They ended up rejecting most of the recommendations the commission made to clean up the industry in spite of rampant scandals headlined in the daily press. In many state legislatures written records of votes are not kept, making it possible for legislators to vote for special interests, while informing the citizenry they voted in the public interest. Instead members rely on huge staffs. In the states, legislatures typically have only minuscule staffs or none at all. In Rhode Island a new representative was dumbfounded when he discovered that one can find out which bill is up only two days before the vote, making proper preparation virtually impossible.
Outright corruption is far from unknown in Washington but distressingly rampant in the states.
When the Maryland assembly allocates scholarships, many are given to children of politicians, their friends, and supporters. Arizonan legislators have been indicted for accepting bribes to support a gambling bill. When the FBI set up a sting in South Carolina, so many legislators showed up, they practically caused a traffic jam. A comparison of federal and state agencies is revealing. The IRS is a paragon of virtue when compared to state tax agencies.