Since getting caught up in the Fiesta Bowl scandal of 2011, Democratic Sen. Steve Gallardo has been the Capitol’s gift ban crusader, repeatedly introducing legislation to make it illegal for lawmakers to take free tickets or meals from lobbyists.

Buying lawmakers a meal or a drink is one of the most common ways lobbyists form relationships with lawmakers, and some lawmakers take more advantage of the free meals than others.

Travel and lodging account for 12 percent of the money spent in lobbyist expenditure reports that include a beneficiary name from 2011 to 2012.

a small number of lobbyists spend much more money on lawmakers than the rest. And a select set of lawmakers attract more lobbying attention than others. Lobbying records required by state law hint at who these power brokers are, and give a peek into a small network of lobbyists, their clients and lawmakers who wield extra influence.

The Arizona Capitol Times analysis of more than 9,000 lobbyist expenditure records that were filed in 2011 and 2012 included making decisions about what to count, what not to count and how to categorize expenditures. The goal was to evaluate different types of spending and to analyze records showing beneficiaries of the money.

Almost daily, Arizona politicians face an army of lobbyists who are ready to spend money on dinners, drinks, parties and travel, aimed at currying favor and eventually bending the public policy agenda toward the will of their sometimes deep-pocketed clients. ...

Sex, money, the Bible and the U.S. Constitution are some of the subjects lawmakers are proposing this session to be taught in Arizona classrooms.

Most of the bills come from Republicans inspired by personal experiences, and they manage to reconcile their proposed classroom mandates with the principles of small government and local control of curriculum.

In the wake of two of Arizona’s biggest political shake-ups of last year, lawmakers are hoping a little sunshine will help clean up the mess.

Shadowy groups involved in the recall of then-Senate President Russell Pearce brought to light some of the flaws in the current financial disclosure requirements. Meanwhile, the Fiesta Bowl scandal brought to light ethical questions about what should be considered a gift from a lobbyist.

As part of the state’s response to the Fiesta Bowl scandal, the Secretary of State’s office is planning to make financial disclosure statements more accessible to the public.

Bad legal advice and confusing and conflicting lobbying statutes allowed 16 current and former lawmakers who accepted football tickets and other gifts from the Fiesta Bowl to avoid criminal charges.

Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery said today that after an eight-month probe he can’t prove whether any of the lawmakers “knowingly” failed to disclose trips they took at Fiesta Bowl expense and game tickets they received.