EDITORIAL
It's time to deliver on campaign reform

We can't count how many times political candidates last election season went on about their commitment to campaign finance reform here.

Indeed, by now, one would expect a sweeping ban on campaign contributions to anyone who remotely influences the awarding of government contracts. Yet here we are again looking at a handful of less-than-perfect campaign finance reform bills, the most comprehensive of which is House Bill 284.

Here's what it proposes to do, but like all legislation, it's subject to dilution:

• Prohibit major government contractors from making campaign contributions.
• Ban direct contributions from businesses and labor unions.
• Make it a felony to falsify campaign finance reports to circumvent contribution limits.
• Reduce the amount of money supporters can give candidates for some offices.
• Ban contractor contributions to lawmakers.

That's a fairly impressive list. But still, state Campaign Spending Commission director Bob Watada has already found one troubling loophole in this measure.

Apparently, owners who control less than 25 percent of a company's stock can still make political donations. Such an exemption leaves ample opportunity for many contractors to continue paying for political favors.

To rectify that, anyone holding a key position in a contracting firm should be banned from making campaign contributions.

Meanwhile, Sen. Cal Kawamoto has introduced a bill that would bar contributions from contractors, but would allow them to make unlimited donations to political action committees. That just makes the PAC a middleman.

We don't want to spend the next decade patching up ineffective campaign finance reform. House Bill 284 is a respectable start; let's clean up its shortcomings and pass a bill that will truly deter scandals and influence-peddling.