MORE ON: politicians

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State to tighten rules on freebie tickets for politicians

New amendments up for debate by the Fair Political Practices Commission this week could soon prove fitting bookends to a recent flap involving Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who has accepted upward of $50,000 in free tickets to concerts and sporting events since 2005 without disclosing them as gifts on his conflict of interest reports.

The rules, which are up for discussion Thursday, would require public officials to disclose online any tickets they received while performing "ceremonial" functions, along with information about the source, value of the ticket and the role the official played at the event. The rules would also clarify the conditions under which such tickets would have to be disclosed.

Most of the time, when a politician accepts tickets to a Dodgers game, Shakira concert or the finale of American Idol, they're supposed to disclose the gifts on a regular conflict of interest report, so the public can see who might be trying to ply their favor with front-row seats.

Blog Post

Breaking down Congress by the numbers

A recent report from the Congressional Research Service breaks down the 111th U.S. Congress by party affiliation, age and length of service, among several characteristics.

United States Capitol

Democrats account for more than half of the seats in both chambers and have two independents in the Senate that caucus with them, the research service reported.

The average age of members of both chambers is 58 years old, with a slightly younger average for members of the House (57.2 years old) as compared to the Senate (63.1 years old).

Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Ill., is the youngest member of the House, at 28, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., is the youngest Senator, at 42. Per Constitution guideline, members of the House must be at least 25 years old and Senators must be at least 30 years old.

There's a good half century or more separating the youngest members from the oldest.

The oldest member of the House, Rep. Ralph Hall, R-Texas, is 86, and Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., is 92. Byrd took his seat in the Senate on January 3, 1959, and "has served longer (51 years) than any other Senator in history," according to the report.

The average member of the House has been in office for 11 years, or five and a half terms, while the average Senator has been in office for 12.9 years, or a little over two terms.

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Politicians rely on county parties to funnel contributions, avoid campaign limits

Is it possible that politicians and their supporters have laundered donations to subvert campaign finance laws?