A bill that bans state employees from lobbying the legislature for three years has failed.
State Representative Steve Haugaard says state employees should not be allowed to leave government and go directly into lobbying.
“It’s appropriate to have a rule that fits everyone in this particular situation. Because you don’t know what the clout is that they might have," Haugaard says. "Maybe they were a book keeper and they had particular sway with some sort of department or division, budget, that sort of thing. I think instead of trying to fine tune this that its only certain top employees, I think it’s more appropriate to make it a general rule that no state employee would be in a position to lobby after three years.”
Haugaard says House Bill 1198 includes legislators in the three-year ban. State Representative Tona Rozum opposes the bill. She says it insinuates that lobbyists with institutional knowledge are bad, and that having a clean state makes lobbyists more trustworthy. A committee killed the bill on a vote of nine to four.
Lawmakers are considering another bill for a two-year lobbying ban that applies to high-level state employees.