Chip Taylor

SC: Second worst campaign finance disclosure system

Only Wyoming has one more useless:

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) -- A report on how states handle and make available details on political candidates' campaign cash says South Carolina ranks 49th in the nation for the third year in a row.

Only Wyoming's system is worse, according to the annual report from the Campaign Disclosure Project, a joint effort of California Voter Foundation, the Center for Governmental Studies and the UCLA School of Law supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Washington received the only A grade overall and had the highest ranking. Florida and California were next with B-plus grades.

South Carolina's F came as the state failed to put campaign finance records on the Internet where they would be available to the public and the state Ethics Commission continued to charge 50 cents per page to copy campaign finance reports.

Herb Hayden, the commission's executive director, did not immediately respond to an interview request Wednesday.

The report says 47 states post campaign finance information on the Internet and that all but four of those provide itemized contribution and spending data.

"There is still no campaign finance data on the state's disclosure Web site, despite the fact that sweeping campaign finance and disclosure reforms were passed and signed into law in 2003," report said.

The law required the reports be put online, but lawmakers didn't fund the project until this year.

The lack of money means if someone wants to look at Gov. Mark Sanford's just-filed campaign finance report, they would have to head to the Ethics Commission office in Columbia where they would pay $6 for a copy.

...

It's almost as if they didn't want you to see the reports.

The Campaign Disclosure Project website.