Governor's floor leaders introduce tougher ethics laws

ATLANTA - Governor Perdue&#39;s Senate floor leaders have introduced his four-part ethics reform bill Tuesday. <br> <br> Perdue hopes it will restore public trust in state government. <br> <br> The legislation, introduced by Republican Senators Bill Stephens of Canton and Dan Lee of LaGrange, would prohibit lawmakers from trying to influence the treatment of state prisoners. <br> <br> Perdue&#39;s proposal also would prohibit candidate-to-candidate transfers of political contributions. <br> <br> It also would outlaw soliciting campaign money during the legislative session and call for a restructuring of the state&#39;s Ethics Commission. <br> <br> If the bill passes, ethics commissioners would have to remove themselves from investigations involving legislators they contributed money to. <br> <br> Democratic Lieutenant Governor Mark Taylor says he&#39;ll support the legislation.