Why won't legislators just ban most gifts?

One would think that if there was a political system that no one really liked, and some absolutely hated, that those in charge of the political system would change it.

Makes sense.

But welcome to the Utah Legislature, where making sense often has little to do with what is done.

I speak of the current political system where lobbyists and special interest groups buy meals for legislators, give them expensive Jazz tickets, take them on river cruises and otherwise provide gifts worth, on average, more than $1,000 per year per lawmaker.

For example:

• Legislators who don't take many gifts don't like being lumped in with legislators who take thousands of dollars in gifts.

• Legislators who take expensive gifts don't like their names listed in lobbyists reports (as the current law requires), thus looking like they're bought and paid for.

• Special interest groups, like nonprofits, who don't spend any cash on legislators, say it is an unfair playing field.

• Many lobbyists who do spend cash on legislators complain about how much it costs to compete with lobbyists who spend even more on legislators.

• Tired of waiting for legislators to take some kind of gift-taking action, GOP Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. has announced that by executive order he'll stop all gift-taking by executive branch bosses.

• >Poll after poll shows that by supermajorities, like 70 percent, Utahns want the gift-taking by legislators stopped. And year after year legislators ignore their constituents' wishes.

So, what is going on here? Why won't legislators just ban most gifts — especially expensive gifts (some legislators took hundreds of dollars worth of Jazz tickets last year) — and end this weird struggle?

After a quarter century of watching the Utah Legislature, I can only shake my head and wonder myself.

The answer that comes to me is this: ego and the love of perks.

Simply put, no one is going to tell legislators what is best for them or their institution (which takes continual hits in the media over gifts. Sunday, the Deseret Morning News will run an investigative piece on legislative gift-taking).