We protected democracy in Utah — you're welcome

Your columnists just completed nine months of grueling labor protecting democracy, our sacred rights, and the American Way. (You can send effusive praise to the e-mail addresses below.)

We accomplished these noble objectives as members of the Governor's Commission on Strengthening Utah's Democracy (www.strengthendemocracy.org), affectionately called the Save Democracy Commission.

This commission was established by former Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. with the overall objective of increasing citizen involvement in the political process and reversing Utah's declining voter turnout. Huntsman originally charged the commission with several tasks, with the scope later trimmed under legislative pressure to elections procedures, lobbying regulations and campaign finance.

The commission will soon forward several important recommendations to Gov. Gary Herbert that are likely to be considered by the Legislature.

The process has generated a number of questions:

 Was the outcome of the commission work worth the effort?

Pignanelli: "A committee is a cul-de-sac down which ideas are lured and then quietly strangled." — Barnett Cocks

This commission is a testament to the human spirit of overcoming challenges. Despite all the initial fanfare, the Huntsman administration stumbled in the initial rollout. The mission of increasing voter turnout was diluted among other objectives without collaboration with the Legislature. The governor refused any state funding to the commission, thereby raising questions of his commitment to the effort. Then, commission chairman Larry H. Miller passed away, leaving a void. Acting chairman Kirk Jowers (director of the Hinckley Institute of Politics) and his staff (Matthew T. Sanderson and Taylor D. Morgan) soldiered on with a number of committed volunteer members. Normally, the products of task forces and commissions make great door jams and that's about it. However, with the current focus on government ethics and transparency, the actions of the commission will receive attention.

Webb: I was a bit skeptical upon being appointed by Huntsman, but the effort grew on me as time went on. A lot of really excellent work came out of the commission, especially the in-depth papers produced by the terrific volunteer staff (a number of fine attorneys from various firms). If anyone is interested in campaign finance, elections procedures, lobbying regulations, redistricting, and ethics, several in-depth background papers can be found on the commission Web site. The final recommendations are also there.