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Lobbyists rip security measures

Friday, Oct. 21, 2005

ANNAPOLIS — A new set of security guidelines has so upset the State House lobbying corps that one prominent lobbyist is threatening a lawsuit.

Under rules that go into effect Nov. 1, lobbyists will no longer enjoy unfettered access to the State House and General Assembly office buildings.

Instead, they will be forced to go through metal detectors each time they want to enter a building. Lobbyists are objecting to that rule and are equally upset that the only privilege they will have is permission to go to the head of visitor lines, which often stretch outside the buildings during the busy legislative session.

‘‘This proposal is discriminatory, absurd and it will profoundly impede and disrupt a lobbyist’s day-to-day functioning on behalf of their clients,” said Bruce C. Bereano, a lobbyist in Annapolis who is contemplating legal action. ‘‘If people would be fair and not have a petty, disdainful view of lobbyists, they would see that this is hugely discriminatory.”

A workgroup that included representatives of the General Assembly’s leadership, the state’s Department of Homeland Security, the state Comptroller and Treasurer’s offices, the Department of General Services, the Maryland State Police and the media developed the guidelines. The group decided that lobbyists and people who serve on various commissions and in other organizations could apply for ‘‘non-state employee security cards” beginning Nov. 1.

Lobbyists will be asked to fill out an application, be subject to a background check for violent history and pay a $50 fee.

The lobbyist pass requires them to go through the metal detectors, while others — including members of the media — retained their privileges of entering the buildings without waiting in line or going through the detectors.

Sean Looney, president of the Maryland Government Relations Association, seemed pleased with the new guidelines and was happy that lobbyists could go to the front of the line. He compared the change to the ‘‘trusted flier program” at airports that allow passengers to avoid lines, but still go through metal detectors before boarding their flights.

‘‘This to me is a reasonable compromise when you consider all the circumstances involved,” Looney said, adding that he will send a letter to his 200-plus-member organization today outlining the new rules.

But Bereano and others blasted the provision that allows them to cut ahead of other visitors.

Looney’s comment ‘‘is complete garbage and does not accurately reflect the views of lobbyists,” Bereano said.

Cutting line while others are being subjected to long waits is ‘‘awkward and unbelievably embarrassing,” he said.

The new security requirements have been in the works for more than two years and are a done deal, said General Services Secretary Boyd K. Rutherford.

The post-Sept. 11 atmosphere makes it necessary to electronically screen as many visitors as possible to ensure the safety of elected officials, he said.

‘‘We’re really trying to limit the amount of people who can bypass the magnetometers,” Rutherford said in an interview. ‘‘We felt the reasonable way to go is to limit the people who have free rein in the facilities.

‘‘We’re in a new world now,” he said. ‘‘The previous system we were operating under was out of control.”

Rutherford added that many state identification cards were being misused, and security guidelines needed to be revamped.

Bereano said his main objection to the new rules is that they are discriminatory: Lobbyists have the same First Amendment rights that the media have, meaning that reporters should not ‘‘get special treatment.”

There is also a question about how other lobbyists will be treated. Looney said he was under the impression that all lobbyists, whether private or public sector, will be subject to the same rules.

But Rutherford and other DGS officials said passes that allow an individual to bypass the metal detectors will be given on an agency-by-agency basis, which means that lobbyists for state agencies could have more access than private-sector lobbyists. Rutherford also said certain county officials and top members of their staffs would be issued cards that allow them to avoid the metal detectors.

John Stierhoff, a lobbyist in Annapolis for 11 years, also objects to the new security requirements and how the state is applying the rules to different individuals.

‘‘This is going to be a public relations nightmare for the legislature and the executive branch,” he said.

Stierhoff, Bereano and other influential lobbyists used to work for legislators. The new guidelines allow top aides to the Senate president, House speaker and other legislators to avoid the lines and metal detectors.

‘‘How did I suddenly become a suspected terrorist?” Bereano asked.

During the 90-day legislative session, lobbyists dash between the House and Senate office buildings to talk to legislators and testify on bills being heard in committees. They worry that the increased security requirements would hurt their ability to make it to hearings on time and do their jobs effectively.

Rutherford countered that there is a tunnel system that connects the State House with the House and Senate office buildings, which would allow the lobbyists to avoid the metal detectors. He also said lobbyists should be happy with the new system, considering one of the options on the table was to not give them passes at all.

Rutherford said he has spoken to Bereano and is well aware of his concerns.

‘‘I told him a couple of weeks ago about the direction we were going,” Rutherford said. ‘‘At this point, we’re done and we’re moving forward with the plans.”