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Legislator promotes LPAC ban

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In an attempt to end the influence of big-money contributions on legislative politics, a Greenville legislator last week introduced a bill to eliminate leadership political action committees.

Rep. Dan Tripp, R-Greenville, submitted the bill Thursday. Thirteen members of the state House of Representatives are sponsoring the legislation, which Tripp hopes will clean up politics.

"Our philosophies in government are dictated by money," he said Friday. "And I think the money is making our political process sterile, something that has become increasingly apparent over the last several years."

Leadership PACs are formed by General Assembly officeholders or candidates to raise money independent of their campaigns. The money typically is used to donate to other candidates or to pay for personal expenses.

But many opposed to the PACs argue that the money is being used to put like-minded, same-party candidates into office or buy votes.

"This clearly negates the intent of statute," John Crangle, executive director of Common Cause of South Carolina, said during a lecture on leadership PACs he gave to the Democratic Club of Beaufort County South of the Broad last week.

"It opens the door to extortion and payoffs," he said.

Crangle said about six legislators operated leadership PACs last year, three of which have since abolished their respective PAC. Speaker of the House Bobby Harrell raised more than $300,000 through his PAC, Crangle said.

Rep. Richard Chalk, R-Hilton Head Island, said he's not convinced the bill will be effective. He said if the PACs are eliminated, it's likely that other loopholes will be found to collect money.

"I think if you're going to do anything at all, then you need to look at wider reform," Chalk said. "People with money are going to find ways to eliminate the election process, one way or another."

Sen. Clementa Pinckney, D-Ridgeland, is one such legislator who is targeting wider reform. He is working on a bill that would enact publicly funded elections, which would give candidates the same amount of money in which to campaign, thus leveling the playing field.

"I think any move we can make to reduce the influence of money is good," he said. "But clean elections is the only way to for the everyday citizens to take politics back."

Rep. Bill Herbkersman, R-Bluffton, said he thinks he once received money from former state House Speaker David Wilkins' leadership PAC. But he said he doesn't have a committed stance on the issue because PAC money won't influence the way he serves.

"I'm going to represent the folks in my district and my county regardless," he said, "so it doesn't affect me one way or another."

Island Packet night city editor Vic Bradshaw contributed to this report.