The 2022 regular session of the Kentucky General Assembly adjourned sine die on April 14.

A campaign finance and an ethics bill passed with a veto override.

House Bill 740 reduces transparency in campaign finance by removing the requirement that candidates report the name and employer of the spouse of the donor for donations over $100 and permitting candidates for legislative office to file annual instead of quarterly campaign finance reports in years they are not running for reelection.

The bill also removes references to paper filing and defines form as an online web page or an electronic document.

House Bill 334 reorganizes the Executive Branch Ethics Commission and requires it to make a finding for each complaint filed, as to whether they are grounded in fact, warranted by law, and filed in good faith.

Both bills are effective July 13.

Illinois lawmakers adjourned sine die early Saturday morning after passing a bill limiting contributions to judicial self-funding political committees and independent expenditure committees.

Amendment to House Bill 716 prohibits self-funding political committees and independent expenditure committees established to support or oppose a state judicial candidate from accepting contributions from any single person, other than the candidate or the candidate’s immediate family, in a cumulative amount exceeding $500,000 in any election cycle.

Supporters of the bill argue this does not conflict with federal law established in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission because the state’s interest in preserving public confidence in the integrity of its judiciary extends beyond its interest in preventing the appearance of corruption in non-judicial elections.

If Governor Pritzker signs the bill, it will become effective immediately and would apply to judicial elections this year.

Voters in St. Louis, Missouri passed Proposition R, amending the city charter to include several new conflicts of interest provisions.

Proposition R prohibits alderpersons from knowingly using their official position to influence others for their own financial benefit; requires alderpersons to declare personal or financial conflicts of interest and abstain from voting when there are conflicts of interest; prohibits alderpersons from accepting employment or contracts that interfere with the discharge of public duties or create conflicts of interest; and requires former alderpersons to wait at least one year before serving as a lobbyist to influence a city government decision.

Proposition R also transfers redistricting from the Board of Alderpersons to a nine-member redistricting commission and changes the name of the Board of Aldermen to the Board of Alderpersons.

The charter changes take effect when the election is certified, which will take two to three weeks.

The Missouri Ethics Commission has four vacant seats out of six, leaving it two people short to decide any issues.

The commission had to delay a decision on a complaint filed against Columbia mayoral candidate Randy Minchew on March 15, citing the lack of commissioners.

Under state law, the commission is required to act within 15 days of receiving a complaint against a candidate for the municipal election.

However, because the terms of four commissioners ended on March 16, there are only two active members of the commission.

Commissioners are appointed by the governor with the advice and consent of the Senate for a four-year term.

Kelli Jones, spokeswoman for Gov. Mike Parson, said that Parson plans to appoint two people to the commission in the next two weeks.

The 97th session of the South Dakota Legislature adjourned sine die on March 28 after lawmakers failed to override Gov. Kristi Noem’s three vetoes, killing legislation that would have given lawmakers more control over spending federal aid.

During the session, the Legislature passed House Bill 1076, permitting the voters of any second or third-class municipality, which includes Pierre and Sioux Falls, to choose to elect aldermen to the common council at large by presenting a petition for an election signed by 15% of the registered voters of the municipality.

An election submitting the question to the voters must be held within fifty days of the filing of the petition.

House Bill 1076 is effective June 26, 2022.

The full House, which Republicans control 62-8, will convene on April 12 to decide if it will accept the House Select Committee on Investigation’s report recommending against impeaching Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg.

This does not affect lobbyist reporting.

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose issued a directive instructing all boards of elections in the state to remove the names of candidates for Ohio House, Ohio Senate, and State Central Committee from the May 3 primary ballot, stating that the boards of election must reprogram their databases and prepare ballots by April 5, and it is not possible to include the primary contests on the ballot because of the Supreme Court’s decision last week invalidating the February 24, 2022 General Assembly district plan.

The General Assembly has the authority to decide when the election will be held.

They can move the election, or allow the statewide, congressional, and local races to continue on the May 3 ballot and reschedule the General Assembly primary contests for a later date.

Senate Bill 316 was introduced this week to move the primary to June 28.

Michigan lawmakers introduced several new bills proposing fundamental changes for lobbying disclosure and gift laws.

Senate Bill 963 requires lobbyists to file monthly reports instead of the current schedule of twice a year. The bill also includes a two-year revolving door ban for members of the Legislature.

House Bill 5926 amends the definition of lobbying to include partisan legislative employees in the list of covered officials.

House Bill 5927 implements a gift ban, prohibiting a public official or his or her immediate family member from directly or indirectly soliciting, agreeing to accept, or accepting anything of value from a lobbyist or lobbyist agent.

The last general-business floorperiod of the 2021-2022 session of the Wisconsin General Assembly adjourned March 15.

Lawmakers finished work on 80 bills so they can focus on campaigning for the fall election.

Some bills are likely to be vetoed, including an expansion of the state’s school voucher program and a bill dividing the Milwaukee school district into four to eight smaller districts beginning in 2024.

A constitutional amendment also passed that would strip the governor of his ability to spend federal aid, giving that power to the Legislature.

Constitutional amendments must pass two consecutive legislative sessions and a statewide referendum.

Senate approval Tuesday marked the first session the proposal has passed.

A limited-business floorperiod will be held in April and a veto review floorperiod in May.

The second regular session of the 122nd Indiana General Assembly adjourned sine die on March 8 after passing House Bill 1242 and Senate Bill 348.

Senate Bill 348 requires campaign finance reports to be filed electronically and allows for electronic signatures.

House Bill 1242 requires the Department of Administration to adopt administrative rules to establish a goal to procure in each state fiscal year at least 1.5% of state contracts with state agencies from minority business enterprises, nonprofit agencies for individuals with disabilities, veteran-owned small businesses, and women’s business enterprises.

Voters in St. Louis, Missouri will decide on April 5 whether to amend the city charter to include several new conflicts of interest provisions.

Proposition R would prohibit alderpersons from knowingly using their official position to influence others for their own financial benefit; require alderpersons to declare personal or financial conflicts of interest and abstain from voting when there are conflicts of interest; prohibit alderpersons from accepting employment or contracts that interfere with the discharge of public duties or create conflicts of interest; and require former alderpersons to wait at least one year before serving as a lobbyist to influence a city government decision.

Proposition R would also transfer redistricting from the Board of Alderpersons to a nine-member redistricting commission and change the name of the Board of Aldermen to the Board of Alderpersons.

A special election for Ward 28 will be April 19.

U.S. Rep. Jim Hagedorn died at age 59 after a battle with cancer.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is expected to call a special election for District 1 on August 9, the date of the statewide primary elections.

Secretary of State Steve Simon said the filing period must end by March 15 and will be open for at least two weeks.

A special primary will be held May 24.

The special election will take place within the current district boundaries, not those established in the new state maps announced this week, and the winner of the special election will serve the remainder of Hagedorn’s term.

The November race for the seat will run on the standard election-year timetable within the newly redistricted boundaries for the term beginning January 2023.

The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board voted unanimously to issue an advisory opinion classifying political donations in cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum as in-kind contributions.

Candidates may accept payments but must report the cash value and the donor’s name, and they must report when a cryptocurrency is sold and to whom.

The opinion notes campaigns cannot spend cryptocurrency directly because all campaign expenditures must come from money deposited into an Iowa financial institution.

The Cincinnati City Council voted unanimously to approve the first-ever code of conduct for council members and their staff.

All council members and their staff must sign a copy of the code of conduct and file it with the clerk.

Future council members and staff must sign the document within 45 days of taking office or starting the job.

Mayor Aftab Pureval was also required to create and sign a code of conduct, which he signed and released after the council vote.

It is nearly identical to the council version except the provisions regarding the city’s economic development.

The Office of City Solicitor chose Chris Liu, Chief Hearing Examiner, to be the city’s first head of the new Ethics and Good Government Division.

Two staff members have also been hired for the division, which is working to implement a new hotline for reporting ethics and fraud violations and to expand online resources for viewing campaign contributions.

Gov. Tony Evers signed Executive Order 156 calling for a special session of the Wisconsin Legislature to begin Tuesday, March 8.

Evers wants lawmakers to consider his plan to use a portion of the state’s $3.8 billion projected surplus to provide a $150 surplus refund to every Wisconsin resident, provide targeted relief for childcare and caregiver costs, and invest in education.