Earlier in the week, our partners in Maryland put a full page ad in the Baltimore Sun highlighting the correlation between electricity deregulation and campaign contributions from the industry.

Public Campaign Action Fund has released the following online advertisement regarding the disaster of electric utility deregulation in Maryland and its correlation with campaign contributions to elected officials in the state.

The Maryland legislature will reconvene in January and the Baltimore Sun reminds them how important it is to pass a bill creating a Clean Elections full public financing system for state legislative campaigns.

Just as presidential candidates must choose between principle and viability when it comes to opting into the public financing program, opposition from within his own party and from Democrats in next year's election is forcing Rep. Wayne Gilchrest to abandon his opposition to taking PAC money just to stay competitive.

Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley has called a special session of the Maryland legislature and in so doing has set off a debate about the propriety of legislators holding fundraisers which involve stakeholders in the legislation they're debating. Holding fundraisers during a special session is legal -- but is it ethical?

So we are now towards the end of this exciting campaign for Clean Elections in Maryland. Maryland lawmakers are in the process of voting this week on the bill that would call for public financing of state House and Senate elections. While we have strong support in the legislature, our coalition partners are still working hard to lobby legislators, a few of whom are still on the fence.