Ban on contractor
donations advances

Proponents want to stop
candidates from "hitting upon"
firms with state contracts

---

By Bruce Dunford
Associated Press

Companies with contracts with the state or counties would be barred from making campaign contributions to candidates for mayor and governor under a bill approved yesterday by three Senate committees.

The committees agreed with a House measure to ban direct contributions from labor unions, but their version would continue to allow contributions from corporations.

Another change made by the committees to the House's tougher proposal is making the intentional falsification of a campaign spending report a Class C felony only if the violation involves contributions totaling $50,000 or more.

The House-passed bill would make it a felony with a possible five-year prison term for any intentional violation.

The measure now goes to the Senate Ways and Means Committee. Differences between the House and Senate proposals would be resolved during conference committee work later in the session.

Gov. Ben Cayetano has said he supports the ban on contractor contributions.

In restricting contractor contributions, "if somebody has the authority to release the contract to these individuals, then any candidate for that office would not be able to receive contributions from those contractors," said Senate Judiciary Chairman Brian Kanno (D, Ewa Beach-Makakilo-Waipahu).

"We're really trying to get to the root concern that contractors out there will make contributions to certain people running for certain offices because they hope to get those contracts," he said.

"If somebody is going to be a candidate for mayor or governor, they have to realize they can't be hitting upon the people who have contracts with the state or city, just as the incumbents won't be able to under this law," Kanno said. "It's really going to change the way our campaign spending works."

The much broader House version of the measure would bar contractor contributions to any political party or candidate during a period 12 months before the contract is available and 12 months after it is completed.

---

Legislature Directory

Legislature Bills & Hawaii Revised Statutes

Testimony by email: testimony@capitol.hawaii.gov
Include in the email the committee name; bill number;
date, time and place of the hearing; and number of copies
(as listed on the hearing notice.) For more information,
see http://www.hawaii.gov/lrb/par
or call 587-0478.