OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) - State lawmakers have rejected rules by the Oklahoma Ethics Commission that include barring elected state officials from becoming lobbyists during their first two years out of office.
The commission also suggested putting the restriction on departing state agency heads and requiring a lawmaker who leaves office early to pay for the resulting special election with campaign funds, The Oklahoman reported.
But both the House and Senate rejected those ethics rules Wednesday on grounds that the commission overstepped its bounds.
“It’s not that I’m against those people today,” Democratic Rep. Johnny Tadlock said Wednesday. “I’m truly not. But when they try to tell me what I can do when I leave this House, it’s none of their business, Mr. Speaker! It’s none of their business!”
Gov. Mary Fallin also agreed with the lawmakers. The rules could’ve gone into effect with her approval.
“The commission does not have the authority to write rules that prohibit employment opportunities of Oklahoma’s private citizens, which include state employees and lawmakers when they no longer are employed by the state,” Fallin said.
Ashley Kemp, the commission’s executive director, called the rejection of the cooling-off period disappointing.
“This idea is neither new nor particularly groundbreaking as two-thirds of states have similar restrictions,” Kemp said.
The commission had cited an existing ban found in Oklahoma’s Constitution as its reason for establishing the cooling-off period.
The constitutional ban prohibits lawmakers from taking state jobs paid from state appropriations until after they have been out of office for two years. The ban is more than a century old and has also been upheld by the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
“State officials are public servants trusted with carrying out the laws of the state of Oklahoma for the public good,” The commission has said. “Cooling-off periods seek to avoid conflicts between state officers’ public responsibilities and private economic interests.”
The commission could vote to impose the rules again.
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Information from: The Oklahoman, http://www.newsok.com
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