"Government By the People Act" Introduced   ...1 of 1 >
Feb. 5, 2014 - Joined by half dozen of his colleagues including Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Paul Sarbanes (D-MD) today introduced the Government By the People Act (H.R. 20), a bill designed to "amplify the voice of everyday Americans in campaigns."  Following the U.S. Supreme Court's Jan. 2010 decision in Citizens United, good government groups have been concerned about the impact of big money from "billionaires, idealogues, and special interests" on campaigns.  In 2012 Pelosi named Rep. John Larson (D-CT) as chairman of a task force on election reform, and she has pressed a four-point agenda: disclose, amend, reform and empower (DARE).

Sarbanes' bill seeks to empower citizens by establishing a My Voice Tax Credit for small donors and by matching small contributions with a Freedom From Influence Matching Fund.  Sarbanes said he set two standards in crafting the bill: first, that everyday citizens will see that the bill was designed with them in mind ("We want to build something for you, that puts you in the middle of the equation," he said); and second that Members will see that the proposed system can work for them. 

The Government By the People Act is billed as a bipartisan piece of legislation.  Sarbanes claims support of over 100 Members, but the bill currently has the backing of just one Republican, Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC).  Thirty-five national organizations, mostly progressive, are supporting the legislation, and representatives of many of those groups participated in the event. 

Adam Lioz, counsel for Demos, a public policy organization, conceded that the bill will not pass in the Congress this year.  He said the bill is "a beginning" and amounts to "putting down a marker," but that it could take "at least 3-5 years" to pass reform.  Citing a poll, Lioz said, "The ground is fertile for both Republicans and Democrats to take this up as an issue."  
Members participating were House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (CA), John Sarbanes (MD), Democratic Caucus Chair John Larson (CT), chair of the Progressive Caucus Keith Ellison (MN), Chellie Pingree (ME) and Beto O'Rourke (TX); Anne McLane Kuster (NH) and John Yarmuth (KY) were present but did not speak.

Interest group representatives participating included: Craig Holman, government affairs lobbyist for Public Citizen; Emma Boorboor, democracy associate for U.S. PIRG; Marissa Brown, executive director of the Democracy Initiative; Kimberly Trinca, government relations at NEA; Courtney Hight, director of the Sierra Club's Democracy program, Adam Lioz, counsel at Demos; Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee; Hilary O. Shelton, director of the NAACP Washington bureau; Mary Boyle, vice president for communications at Common Cause; Shane Larson, CWA legislative director; Nick Nyehart, president and CEO of Public Campaign; Barbara Lawton, the new president and CEO of Americans for Campaign Reform.
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