GOP leaders seek reform vote

Following a state Republican Party central committee battle over ethics and tabulation of a survey of state GOP delegates by House Speaker Marty Stephens, GOP leaders will try to force a vote on several so-called government reform bills this session.

Stephens, R-Farr West, who is considering a run for governor in 2004, sent a 16-question survey to all 3,600 state GOP delegates earlier this year. So far, 1,000 have been returned and tabulated.

The survey shows that 68 percent of state GOP delegates favor banning all gifts to legislators and the governor.

Saturday at a state GOP central committee meeting, a vote to back a variety of so-called ethical stands, including banning gifts to lawmakers, was defeated after state GOP chairman Joe Cannon voted "no" to break a tie and defeat the measure.

House Republicans closed their caucus Tuesday to talk about all of Stephens' survey, which included only one question on ethics, and the central committee debate.

Meanwhile, following votes in the House Rules Committee last week and Monday to kill a number of Democratic-sponsored government reform bills, Stephens said he decided to act to "at least get some of the bills a hearing."

He signed on to co-sponsor House Minority Leader Ralph Becker's lobbyist gift ban bill and worked to get Democratic Rep. Scott Daniels' "revolving door" bill moving. Both bills were voted out of Rules Tuesday, a reversal of a vote taken just a week ago.

"I have long supported banning gifts," said Stephens, who added that taken as a whole, his survey of state GOP delegates "tells me they are not as conservative as some would have you believe."

"I don't believe these reform bills are a partisan issue," said Stephens, noting that at least one Democratic member of House Rules voted against releasing Becker's and Daniels' bills. "And it shouldn't be a partisan issue."

However, Becker told the Deseret News before the 2002 session started that Democrats would run a slate of reform bills (they have) and he hoped voters in November would notice who supports the measures and who votes to kill them — the clear implication being Republican majorities would kill the measures.

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