Post by Logan on Feb 28, 2016 5:43:25 GMT -6
Colorado's system for telling the public who is spending money to shape state policy amounts to a complicated honor system the average concerned citizen would struggle to untangle. The nonpartisan Center for Public Integrity last year deemed Colorado "largely sleaze-free" but dinged the state for its lack of transparency on lobbyists.
Attempts to strengthen disclosure at the legislature haven't been effective, and state officials say there isn't enough money to make improvements.
Meanwhile, the lobbying firms that rank at the top of the income scale are viewed by insiders as those most diligent in reporting, because loopholes and a lack of oversight allow for many firms to allow untold amounts of income paid to them to go unreported to the public.
The upshot is that the Center for Public Integrity gave disclosure on lobbying a grade of D.
Read more: www.denverpost.com/news/ci_29571528/colorado-lobbying-law-offers-murky-picture-influence-politics
Attempts to strengthen disclosure at the legislature haven't been effective, and state officials say there isn't enough money to make improvements.
Meanwhile, the lobbying firms that rank at the top of the income scale are viewed by insiders as those most diligent in reporting, because loopholes and a lack of oversight allow for many firms to allow untold amounts of income paid to them to go unreported to the public.
The upshot is that the Center for Public Integrity gave disclosure on lobbying a grade of D.
Read more: www.denverpost.com/news/ci_29571528/colorado-lobbying-law-offers-murky-picture-influence-politics