The Pennsylvania General Assembly's inability to approve a lobbyist-disclosure law is a further blotch on a legislature already much too tainted by its "What's in it for me and my best interests?" brand of public service.

It is to be hoped that the voters, witnessing this latest failure, on Nov. 7 will continue the defeat of incumbents begun so impressively in the spring primary elections.

The fall election message must be that state residents demand positive change marked by bipartisan efforts and legislative expediency, including adherence to constitutional requirements governing the legislative process.

"Expediency" is not a word that can be attached to the lobbyist-disclosure efforts put forth by lawmakers to date.

It's as if lawmakers are attempting to fashion a measure that appears to be much more stringent in its requirements than what the law actually will be. If lawmakers were truly committed to fashioning a strict, no-nonsense measure, they could have done so in a month.

If there has been concern about "touching all bases" in regard to disclosure, which is unlikely, the General Assembly had plenty of opportunity to pick the best requirements included in other states' lobbyist laws — actually, 49 other states' laws.

Pennsylvania is the only state without a disclosure law. That in itself is an eye-opening message to commonwealth residents about how their state government operates — and to the degree their lawmakers' votes are being influenced by rich special interests.

Leaders of the Senate and House expressed hope that the current impasse would be resolved by the time lawmakers returned in the fall. House Speaker John Perzel said Sunday a compromise bill would likely receive swift approval once it emerges.

But the fall during this legislative election year also will be distracted by lawmakers' re-election efforts. It's not definite then that a compromise is within reach.

Sen. Robert C. Jubelirer, the Senate president pro tempore, said a major point behind the inability to reach an accord was what would trigger a requirement for lobbyists to report services they provide to lawmakers and executive branch officials.

That roadblock indicates lawmakers' desire to ensure that there are enough loopholes in the law to conceal certain potentially embarrassing instances of lobbyist influence from their constituents.

The failure to resolve the lobbyist-disclosure issue is another reason why voters' outrage, triggered last July 7 by the legislature's middle-of-the-night pay raise vote, should remain unrelenting.

Lawmakers still haven't learned that what is best for Pennsylvania should be a greater priority than what is best for the lawmakers themselves.