Jackson – Today, Brandon Presley released the first plank of his historic ethics plan to take on giant corporations and lobbyists and clean up Tate Reeves’ corruption at the steps of the State Capitol.

“As governor, I will tell the special interests, lobbyists, and good ol’ boys that the party is over,” said Commissioner Brandon Presley. 

“We’re going to make the big campaign check writers mad because you deserve a governor who will fight to put the government back on the side of working families, not the giant corporations - and that starts with declaring war on corruption.”

The first plank of Brandon’s bold plan includes:

• Banning the unlimited gifts from lobbyists to lawmakers and elected officials from the governor all the way down to stop the unlimited flow of special interest money to state officials and require weekly gift and lobbying disclosure forms;

• Placing limits on the currently unlimited flow of campaign contributions from individuals and political action committees and banning direct contributions from corporations;

• Banning state officeholders and candidates for state office from accepting contributions during any legislative session;

• Stopping the revolving door from state government into lobbying firms by implementing a 1-year waiting period for former government officials to lobby the state legislature and for lobbyists to join the state government;

• Increasing fines and penalties for politicians that violate ethics and campaign finance laws;

• Expanding the Mississippi open meetings law to include the Legislature, state elected officials, and hold every state agency responsible for timely public records request responses;

• Reauthorizing the Public Records Act permanently;
  

“Tate Reeves won’t tackle corruption because the corrupt, business-as-usual politics has benefitted him and his campaign,” said Commissioner Brandon Presley. “I’ll declare war on corruption on day one so we can have a state government that Mississippi can be proud of - a government that works for people like my mama.”

In the coming weeks, the Brandon Presley for Mississippi campaign will discuss further ways we can clean up state government and put the power back in the hands of the people. You can view video of the press conference here or pictures of the event below:

Brandon Presley is a fighter who keeps his promises, stands up for the little guy, and isn't afraid to ruffle more than a few feathers to deliver results for hardworking Mississippi families. Brandon served as Mayor of Nettleton from 2001 to 2007, where he got the town moving again, then balanced the budget every year and cut taxes twice. As Public Service Commissioner, Brandon opened up meetings that had been closed to the public for decades, brought high-speed internet to some of the most remote and forgotten parts of Mississippi, put people back to work with the Hire Mississippi program, and saved taxpayers over 6 billion dollars.

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