October 23, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Here is our roundup of the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, ethics, and more!
Lobbying
“Lobbying World” in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
District of Columbia: “Campaign finance reform will get D.C. Council vote next month” by Mike DeBonis in The Washington Post.
Kentucky: “Outside groups spend millions to sway Ky. senate race” by Joseph Gerth in The Courier-Journal.
Ethics
Georgia: “State auditor to investigate Deal, ethics commission” by Christina A. Cassidy in the Athens Banner-Herald.
Elections
Washington: “Washington state special election could decide party control” by Reid Wilson in The Washington Post.
Tech and Social Media
“Now You Can Petition Some Members of Congress Directly” by Joseph Marks in Nextgov.
“Farewell to The Thicket” by Karl Kurtz in NCSL’s The Thicket. The Thicket will be absorbed by the NCSL blog found here.
October 22, 2013 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Keep up with the latest government relations news with these articles:
Lobbying
“There’s no sunrise yet on K Street” by Kevin Bogardus and Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.
“The state of K Street: Flat” by Byron Tau in Politico Influence.
“Major oil group boosts lobbying” by Ben Geman in The Hill.
“Facebook Lobbyist to Head Up Cory Booker’s Senate Staff” by Andrew Ramonas in the Blog of the Legal Times.
Campaign Finance
Arizona: “Horne denies campaign finance wrongdoing” by Howard Fischer in the Arizona Daily Star.
Montana: “Appeal filed over documents tied to dark money” by The Associated Press in the Billings Gazette.
Ethics
Georgia: “Ethics commission chair: Board close to finalizing plan for outside investigation” by Christina A. Cassidy (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Elections
“More female governors expected after 2014” by Emily Schultheis in Politico.
Redistricting
Alaska: “Alaska Redistricting Board to meet” by The Associated Press in the Anchorage Daily News.
October 21, 2013 •
Monday News Roundup
Let’s start off the week with these lobbying, campaign finance, and ethics news articles:
Lobbying
“Lobbying bonanza as US firms try to influence EU” by Eric Lipton and Danny Hakim on CNBC News.
“Clustering Near the Seat of Power” in The New York Times.
“Lobbyists Ready for a New Fight on U.S. Spending” by Eric Lipton in The New York Times.
“Cassidy lobby shop goes social” by Catherine Ho in The Washington Post.
Maine: “New lobbying group to represent owners of Maine franchises” by Jessica Hall in the Kennebec Journal.
Tennessee: “Ingram filings call him Haslam campaign consultant” by Andy Sher in the Times Free Press.
Campaign Finance
“Get Over It: Campaign Finance Limits Don’t Work” by James Oliphant in National Journal.
“Washington’s open secret: Profitable PACs” by Steve Kroft on CBS News’ 60 Minutes.
“Pepsi, Coke, Nestle among brands donating to effort vs. labeling genetically modified foods” by Mike Baker (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Montana: “Bullock campaign violated campaign finance law” by Manee Banks in KXLH News.
Texas: “Court Nixes Texas Ban on Corporate PAC Donations” by Jack Bouboushian in the Courthouse News Service.
Ethics
Alabama: “Alabama considers creating election commission” by Phillip Rawls (Associated Press) in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
Hawaii: “Ethics Probe into Honolulu Mayor Sparks Talk of Reform” by Nick Grube in the Honolulu Civil Beat.
“Texas: APNewsBreak: Patrick PAC paid his radio station” by Will Weissert (Associated Press) in the Miami Herald.
Redistricting
Arizona: “Arizona redistricting panel running out of money” by The Associated Press in KSAZ TV News.
Tech and Social Media
“Legislative panel to take up Facebook access” by The Associated Press in the Juneau Empire.
October 17, 2013 •
Thursday News Roundup
Here are some great articles for today’s government relations news summary:
Lobbying
“Uber hires first DC lobbying firm” by Bendon Sasso in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
“McCutcheon and the Future of Campaign Finance Reform” by Rick Cohen in the Nonprofit Quarterly.
“Former FEC Commissioner, Lessig debate campaign finance reform (video)” on Harvard.edu.
California: “Political Parties And A Campaign Finance No-Man’s Land” by Joe Yerardi in KPBS Public Broadcasting.
Michigan: “Campaign Finance Expert Visits Dearborn on Oct. 24” by Daniel Lai in the Dearborn Patch.
Montana: “Commissioner says ongoing investigation finds ‘dark money’ groups coordinated with candidate” by Matt Gouras (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Ethics
“Members of Congress Keep Lawyers Busy” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call’s Political MoneyLine.
Campaigns and Elections
“6 Major Surprises in House Campaign Fundraising” by Emily Cahn in Roll Call.
Illinois: “Gov. Candidates File Campaign Finance Reports” on WICS News.
New Jersey: “Cory Booker Elected Senator in New Jersey” by Kyle Trygstad in Roll Call.
Oklahoma: “Oklahoma congressmen report campaign contributions” by Chris Casteel in The Oklahoman.
Tech and Social Media
“Democracy.com Hopes to Level Campaign Playing Field With Social Network For Politics” by Miranda Neubauer in TechPresident.
“The Demise of the Public Hearing” by Rob Gurwitt in Governing.
October 16, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Here is our roundup of the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, ethics, and more!
Lobbying
“Lights! Cameras! Action on K Street” by Kevin Bogardus on The Hill.
“Bottom Line” in The Hill.
New York: “Lobbying spending dips in NY to lowest in 5 years” by Joseph Spector in the Democrat and Chronicle.
New York: “JCOPE Mid-Year lobbying data is out” by Rick Karlin in the Times Union.
Campaign Finance
“Why striking down campaign contribution limits might make politics better” by John Sides in The Washington Post.
“The Political-Monetary Complex” op-ed by Thomas B. Edsall in The New York Times.
“Extra! Extra!! Get your real time campaign finance data here!!!” by Jacob Fenton in the Sunlight Foundation blog.
Arizona: “Arizona court blocks new campaign finance law” by Howard Fischer in the Arizona Daily Star.
New Jersey: “N.J. election spending soars: Political groups’ $21M shatters Jersey record” by Michael Linhorst in The Record.
Ethics
New York: “NY corruption commission expands probes” by Michael Gormley (Associated Press) in the Connecticut Post.
Redistricting
North Carolina: “N.C. panel calling for fairer redistricting scheduled to meet” by The Associated Press in the News & Record.
Tech and Social Media
Maryland: “Hough argues for webcasting committee votes, floor sessions” by Bethany Rodgers in The Frederick News-Post.
October 16, 2013 •
State and Federal Communications a Sponsor at 2013 WASRG Summit
October 16 at Carmine’s
State and Federal Communications is proud to be the Keynote Speaker Sponsor at the Washington Area State Relations Group 2013 WASRG Summit today in Washington, D.C.
Our Federal Compliance Associate Rebecca South and Marketing Manager Melissa Coultas are attending the event.
They Keynote Speakers are Robert Blizzard, a Partner at Public Opinion Strategies and Drew Lieberman with Greenberg Quinlan Rosner Research, Inc.
October 15, 2013 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Keep up with the latest government relations news with these articles:
Lobbying
“Lobbyists’ lobbying group wants a new name — one that doesn’t mention lobbying” by Holly Yeager in The Washington Post.
Campaign Finance
“No, overturning campaign contribution limits really would be a problem” opinion piece by Bob Biersack in The Washington Post.
“The next, next Citizens United” by Reid Wilson in The Washington Post.
“McCutcheon v. FEC: Why it matters” by Jerad Najvar and Dan Backer in The Daily Caller.
Missouri: “Candidates to file campaign finance reports with Missouri Ethics Commission” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
New Mexico: “Candidates face campaign finance report deadline” by The Associated Press in KFDA News.
Ethics
Missouri: “St. Louis Firefighters PAC fined for campaign violations in St. Louis mayoral race” by Nick Pistor in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
New York: “Lawsuit: Silver breached ‘contract’” by James M. Odato in the Times Union.
Open Government
“Mass. lawmakers weighing public records bills” by The Associated Press in the Boston Herald.
October 14, 2013 •
Monday News Roundup
Let’s start off the week with these lobbying, campaign finance, and ethics news articles:
Lobbying
“Abramoff Talks Lobbying” by Sam Abrams in The Hoya.
“Lobbyist Who Doesn’t Lobby Still Gets Paid” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call’s Political MoneyLine Blog.
Nevada: “State lawmaker hired as lobbyist for medical marijuana bill he helped pass” by Andrew Doughman in the Las Vegas Sun.
Campaign Finance
Michigan: “Andy Dillon’s campaign investigated over handling of $130,000 loan” by Paul Egan in the Detroit Free Press.
Ohio: “Federal trial of North Canton businessman on campaign finance charges scheduled for June 2014” by James F. McCarty in The Plain Dealer.
Ethics
California: “San Diego mayoral PAC fined for ethics violations” by The Associated Press in The Sacramento Bee.
Illinois: “IDOT official out over Sandoval fund-raising flap” by Chris Fusco in the Chicago Sun-Times.
Rhode Island: “Political Scene: Ethics panel clears 6 of ‘revolving door’ conflict” by Philip Marcelo, Katherine Gregg and Randal Edgar in the Providence Journal.
South Carolina: “Gov. Nikki Haley describes ethics fine as ‘business expense’ in campaign report” by Corey Hutchins in the Charleston City Paper.
October 10, 2013 •
Thursday News Roundup
Here are some great articles for today’s government relations news summary:
Lobbying
“K Street embraces ‘go small’ approach” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.
“Lobbying on the Slow Track During Shutdown” by Elliott Jager in Newsmax.
“Business groups see loss of sway over House GOP” on CNBC.
“Yelp hires Issa aide as first lobbyist” by Brendan Sasso in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
“Obama says lifting caps on campaign contributions would shut regular Americans out of politics” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
“An upside-down campaign finance system” by Jennifer Rubin in The Washington Post.
“Sandra Day O’Connor bemoans Citizens United decision” by The Associated Press in the Portland Press Herald.
Hawaii: “Panel hears finance law challenge” by Derrick DePledge in the Honolulu Star Advertiser.
Michigan: “State extends probe into fundraising by Duggan, super PAC” by Darren A. Nichols in the Detroit News.
New Hampshire: “State senator wants more transparency for political groups” by Garry Rayno in the New Hampshire Union Leader.
New York: “N.Y. Comptroller Supporters Get Prison for Donor Fraud” by Patricia Hurtado in Bloomberg.
Ethics
Arkansas: “Arkansas lawmaker floats ethics bills for session” by Andrew DeMillo (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Tech and Social Media
“Quién Manda: A Pinterest For Politician and Lobbyist Relations?” by Rebecca Chao in TechPresident.
“Government shutdown: Why are only some federal websites shut down?” by Andrew Restuccia in Politico.
“Government on Social Media: How Did Brimfield, Ohio (a Town of 10,000) Get 88,000 Facebook Likes?” by Heather Kerrigan in Governing.
Redistricting
“Could the government shutdown prompt congressional redistricting reform?” by Jason Noble in the Des Moines Register.
October 9, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Here is our roundup of the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, ethics, and more!
Lobbying
“Lobbying World” in The Hill.
Louisiana: “Veteran lobbyist leaves Louisiana Association of Business and Industry” by Julia O’Donoghue in The Times-Picayune.
Campaign Finance
“Justices clash over campaign finance law” by Sam Baker in The Hill.
“Supreme Court conservatives skeptical of campaign finance limits” by Josh Gerstein and Byron Tau in Politico.
“Chief Justice Roberts: A Campaign Finance Moderate Who Gets It?” by Rick Hasen in the Election Law Blog.
California: “Brown signs three FPPC bills, vetoes campaign finance bill” by Laurel Rosenhall in The Sacramento Bee.
Colorado: “Campaign-finance complaint filed against opponents of pot-tax issue” by Jeremy P. Meyer in The Denver Post.
Kentucky: “Supreme Court ruling in campaign finance case could affect Kentucky Senate race” by Sam Youngman in the Lexington Herald-Leader.
New York: “NY Minute: Will voters decide fate of publicly financed campaigns?” by Teri weaver in the The Post-Standard.
Ethics
California: “Gov. Brown gives public a closer look at elected officials’ finances” by Patrick McGreevy and Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times.
Georgia: “Ex-state IT specialist claims he removed documents from Gov. Deal ethics file” by Greg Bluestein in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Ohio: “Letters from Mandel show he lobbied for donor” by Joe Vardon in the Cincinnati Enquirer.
South Carolina: “SC senators not sold on independent ethics panel” by Adam Beam in The State.
Tech and Social Media
“Chicago Candidate Wants to Transform Political Discussion” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.
Open Government
Maryland: “City broke laws by meeting in secret, state board rules” by Luke Broadwater in the Baltimore Sun.
October 8, 2013 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News Update
Keep up with the latest government relations news with these articles:
Lobbying
Alberta: “Lobbying on the rise as Alberta prepares new tobacco bill” by Keith Gerein in the Edmonton Journal.
“Pfizer names new VP of lobbying team” by Megan Wilson in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
“McCutcheon v. FEC: Possible Implications for the States” by Karen Shanton in NCSL’s The Thicket.
“Supreme Court Hears Another Challenge To Campaign Finance Law” by Nina Totenberg on NPR.
“Let Bitcoins be used for political donations” opinion piece by Dan Backer in Politico.
Arizona: “Campaign finance changes increasing Arizona contribution limits may boost clout of business” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
Maine: “Ethics Commission calls for $32,500 fine against Lewiston casino backers for not disclosing source of campaign contributions” by Scott Thistle in the Bangor Daily News.
New York: “Gaming interests reward legislators” by Casey Seiler in the Times Union.
Ethics
Indiana: “Ethics panel to consider possible job change” by The Associated Press in the Evansville Courier & Press.
New York: “Cuomo’s Office Is Said to Rein In Ethics Board He Created” by Jesse McKinley and Thomas Kaplan in The New York Times.
Rhode Island: “RI Ethics Commission: OK for Chafee administration chief Licht to apply for judgeship” by Philip Marcelo in the Providence Journal.
Elections
Arizona: “Arizona plans to require citizenship proof for state elections” by Tim Gaynor in Reuters.
Massachusetts: “House Special Election Next Week Likely to Diversify Mass. Delegation” by Emily Cahn in Roll Call.
Tech and Social Media
“Government Tweets Down Sharply During Shutdown” by Joseph Marks in Nextgov.
Texas: “Conservative Officials Turn to Crowdsourcing” by Alexa Ura in The Texas Tribune.
October 7, 2013 •
Monday News Roundup
Let’s start off the week with these lobbying, campaign finance, and ethics news articles:
Lobbying
“ALL Response to Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI-1) Suggestion to Ban Lobbyists from the Capitol” on the American League of Lobbyists website.
“K Street sidelined in shutdown fight” by Ann Palmer in Politico.
California: “California Strategies walks line between lobbying and public affairs” by Laurel Rosenhall in the Sacramento Bee.
New Mexico: “Ex-official won’t lobby state, company says” by Thomas Cole in the Albuquerque Journal.
Tennessee: “Lobbyists spent more on entertainment in 2013” by The Associated Press in WRCB TV News.
Campaign Finance
“Three Things to Watch for in Tomorrow’s Campaign Finance Oral Argument at the Supreme Court” by Rick Hasen on the Election Law Blog.
“Supreme Court set to consider donor limits” by Byron Tau in Politico.
“After Citizens United, Campaign Finance Reformers Look For A Bold New Approach” by Paul Blumenthal in The Huffington Post.
“Get ready for ‘Son of Citizens United’” by Mary Sanchez in The Chicago Tribune.
Minnesota: “Attorney Christian Sande named to Minnesota Campaign Finance board” by Joe Kimball in MinnPost.
Ethics
Georgia: “Ethics lawyer says chairman pressured her to settle Deal cases” by Aaron Gould Sheinin in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
New York: “Ethics laws outdated, not used” by Alysia Santo in the Times Union.
South Carolina: “STATE HOUSE FOR SALE: SC ethics law a muddled mess” by Adam Beam in The State.
Virginia: “Gift scandal puts pressure on lawmakers to make changes” by Olympia Meola and Jim Nolan in the Richmond Times-Dispatch.
West Virginia: “Statehouse Beat: Another bad mark for W.Va.” by Phil Kabler in the Gazette-Mail.
West Virginia: “Statehouse beat: A lot of road time on the state dime” by Phil Kabler in the Gazette-Mail.
On the State Ballots
“Pot, Gambling and GMOs on the Election Ballot” by Jake Grovum in Stateline.
Campaign Tech and Social Media
“Parnell campaign reports email error” by Becky Bohrer (Associated Press) in the Juneau Empire.
October 4, 2013 •
Project Grad’s Achieving Dreams Celebration
Graduation Really Achieves Dreams!
Elizabeth Bartz, our president and CEO, invited me to attend Project Grad’s Achieving Dreams Celebration along with a team from our company. This is the first time I have attended the dinner-fundraiser and I admit I was not familiar with Project Grad’s work in Akron. I certainly am familiar now.
Project Grad’s website describes their aim as follows: “The mission of the program is to ensure a quality public school education for all at-risk children in economically disadvantaged communities so that high school graduation rates increase; graduates are closing the achievement gap and preparing to enter and be successful in college.”
I was amazed by the work of this organization – since 2006, they have awarded $1,300,000 in scholarships to Buchtel High School graduating seniors. I heard compelling testimonies by award recipients and former students. I felt proud that our company, State and Federal Communications, is a part of this effort by contributing money and auction items. Elizabeth Bartz was also a member of the Achieving Dreams Steering Committee this year.
Enjoy this picture of John Chames and Elizabeth Bartz at the Achieving Dreams event last night.
October 3, 2013 •
Thursday News Roundup
Here are some great articles for today’s government relations news summary:
Lobbying
“No shutdown for K Street as advocates blitz Capitol” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
“Senate health aide joins top lobby firm” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
“Numismatists Have Lobbyists Too” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call’s Political MoneyLine.
Kentucky: “Ethics Reporter: $4.18M spent in four months as lobbying spending continues upward trend” by the Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission in KYForward.com.
North Carolina: “Former Rep. and lobbyist Paul Pulley dies” in the News & Observer.
Campaign Finance
“State watchdogs band together to take on ‘dark money’” by Reid Wilson in The Washington Post.
“Zombie Federal Election Commission still wants your quarterly reports” by Al Kamen in The Washington Post.
Ethics
Florida: “Florida ethics commission investigating Rep. Jamie Grant’s business venture” by Michael Van Sickler in the Tampa Bay Times.
Iowa: “Iowa pol resigns amid ethics probe” by Katie Glueck in Politico.
New Jersey: “State agency: DiVincenzo misused, obscured campaign funds” by Matt Friedman in The Star-Ledger.
Tennessee: “Ethics watchdog files more Deal complaints” by The Associated Press in WRCB TV News.
State Legislatures
Colorado: “Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper will not call special legislative session on flooding issues” by The Associated Press on KMGH-TV News.
New Hampshire: “N.H. Panel Delays Vote On Medicaid” by Ben Leubsdorf in the Valley News.
Oregon: “Lawmakers celebrate end of special session on PERS, taxes, GMO (2013 special session)” by Yuxing Zheng in The Oregonian.
State and Federal Communications, Inc. provides research and consulting services for government relations professionals on lobbying laws, procurement lobbying laws, political contribution laws in the United States and Canada. Learn more by visiting stateandfed.com.
