Sign the Petition for Real Campaign Finance Reform

Want to fix government so it works for everybody?  Short of a magic wand, here’s the closest thing available  – and it cuts across every imaginable issue from health care to education to jobs and a decent budget: limiting the influence of big money on the political process.  To learn more and sign on to a petition calling for essential campaign contribution limits based on an excellent bill now in the hopper in Harrisburg, click here.

Want some examples of the impact of big money corroding the political process? 

Nationally, health insurers and HMOs have spent more than $126 million in 2009 alone on campaign contributions and lobbying to fight health care reform.  Or take the state budget fiasco (please).  The subterranean interests blocking adequate revenue from reaching the state's coffers are many, but they all have one thing in common: big bucks.  Want to tax the natural gas extracted from the Marcellus Shale?   What could be better public policy, especially when there are serious environmental hazards involved?  Sorry, that’s a no. Governor Rendell backed away – maybe next year – and key legislators are dead opposed.  The gas industry recently showered state senate leaders with more than $200,000 in campaign contributions and the governor was rewarded, too. 

How about taxes on cigars and smokeless tobacco?  "Sin" taxes make sense, especially involving smoking, which pushes up the cost of health care for everyone.  No cigar, not in PA, except for those itty-bitty ones. So what if we’re the only state that doesn’t tax cigars and smokeless tobacco? The tobacco industry donated more than $415,000 to political candidates and their committees in 2008. (Smoke-filled rooms aren’t for nothing.)  Heard enough?  Click here.  

Well, what about sensibly expanding the sales tax to high-end business services like legal, accounting, engineering and consulting, perhaps with a dollar-value floor for applying the tax?  (It beats taxing the struggling arts community.)  No, that’s not going to work either, once you consider that powerful law firms across the Commonwealth have huge influence and are not shy about distributing largesse in the right places.  In fact, since firms in these industries are generally partnerships, they even avoid the ban on corporate contributions and can make donations directly through their businesses.  “Pinstripe patronage” greases the wheels of government but drives them in the wrong direction.   

And then there’s the casino industry, whose generosity with political gifts knows no bounds. Gaming impresarios and their friends have dispersed some $17 million to politicians since 1991, according to a recent study by Common Cause PA.  And what do they get in return?  A new market in Pennsylvania - even if it required overriding local government authority - and a chance to make their bid to operate casinos and make profits so huge that they’re positively thrilled to pay taxes.  Plus, their latest jackpot is the approval of table games.  Giving and receiving – they go hand in hand in Pennsylvania politics.   

A still somewhat obscure piece of legislation introduced in the House by Rep. David Levdansky (D-Allegheny/Washington) can stanch the stench of big money in the Keystone state.  It would institute far-reaching donation limits and strengthen reporting requirements that can change the dynamic across the Commonwealth’s political landscape. 

We are starting a petition drive for the Levdansky bill, House Bill 1910, because we believe that a battle for this type of legislation requires education and promotion well beyond the corridors of the Capitol. The petition itself is a small beginning.  We’ll be launching a campaign soon in conjunction with advocacy organizations and concerned citizens across the state.  When we get a sufficient number of petitioners, we’ll deliver the list to the legislature.  Click here to read the petition and sign on to join the fight.