REFORM IS ALIVE AND WELL

Reform is alive and well

Several political pundits and editorial pages across the Commonwealth used the recent statewide judicial election results to pronounce the “death” of legislative and political reform in Pennsylvania. Not only do I believe that reform’s death has been announced prematurely, but those of us committed can not allow it to be true.

Every election is, by definition, a referendum on reform in some way. But when the measure of the reform movement’s success is a bar that never should have been set – the defeat of even the most qualified statewide judicial candidate up for retention – it confuses what can only be described as an unworthy and unwise publicity stunt with true reform.

Reform is continuing in Harrisburg. To date we have passed more than 30 reforms in the House to make more openness and transparency in the process. Next week we will continue our debate on the state’s open records law. Coming up are serious conversations on campaign finance reform and reducing the cost of government -- two proposals that I authored. Put in perspective of the lack of reform in the last 30 years, reform today is moving at a quick pace, but we must accomplish a lot more.

With the real impact reformers have had on elections over the last few years, lawmakers in Harrisburg are not trying to read the tea leaves of past elections to look for permission to stop working for reform. The men and women I’m working with every day on reform are committed to the cause. We cannot and will not let cynical observers dissuade us from doing what is right.

The only people who are saying reform is dead are the people who never wanted reform in the first place. I do not accept their jaundiced assessment and neither should anyone else.

-- Rep. Josh Shapiro, 153rd District

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