By Marko Liias
We have a great opportunity on our November ballots to increase transparency and accountability in our state government.
By voting yes to approve Initiative 1464, we can reduce the influence of big money in politics, give regular people more of a voice in decision-making and shine a light on lobbyist activity when they are working behind closed doors with our elected officials.
Initiative 1464 will make important, commonsense reforms to Washington’s ethics and campaign finance laws. It will:
Require SuperPACs to include the names of their top donors in their ads so voters know who is really paying for them;
Require online public reporting of lobbyist activity, spending and compensation;
Place new limits on political contributions from lobbyists and government contractors who may believe they are buying influence over our elected leaders; and
Create a voluntary, taxpayer-directed small donor system so we can all support candidates of our choice, giving voters a stronger voice and empowering every person to make their voice heard.
Every election, it feels like we are more buried in overwhelming ads financed by wealthy interests. Often, we have no idea who is even paying for these ads, much less what their private motivations or business interests may be. Initiative 1464 will require SuperPACs to include the names of their top donors in their ads so that voters have more information before we fill out our ballots each election.
It can feel like regular people don’t have a voice anymore and that the financial power of a few donors outmatches the interests of the general public. That’s why Initiative 1464 will require online public reporting of lobbyist activity, spending and compensation. Initiative 1464 will also place new limits on political contributions from lobbyists and government contractors who may believe they are buying influence over our elected leaders. By raising our standards for transparency and accountability, we can better empower regular people in our state.
I’ve been a candidate for public office, and I’m proud of the small donors who have supported me, but the reality is our system is broken. The only way to compete is to spend hours raising money from wealthy individuals and political action committees. I-1464 would drive candidates to focus more of our time and energy talking to voters and asking for their support.
Initiative 1464 also will create a voluntary campaign donor program to give a stronger voice to Washington residents in political campaigns and government decision-making by allowing more candidates to run for office without having to rely on the donations of a wealthy few to get elected. This voluntary system will allow Washington residents to direct up to three $50 contributions to participating candidates each election. And the voluntary public system will be fully funded by closing a special interest tax loophole for out-of-state residents so that we can continue funding fundamental priorities such as education, transportation and public safety.
If we want things to change, we have to reform our political system to make it more transparent and accountable to the people. While one ballot measure alone cannot completely eliminate the influence of big money in politics — some of which stems from federal law — we can take a big step in the right direction by limiting the influence of big money and putting power back in the hands of voters.
Please join me, the League of Women Voters, the Faith Action Network and millions of Washingtonians in voting Yes to approve Initiative 1464 on your November ballot.
Sen. Marko Liias represents the 21st Legislative District. He lives in Everett.
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