The research team at State and Federal Communications has developed an Inaugurations Guide to help provide our clients with the most up-to-date changes. The guide is based on the November 2014 elections and provides names of the governors, inauguration dates, rules about providing tickets to events, and contributing to inaugural committees.

This guide provides you with yet another compliance reference tool to effectively handle the changing legislation as it pertains to government affairs. For non-subscribers you can gain access to the guide by clicking on the following link, Inaugurations Guide.

The New York City Campaign Finance Board experienced a phishing attack of its email system this morning.

The board instructs any users who have received an email from any staff member referencing an “Invoice Paid” in the subject line to delete the message immediately. Call (212) 409-1800 with questions.

“Citizen Engagement: Yes, Virginia There is a Santa Claus” by Emily Jarvis in GovLoop.

“3 Bold Predictions for 2015” by Patrick Fiorenza in GovLoop.

“White House Launches Open Data Disaster Portal” in Government Technology.

“Eastern Foundry, A New Government Tech Incubator Opens” by Eric Hal Schwartz in InTheCapitol.

Arizona: “How an Arizona Town Uses Its Website and Facebook to Promote Local Businesses” by Michael Grass in Government Executive.

Massachusetts: “Boston hackathon app helps upgrade city permitting system” by David Stegon in StateScoop.

“Tennessee City Bans Negative Social Media Comments” by Michael Grass in Government Executive.

Texas: “Texas Wants to Be a Cloud Model for Other States” by Eric Pfeiffer in Government Executive.

Washington: “Washington state audit reveals cyber weakness” by David Stegon in in StateScoop.

We had a great time at COGEL 2014 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. We enjoyed four days of expert sessions on campaign finance, lobbying, and government ethics. Plenary speakers included Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto; political reporter Dave Davies; Jeff Smith, professor of politics and advocacy at the New School; and Paul Liebman, Chief Compliance Officer for the University of Texas at Austin.  It was great to see everyone. We hope you enjoy these photos from the conference:

Lobbying

“Lobbying World” in The Hill.

“Top 10 lobbying victories of the year” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“How often do former members of Congress lobby? Not as often as you might think.” by Philip Bump in The Washington Post.

Hawaii: “Hawaii Monitor: The Problem With Lobbyists — and Their Regulators” opinion piece by Ian Lind in the Honolulu Civil Beat.

Massachusetts: “Weld registers as a State House lobbyist” by Frank Phillips in The Boston Globe.

Texas: “Two ex-Perry aides among latest to swing through lobbying revolving door” by David Saleh Rauf in the Houston Chronicle.

Campaign Finance

“Parties cut deal to open spigot of campaign cash” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Campaign contribution limits are about to go way up. Here’s what that looks like, in one massive graph.” by Philip Bump in The Washington Post.

“Fundraising expansion slipped into spending deal could power financial bonzana for parties” by Matea Gold in The Washington Post.

“A shutdown deal with extras: light bulbs, campaign finance and fishing tackle” by Domenico Montanaro, Lisa Desjardins, and Simone Pathe in PBS NewsHour.

“ʹThe Most Corrupting Campaign-Finance Provisions Ever Enactedʹ” by Russell Berman in The Atlantic.

“Democrats’ Discontent on ‘Cromnibus’ Bubbles to Surface” by Emma Dumain in Roll Call.

“Outside Groups Set Spending Record in Midterms” by Derek Willis in The New York Times.

“Hedge Fund Founder Steve Cohen Gave Big to Boost Republican Governors” by Brody Mullins in The Wall Street Journal.

Massachusetts: “State heightens focus on cash in local campaigns” by Christian M. Wade in The Daily News of Newburyport.

Ethics

“The Year in Government Ethics | A Question of Ethics” by C. Simon Davidson in Roll Call.

“House Ethics: An Isolating Gavel to Hold” by Hanna Hess in Roll Call.

Florida: “Judge Lets Lawsuit Allege Florida Governor Intentionally Violated Law” by Mary Ellen Klas in Governing.

Florida: “Hillsborough Commissioner Ken Hagan admits to ethics violations” by Rich Shopes in the Tampa Bay Times.

New Jersey: “David Samson seeks to block state ethics investigation” by Michael Symons in Asbury Park Press.

South Carolina: “SC House panel: Let State Ethics Commission investigate lawmakers” by Cassie Cope in The State.

Tech and Social Media

“A 2015 Federal Technology Forecast” eBook on NextGov.

Massachusetts: “Boston Overhauls Licensing and Permitting System with Civic Tech” by Jason Shueh in Government Technology.

Lobbying

“Bottom Line” in The Hill.

California: “Groups merge to form big California biotech lobbying group” by Stephanie M. Lee in the San Francisco Chronicle.

North Carolina: “Former GOP official joins lobbying firm” by Craig Jarvis in the News & Observer.

North Carolina: “NC League of Municipalities has new top lobbyist” by Colin Campbell in the News & Observer.

Campaign Finance

“McConnell Pushes Campaign Finance Changes” by Niels Lesniewski in Roll Call.

Arizona: “Judge tosses key Arizona campaign finance law” by Mary Jo Pitzl in The Arizona Republic.

Missouri: “Koster urges Missouri lawmakers to take up ethics reform” by Alexandra Stuckey in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Missouri: “Attorney General of Missouri Denies Doing Favors for Lobbyists” by Eli Yokley in The New York Times.

Ethics

Missouri: “Lawmakers to weigh new rules on lobbyist’s gifts, donations” by Collin Reischman in The Missouri Times.

Utah: “Utah Government Launches New Ethics Website” by Bob Bernick in Utah Policy.

Political Campaigns

“GOP senator introduces bill to ban political robocalls” by Kathy Kiely in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

Open Government

“Rockefeller Opposes Leahy FOIA Bill” by Humberto Sanchez in Roll Call.

Lobbying

“Hill, K Street: Grab a Drink, Get Your Party On” by Kate Ackley and Rebecca Gale in Roll Call.

“Watchdogs brace for surprises in massive $1.014T spending bill” by Rebecca Shabad in The Hill.

“Meat lobby to vegeterians: You’ll be back” by Lydia Wheeler in The Hill.

Texas: “New Texas House Rules Require the Press to Pledge Not to Lobby” by The Texas Tribune in Governing.

Washington: “New rules limit lobbyist meals for Olympia legislators” by The Associated Press in KGMI.

West Virginia: “Thursday deadline for lobbyists to register in WVa” by The Associated Press in the Bluefield Daily Telegraph.

Campaign Finance

“Obama Fundraising Goal: $225,000-Per-Day for Presidential Library” by John McCormick in Bloomberg.

“Should Judges Be Allowed to Court Campaign Donors?” by Daniel C. Vock in Governing.

Michigan: “Spending in Grand Rapids term limits election came from out of state and big local donor” by Matt Vande Bunte in MLive.com.

New York: “After Ethics Panel’s Shutdown, Loopholes Live On in Albany” by Thomas Kaplan, William K. Rashbaum and Susanne Craig in The New York Times.

Ethics

“House Lawmakers Exempt From Ethics Training in Emerging Rules Package” by Hannah Hess in Roll Call.

Arkansas: “Arkansas lawmakers to discuss new ethics rules” by The Associated Press in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Georgia: “State ethics agency faces more changes” by Christina A. Cassidy in the Gainesville Times.

Tech and Social Media

“$6.9 Billion to be Spent on Civic Tech in 2015, Report Says” in Government Technology.

Hawaii: “Hawaii Adopts ‘Cloud-First’ Policy for IT Projects” by Brian Heaton in Government Technology.

State and Federal Communications has a team of 10 leaving tomorrow to attend the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws (COGEL) 36th Annual Conference! It will be held from December 7-10 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

COGEL always  offers great sessions concerning lobbying, campaign finance, governmental ethics, and election laws and best practices.

It will be good to see many familiar faces and meet new members.

Here is our December-January calendar. If you are attending any of the coming events, please stop by and say hello!

December 3   Ohio Society Holiday Party; Washington, DC

December 6-10   COGEL, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

December 9-12   NCSL Fall Forum, Washington, DC

January 8-11   NCSL Executive Committee Meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana

January 9-11   Women In Government Annual Meeting, St. Petersburg Beach, Florida

January 11-16   Public Affairs Institute, Laguna Beach, California

Lobbying

“Bottom Line” in The Hill.

“Job market cools for former lawmakers” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Photojournalists hire lobbyists to work on drone rules” by Julian Hattem in The Hill.

Maryland: “With Hogan coming, Annapolis lobbying firms beef up their Republican credentials” by John Wagner in The Washington Post.

Campaign Finance

“Mitch McConnell Rider Could Roll Back Campaign Finance Laws” by Paul Blumenthal in The Huffington Post.

Arkansas: “2016 Campaign Finance Ballot Proposal Submitted To Arkansas Attorney General” by Jacob Kauffman on UALR Public Radio.

Ethics

Maine: “New Maine lawmakers learning about ethics, open records” by The Associated Press in Seacoast Online.

Virginia: “Ethics Commission Recommends New Gift-Giving Rules for Va. Lawmakers” by The Associated Press in The Charlottesville Newsplex.

Elections

New Jersey: “New Jersey Senate votes to expand early voting” by Dustin Racioppi in NorthJersey.com.

Vermont: “The Governor’s Race That Still Isn’t Over: Vermont” by Alan Greenblatt in Governing.

Congress

“Spending, Immigration, and Tax Fights Will Dominate Final Days of 113th Congress” by Billy Housew and Sarah Mimms in Government Executive.

“Congress on the brink” by Jake Sherman and John Bresnahan in Politico.

“Harry Reid threatens recess, Christmas” by Burgess Everett in Politico.

Tech and Social Media

“4 Trends to Watch in 2015” by Stephen Goldsmith in Government Technology.

Hawaii’s Governor-Elect, David Ige, is scheduled to be inaugurated on December 1, 2014. There are several things to keep in mind if you are considering involvement in inaugural events.

In Hawaii neither lobbyists nor non-lobbyists are permitted to provide event tickets to state legislators or employees.

If you intend to make a contribution to defray inaugural expenses, keep in mind contributions made or accepted for that purpose are subject to ordinary contribution limits. Individuals, partnerships, noncandidate committees, parties, associations, corporations, business entities, organizations, and labor unions may contribute up to $6,000 per election period to a candidate for a four-year statewide office.

For the offices of governor and lieutenant governor, the four-year contribution period ended on election day. Contributions made to a candidate’s committee on or after November 5, 2014, will count towards the 2018 election period limits.

Here is our November-December calendar. If you are attending any of these events, please stop by and say hello!

November 6   Akron Urban League Women of Power Luncheon, Akron Ohio

November 7   WASRG Luncheon, Washington, D.C.

November 10   WGR Toastmasters, Washington, D.C.

November 12-15   Women in Government Fifth Annual Healthcare Summit, Washington, D.C.

November 20-21   2014 Conference for Professional Women in Advocacy, Washington, D.C.

November 22   SGAC Leaders’ Policy Conference, Scottsdale, Arizona

December 3   Ohio Society Holiday Party; Washington, D.C.

December 7-10   COGEL Annual Conference, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania