Will the next governor pass a Gift Ban? We asked, see who answered.
10 OF 16 PA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATES COMMIT TO MAKING LAWMAKER BRIBERY ILLEGAL
Candidate & Senate President Jake Corman Refuses To Take Stand Against Legalized Bribery Despite His Power To Move A Gift Ban Bill To A Vote In The Senate
When the current Governor took office, he banned executive branch employees from taking gifts from lobbyists and any other people who want something from the government.
But, what about the next Governor? The current Governor's ban on gifts to executive branch employees will disappear in January. Will they sign a gift ban? Will they block a gift ban? Will they remove Governor Wolf’s ban on executive branch employees? Are they personally looking forward to receiving meals, drinks, vacations, golf weekends, and other gifts from lobbyists, or are they eager to make bribery illegal?
So, we asked the candidates for Governor:
“Will you support legislation that will ban gifts to public officials and public employees from lobbyists?”
10 of the 16 primary candidates said they will support a Gift Ban. Those 10 are: Doug Mastriano, Lou Barletta, Josh Shapiro, Joe Gale, Shawn Berger, John Ventre, Joe Soloski, Dr. Nche Zama, Tega Swann, and Christina DiGiulio. You can see their responses here.
A glaring absence from this list of pro-Gift Ban candidates is current Senate President Jake Corman - the only candidate who has the power to pass the gift ban right now. If he protects corruption now, do we really think he’ll do anything differently as Governor?
In addition to Sen. Corman, we received no comment from the following candidates: Charlie Gerow, Dave White, Jason Richey, Bill McSwain, and Melissa Hart.
We’re left wondering “Why would any candidate for Governor support continuing legalized bribery when people already can't trust Harrisburg?”
Does Senator Corman have an answer? Join us in asking him by calling his office at (717) 787-1377, contacting him here, and tweeting him @CormanForPA
We're making Democracy & THE GIFT BAN an election issue
We’re also asking candidates for the Pennsylvania House and Senate to make democracy a priority issue. We’ll be surveying primary candidates for the state House and Senate, asking them about their support for the Gift Ban and requesting that the candidates include a democracy-specific page on their websites explaining what they see as the problems with our democracy and what solutions they support. After the primary election, MarchOnHarrisburg will be asking the gubernatorial and the House and Senate candidates running in the general election to do the same thing.
You can help!
We’re seeking volunteers to reach out to your local candidates and encourage them to post a Democracy Page on their website, including their position on the Gift Ban. Email us at info@mohpa.org to learn more!
We all deserve to know if the candidates will use their elected offices to protect and defend democracy or if they will contribute to the continued decline in the public’s trust in government and our democracy.
About the Gift Ban
In Pennsylvania, gift-giving, or bribery, between legislators and lobbyists is completely unlimited and almost completely unreported. While legislators are legally required to report any gift of $250 or more, the vast majority of those gifts go unreported. From 2017 to 2020, lobbyists reported giving $5,326,895 in “gifts, hospitality, transportation and lodging for state officials or employees or their immediate families.” The dollar value of gifts reported as received by state officials and employees totaled only $128,359 for that same time period, leaving 98% of gifts unreported.
The Gift Ban, HB 1009, would make it illegal for lobbyists to bribe Pennsylvania legislators with gifts like unlimited cash, vacations, and concert tickets. The bill passed unanimously through the House State Government Committee in October 2021 and now awaits a full House vote. House Majority Leader Benninghoff’s top staff promised MarchOnHarrisburg in October 2020 that the Gift Ban would pass through the House “early next year [2021].” However, Rep. Benninghoff failed to bring the Gift Ban to vote in 2021, and he and Senate President Jake Corman, who also has the power to bring a Gift Ban to a vote, continue to fail Pennsylvanians by refusing to make lawmaker bribery illegal.