduced tickets to such events?
If a weasel visits a hen house, and the dog don't bark, is the damage caused by the weasel still a bad thing?
Comment by joe Mostowey — October 27, 2009 @ 9:59 pm