Oregon lawmaker to push bills outlawing businesses, unions with state contracts from making ...

[TexasTowelie]

Oregon lawmaker to push bills outlawing businesses, unions with state contracts from making political donations

SALEM -- Rep. Knute Buehler, R-Bend, said Monday that he plans to introduce legislation restricting so-called pay-to-play politics -- a scenario in which businesses, nonprofits or labor unions holding contracts with the state give campaign contributions to elected officials with sway over those contracts.

Buehler told The Oregonian/OregonLive during an interview at his Capitol office that some businesses or unions are "too cozy" with the elected officials who oversee their contracts. He said it's "clear" that pay-to-play "loopholes" ought to be closed.

"The practice is pretty common in Oregon, unfortunately," Buehler said. "We need to restore confidence in state government."

The introduction of Buehler's bills coincides with an opinion piece published Monday in Forbes that purports to show that, since 2012, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum accepted $805,876 worth of campaign donations from state contractors -- some of which have business agreements with the state worth billions of dollars.

Read more: http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2017/02/oregon_lawmaker_to_push_bills.html