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We Need Rules for Campaigns This Year

February 03, 2010

In a state known for optimism, cynicism is growing in Vermont. What used to be concerns about just Washington, DC are now coming to the Green Mountain State. Corporations misleading regulators and a perceived revolving door between the administration and embattled companies are creating uncertainty about the positive political traditions in our state. 

Vermonters have tried to do something about these concerns. In the nineties, I was proud to be a part of passing comprehensive campaign finance reform. Unfortunately, the US Supreme Court threw out our laws. More recently, this same Court took the egregious step of deciding that corporations have the unlimited ability to influence elections.

Vermont candidates have also attempted to set standards for transparency, including Governor Douglas' repeated calls for financial disclosure by candidates running for statewide office. While many of us did not like the way it transpired, one thing was clear: Vermonters wanted that transparency.

All of this comes at a time when we are entering a very competitive campaign season for Vermont statewide offices. We currently have no laws on the books establishing campaign contribution limits, companies like Entergy that have enormous interest in the outcome of the race have been told they can spend as much as they want on influencing this election, and we have no laws outlining what and when a candidate should disclose about his or her personal finances. As a result, we find candidates focusing on issues of disclosure when they should be focusing on the other important issues facing our state.

That's why I am calling on the Legislature today to continue Vermont's tradition of reflecting our citizens' faith in the democratic process and pass legislation to address the following critical issues:

1. Codify campaign finance laws. S.92 passed the Senate last year and must be a priority for this session. With the intensity of upcoming statewide races and groups outside of Vermont lining up to get involved, we need campaign finance laws that will stand up in court.

2. Add to this legislation a statute that will limit spending by any corporation that does business with the State of Vermont, directly or indirectly, and in a severable section, limit spending by any corporation that has a nexus with the State of Vermont. While this does not address all of the problems with the Supreme Court decision, constitutional lawyers have advised me that there is room in the Citizens United decision to allow limitations on those corporations with a direct or indirect contractual interest with a government.

Vermont should push the limits of the decision, attempt to bring some sanity to our election process, and not allow large corporations to attempt to buy the next election. For large out-of-state companies like Entergy, a million dollar investment in attack ads would be a small sum to spend in order to avoid accountability for a cleanup and to enable continued operation in our state.

With one candidate clearly aligned with Entergy, we need to be sure the rules clearly protect us from such a deluge. In the past, I would have simply asked Entergy to commit to not abusing the new loophole. Unfortunately, my trust that they will do the right thing, even if they say they will, has waned.

3. Pass "Douglas standard" legislation to clarify that all candidates for statewide office must disclose their personal financial interests. We have seen that Vermonters do want to know the financial profile and interests of their statewide candidates. Unfortunately, the lack of rules has led to uncertainty about when and what kind of disclosure is expected, giving advantages to some candidates over others.

In this important election year, we need to pass legislation--the Douglas standard--requiring personal financial disclosure for all candidates as well as establishing clear rules for disclosure in order to bring us in line with most other states and the requirements for Federal candidates.

An open seat for Governor and Lt. Governor this year provides an opportunity for Vermonters to engage in the political process and carefully choose who will lead us into the next era. Unfortunately, if we do not act quickly on legislation to restore faith in the political process and prevent a large corporation with vested interests in our state from pouring money into Vermont to disrupt our democracy, a contest focused on the future and important issues is likely to be compromised. Moreover, our passion for participatory democracy, long a hallmark of Vermont, could be consumed by the darkness of cynicism.

Fortunately, some of the other candidates in the race for Governor have already voiced support for campaign finance reform. Today, I call on all of the statewide candidates, from all political parties, to come together to support these three legislative priorities and for the Legislature to act quickly. In any contest, the most important element is to have clear rules. When our democratic process is at stake, those rules are all the more important.