Earlier this year, former legislators Sen. J. Kalani English and Rep. Ty J.K. Cullen pleaded guilty to accepting bribes in exchange for supporting or killing bills on behalf of a local business owner.

That kind of literal pay-to-play is arguably the most blatant and damaging betrayal of public trust, and the shocking revelations rightly triggered calls for stronger government ethics reforms.

The Commission to Increase Standards of Conduct, formed in February to address these concerns, held its first public meeting on June 1 and has four more scheduled in the coming weeks to gather public input.

Here’s an idea: How about directly addressing how legislators draft and act on the bills that pass through their hands, to make the process more open and transparent? An end to business as usual?

After all, English and Cullen conducted their nefarious activities at the Legislature over a period of at least seven years, according to the federal indictments, and no one besides the feds seemed to notice.

The Legislature this session passed numerous measures that nibbled at the edges — ethics training, caps on fees for government records, preserving records of meetings, honest disclosure about campaign ad payments.

One that came closer, Senate Bill 555, would prohibit holding campaign fundraisers when the Legislature is in session. That’s long overdue. But lawmakers rejected a proposed amendment to prohibit elected officials from seeking and receiving political donations during the session, on the grounds that it “would go beyond the scope of the single subject expressed in this measure’s title, Relating to Campaign Fundraising.”

Well, put it in the lineup for next year. Collecting money from special interests in the off-season is one thing; doing so when bills are actively in consideration comes too close to pay-for-play.

Other reforms the commission should consider:

>> Reducing the power of committee chairs to unilaterally kill bills by refusing to hold hearings or advancing them. They should at least come to a public committee vote.

>> Opening public access to deliberations by conference committees, which meet to hash out differences between House and Senate versions of bills. Right now, the deliberations are mostly private, and the public votes are usually pro forma.

>> Requiring lobbyists to disclose their interest in specific bills, and to undergo ethics training.

>> Requiring lawmakers to disclose who is behind bills introduced “by request of another party.”

True, no amount of reform will stop determined lawbreakers. But it might reduce their number, and help restore public trust in the process.

Public hearings are scheduled for June 15, June 29, July 13 and July 27. Visit the commission’s website for more information and make your voice heard.