ATLANTA (AP) - House Speaker David Ralston says more people should be required to register as Statehouse lobbyists and disclose their spending.
Ralston said Thursday that Republican leaders will introduce legislation next week seeking to tighten rules on who must register as a lobbyist.
Right now, people seeking to influence lawmakers only need to register if they spend more than 10% of their working hours on lobbying, or if they spend more than $1,000 to promote or oppose legislation.
Ralston has also supported prohibiting lawmakers from accepting gifts from lobbyists. He had earlier said that lobbyists should be forced to disclose their spending, but had opposed limits on what lawmakers could accept.
The state Senate could vote as soon as Monday on a rule capping lobbyist gifts at $100.
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Wednesday, May 22 2013 6:21 AM EDT2013-05-22 10:21:32 GMT
Authorities have issued an Amber Alert for a 1-year-old girl who was abducted just after midnight on Wednesday.
Authorities have issued an Amber Alert for a 1-year-old girl who was abducted just after midnight on Wednesday.They say 1-year-old Annya Buchannon was in the back of a car that was stolen from the Playskool Daycare on Conley Road in Forest Park.
Tuesday, May 21 2013 10:48 PM EDT2013-05-22 02:48:00 GMT
Local families are taking a serious look at storm shelters in the aftermath of Monday's deadly tornado in Oklahoma.
Local families are taking a serious look at storm shelters in the aftermath of Monday's deadly tornado in Oklahoma. Those shelters could mean the difference between life and death when faced with one of these powerful storms.
A federal court has struck down Fayette County's at-large method of electing members to certain county offices, saying the method was a violation of the Voting Rights Act.
A federal court has struck down Fayette County's at-large method of electing members to certain county offices, saying the method was a violation of the Voting Rights Act.
