Ethics reforms for politicians and other public officials are a heavy lift, because the constraints would affect, among others, the very people who must enact them.

Good-government groups such as Common Cause Hawaii are reminding the public of a few such bills, languishing since the last session, that deserve another look. Additionally, there is at least one piece of legislation introduced this session that lawmakers should advance.

The more recent measure is Senate Bill 2114, which developed from a proposal by the State Ethics Commission. It would interrupt the “revolving door” that has led many lawmakers and other top government officials to immediately take jobs as lobbyists when they leave public service.

If it passes, as it should, there would be a one-year cooling-off period between the public job and starting the lobbying post.

In general, “revolving door” prohibitions are needed to insert some separation between the government’s work being done and any consideration for a more lucrative job the private entity might offer to the official.

The one being proposed here is an improvement on current law. It is by no means the strictest rule in the country: According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, that distinction belongs to Florida, which has enacted a six-year cooling-off period, set to take effect at the end of 2022.

SB 2114 last week passed the Senate Government Operations Committee, moving on to the Judiciary Committee. As it progresses, the legislation should include key amendments proposed by the Ethics Commission.

Among these changes, now in House Bill 2124, is one that would require all affected state officials to maintain the confidentiality of information they got only because of their position. The revolving-door employment prohibition itself would only apply to those employed for 181 days or longer.

This is essential to prevent proprietary information to which an official is privy from becoming commodities that a private entity working with the state might want to acquire by hiring that official.

What should be open for discussion is the number of officials who, in addition to lawmakers, would be subject to the restrictions. HB 2124 includes an appropriately expanded list — 35 positions, starting with the governor, including various elected and administrative posts.

Here are other proposals that deserve resuscitation, shelved by the 2019 Legislature:

>> HB 1264 would authorize the forfeiture of pension benefits, by court order, for state and county employees convicted of a felony related to his or her public duties. The corruption case of Louis and Katherine Kealoha — respectively Honolulu’s former police chief and deputy prosecutor, now convicted on conspiracy charges — is what brings this issue to the fore.

The bill would make the forfeiture subject to the finding of the court, which should help ensure that this additional penalty is fairly applied.

>> HB 350 would prohibit fundraisers and solicitations of contributions during the legislative session; having these going on concurrently paves the way to pay-to-play corruptive influence over lawmakers.

>> HB 361 would prohibit the governor and all county mayors, during their terms of office, from holding another job or receiving any salary, fee or remuneration. Voters deserve top executives who are not distracted by outside employment or enrichment.

Ethics reforms often do sink below the radar, because they deal with the government business that goes on in back rooms. Stripping away that shadowy cover is exactly what the voters, who expect their interests to be paramount, should demand this session.