Florida passes paper ballot bill... - In a big victory for Common Cause Florida and its reform allies, all Florida counties will move to optical scan voting machines by July 2008, according to a new law passed passed Monday.  Over $27 million in HAVA funds will pay for new machines in the 15 counties that currently use touch screen voting.  The legislation allows ballot-on-demand equipment for early voting and requires that by 2012, persons with disabilities will be able to vote on a machine that produces a paper ballot as well.  Despite a few bad amendments tacked on just before passage, this represents a big step forward for a state that's been a hot spot for election problems.

... and restores voting rights for ex-felons - CCFL and its allies won another victory last month as the Florida Cabinet approved new rules for the automatic restoration of voting rights and civil rights for ex-felons who have completed the terms of their sentences; while those who committed certain violent crimes will still have to wait 15 years, the law is expected to cover 80% of an estimated 1 million ex-felons in the state.  Wow!

Tennessee lobbyist disclosure law goes into effect - The ethics and disclosure laws passed in the aftermath of the "Tennessee Waltz" scandal of 2005 went into effect, and on May 14, for the first time, lobbyists and their employers began a semiannual public disclosure of their lobby expenditures.  They join state and local officials who must file disclosure-of-interest statements with the newly formed Ethics Commission--whose initial compliance rate was a remarkable 98%.  While more work remains -- such as limiting campaign spending by wealthy groups -- it's a good start to an era of openness and ethical governance in Tennessee.

Contribution limit violations in NY, as papers continue to back reforms - After the successful Reform Day event featuring Governor Spitzer, Common Cause New York's campaign finance reform agenda continues to earn the backing of papers statewide.  CC/NY recently released new research showing that approximately 160 companies apparently violated New York State's annual corporate campaign contribution limit of $5000 during the '06 election cycle.  The apparent violations (and the fact that they have gone undetected and unpunished) highlight what a poor job the Board of Elections does of enforcing the state's already weak campaign finance laws.  The research earned wide coverage; here's one example.  Executive Director Rachel Leon is now barnstorming around the state and is posting updates on the blog.

Edgar takes the helm - Bob Edgar is the new president and chief executive officer of Common Cause!  A former congressman from Pennsylvania and Common Cause national board member, Edgar takes over the post last held by Chellie Pingree as he leaves his position as general secretary of The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA.  We're excited and proud to have a new leader with a broad track record of integrity and success!  His expanded bio is here.