Tuesday, February 16 – Déjà vu and the First Time

It’s not unusual to be asked if I would support an amendment broadening the scope of my bill.

It happened at the hearing on my bill dealing with campaign committees for referendum and ballot issues campaigns. House Bill 247 would require these committees to disclose on the Internet within 24 hours any contribution received during the last two weeks before Election Day.

These midnight contributions are not a hypothetical problem. In 2008, the committee supporting the slots referendum listed $2.7 million in contributions in the report that was filed on November 25, three weeks after Election Day.

“Should we extend your bill to loans?” asked one member of the Ways and Means Committee.

“Should this apply to candidate committees as well?” questioned another.

“Both are consistent with my bill,” I responded. “If it’s the wisdom of the committee to add those circumstances, I would not object.”

What happened on my other election bill was a first.

Each of the last three years, my Voter’s Rights Protection Act passed the House of Delegates but never received a committee vote in the Senate.

“This bill is déjà vu all over again with a lineup change,” I began my testimony.

Last year’s bill has been pared down to one provision, I explained. If an individual or group violates - or there is reasonable grounds to believe is about to violate, the existing prohibitions on voter fraud or dirty tricks, the Attorney General or any registered voter can ask a judge for preventive relief, instead of waiting until the horse is out of the barn door on Election Day.

A delegate began reading from the statement of an interest group supporting legislation that was broader in scope than my bill.

“That was last year’s bill,” I replied.

Come back blue back

I haven’t lost one in 27 years, but I had my doubts this morning.

To introduce a bill, a member must take it to the House Clerk’s office. One copy of your proposed legislation is stapled to a sheet of blue paper. It’s called the blue back.

Two days ago, I took a blue back to that office, but this morning it was not on the list of bills I’ve introduced on the General Assembly’s web site.

Did I not take it there? Had I lost it?

We called the Clerk’s Office. They said they’d look for it. My aides anxiously awaited a return call.

One traumatic half hour later, a staffer came up to me on the House floor.

“Your blue back affects the Maryland Health and Higher Educational Facilities Authority,” he told me. “It’s been so long since we had a bill dealing with the Authority, we’re not sure what committee to send it to. That’s why it’s not on your list.”

“The last bill was probably mine,” I replied. “The very first legislation I introduced – 26 years ago, dealt with the Authority because Loyola College wanted to buy an apartment building, finance it with the Authority, and convert it to student housing, displacing my constituents.”

“That bill went to the Appropriations Committee,” I concluded.

Thirty minutes later, so had this year’s.

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“Your written statement mentions dirty tricks performed by Republicans but not any by Democrats,” complained a Republican delegate after I had testified on my Voter’s Rights Protection Act.

“I have a left leaning Google,” I replied.

Afterwards, I kicked myself for not giving a less humorous but politically accurate response.

So when I saw my colleague in the hallway, I told him, “It’s only the Republicans who are trying to suppress the vote in minority communities.”