This story was produced as part of the Colorado Capitol News Alliance. It first appeared at cpr.org.
Governor Jared Polis is strongly pushing back against a proposal that would treat legislative staff in his administration like any other lobbyist.
The primary job of those workers, called legislative liaisons, is to try to sway lawmakers and change legislation. They’re essentially lobbyists for the state government and the Polis administration, but they aren’t required to follow the same disclosure rules that govern most lobbyists.
A bipartisan bill moving through the statehouse would change that, a measure that appeared to ruffle feathers within Governor Jared Polis’s administration.
“Staff members in the Governor’s office are not registered lobbyists, and it would be absurd to have them treated the same way,” said Eric Maruyama, a spokesperson for the governor. “This is a clear attempt to limit the Governor’s Office’s ability to meaningfully participate in the legislative process, and to curb the Governor’s decision-making authority.”
The bill’s sponsors seemed to acknowledge as much at a committee hearing for the bill earlier this week.
“We've just experienced a unique set of years in Colorado history where we've seen an unprecedented level of involvement from the executive branch into the legislature,” said Democratic Representative Meg Froelich of Englewood, one of the bill’s main sponsors. “This is a chance to turn the page and to bring in new people who are going to abide by a more transparent set of rules.”
Currently, lobbyists are required to register a stance on any bills they’re trying to influence with the Secretary of State’s Office, which makes that information publicly available. Legislative liaisons doing the same type of work for state agencies or the governor’s office directly don’t have those disclosure requirements to indicate their position on a bill.
Senate Bill 146, which seeks to eliminate that exception, passed unanimously in the House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs committee on Monday. It has already passed the Senate. Backers said the measure is necessary to restore transparency to the legislative process.
They argue that without the rules, the governor’s administration can often withhold its positions on any given bill until the last minute, which precludes good faith conversations about executive branch concerns and can torpedo strong bills that have already gone through lengthy stakeholder processes.
“In our state, we very much see what the first floor wants often is what the first floor gets,” Rep. Johnson said, referring to the governor’s office, which sits on the first floor of the State Capitol. “So we're asking for that transparency just to make sure we have an even playing field on the separation of branches.”
“(The bill) would hold the executive branch, the agencies and departments to have to report just like a lobbyist,” said Republican Representative Dusty Johnson of Fort Morgan, who is also sponsoring the bill. “It just holds them to the same standard because they are meddling a lot in legislation.”
Labor unions and the lobbying industry testified in support of the legislation.
”There is no functional difference between legislative liaisons and the lobbyists,” said Lacey Hayes, executive director of the Colorado Lobbyist Association. “Lobbying activity by any person or entity should be reported, especially when public dollars are being spent in an effort to amend, support, oppose, or even monitor a bill.”
Some nonprofit organizations and state agencies are registered in opposition to the bill, but did not testify at the committee hearing to explain their opposition.
The governor stopped short of an outright threat to veto the bill should it arrive at his doorstep. But his opening bid to sponsors spelled out steep conditions to gain his support.
“The Governor would be open to this legislation if legislators – a co-equal branch that also makes decisions on legislation – held themselves to the same standards as defined in the bill,” Maruyama said.
The bill would also create two-year revolving door restrictions for legislative liaisons, similar to those already on the books for private lobbyists. They would prevent former lawmakers from jumping directly into using their influence on behalf of the governor’s administration when they leave office.
