Post by Logan on Jan 21, 2016 0:46:43 GMT -6
Gov. Jay Nixon calls for ethics reform, gay rights in address to Missouri legislature
JEFFERSON CITY -- Gov. Jay Nixon used his final State of the State address to once again call on legislators to pass comprehensive ethics reform and to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation.
“I pledge to you that I will do everything I can, with the power entrusted in me, to move us — to move you — to action,” Nixon told a joint session of the Missouri General Assembly on Wednesday night. “Action carries risks. But it’s the risk-takers who make history. Inaction is always easier. But inaction is also a decision with real consequences.”
Nixon, a Democrat, has called for ethics reform every year he’s been in office. Missouri is the only state in the nation with the trio of no caps on campaign contributions, no limits on lobbyist gifts to lawmakers and no waiting period before legislators can become lobbyists after leaving office.
With one year left before Nixon’s term as the state’s governor ends because of term limits, the Republican-dominated Missouri House has moved a series of ethics bills that would, among other things, ban lobbyist gifts and prohibit legislators from immediately becoming lobbyists when they leave office.
Continue reading at www.kansascity.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/the-buzz/article55738090.html#storylink=mainstage .
JEFFERSON CITY -- Gov. Jay Nixon used his final State of the State address to once again call on legislators to pass comprehensive ethics reform and to outlaw discrimination based on sexual orientation.
“I pledge to you that I will do everything I can, with the power entrusted in me, to move us — to move you — to action,” Nixon told a joint session of the Missouri General Assembly on Wednesday night. “Action carries risks. But it’s the risk-takers who make history. Inaction is always easier. But inaction is also a decision with real consequences.”
Nixon, a Democrat, has called for ethics reform every year he’s been in office. Missouri is the only state in the nation with the trio of no caps on campaign contributions, no limits on lobbyist gifts to lawmakers and no waiting period before legislators can become lobbyists after leaving office.
With one year left before Nixon’s term as the state’s governor ends because of term limits, the Republican-dominated Missouri House has moved a series of ethics bills that would, among other things, ban lobbyist gifts and prohibit legislators from immediately becoming lobbyists when they leave office.
Continue reading at www.kansascity.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/the-buzz/article55738090.html#storylink=mainstage .