Last week New York state Comptroller, Tom DiNapoli, proposed legislation that would allow candidates for the Comptroller's office the option of using public financing. The Albany Times Union opined on the proposal yesterday, joining the New York Times in editorializing in favor of the measure.

From the Albany Times Union:

Advocates and members of the State Assembly have begun a push to bring publicly financed Voter-Owned Elections to New York state. The proposed measure is popular with the public, as evidenced by a recent Sienna Poll that found that 70 percent of New Yorkers support publicly financed Voter-Owned Elections.

The Boston Globe (online) has a story on Maine State Senate President and gubernatorial candidate, Libby Mitchel (D), and the Clean Elections system in the state.

“If I qualify, there will be no more fund-raising and I will spend every waking hour campaigning around the state,’’ Mitchell, a Democrat who serves as state Senate president, promised the dozen attendees in Bangor. “I’ll never ask again. When you see me coming, you won’t have to run.’’

This morning on NPR, Peter Overby interviewed several Fair Elections advocates about pushing for public financing of elections in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision in Citizens United v. FEC. You can listen to the piece below:

Agnes Gund, a philanthropist and major political donor, has an op-ed in today's Politico about Citizens United and the need for Fair Elections.

"I’ve seen firsthand the unsustainable rise in the cost of running for office and how that makes good people spend far too much time “dialing for dollars.” I am often on the other end of these calls.

The New York Times political blog, The Caucus, reports that big donors have wriiten a letter to Speaker Pelosi (D-Calif.) that says enough is enough - it's time to pass Fair Elections style campaign reform.

The New York Times editorializes on the need to fix the presidential public financing system and urges that a public financing system be created for Congress as well.

"Mr. Obama made much of a promise to fix it, once elected. So, the time has come to fix it.

Speaking about the Fair Elections Now Act at a forum at the Center for American Progress, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) commented that President Lyndon Johnson wouldn't have been able to pass Medicare today with the influence of campaign cash.

To watch the video footage, click here.

Lead House sponsor Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) discusses the importance of the Fair Elections Now Act in the face of the upcoming U.S. Supreme Court decision on Citizens United v. FEC in an interview with National Journal.

An article in the April issue of Reader's Digest asks "How can your congressman serve you when he's constantly hunting for campaign cash?" The piece, which highlights Public Campaign, goes on to lambast the money chase, offering Clean Elections as a solution.