Campaign for Vermont recently launched its citizen petition platform and website focused on statewide ethics reforms.
Campaign for Vermont is a grassroots-based advocacy organization founded in 2011. It created its ethics division in December 2013, said Cyrus Patten, executive director of Campaign for Vermont.
“We formally launched it last week because we recognize this summer as the prime opportunity to move on ethics reform,” Patten said.
In the 2012 State Integrity Investigation, Vermont scores an overall D+ or 67-69 percent, integrity rating, ranking it 26th among the 50 states when it comes to ethics. Vermont had three F’s in legislative accountability, judicial accountability and ethics enforcement agencies and two A’s in internal auditing and redistricting. This investigation is cited on Campaign for Vermont’s website.
“The time has come for Vermont to enact a clear law regarding ethics, conflicts of interest, and financial disclosure for our elected officials,” Jim Condos, Vermont secretary of state, stated in a June 3 commentary that’s also on the new ethic reforms website.
Patten said that though Campaign for Vermont has made attempts to pass legislation implementing comprehensive ethics reform in the state Legislature, all that was approved was the creation of an ethics panel, and only in the House.
There are many examples of Vermont’s ethical challenges, including the fact some lawmakers don’t believe their state government email accounts should be shared as public record, Patten said.
“What we’re trying to do with the petition that we started is quantify that support,” Patten said. “We know that the public is asking for this now and we know that this is an issue that’s gaining traction. We are trying to put a number on that so that lawmakers can see it and say, ‘OK, they’re serious now. They really want this done.’”
The petition, which is available to be signed on the new website, has more than 300 signatures.
