Oppose the Elections Transparency Act

As a constituent, I am writing to voice my opposition to the “Elections Transparency Act.” At this writing, the bill has been pulled from consideration in the legislature but obviously it can be re-introduced. That would be a grievous error on the part of legislators. The act is clearly not in the best interest of the people of the state of New Jersey. It raises contribution limits for the parties. This is intended to offset the large amounts of dark money that are coming into our elections. The solution to the problem of money in politics is NOT to allow even more money in politics. This would also help enable the very few people to consolidate power and amass even more influence over our legislators. It shortens the amount of time that ELEC would be allowed to investigate violations (Statute of Limitations). This makes it more likely for politicians to violate those laws without fear of prosecution. Ultimately, this WILL diminish the effectiveness of ELEC, as potential violators know that the likelihood of consequences is significantly reduced. The ELEC Commissioner would serve at the pleasure of the Governor. But the Governor is a politician that is currently held accountable by ELEC. It is shocking to consider that this bill would be proposed with such an obvious conflict of interest. Local Pay-to-Play laws are weakened which further increases the likelihood of corruption around government contracts in New Jersey. As mentioned above, fortunately the bill has been withdrawn. That was the right thing to do. Please know that we will be watching and if the bill or any of its components are re-introduced, the opposition will be equally as strong. With all this said, it would be positive for the legislature to pass laws that: (1) Provide for Dark Money Transparency so that people can know who is paying big money to influence their opinion. (2) Further insulate ELEC from control or influence by politicians. ELEC should be free to enforce election law objectively to the benefit of the citizens of New Jersey. (3) Enact simple, straightforward laws that apply to everyone equally with no loopholes that make all forms of corruption and conflict of interest illegal.