Report recommends changes
The Utah House Special Investigative Committee report recommended a series of changes, including:
Campaign finance law
• require "major donors" to file campaign contribution reports
• make it a civil or criminal violation when candidates, parties or campaign committees "coordinate" expenditures or activities with corporations or political action/issues committees
• require consultants to report expenditures on behalf of a candidate
Ethics law
• expand the scope of required financial disclosures and the number of officials required to submit them
• institute a "cooling off period" for new public officials related to people or businesses with whom they were associated prior to taking office
• clarify restrictions on outside employment or other activities for which a public official can be paid
Government Records and Management Act
• impose new retention requirements for emails
• increase penalties for improper destruction of records
Pattern of Unlawful Activity Act
• include evidence tampering as an primary offense
Legislative authority
• improve ability to enforce legislative subpoenas
• criminalize the obstruction of a legislative function
• allow the Legislature to refer cases of criminal contempt to prosecutors
Failure to Disclose Conflicts of Interest Statute
• expand to include business and economic relations of officials and candidates
• require candidates to disclose all employers
• require disclosure of money received "directly or indirectly"
• require disclosure of anyone a candidate "advises" along with names of managers and partners in companies
Violations of campaign finance reporting requirements
• allow removal from office of someone who violates reporting requirements
Campaign finance disclosures
• Strengthen candidate expenditure and in-kind contributions reporting requirements
Outside work by public officers, employees
• specify which outside employment is not appropriate
Regulation of campaign officials, advisers
• license campaign consultants, advisers
• expand laws that govern candidates to campaign managers and consultants
• make it a crime to lie to a legislative committee