They jaunt off on junkets, compliments of taxpayers or lobbyists. China, Boston and sunny Florida have been on the itinerary the past few years.
They accept hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of Utah Jazz tickets, greens fees, concert tickets, meals and other gifts. In 2007, they couldn't say no to a staggering $279,000 worth of swag.
And to make sure they enjoy these undeserved benefits of public office year after year, they cash campaign contribution checks from anybody who is willing to write them. And should they call it quits or lose an election, they're free to keep the balance as a consolation prize.
Yes, that's correct. The most unconscionable, morally offensive act allowed lawmakers under Utah's lax ethics and campaign contribution laws comes not during their tenure in office, but when they retire. Legislators are allowed to treat their campaign funds as Individual Retirement Accounts, and convert the money to their own personal use, without restrictions.
They can buy a boat, take a trip, send their kids to college, or blow it all in a brothel across the border. As long as they report the money as income and pay the taxes, they can spend it however and wherever they please.
It's a perk of preposterous proportions, one that makes those floor seats at Jazz games seem small.
It's also, in the opinion of many, a misappropriation of funds. The money is given with the expectation that it will be used to help a lawmaker buy an election, not a new car.
And it's an aberration. The federal government, and most state and local governments, rightly prohibit the personal use of campaign funds.
If ever a law needed changing, folks, this is it. But good luck with that. Try as they might, legislative reformers ran bills year after year to put a stop to this unsavory practice, without success.
Federal lawmakers, when they retire, resign or lose an election, face strict limitations on the use of their leftover campaign funds. They can donate it to a charity, a political action committee or another politician's campaign fund, or they can stash the cash for a future campaign.
Utah lawmakers should subject themselves to the same reasonable restrictions.
Legislators are allowed to treat their campaign funds as Individual Retirement Accounts, and convert the money to their own personal use, without restrictions.
