Sunset Commission: Abramoff-Tied Lobby Contracts Should Continue

The Texas Sunset Commission today ruled that the high-dollar Washington lobby contracts may continue.

State Rep. Jim Dunnam (D-Waco), a longtime critic of the lobbying contracts set in motion by Governor Rick Perry, said the Sunset Commission had abdicated its responsibility:

The Sunset Commission abdicated their responsibility today by giving the Governor a blank check to continue wasting millions more taxpayer dollars on a couple of Tom DeLay and Jack Abramoff lobbyist cronies. The exorbitant and excessive lobby contracts awarded to Todd Boulanger and Drew Maloney should have been canceled when they were first brought to light years ago.

The Commission also recommended the Office of State Federal Relations merge into the Governor’s Office (no big surprise there) and put in force some oversight over the contracts, but it is fairly minimal:

•All public agencies in Texas must disclose who they hire to lobby for them in Washington.

•All contracts must include “conflict of interest provisions, comply with regular procurement rules, include termination clauses, and include “clear goals.”

•Also, all contracts must require that firms “work with key members of Congress.”

This is far too little, too late. Consider this:

Congressman Chet Edwards (D-Waco), is likely to become the state’s most powerful Congressman following the Democratic take over of the U.S. House. However, the $15,000 a month lobbyists (Cassidy & Associates) includes people who tried in previous election cycles to defeat Edwards.

It seems there is an inherant conflict of interest between these lobbyists and the Congressional Delegation. After all, it’s not like Rick Perry just started calling up Lobbyists on K Street to find someone.

Quite the contrary. Perry picked a firm with ties to Jack Abramoff and, by definition, Tom DeLay.

And, going back to what Dunnam has said before: we have 32 members of the U.S. House and two U.S. Senators…why do we need lobbyists?