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D.C. Mayor Calls For Campaign Finance Reform

By: Patrick Madden // March 22, 2012
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D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, whose own campaign has been under scrutiny from federal investigators, is now calling for campaign finance reform in the District.
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D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray, whose own campaign has been under scrutiny from federal investigators, is now calling for campaign finance reform in the District.

As federal investigators continue their probe into campaign finance concerns in the District, D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray says it's time to consider reforming how campaigns are funded.

While Gray refused to offer an official position on a voter-initiative campaign to ban corporate campaign contributions in local elections, he said the city needs to make some changes. 

He said a proposal to cap money-order contributions at $25 has merit, but added he doesn't want the D.C. Council to rush through anything. He'd rather council members study the issue and pass a wide package of reforms, he said. 

"We really need to take a broad look at all of the campaign contribution laws at this stage and one of the components of that is the adequacy of the staffing," Gray said.

He meant staffing of D.C.'s Office of Campaign Finance. The office has been criticized for not being more vigilant, but Gray believes the issue is understaffing, not incompetence.

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