SR: Shine light on lobbying

The Washington and Idaho legislatures could help bolster public trust by passing laws that curb immediate lobbying by former state officials. Some form of “cooling off” laws are on the books in 31 states, and Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson is urging the Legislature to pass a bill that was introduced in 2015. Rep. Reuven Carlyle, D-Seattle, said last year, “Come hell or high water we are going to fix the ‘Friday to Monday’ problem, where someone concludes their public service on a Friday and becomes a formal paid lobbyist on a Monday morning,” It didn’t happen, and it didn’t take an apocalyptic event to block it. Just lawmakers who didn’t feel it was important enough/ Spokesman-Review Editorial Board . More here.