Lobbying

“Buying Government with Lobbying Money” by Mike Collins in Forbes

“Ed Whitfield’s Ties to Lobbyist Wife Subject of House Ethics Probe” by Hannah Hess in Roll Call

“Reid leaving network of lobbyists behind” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill

Minnesota: “Leap from legislator to lobbyist a short one in Minnesota” by Rachel E. Stassen-Berger and Dan Bauman in the Pioneer Press

Minnesota: “Legislators to lobbyists: A database of their clients and cash” by Dan Bauman in the Pioneer Press

Campaign Finance

“How potential presidential candidates are raising campaign cash” by Reena Flores on CBS News

“Are women giving enough money to political campaigns?” by Stefanie Murray in The Tennessean

Colorado: “Campaign finance rules get overhaul” by Anthony A. Mestas in The Pueblo Chieftain

Montana: “House passes bill to toughen campaign finance laws” in The Montana Standard

Ohio: “Campaign finance fines rarely collected, often reduced” by Amanda Seitz in the Dayton Daily News

Utah: “Utah cities can adopt stricter campaign finance rules” by The Associated Press in KSL.com

Ethics

New York: “Deal Is Reached on New York State Budget; Ethics Measures Are Included” by Thomas Kaplan in The New York Times

Texas: “Analysis: Trying to Spark Ethics Reform, Without a Scandal” by Ross Ramsey in The Texas Tribune

Elections

“Why Some Lawmakers Want to Abolish the 17th Amendment” by Alan Greenblatt in Governing

Government Tech and Social Media

Utah: “In Utah, Participatory Democracy Powered by Loomio and NationBuilder” by Jessica McKenzie in TechPresident

For the second year in a row, State and Federal Communications is sending a team to the American Copy Editors Society (ACES) annual conference. This year the conference is being held March 26 – 28 in Pittsburgh. It is a great place for editors to brush up their skills and to keep up with changes in the field.

ACES annual conference also provides opportunities to learn new skills. There are sessions on the core editing skills, fact-checking, editing for social media, and getting the most out of style guides.

This conference is a great opportunity, as many of us put on the editor’s cap every day to ensure our information isn’t just factually correct, but also grammatically correct. We work to ensure everything is spelled and punctuated correctly because we agree with ACES President Teresa Schmedding: people care about good grammar, spelling, and punctuation.

And because we know you care, we are off to Pittsburgh to learn, to hone, and to ensure our skills are up to your standards.

To learn more about ACES and the important role of editors and copy editors, check out their website at www.copydesk.org.

Here is our March – April calendar. If you are attending any of the coming events, please stop by and say hello!

March 4   Ohio Birthday Party, Washington, DC

March 9   WGR Toastmasters, Washington, DC

March 18-20   SGAC National Summit, Nashville, TN

March 23   WGR Toastmasters, Washington, D.C.

March 26-28   ACES National Conference, Pittsburgh, PA

March 29-31   NASPO How to Market to State Governments, Philadelphia, PA

April 9   WGR Politics, PACs and Grassroots Conference, Washington, D.C.

April 30   DiversityBusiness.com Annual Program, New York City

Welcome! In this episode of the statehouse series we will travel to the southern state of Florida.

Everybody has heard of Florida’s great climate, beautiful scenery, and access to beaches at both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean, but not many know about Florida’s capitol buildings. The old capitol building was built in 1845, and it has had several additions since then. In 1902, the dome was constructed by architect Frank Millburn and was the first main addition. The next major expansion came in 1923 with the addition of two wings and a marble interior, with the help of Henry Klutho. Then another two wings were added, with the House wing finished in 1936 and the Senate wing in 1947.

As the population in Florida grew, so did the need for government services. The local government had outgrown the old building. Construction on the new capitol was authorized to start in 1972.

In the late 70s, the Old Capitol came under threat of demolition because the new one was being built behind it. Through the action of Florida citizens, the Old Capitol was saved and resorted to its 1902 appearance, which took four years (1978-1982). The Old Capitol has since been turned into a museum and office for the Florida Legislative Research Center, which keeps all legislative history for the state of Florida.

The New Capitol contains a House and Senate building and twenty-two story executive offices. Both wings have domes. The building contains the Florida Women’s Hall of Fame on the northern rotunda and the Artist’s Hall of Fame. Visit Tour the Florida Capitol to learn more about the history, artwork, and virtual tours!

Thanks for joining us on our historic tour of Florida’s statehouse. Be sure to visit again when we explore yet another capitol!

Photo of the Old and New Florida State Capitols by Infrogmation on Wikimedia Commons.

Aloha! Welcome to this week’s episode of statehouse series. Today, as you might be able to guess, we are exploring the statehouse of Hawaii.

As the last state to enter the United States, it is appropriate that Hawaii also has one of the newest statehouses. It was completed in 1969 in the Hawaiian international style, which emphasizes clean lines and neutral colors. This style was influenced by the famous German Bahaus movement, but Hawaii made this style its own with the construction of the statehouse. It includes local koa wood, and the dome is designed to look like a volcano. The number eight is incorporated throughout the building and its architecture to symbolize the eight Hawaiian Islands, usually with the grouping of columns. The statehouse complex also includes a reflecting pool, a metaphor of the Pacific Ocean.

The old statehouse, Iolani Palace, is now a museum. It was built in 1882 by King Kalakaua and Queen Liliuokalani and was home to Hawaii’s final monarchs. The palace now holds quilting classes and free concerts every week. The museum is always searching for new artifacts to include for the purpose of restoring the palace to its original state. The Pulama Ia Program allows individuals or organizations to sponsor a partial or complete restoration of an object. These objects usually go into the permanent exhibits, which include historic photos, glassware, and silver. Both the current statehouse and the Iolani Palace convey Hawaii’s rich history.

Thank you for taking the time to journey with us across the country to Hawaii. We hope you enjoyed this episode, and please be sure to return again ready to explore some more!

On February 2, 2015, the commissioners of the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) issued a report to the governor and the Legislature outlining requested changes to existing ethics and lobbying laws. Among their recommendations are mandatory electronic filing for lobbyists and lobbyist employers, disclosure of political consulting or fundraising activities undertaken by lobbyists, assessment of financial penalties for non-compliance with audits, and barring individuals or entities from acting as lobbyists if they have repeat violations of the Lobbying Act.

The report also notes the need for a review of the Lobbying Act to ensure all forms of government advocacy, including grassroots lobbying and strategic consulting, are being captured for reporting purposes.

According to the Times Union, Gov. Cuomo said he is willing to delay budget negotiations in exchange for an ethics reform package from the Legislature, incorporating the recommendations of the JCOPE.

The entire report is available here.

The electronic filing system of the Public Integrity Commission, the Public Integrity Reporting System, is being moved. As a result of the change, filers will be required to update their passwords after the system is moved.

The system will be down for the transfer from 11:00 p.m. on February 7 to 6:00 a.m. on February 9.

The first time a filer logs in after the system is moved, he or she will be prompted to create a new password. The commission has not released the web domain of the new system but is scheduled to do so in the near future.

“Google Reveals its Innovation Lab for Government” by Jason Shueh in Government Technology.

“The Federal Government May be Unpopular, but Science and Tech Agencies Remain a Hit” by Hallie Golden in Nextgov.

“For Feds, Choosing Cloud Services is a Lot Like Dating” by Frank Konkel in Nextgov.

Maine: “Social media trending in municipal government” by Kelley Bouchard in the Portland Press Herald.

South Carolina: “Social media to be banned for state employees while working” by Cassie Cope in The State.

Premier Brian Gallant has again questioned a long running delay in implementing a lobbyist registry in the province. The Legislative Assembly in New Brunswick passed the Lobbyists’ Registration Act in May but, in order to take effect, the cabinet must first proclaim the act and promulgate regulations for its operation.

The act is similar to the federal government and other provinces in requiring lobbyists to register publicly, disclose who they represent as well as who they meet with and what topics are discussed.

It has been seven years since Premier Shawn Graham first initiated a push for a law regulating lobbyists.

The number of municipalities and regional governments our research associates track continues to grow. We now cover more than 230 municipalities and local governments. This is part of a continuous effort to better serve the needs of our clients.

In that effort, we have recently added jurisdictions to our website. These entries provide the core information our clients need for their government relations work.

The new jurisdictions are:

American Samoa           Guam           Northern Mariana Islands     U.S. Virgin Islands

The Oklahoma Ethics Commission’s newly promulgated Revised Constitutional Ethics Rules, effective at staggered intervals, significantly amend lobbying and campaign finance laws. Lobbyist registration provisions were effective December 1. Rules outlining lobbyist reporting due dates are effective February 1, 2015. All other revised rules were effective January 1, 2015. Except as may otherwise be provided, all current rules under Title 74, Chapter 62-Appendix, of the Oklahoma Statutes were repealed on January 1, 2015. O.S. §257:23-1-2, as it pertains to lobbyist reporting requirements, will remain effective until January 31, 2015.

Lobbyists were required to register online in December for calendar year 2015. There are now separate registration requirements dependent upon whether a lobbyist is a legislative lobbyist, executive lobbyist, or legislative liaison. Legislative lobbyists and legislative liaisons will be required to file monthly reports from February to July; executive lobbyists will file quarterly reports.

The revised rules also place new limits on lobbyist expenditures. Each lobbyist will be permitted to spend up to $500 per calendar year for meals for the governor, a legislator, or their staff. Moreover, lobbyists may spend up to $200 per year on certain gifts other than meals, provided the total for all meals and gifts does not exceed $500. New provisions also allow lobbyist principals to provide food and beverage for professional conferences, seminars, and similar events held outside the geographical boundaries of the state, subject to certain restrictions.

Changes to campaign finance laws include a new registration threshold for political action committees (PACs), new campaign contribution limits, specific reporting for out-of-state and federal PACs, and amendments to some reporting requirements. A PAC will be required to register within 10 days of receiving contributions or making expenditures in excess of $1,000. Certain contribution limits will increase and family contribution limits will no longer exist. Limited PACs registered for less than a year or that have fewer than 25 contributors will be permitted to contribute only half the amount of other limited PACs.

This article provides a summary of the major changes to the Revised Constitutional Ethics Rules. It is not exhaustive and additional changes have been made. A final annotated version of the rules is accessible on the new Ethics Commission website at http://www.ok.gov/ethics/.

State and Federal Communications is thrilled to work in Akron and we recognize that we have a responsibility to reach out to the community around us. For this holiday season, our Giving Tree donations have gone to the CORE Furniture Bank in Cuyahoga Falls.

CORE is an amazing organization that assists families in need with furniture and housewares, so we collected sheets, blankets and pillows.

Many agencies in Summit County partner with CORE, including Summit County Children Services, the Veterans Administration, Haven of Rest Ministries, Battered Women’s Shelter, Oriana House, OPEN M, and Springtime of Hope.

Happy Holidays to the CORE Furniture Bank, and thank you for all of the work you do to help our community!

Del. Joseph D. Morrissey announced he has resigned his seat, prompting a special election on January 13, 2015. The lawmaker entered an Alford plea on a misdemeanor count of contributing to the deliquency of a minor, acknowledging sufficient evidence for a conviction but not admitting guilt. The charge stems from an alleged relationship with a 17-year-old receptionist in his office.

Morressey plans to run in the special election to regain the House District 74 seat, leaving the decision of whether or not he should be removed from office to the voters.

Photo of Joseph D. Morrissey by Cliff on Wikimedia Commons.