The proposal would equalize funding in races between publicly backed candidates and better financed, privately supported candidates by topping off the "Clean" candidates with additional funds. The record in Maine and Arizona suggests that this approach fosters more campaign contests, and exerts a kind of collective peer pressure toward embracing Clean Elections.
The forum, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 7 pm at The Squantum Association, at 947 Veterans Memorial Parkway in East Providence. At 6 pm Common Cause RI will host an appreciation reception, which is complimentary to all Common Cause donors (donations also accepted at the door). RSVPs are requested by COB Tuesday, June 5; please call Diana Kelly at 861.2322. More details are available at http://www.commoncauseri.org/.
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Panelists will include the Hon. Norm Ferguson, a retired Maine state senator who participated in Maine's full financing system; Andy Sauer, Director of Common Cause Connecticut, where full public financing was signed into law in 2006; and Wright. Moderated by Common Cause RI Executive Director Christine Lopes, the discussion will examine the mechanics of various states' systems and consider issues facing reformers such as potential limits on free speech, legal challenges, the effect on public spending, the experience of participating candidates, and the positive impact on candidate diversity. Questions will be accepted from the audience.
Legislation to create a system of publicly financed campaigns has been considered by the Rhode Island General Assembly in each of the past three legislative sessions, but has yet to reach either chamber's floor for a vote. Reflecting on the challenge of getting the election reform passed by the Connecticut legislature and signed into law, Sauer noted, "While there were a lot of factors that contributed to our success -- such as the resignation and subsequent conviction of ex-Gov. John G. Rowland -- the most important factor in the passage of our campaign finance law was the determination of the people of Connecticut that its government respond to the worst scandal in state history. Warmed-over ethics legislation wasn't going to do it. We wanted meaningful reform."
Rhode Island currently has a system for partial public financing of campaigns, which has been used by elected officials like former Lt. Governor Charles Fogarty, Secretary of State A. Ralph Mollis, and Lt. Governor Elizabeth Roberts. A number of New England states have enacted public financing reforms which go further than matching funds, with Maine at the forefront. Senator Norman Ferguson, who served for eight years as a state senator from 1994 to 2002 before stepping down because of Maine's term limits, commented; "In the 2006 election cycle, over 80% of the candidates for the Maine legislature took advantage of the Maine Clean Election Act. It is fair to say that public funding of elections in Maine has been a resounding success."