Any candidate running for the Louisiana Legislature or for statewide office should complete ethics training, says Rep. Stuart Bishop, R-Lafayette.The Senate and Governmental Affairs Committee on Wednesday unanimously approved Bishop’s House Bill 365 and sent it to the full Senate for final approval.

The Washington State Public Disclosure Commission today added lobbying data to its online searchable database. Paid lobbyists register with the Public Disclosure Commission before lobbying state government and file monthly reports disclosing their compensation, entertainment expenses, campaign contributions given, and other lobbying-related expenditures.

United States Attorney William J. Ihlenfeld, II, announced that he will be taking a new, more aggressive approach to the investigation of public corruption in West Virginia and he is encouraging citizens to join the fight.

Northstar Lottery Group won a 2010 contract to manage the Illinois State Lottery that could enrich the firm by more than $300 million over five years, but a Franklin Center investigation has discovered that irregularities marred the state’s selection process.

As Michael Bender reported for the Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald last year, “New data shows Florida has signed contracts worth $1.7 billion since 1995 in return for promises of 225,000 new jobs.  But only about one-third of those jobs have been filled while the state has paid out 43 percent of the contracts.”

The 869,000 jobless Floridians need more from Enterprise Florida than 20,000 jobs created or retained each year.