Full House to debate registration by lobbyists

BOISE – A proposal from House Speaker Bruce Newcomb, R-Burley, to expand Idaho’s lobbyist registration requirements passed the House State Affairs Committee Monday and was set for debate by the full chamber.

Under Idaho’s current law, only lobbyists who try to influence legislators are required to register.

Newcomb’s measure would broaden the requirement to include those paid to lobby all elected officeholders, department and agency directors, members of rule-making boards and commissions and the Idaho Public Utility Commission, as well as members of the state insurance commission and the Idaho Housing and Finance Association.

The scandal surrounding federal lobbyist Jack Abramoff in Washington, D.C., has given momentum to Idaho’s bipartisan push to expand its 32-year-old “Sunshine Law,” though lawmakers also point to state-level concerns as underlining the need for changes.

For instance, some legislators have been alarmed that consultants including Phil Reberger, Gov. Dirk Kempthorne’s chief of staff until 2002, were hired by companies to help them win millions of dollars in state contracts but weren’t required to register as lobbyists under the existing rules.

“Most of us thought there was already ‘sunshine’ on the executive branch,” Newcomb told the committee, before members voted to recommend passing the changes.

“It’s naive for anybody to believe Idaho is immune from misguided CEOs trying to influence contracts when so much money is at stake.”

Reberger has since registered as a lobbyist, following an inquiry by Secretary of State Ben Ysursa.

On Feb. 22, the Senate unanimously passed changes of its own to Idaho’s Sunshine Law that extended lobbyist registration requirements to all elected officials.

It didn’t include agency heads.

Newcomb has said he’ll hold that bill and allow his more expansive version to go to the Senate for a vote.