Governor keeps ethics reform ball rolling

Added to the mix of more specialized proposed ethics-related bills filed by individual lawmakers in the new session of the state Legislature was a much more comprehensive ethics bill submitted by Gov. Sarah Palin. The governor's bill, introduced in the House on Thursday and in the lightly attended Senate on Friday, follows her campaign's focus on cleaning up government and restoring public trust in the wake of several high-profile ethical lapses in recent years and an ongoing FBI investigation into possible corruption among this state's elected officials.

The reforms proposed in the bill read like no-brainers. Yet, they still qualify as &#8220sweeping.”

With the ongoing commitment of the governor and her staff, though, and continued vigilance by and encouragement from voters, lawmakers should find a way to bring about the kind of changes in the way the public's business is conducted that all Alaskans can be proud of.

Among other things, the governor's bill proposes to require that:

€ lawmakers' annual reports to the Alaska Public Offices Commission for outside income over $1,000 be filed electronically and specify the amount, the number of hours worked and details about the nature of the work;

€ outgoing lawmakers and public officials file disclosure statements within 90 days of leaving office; and

€ candidates and public officials report any sources of income over $1,000, instead of the $5,000 currently specified.

It also seeks to:

€ bar lawmakers and staff from accepting gifts from lobbyists, unless the lobbyist is a member of their immediate family;

€ prohibit public officials from taking official action on a matter in which they have a financial interest over $5,000; and

€ broaden a prohibition that currently bars the governor and lieutenant governor from lobbying within a year of leaving service to include a deputy head or a policy-making employee in the governor's office.

The proposed reforms come on the heels of an Ethics White Paper, prepared at the request of the governor by Republican Wev Shea and Democrat Ethan Berkowitz, two bright, visionary legal minds who know a thing or two about the workings of government - and how government has failed the public in recent years.

The white paper is based on some fundamental assumptions. Among them, that &#8220the privileged few, big money lobbyists and ‘political consultants' must not continue to control Alaska's isolated capital. … Gov. Palin and our Legislature must always place Alaskans first.”

For the majority of Alaskans, this likely comes as no Earth-shaking revelation. Still, Shea and Berkowitz close their white paper with a note of caution to all: &#8220The challenge for each Alaskan is to demand integrity and ethics of every public official. … Each Alaskan must recognize that only by working together can we make Alaska great again.”

We couldn't agree more.