EDITORIAL: Ethics reform can't wait in Indiana

South Bend Tribune

The state ethics reform proposals that were announced in October by Indiana House Speaker B. Patrick Bauer, D-South Bend, are good news. Not good enough in our view, but good all the same.

As we see it, Bauer's proposals, which he explains on the facing page, do not sufficiently address some of the most serious gaps in Indiana's legal standard for the ethical conduct of public officials, and those who lobby for their favors. This state must do better. That said, we do heartily welcome the speaker's aim that ethics reform extend to all branches of government, and his declaration that he will be an advocate for reform in 2010.