Stein: Candidate states platform
By Jon Brodkin/ Daily News Staff
Thursday, October 26, 2006

Secretary of state candidate Jill Stein criticized the Legislature for negotiating important legislation behind closed doors, and said if she beats incumbent William Galvin she will make information on campaign donations and lobbyists more accessible to the public.

"I have a different view of the role of the secretary," Stein said in a meeting yesterday with the Daily News editorial board.

Stein, a physician and grassroots organizer who belongs to the Green-Rainbow party, also ran for governor in 2002.

Stein said major pieces of legislation like the state's universal health care law, annual budgets and an economic stimulus package have been negotiated privately by House and Senate leadership with input from lobbyists.

Lobbyists have also used their influence to defeat bills that would benefit the public, such as a bulk purchasing plan that would have lowered prescription medication costs, she said.

The state Open Meeting Law does not apply to the Legislature, but Stein said the secretary of state can empower the public to seek input into the legislative process by making more information available.

"All you can do is mobilize public opinion," she said. "In my experience I have found that to be a very effective tool."

Stein said the state's political system is "Soviet-style" in the sense that incumbents almost never lose.

In Wisconsin, the state government maintains an Internet search engine allowing residents to find out which donors and lobbyists are behind any piece of legislation, she said.

"It allows you to see, with a click of a mouse, how money is driving that process," Stein said.

Stein wants a similar Web tool in Massachusetts, although the amount of information would be limited by the state's donor disclosure laws, which are not as strict as Wisconsin's, she said.

Drug companies spent $2.9 million lobbying on Beacon Hill in 2003 and 2004, the fourth-highest amount in the country, according to a recent report by the nonprofit Center for Public Integrity.

In 2005, hospitals, insurance companies and other health care industry groups spent $7.5 million on lobbying as the Legislature was crafting its health care expansion, the Boston Globe reported in April.

In 2003, the Legislature repealed a voter-approved law known as Clean Elections, which attempted to limit the influence of lobbyists and donors by providing public financing to candidates who agreed to limits on fundraising and spending.

Stein criticized Galvin, saying he did not object when the Legislature repealed the law.

(Jon Brodkin can be reached at 508-626-4424 or jbrodkin@cnc.com.)