"The sunshine of disclosure cleanses your interest," Deputy Attorney General Brian Kane told the Senate Ethics Committee this morning, "because now it puts everyone on notice that you have competing interests within a piece of legislation, meaning you have interests as a private citizen, and you also have interests within the public trust. It lets everyone know, 'This is where my legislator is coming from.' And then they can make an appropriate decision as to whether the legislator has appropriately quantified and represented ... that interest."

The decision then "comes home to roost at the ballot box," Kane said, when voters can decide, with all the information, whether they believe a legislator is appropriately representing them. You can read my full story here at spokesman.com on the Senate Ethics Committee convening for the first time in seven years.