Common Cause of Vermont

About

"When the little guy wins, it's likely that Common Cause had something to do with the victory. It's good to know that the people can make a difference."Please "suggest" us to your friends on Facebook. Thanks! Email us at [email protected]

Mission

OUR ISSUES


Voting Rights
Money & Politics
Government Accountability
Media & Technology


VOTING RIGHTS

National Popular Vote (NPV)
Everyone’s vote, regardless of the state in which you live, should count equally. NPV would ensure that the President of the United States would be elected by a national popular vote count. To date the states that have passed NPV include Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, New Jersey, and Washington. The bill has passed 30 legislative chambers in 20 states (AR, CA, CO, CT, DE, HI, IL, ME, MD, MA, MI, NV, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OR, RI, VT, WA).This issue has the support of 75% of Vermonters.

Election Day Registration
By allowing voters to register to vote on election day, we would expand the number of Vermonters who would be able to participate in the electoral process. There are many political challenges facing EDR, but CCVT will continue to fight for its passage.


MONEY & POLITICS

Campaign Finance Reform
As a result of the U.S. Supreme Court overturning part of Vermont’s campaign finance law in 2006, bills were introduced over the past few years to clarify the law and to set new limits on campaign contributions. The bills have not made it into law to date. CCVT is researching the best ways to improve Vermont’s campaign finance laws to increase transparency and reduce the ability of wealthy special interests to buy influence over elected officials.

Clean Elections
Clean Elections is a proven system of public financing that puts voters – not rich donors – in control of elections. By collecting many small donations from a broad base of citizens, candidates can qualify for full public funding to run competitive campaigns. Candidates are no longer dependent on large sums of special interest donations – or investments in their election. This frees candidates to focus on the issues that are important to constituents. When elected, they can make legislative decisions without the fear of turning off major donors, whose financial support would have been crucial to a non-publicly funded re-election campaign.

Vermont currently has public financing for Governor and Lieutenant Governor elections, but the system needs a major upgrade to be a viable option for serious candidates. CCVT is researching the best ways to improve public financing in Vermont. There are numerous states that have implemented variations of the Clean Elections model, most notably Maine, where the system has earned deep bipartisan support. CCVT is learning from such success stories and will be launching a major public education initiative to build political will for a strong Clean Elections system in Vermont.


GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY

Public Records/Open Meeting Laws
CCVT works to ensure that public records laws and open meeting laws are enforced to the extent of the law. In instances where the law is insufficient or unclear, CCVT will work on legislation to strengthen those laws.

Lobbyist and Campaign Disclosure
CCVT monitors the Secretary of State’s office to ensure transparency and accountability in the reporting of both lobbyist and campaign finance disclosure information. We will also encourage the Secretary of State’s office to upgrade their website technology so that user-friendly information is available electronically. CCVT will also work to strengthen the registration, reporting, and disclosure laws.

Conflicts of Interest
CCVT works to prevent conflicts of interest throughout all levels and vehicles of Vermont government, including elected and appointed positions, boards and commissions. CCVT will collaborate with other organizations and government officials to strengthen conflict of interest laws.

MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY

Media & Technology
CCVT raises awareness of national initiatives to:
- Improve FCC regulation around media consolidation.
- Advocate for FCC reforms to improve institutional integrity and public input processes.
- Preserve the independence and availability of public broadcasting.
- Protect net neutrality of the internet.
- Promote national broadband policy, as well as community internet/municipal broadband.

CCVT is currently exploring Vermont based initiatives in the areas of media & technology.

Products

CONTACT US

Are you interested in joining the Common Cause team or just learning more about our work? We would be happy to talk with you, so please call or email Wally Roberts.

VOLUNTEER

Volunteers needed in the following areas!
citizen lobbyist
outreach/membership recruitment
special events
legal expertise

Thank you for joining our effort to preserve and strengthen democracy in Vermont!