It's early October, and again we're hearing about the gazillions--excuse me, tens of millions--of dollars that the leading presidential candidates are raising, as they report in for the quarter.  Bob Edgar, Common Cause President, wrote this Tuesday in the Nashville Tennessean that "the 2008 race so far is memorable mostly for the astounding amount of money that many of the top-tier candidates are each raising -- as much as $80 million so far."

Edgar asks,

Ever wonder how much employers pay their lobbyists? Well, now you can (assuming you live in Tennessee). Under a new state ethics law, employers must disclose how much they pay lobbyists, which includes direct payments as well as PR and advertising. Over a six-month period, employers in the state of all sizes and shapes spent somewhere in between $11.4 million and $18.7 million.

This is certainly good news that this information is being disclosed to the public. However, it would be nice if the number was a little more accurate. There is a big difference between $11.4 million and $18.7 million, which is like the difference between a middle-of-the-rotation starter and a Cy Young candidate. In addition, the chairman of the Tennessee Lobbyist Association told lobbyists to "over-report" payments and told the paper "Does it give an indication? Yes. Does it give an accurate indication? No." Is this opinion on the number's accuracy correct? Yes. Should he continue to use this question-and-answer technique? Probably not.

This is definitely a step in the right direction, especially considering 2005's Tennessee Waltz scandal, in which seven state lawmakers were arrested for bribery. Still, the ethics commission still has a lot of work to do. Now if Tennessee's notorious football player Pacman Jones would disclose all his "payments," the state would be in great shape.

As a group fighting for transparency, we're not about to hide our own successes--so enjoy this latest Common Cause news from around the country:

• Florida passes paper ballot bill...
• ... and restores voting rights for ex-felons
• Tennessee lobbyist disclosure law goes into effect
• Contribution limit violations in NY, as papers continue to back reforms
• Edgar takes the helm

Here's your weekly round-up of what happened in the states.  As always, let us know if we missed something in your state in the Comments section.

• In Ohio, the Republican redistricting proposal failed to pass, but Tom Noe of Coingate infamy cut a deal with prosecutors.
  
• A grand jury declined to indict Colorado State Rep. Deanna Hanna, who resigned in disgrace after calls from Common Cause Colorado, on bribery charges.
  
• In Florida, the Broward County sheriff is under investigation for a suspicious loan.
  
• Wisconsin is considering punishing corrupt politicians by trimming their pensions.
  
• Tennessee lawmakers have raised suspicions over the timing and motive of a last-minute pension hike for themselves.

Tennessee state lawmakers this weekend voted to increase their own pensions by about 3% per year.  The Nashville City Paper is suspicious of their timing and motive:

But I'm not talking about Congress.  No, this bill was passed Monday by the Tennessee legislature.  That's good for Tennesseeans, but it's too bad for the rest of us that the good ol' boys in Washington, D.C., haven't taken their cue yet.