Legislative findings and declarations

The Legislature hereby finds and declares that: 1. The operation of responsible representative government requires that the fullest opportunity be afforded to the people to petition or lobby their government for the redress of grievances and to exchange information and express their opinions freely with members of the Legislative Branch and legislative committees on matters relating to legislation or any other legislative action. 2. The primary public purpose of this chapter is to provide both disclosure and regulation of lobbying activities in order to promote and foster the people’s faith, trust and confidence in the honesty, integrity and fidelity of their representative government. 3. With regard to the provisions of this chapter regulating gift-giving by lobbyists, the additional public purpose of those provisions is to guard against any possible appearance of impropriety or potential for undue influence and favoritism that may arise from such gift-giving by lobbyists, which will thereby promote and foster the people’s faith, trust and confidence in the honesty, integrity and fidelity of their representative government. 4. To further the public purposes of this chapter, the provisions of this chapter must be liberally construed and broadly interpreted to achieve their intended public benefits, and if there is any uncertainty or doubt regarding the interpretation or application of those provisions, that uncertainty or doubt must be resolved in favor of carrying out the public purposes of this chapter.