Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Campaign finance-plank-Dowd - Fix PA

Nice response. Now lets go and split hairs.
Campaign finance-plank-Dowd - Fix PA 1) I will introduce comprehensive, common sense campaign finance legislation that is tied to federal contribution limits within the first 100 days;

2) I will end the practice of awarding no-bid contracts to campaign contributors;

3) I will ensure that every contract over $25,000 will be competitively bid;

4) As an incumbent Mayor, I will not solicit campaign contributions from any firm that does business with the City of Pittsburgh or its Authorities;

5) I will make all finance reports electronically available to the public on the state and county filing dates;

6) I will ensure the creation of and integrate searchable electronic databases of all city contracts and all campaign contributions of all city elected officials.

7) I will publish my public schedule on the city's website so that any Pittsburgher can see who I am meeting with.

#7. Why not have your private and public schedule on the web?

Why not have the schedule on the web now?

Why not have the schedule on a personal site and not the city's site?

Why not have the main meeting room set up with UStream or some other video conference set up so that what is said is broadcasted and archived so others can see or hear exactly what happened?

#6. Why not do a database of your spending and incomes now?

Why not support the TRANSPARENT PAC ACCOUNT concept with private banks as a way to make a solution that is without any extra costs and overhead on city resources?

Why not meet with me to learn about and craft such a solution with a call to local bankers for a new type of account for local PAC accounts?

Why not ask all the other candidates you know in the city and county to migrate their bank accounts to these new TRANSPARENT PAC ACCOUNTS so that a critical mass rewards to early adopters and a new chapter in transparency is started in earnest?

#5. Why not make finance transaction data available as it occurs, not as the reporting periods dictate? Do reporting in real time, not with big lags.

#3. Why not insure that every contract greater than $5,000 be awarded after a competitive bid? Why the $25,000 ceiling?

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