So the city of Charlotte has new ethics rules for elected officials, which do not extend to including registration of those lobbying city government. Some quotes, all via the Charlotte Observer:
• “ This is about transparency.” — Charlotte City Councilman David Howard on then draft new ethics regulations, which didn’t include a lobbyist registration requirement. (More here.)
• “I think this is probably the most far-reaching, strongest ethics policy a council in these parts has seen in a long time.”— Howard, again, after the draft rules were adopted (More here)
• “The main benefit of registration is transparency. It lets the public know about the extent of lobbying and who is doing it.” — Robert Wechsler of the nonprofit organization cityethics.org. (More here) Charlotte is the largest city in the nation without a lobbyist registration requirement. 22 of the
