Will Gov. Quinn tackle meaningful campaign finance reform?

Gov. Pat Quinn signed another in a series of ethics laws Tuesday, but it still remains unclear what he will do about a cornerstone of his "year of reform," legislation for limits on campaign contributions.

Watchdog groups, including Quinn's own blue-ribbon reform commission, say a law on the governor's desk to limit donations to campaigns is riddled with loopholes. An effort is under way to convince Quinn to veto the legislation or rewrite it and send it back to lawmakers, both avenues that could lead to the ultimate rejection of any such caps by a skittish General Assembly.

Quinn has been using this week to put his name to a laundry list of other reform proposals, starting Monday with a strengthening of government disclosure laws.

On Tuesday, standing before an Abraham Lincoln statue in Chicago's Grant Park, Quinn signed legislation to require more disclosure from government employees in charge of doling out state contracts and toughen a ban on government employees going to work for contractors they once oversaw. The measure also gives broader power to the governor's inspector general and grants another watchdog the authority to investigate lobbyists.

"I think integrity is the number one priority of government," said Quinn, who has long championed reform measures.

When he rose to the state's top post from lieutenant governor following the arrest and ouster of Gov. Rod Blagojevich, Quinn quickly declared one of his top priorities as passing sweeping ethics legislation to clean up Illinois' culture of corruption.

One of the highlights of the effort was a push to limit campaign contributions to lawmakers and statewide candidates. Numerous political scandals, including those under Blagojevich, stemmed from large donations to campaigns in exchange for government favors.

But Quinn backed a contribution limit package blasted by reform groups. The measure has limits that are twice that of those that apply to presidential and congressional candidates, $5,000 per individual and $10,000 per political organization, union or business.

Other loopholes include multicandidate committees that can pass through up to $90,000, limits based on an annual basis, not election cycle, and few new enforcement powers or resources.

Quinn has been quiet about whether he will bow to pressure from reform groups to veto the deal, which he helped broker with state legislative leaders who at first didn't want any limits at all. Doing so would run the risk that lawmakers would reject his changes or fail to approve a new set of stricter limits.

Under the current law, anyone can donate as much as they want to legislative candidates and those running for statewide office are only limited to not taking money from state contractors.

Quinn is running for election, but the campaign finance law on his desk wouldn't go into effect until the following election cycle.

Quinn said Tuesday he would make a decision by next week's deadline of Aug. 28 to sign the legislation, veto it or rewrite it, sending it back to lawmakers for approval. Doing nothing would allow it to become law without his signature.

"You take one thing at a time," he said Tuesday of his package of ethics reforms when asked about the campaign finance limits.