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Ethics law takes bite out of dinner

Lawmakers shy away from nonprofit's event

April M. Washington, Rocky Mountain News

Published March 16, 2007 at midnight

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John Meeker could always count on a throng of state lawmakers and elected officials to show up for his nonprofit's annual awards dinner.

But that was before Amendment 41, the new ethics law that is forcing cash-strapped lawmakers to stay home more.

The law was designed to stop lobbyists from paying for access to legislators, but it is also causing elected officials to make hard decisions about what community events to attend.

Only three elected officials plan to attend Developmental Pathway's awards dinner tonight, down from 13 public officials who attended in 2006. Nixed from the mix is the traditional mayors table.

"There is no substitute for a public official to hear a family say I want to tell you my son's story," said Meeker, who runs Developmental Pathways. "The dinner creates an opportunity for our families to interact with the public officials they otherwise would not have."

Developmental Pathways, which provides services for the developmentally disabled, is one of seven plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed in February, charging that Amendment 41 violates free speech and due process.

Government watchdog group Common Cause, a backer of Amendment 41, contends that lawmakers can freely attend nonprofits events. Common Cause Executive Director Jenny Flanagan says that the hysteria around the ethics law has made lawmakers extremely cautious for no good reason.

Rep. Nancy Todd, D-Aurora, is the only state lawmaker who plans to attend Pathways' event.

Most lawmakers are not wealthy. They are invited to many fundraisers and community events each year, some costing up to $175 per ticket, Todd said. The voter-approved amendment, in part, bans gifts worth $50 or more to lawmakers and government workers and their families.

"There are quite of few folks afraid to go to anything," Todd said. "Instead of legislators focusing on what we should be focusing on, we have to worry about who is trying to trip us up."