Last week in The Ridgfield Press our State Representative, John Frey, was quoted as saying that "the perception of money and influence in our political system is leaving a bad taste among our electorate and it's imperative that we take swift action to enact legislation that addresses the people's concerns." Yet on March 23, when Representative Frey had an opportunity to cast a vote for comprehensive campaign finance reform he voted against it.
As a member of the Finance Committee, Representative Frey cast a vote against HB 5102, a bill which, if enacted will overhaul campaign financing of state constitutional offices. This legislation will cap skyrocketing costs of campaigns by providing constitutional spending limits. It would reduce the influence of special interest money by limiting the source and size of contributions and will free candidates from having to spend an inordinate amount of their time raising money.
The only way to legally put a limit on campaign costs is to provide for a system of public financing of campaigns, something this legislation does for statewide races. We are fooling ourselves if we take the position that "public" money should not be devoted to campaigns. The money has to come from some segment of the public. Which is preferable, that we pay for campaigns from hundreds of thousands citizens who designate five dollars of their taxes to a statewide fund or that we rely on a small number of lobbyists and affluent givers who can afford to give thousands of dollars? With special interest money comes special influence and access that erodes the public confidence in government.
The legislation which provides for electronic filing of campaign reports by certain campaign committees is a good idea, but it is merely an expansion of the ever widening availability of government related information on the internet. It should not be confused for comprehensive campaign finance reform.
Representative Frey should vote for HB 5102 when it comes up for a vote on the House Floor in the next few days.
-- Jim Diamond
Chairman, Ridgefield Democratic Town Committee
March 27, 2000
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