On May 25, the Reno City Council will consider requiring lobbyist to register with the city. At tomorrow’s council meeting, an ordinance is being introduced entitled “Registration and Regulation of Lobbyists.”

The ordinance would require lobbyists to register with the city clerk, to inform the city of their clients, and to wear a lobbyist badge when in city hall. The ordinance also includes civil and criminal penalties.

Gov. Terry is the subject of a federal investigation surrounding contributions to his gubernatorial campaign. The Department of Justice is looking into donations received while McAuliffe was a board member of the Clinton Global Initiative, a charitable foundation set up by former President Bill Clinton.

Among many contributions of interest, the FBI is focusing on $120,000 from a Chinese businessman, Wang Wenliang. Contributions from foreign nationals are illegal, though Wang holds permanent U.S. resident status. Wang has been known for his contributions in the U.S., giving to Clinton’s foundation as well as to universities and political causes in other states.

On May 23, the Third Extraordinary Session of the 90th General Assembly adjourned sine die.

The primary focus of the special session was Gov. Asa Hutchinson’s $50 million highway funding plan. After three days, the plan was given final approval by the Legislature.

Last week, Gov. Terry McAuliffe signed Senate Bill 692, approving changes to the state’s ethics laws yet again.

Among the changes, lobbyists will only have to file one disclosure report each year, down from two, on July 1 for the preceding 12-month period. The bill also creates an exception in the definition of gifts for any item with a value of less than $20 and limits the definition of a procurement transaction, in terms of lobbying executive action, to contracts costing $5 million or more.

While most of the bill is effective January 1, 2017, an emergency clause applies to the definition change of procurement transaction, rendering it effective upon passage, and lobbyists will not be required to report until July 1, 2017.

The Legislature adjourned sine die at midnight after a long day on Sunday, May 23.

Prior to adjournment, $260 million of a $900 million budget surplus was allotted to tax credits and cuts for parents, farmers, businesses, and college students. Lawmakers also passed extra spending measures for broadband internet infrastructure development and a statewide voluntary preschool program. Despite several last minute efforts, the Legislature could not come to agreement on a bonding bill to fund construction and transportation projects prior to the end of the session.

A special session could be called soon to address the bonding bill.

Effective July 1, Ontario’s Office of the Integrity Commissioner will begin enforcing a new lobbying law for the province. On December 9, 2014, the Legislative Assembly had passed an omnibus bill with changes to the province’s Lobbyists Registration Act, 1998. The law is now coming into force by proclamation of the Lieutenant Governor.

Schedule 8 of Bill 8, the Public Sector and MPP Accountability and Transparency Act, 2014, gives the Ontario Integrity Commissioner as Lobbyist Registrar new investigative and enforcement power for violations. Individuals found in violation can be prohibited from lobbying for up to two years. Additional changes include a streamlined registration form for certain companies, a lower threshold registration for in-house lobbyists, and new questions on registration forms.

Baltimore City’s primary election results have been ordered to be decertified by state election officials, and a precinct-level review of irregularities is being conducted.

The decision comes in response to a discrepancy between the number of voters who checked in at polling locations and the number of ballots cast, which were higher than the number of check-ins. State elections officials became concerned when they learned Baltimore city officials certified their primary election results and later located 80 provisional ballots which were never analyzed.

The investigation into these discrepancies is expected to continue throughout next week.

On May 19, the fifth session of the 40th parliament of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia adjourned. The Local Elections Campaign Financing (Election Expenses) Amendment Act, 2016, also received royal assent on May 19. Member Bills 213, 219, and 229, which also dealt with campaign finance, did not progress pass the first reading stage.

The Legislature is scheduled to convene again this year on October 3.

A package of government transparency bills making the governor and Legislature subject to Michigan public record laws has reported out of a House committee in a unanimous vote.

The reform package strives to open the majority of the Legislature’s records to public inspection and would eliminate many existing public records exemptions for the governor and lieutenant governor by including these records under the umbrella of the Freedom of Information Act.

Lawmakers are hopeful the bills will pass the Legislature prior to adjournment for the summer. If passed, the reform measures would apply only to records created after January 1, 2017.

The state Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit requiring Attorney General Leslie Rutledge to approve language or offer an alternative to Attorney David Couch’s ethics initiative for the November ballot.

Couch is unlikely to submit a new proposal since state law would require statewide notice to be published by June 8, with language preapproved by Rutledge.

On May 17, three separate bills regarding lobbyists and political donors were introduced in the General Assembly.

If all three bills pass, political committees would be required to report a contributor’s occupation and employment information (Senate Bill 224), lobbyists would be required to disclose the source and amount of received payments (Senate Bill 225), and lobbyists would be required to pay a registration fee or face certain penalties (House Bill 385).

On May 19, Secretary of State John Merrill launched a Vote for Alabama app, available to all iPhones and Androids.

The app enables all Alabamians to register to vote and locate relevant election information. Voters now have the ability to register to vote on the Secretary of State’s website and via the new app, along with traditional registration methods.

A group of current and past politicians have announced an initiative to strengthen ethics laws in Miami-Dade County.

The group, named An Accountable Miami-Dade, is leading the charge to place a measure on the November ballot. The measure would strengthen enforcement of existing campaign finance laws, create pay-to-play restrictions on large contractors, create a ban on gifts from lobbyists, and institute a $250 per-election contribution limit to mayoral and commission candidates.

An Accountable Miami-Dade is headed by Monica Russo, president of the SEUI Florida Council, and Bettina Rodriguez, a former mayor of Doral. It also includes several local officeholders and party leaders.

A special election has been called to fill a vacancy in the District 168 seat of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives.

The election is scheduled for July 12, 2016. Republican Thomas Killion formerly held the seat, but was elected to the state Senate at a special election in April.

Party leaders have until May 23 to choose a nominee and file papers with the state.