Portsmouth Rep. Jay Edwards (D-70) has introduced legislation that would require political parties and action committees advocating for any charter-amending question on a ballot to file a report of all the contributions it receives from any one source in excess of $100, according to a release sent to media today.

The bill would expand current law to include any town or city charter amendment considered at a Financial Town Meeting in addition to election ballots.

"It's very simple," Edwards said in the statement. "This is about increasing transparency. It only makes sense for committees that advocate for a charter question at Financial Town Meetings to file reports, just like with everything else. Sometimes charter questions have the potential to make a major change in how a city or town does business. We need to keep an eye on the local level, not just the state level.”

The House Judiciary Committee will hold a hearing on the bill — 2012-H 7060 (pdf) — on Wednesday, Feb. 15, at the Rise of the House in Room 313 of the State House.

Editorial note: Written from a press release.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 12, the Portsmouth Town Council will make appointments to the Charter Review Committee, which will consider modifications to the Town Charter. If you are one of the folks who put your name in (thank you!) you'll want to be at Town Hall. As they discuss nominations for boards, Councilors will often ask if the applicant is in the room. Not saying that it will make or break anyone's chances, but it doesn't hurt to be there. Because we know that all the Portsmouth Concerned Citizen (PCC) applicants will be on hand.

And Wednesday night, candidates for the Town Council and School Committee will be answering questions and talking with voters at a "Meet the candidate" event in the Middle School library, beginning at 6:30pm. The event is sponsored by the PCC, and they will be asking the first round of questions, so I would really appreciate having some friendly faces in the room. There will hopefully be the opportunity for citizens to ask questions, so you might want to think about what you'd ask the candidates.

Full disclosure: Yes, I put my name in for the Charter Review Committee, and yes, I am a candidate for School Committee.