Soon after their replacements were sworn in last month, eight former House members registered as lobbyists with the Texas Ethics Commission.
Bidness As Usual
With a conflict disclosure system rife with holes, virtually toothless ethics laws often left to the interpretation of the lawmakers they are supposed to regulate, and a Legislature historically unwilling to make itself more transparent, Texans know exceedingly little about who or what influences the people elected to represent them. And they have no way to differentiate between lawmakers motivated entirely by the interests of their constituents and those in it for their own enrichment.
The Texas Tribune’s Bidness As Usual Project — an extensive reporting and data venture that spanned the 2013 legislative session — looked at these lawmakers and the ethics rules that govern them, addressing issues like conflicts of interest and breaches in public accountability.
In addition to dozens of stories analyzing everything from individual lawmakers’ personal interests to the state’s disclosure forms and ethics laws, the project included the Texas Tribune Ethics Explorer.
This interactive tool was designed to educate citizens on the degree to which legislators’ personal interests conflicted with the public interest when passing bills and setting policy. It included extensive research into all 180 members of the Texas Legislature, plus the governor and lieutenant governor, and provided details on a lawmaker’s employment history and financial records, stock holdings, property listings, campaign finance data and ethics investigations. The Explorer was created with the generous support of the Fund for Investigative Journalism.
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Bidness As Usual
Some Lawmakers and Lobbyists Tied by Blood
In a state capital where moving from the Legislature to the lobby — and, sometimes, the other way — is unremarkable, it’s also common to find the relatives of lawmakers lobbying the state government.
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Bidness As Usual
Despite Reforms, Elected Officials Can Still Lobby
While members of the Texas Legislature can no longer act as lobbyists before state agencies, plenty of lawmakers still manage to lobby local governments. Others find work that critics would classify as lobbying by another name.
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Bidness As Usual
Bills Renew Push for Ethics Commission to Post Financial Disclosures Online
Rep. Donna Howard, D-Austin, and Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, both filed legislation on Thursday that would require personal financial statements submitted to the Texas Ethics Commission to be made available online.
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Bidness As Usual
Video: A Look at Texas Ethics, Then and Now
The last substantial Texas ethics reforms passed during the 72nd legislative session. It wasn’t easy then — and won’t be easy now. But members pushing for new rules say they’re optimistic that their colleagues will support making the state’s business more transparent.
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Bidness As Usual
For Lobbyists, They’re Gifts That Keep On Giving
The culture of gift-giving is alive and well in the Texas Capitol, and lobbyists are the chief benefactors.
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Bidness As Usual
Jim Clancy and Paul Hobby: The TT Interview
The new chairman and vice chairman of the Texas Ethics Commission board on the state’s disclosure rules, their efforts to prioritize certain types of ethics complaints and the reforms they anticipate in the 83rd legislative session.
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Bidness As Usual
Interactive: How Texas Stacks Up on Disclosure
Texas’ financial disclosure practices for lawmakers may not be as thorough as ethics experts would like them to be. But the path Texas has taken to reach its guidelines puts it ahead of many other states. Use our interactive to see how Texas stacks up.
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Bidness As Usual
Texas Ethics Reform: A Long, Tortured History
From Gov. James “Pa” Ferguson’s impeachment to the Sharpstown scandal, Texas has weathered mighty ethics controversies. Despite reforms, the Legislature still faces criticism over lax disclosure rules and ties with lobbyists.
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Bidness As Usual
Ethics Opinion Lets Lawmakers Work, Solicit for Nonprofits
The Texas Ethics Commission’s board has approved an advisory opinion that stops short of recommending against lawmakers soliciting contributions for nonprofit organizations they are employed by.