Campaign and governmental ethics regulators from across the country have announced the launch of the “States’ Unified Network (SUN) Center,” a website devoted to providing nationwide information regarding campaign disclosure and enforcement of campaign finance rules. According to Ann Ravel, Chair of the Fair Political Practices Commission (recently confirmed to the FEC), this is the first time states and cities are collaborating to share innovative ideas, strategies, and legislation related to campaign finance.

SUN Center will display proposed and existing legislation, current news, and enforcement cases related to campaign finance rules. The site will also develop a database of organizations making contributions in multiple states, allowing enforcement agencies to exchange information and coordinate enforcement efforts.

The group is nonpartisan and currently consists of regulators from New York, California, Alaska, Idaho, Maine, Montana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Washington, Iowa, and New York City. The website is available here.

Gov. Jerry Brown has signed three bills sponsored by the state’s Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) designed to promote government transparency:

• Assembly Bill 409 creates an electronic filing system for public officials who file annual statements of economic interest (Form 700), allowing greater public accessibility to the statements;
• Assembly Bill 552 gives the FPPC greater authority to collect fines from individuals and entities who violate laws regarding campaign finance, lobbying, and conflicts of interest; and
• Assembly Bill 1090 allows the FPPC to give written or telephone advice to public officials about conflicts of interest in government contracts.

Assembly Bill 409 takes effect immediately. Assembly Bill 552 and Assembly Bill 1090 are effective January 1, 2014.

The Legislature adjourned a special session on Wednesday, October 3, 2013, after passing a package of bills referred to as the “grand bargain.”

The diverse collection of bills passed included government pension reform, additional education and mental health funding, and a farming regulation that limits local regulation of genetically modified plants.

Gov. Jerry Brown has declared a special election for Assembly District 54. The primary will be held on December 3, 2013.

If no candidate receives a majority of the votes, a special general election will be held on February 4, 2014. The vacancy occurred following the resignation by Assembly Member Holly Mitchell.

Assembly District 54 is wholly contained in Los Angeles County.

Gov. John Kitzhaber has announced he will call a one-day special legislative session on September 30, 2013. The special session bill package would raise tax revenues to provide $100 million for K-12 education and $40 million for higher education to prevent tuition increases in the 2013-15 biennium.

It is not yet clear whether the legislative caucuses have the votes to pass all the bills in the package.

Kitzhaber has indicated he will sign none of the bills unless all bills pass.

The Ethics Commission has issued an informal memorandum regarding a new training certification requirement for lobbyist registration.

Beginning September 19, 2013, Part C of the registration form will require the lobbyist to certify he or she has completed the required training in the last two-year period or will complete the training prior to being a regulated lobbyist for two years.

The next live training is scheduled for October 21, 2013. Lobbyists can verify their training status and complete the training online by accessing their account at https://lobby.ethics.state.md.us.

The Legislature convenes its annual veto session on Wednesday, September 11, 2013. Among the vetoed bills eligible for an override vote are House Bill 110 and Senate Bill 29.

House Bill 110 requires a special election to fill the lieutenant governor’s office if there is an early vacancy due to resignation, death, or impeachment. Senate Bill 29 requires certain public labor unions to obtain annual consent from members before withholding dues and fees from their paychecks for political contributions or expenditures.

Gov. Jay Nixon has declined to call a special session to allow lawmakers to craft a new version of a vetoed income-tax bill. Override votes require a two-thirds vote in each chamber.

Photo of the Missouri State Capitol by RebelAt on Wikipedia.

Gov. Nathan Deal has issued writs of election to fill vacancies in House Districts 100, 104, 127, and Senate District 14.

The special elections will be held on November 5, 2013. House Districts 100, 104, and Senate District 14 became vacant due to resignations.

House District 127 became vacant due to the passing of Representative Quincy Murphy.

City Council has scheduled a special election to replace Mayor Bob Filner on November 19, 2013. Filner is scheduled to resign Friday, August 29, following sexual harassment allegations from more than a dozen women.

If one candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote, the person would assume office December 17, 2013. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote, a runoff election would be held within the 49-day period called for by the City Charter.

City Council has passed the Public Ethics and Financial Disclosure Ordinance (O-41-12), as required by a 2011 state law. The ordinance does not change lobbyist registration or reporting dates, but does add definitions, gift restrictions, and penalties for violations.

Lobbying will now include grassroots activities, but reporting obligations remain focused on expenditures for the benefit of officials and employees. Tickets to sporting events will no longer be permitted and the Annapolis Ethics Commission may impose a fine of $5,000 for each violation.

The legislation was pre-approved by the State Ethics Commission in late October, 2012, allowing the ordinance to take effect January 1, 2014.

The Missouri Ethics Commission has announced James Klahr as the new executive director for a six-year term beginning September 13, 2013. Klahr has worked for now-Governor Jay Nixon since 1997, most recently as the administration’s legislative liaison in the Department of Public Safety.

Klahr replaces Julie Allen, who became the elections director for Secretary of State Jason Kander in January. Stacey Heislen will remain on the commission’s staff after serving as acting director.

The Ethics Commission has announced a scheduled maintenance for the lobbying and campaign finance electronic filing systems.

The filing systems and public access websites will be down between 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, August 24, 2013 and 2:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 25, 2013.

The commission has advised campaign finance entities to plan accordingly if required to file 24-hour expenditure or contribution reports.

Treasurer Mark J. Saladino announced his office will no longer do business with securities brokers making political contributions to school bond campaigns. The pay-to-play policy is an attempt to prevent campaign donations from influencing the hiring of underwriters by school districts. The policy is also expected to increase competition between dealers and save taxpayer dollars.

Under the new policy, underwriters must not donate to school bond measures if they want to qualify for the treasurer’s list of investment banks and securities dealers eligible to sell county bonds. The restriction applies to monetary donations, non-monetary contributions, and pre-election services.

In statewide surveys, virtually every securities broker hired by a school district contributed to the district’s bond campaign and was retained without competitive bidding. A recent study focusing on California school bond issues found post-election fees paid to underwriters making contributions were on average $27,576 more than those paid to brokers not contributing.

The first charge and conviction for violating the Lobbying Act resulted in a $7,500 fine for a former federal staffer. Andrew Skaling worked for Tory office holders during the 2004 federal election campaign, while also being retained by the Canadian Network of Respiratory Care to arrange meetings with public officers. Skaling failed to register as a lobbyist, but assured the director of the charity he had.

While there was no evidence Skaling actually met with federal officials to lobby for the charity, the Lobbying Act requires a lobbyist to register within 10 days of being retained. The maximum penalty for failing to register under the Lobbying Act is $50,000 or six months in jail.