WASHINGTON - June 28 - In a letter sent today to all House members, reform groups urged representatives to support and co-sponsor the new, strong lobbying and ethics reform package Reps. Christopher Shays (R-Conn.) and Marty Meehan (D- Mass.) introduced last week.

The reform groups include the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.

The letter points out a new USA Today/Gallup poll that affirms that voters are deeply concerned about corruption in government.

The letter states, "According to a USA Today/Gallup Poll conducted June 23 - June 25, 2006, 85 percent of respondents said that corruption in government would be an extremely or very important issue to their vote for Congress this year. Corruption in government tied with the economy and ranked just below the situation in Iraq as the top rated issues in the poll."

Following is the text of the letter:

June 28, 2006

Dear Representative,

Last week, Representatives Christopher Shays (R-CT) and Marty Meehan (D-MA) introduced new, strong lobbying and ethics reform legislation, to address the corruption and lobbying scandals in Congress.

Our groups strongly urge you to support and co-sponsor this package, which represents real reform.

The reform groups include the Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, Democracy 21, the League of Women Voters, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.

The lobbying and ethics bills passed by the House and Senate this year, and awaiting a House-Senate conference, are cosmetic reforms that have been correctly labeled as phony reforms by editorial pages throughout the country.

Regardless of whether an illusory reform bill is enacted this year, Congress needs to enact real reforms to address the root causes of the worst congressional corruption scandals in decades.

These corruption problems -- and their consequences for democracy -- are not going away. Congress must respond decisively and effectively to the deep concerns of the American people about the undue influence of money and lobbyists in Congress.

According to a USA Today/Gallup Poll conducted June 23 - June 25, 2006, 85 percent of respondents said that corruption in government would be an extremely or very important issue to their vote for Congress this year. Corruption in government tied with the economy and ranked just below the situation in Iraq as the top rated issues in the poll.

Addressing the corruption in government problems requires the establishment of public financing for congressional elections and the passage of strong lobbying and ethics reforms.

The new Shays-Meehan lobbying and ethics legislation, H.R. 5677, includes provisions to:

-- Prohibit private interests that lobby Congress from paying for trips by Members;

-- Require Members to pay charter rates, rather than reduced fares, for the use of company planes made available by corporations for their travel;

-- Ban gifts to Members;

-- Establish an Office of Public Integrity to help enforce congressional ethics rules and lobbying disclosure laws;

-- Require lobbyists to disclose the campaign funds and financial benefits they provide to assist Members;

-- Require disclosure of the amounts spent by professional lobbying firms and lobbying groups on campaigns to generate lobbying of Congress by the public; and

-- Slow the revolving door.

An editorial in The Washington Post on June 25, 2006 described the new Shays-Meehan bill as "the kind of bold, meaningful reform that congressional leaders promised -- and promptly abandoned -- at the start of 2006."

We strongly urge you to sponsor the Shays-Meehan lobbying and ethics reform package and also to indicate publicly that you will oppose any efforts to enact illusory reforms.

Campaign Legal Center

Common Cause

Democracy 21

League of Women Voters

Public Citizen

U.S. PIRG

###