The US Congress is once again trying to clean itself up.
Both chambers of Congress passed ethics reform legislation this week.
The entire New Hampshire delegation supports the reforms, but lawmakers are saying these bills are just a first step.
NHPR Correspondent Matt Laslo reports from Washington.
NARR: Outside the House chamber is a large lobby. Throughout the day it sits empty – but when members hear the voting bell.
AMB_BELLS_HOUSE
Then the room teams with lobbyists.
AMB_HOUSE
In the room lawmakers are usually outnumbered by lobbyists. Members always have a staffer with them taking notes and keeping the conversation alive when the member has to run back in to vote. This is business as usual in Washington. People, or groups of people have a cause, and they ask the people with power to help them out. But Second District Democratic Congressman Paul Hodes says things have gotten out of hand..
HODES4-PAST ABUSES
:18 There was bribery, there was legislation for sale there was, there was legislation being written by lobbyists, we set out to correct those abuses – that's one of the reasons I was elected to Congress and I think we are making really important progress.
The new ethics bills seek to bring drastic changes to Washington. If it's signed into law, members of Congress will no longer be able to take gifts from lobbyists. They will also have to pay for their own airfare, even if they take private jets. And lobbyists who raise large amounts of money for members will have to disclose all that they raise. In the past they would pass on large amounts of bundled donations to members to gain their favor. But while much of the blame is placed on lobbyists, Congressman Hodes says they aren't the problem.
HODES2-lobbyists
:16 Lobbyists aren't just people who represent corporations, lobbyists represent people. So it is an important part of the legislative process to get enough information as you can
Lawmakers complain that a few bad apples have spoiled the bunch. Recent scandals from lobbyist Jack Abramoff and former Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham have left their mark. Abramoff defrauded an Indian tribe while swaying lawmakers with lavish gifts. Cunningham admitted to accepting over two million dollars in bribes. Still as a former member of Congress, Cunningham will receive a federal pension until he dies.
But this new bill would change that. First District Congresswoman Carol Shea-Porter says those past misdeeds tainted Congress' image. She says the ethics bill was needed to get American's trust back.
SHEA2-ANYTHING
:14 You know what I think, I think anything we can do to help the American public look inside the House of Representatives and understand that we are working for them, anything we can do to send that message is useful
Melanie Sloan is the Executive Director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington.
She says the bill still doesn't go far enough.
SLOAN1-not far enough
:18 The problem with the ethics bill is that it really doesn't contain any new enforcement mechanisms. And a lot of the conduct that people have been concerned about over the past couple years because of the Jack Abramoff scandal was already against the rules, the problem was there was no enforcement of the rules and this ethics bill doesn't change that.
She wants to see an office of Public Integrity set up to police lawmakers. But most members say they trust their ethics committees to honestly investigate wrongdoing. Sloan does see some good in the bill. She especially likes the earmark reform that forces lawmakers to disclose what special projects are theirs.
SLOAN2-earmakrs
Earmarks are a huge source of Congressional corruption and those should be more transparent. The public should know which members of Congress are putting in what new earmarks and who is benefiting from them
But earmarks were also the most contentious part of the debate. Earmarks are how lawmakers direct funds for special projects.
Republican New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg did vote in favor of the ethics bill. But he has his concerns.
GREGG2-STEPS
:03 I think its like two steps forward and one step back
He and New Hampshire Republican Senator John Sununu don't like that the Majority Leader gets to certify earmarks. Senator Gregg.
GREGG1-PROTECT
:11 the biggest problem is it doesn't go far enough in the area of earmark disclosure – it's not transparent and it gives the Majority leader a unique amount of power to protect his members and basically take it to the minority members
Senator Sununu says he still wants to see some more work done on that issue.
SUNUNU1-later
I think we'll come back with some of the earmark provisions, to try to control government spending and I hope they get a vote later in the year.
The bill has now been sent to President Bush. His press aides are saying that he has concerns with the bill. It remains unclear if he will sign it into law..
For NHPR News, I'm Matt Laslo in Washington.
