The General Assembly passed a campaign finance reform bill before adjourning on Monday, April 8, 2013.

House Bill 1499 increases contribution limits to any one campaign committee from $4,000 to $6,000 and from $10,000 to $24,000 for total contributions to all campaign committees within a four-year election cycle. The bill also curbs giving through multiple corporate entities for the purpose of evading contribution limits, increases reporting requirements, and gives the State Board of Elections new enforcement powers.

Unless vetoed by Governor O’Malley, the new limits will be effective for the election cycle beginning January 1, 2015.

Photo of the Maryland State House by Thisisbossi on Wikipedia.

The United States Supreme Court has decided to hear a case challenging the aggregate federal limits for a person making contributions to candidates, party committees, and PACs. The case, McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission (FEC), is expected to be argued and decided during the Court’s next term, which begins in October, 2013.

The plaintiff, Shaun McCutcheon, is an Alabama businessman who regularly makes political contributions to Republican candidates and the Republican National Committee (RNC). Mr. McCutcheon wishes to contribute $26,200 more to candidates and committees than the aggregate ceiling would allow. However, he is not challenging the limits on contributions to individual candidates and entities. Mr. McCutcheon wants to give to more candidates and political entities. The RNC is also a plaintiff in the suit.

Federal law imposes two types of limits on individual political contributions, base limits and biennial limits.

Base limits restrict the amount an individual may contribute to:

• A candidate committee;
• A national party committee;
• A state, local, and district party committee; and
• A political action committee.

Biennial limits restrict the aggregate amount an individual may contribute biennially, using the 2011-2012 election cycle limits argued against in the lawsuit, as follows:

• $46,200 to candidate committees; and
• $70,800 to all other committees, of which no more than $46,200 may go to non-national party committees (e.g., state parties and PACs).

The plaintiffs are only challenging the overall limits (the biannual limits) and not the base limits.

The attorneys for McCutcheon and the RNC argue the two-year ceilings federal law sets on what an individual can contribute during a campaign are unconstitutional. Specifically, they assert the limits on contributions violate a contributor’s right to free speech; the limits for biennial contributions are too low; and the distinction between contributions and expenditures articulated in the 1976 US Supreme Court case Buckley v. Valeo are no longer applicable because of the changes in campaign finance laws over the last 30 years. Buckley v. Valeo allowed for government regulation of contributions to prevent political corruption and prohibited government regulation of expenditures because of First Amendment protections.

Unlike Citizens United v FEC, which concerned political expenditures, McCutcheon v. FEC addresses contribution limits. Additionally, this case does not involve the political contributions or expenditures of corporations.

Lobbying

“K Street Files: Former Obama Health Care Guru Heads to K Street” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“Rules of the Game: Lame-Duck FEC Invites Scofflaws” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.

“Top GOP House aide goes to K Street” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

California: “Charities are engaged in California political fights” by Torey Van Oot in the Sacramento Bee.

Campaign Finance

Arkansas: “Ark. lawmakers OK proposal to put campaign finance constitutional amendment on the ballot” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

New Jersey: “Donors behind millions in N.J. political contributions kept secret, analysis finds” by Christopher Baxter in the Star-Ledger.

Ethics

“Why Washington is corrupt” by Lawrence Lessig on CNN News.

Arizona: “Panel on constitutional amendments endorses ethics proposal” by John Lyon in Arkansas News.

New York: “Lhota, at City Hall, Proposes Ways to Curb Corruption” by David M. Halbfinger in The New York Times.

Texas: “Texas ethics watchdog hardly ever barks” by Rick Casey in the Express-News.

Virginia: “Cuccinelli denies conflict of interest claims” by Julian Walker in The Virginian-Pilot.

Open Government

“Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin won’t budge on executive privilege claim concerning emails” by Zeke Campfield in The Oklahoman.

Social Media

“For pols, Tumblr is trending” by Kevin Cirilli in Politico.

Governor Matt Mead has signed a campaign finance bill to increase contribution limits and decrease criminal penalties for violations. House Bill 187 increases contribution limits to $2,500 per candidate for statewide office and to $1,500 per candidate for non-statewide office. Currently, the limit is $1,000 for both statewide and non-statewide campaigns.

The bill also increases the total individual contribution limit from $25,000 to $50,000 per two-year election cycle. Contributions from PACs, currently unlimited, will be limited to $7,500 per candidate for statewide office and $3,000 per candidate for non-statewide office.

The penalty for a first violation of the limits will drop from $10,000 to $5,000 and filing a false report will no longer be a felony. The bill becomes effective January 1, 2015.

At any given time, more than 1,000 legislative bills, which can affect how you do business as a government affairs professional, are being discussed in federal, state, and local jurisdictions. These bills are summarized in the State and Federal Communications digital encyclopedias for lobbying laws, political contributions, and procurement lobbying, and can be found in the client portion of the State and Federal Communications’ website.

Summaries of major bills are also included in monthly e-mail updates sent to all clients. The chart below shows the number of bills we are tracking in regards to lobbying laws, political contributions, and procurement lobbying.

National:

Governors’ Groups Rely Increasingly on ‘Dark Money’ Affiliates

Federal:

Hanford Contractor Reaches $1.1 Million Settlement in Whistleblower Suit Involving Training Program

Most Lobbyists Following Disclosure Rules, Government Report Says

From the States and Municipalities:

Alaska – House Trips over Bad Jokes and a Representative’s Tongue

Arizona – Federal Judge Strikes Down 2 Arizona Anti-Union Statutes

Florida – Lawmaker Complains about Getting Out of Speeding Ticket; Trooper Fired

Florida – Lawmakers Seek Exceptions to Free Food and Drink Ban

Georgia – New Ga. Lobbying Rules Raise Fresh Issues

Iowa – Sex Offender Faces Charge after Lobbying Legislators

Maryland – Maryland Close to Raising Political Donation Limit to $24,000

New Jersey – Secret Recording Led to Criminal Case against N.J. Engineering Firm Birdsall Services Group

New York – Lawmakers in New York Tied to Bribery Plot in Mayor Race

North Carolina – NC Court of Appeals Sends Case against Lobbyist Back to Trial Court

Pennsylvania – Judge Throws Out All Campaign Finance Limits in Pittsburgh Mayoral Race

South Carolina – GOP Frets Mark Sanford Could Blow It

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.

Q. I am interested in making a political contribution in Puerto Rico. What are the current political contribution limits? Am I required to disclose my contribution?

A. In Puerto Rico, individuals and PACs may make contributions.  Direct corporate contributions are prohibited. Puerto Rico has recently raised the annual political contribution limits. In response to the Federal Election Commission raising the federal contributions limits in 2 U.S.C. §441a(a)(1)(A),  the Oficina del Contralor Electoral (OCE) issued Circulated Letter OCE-CC-2013-02. The circulated letter raises the individual and PAC contribution limits to $2,600 per candidate per year, with an aggregate contribution limit of $13,000.  In an election year, the limits are modified to $2,600 per candidate per election, and $13,000 in the aggregate per election. These contribution limits do not apply to independent expenditures.

There are no reporting requirements for individuals making contributions in Puerto Rico.  PACs, however, have a quarterly disclosure requirement for any quarter in which contributions were received or expenditures were made.  PACs established and registered in a jurisdiction other than Puerto Rico have separate reporting requirements under the campaign finance regulations issued by the OCE.

For specific guidance on making contributions in Puerto Rico, please contact Sarah Kovit.

You can directly submit questions for this feature, and we will select those most appropriate and answer them here. Send your questions to: marketing@stateandfed.com.

(We are always available to answer questions from clients that are specific to your needs, and we encourage you to continue to call or e-mail us with questions about your particular company or organization. As always, we will confidentially and directly provide answers or information you need.) Our replies to your questions are not legal advice. Instead, these replies represent our analysis of laws, rules, and regulations.

The Senate has passed a campaign finance reform bill, including a provision allowing public financing of local campaigns. House Bill 1499 raises campaign contribution limits, for the first time in two decades, from $10,000 to $24,000 within a four-year election cycle. The bill also curbs giving through multiple corporate entities for the purpose of evading contribution limits, increases reporting requirements, and gives the State Board of Elections new enforcement powers.

An amendment to remove a public financing option for counties was rejected by a 25-16 vote.

The Senate passed House Bill 1499 and cross-filed Senate Bill 1039 on Wednesday, April 3, 2013 by a 45-2 vote. The bill now must be reconciled with a different version passed by the House.

The contributions limits in the upcoming Pittsburgh mayoral election have been removed by the courts. Judge Joseph James voided the city’s contribution limits because of one candidate’s decision to contribute his own money to his campaign.

Under city law, candidates may only accept $2,000 from individuals and $4,000 from PACs per covered election. However, if a candidate decides to use personal resources in excess of $50,000 for his or her campaign, then the contribution limitations are thrown out for all candidates in that specific race.

In this situation, Councilman Bill Peduto requested an injunction barring former state Auditor General Jack Wagner from using nearly $300,000 in contributions collected during previous campaigns. The judge ruled the use of the previous campaign funds to be a contribution, which would have exceeded the city’s contribution limits.

Wagner’s lawyers then turned their attention to Michael Lamb, the city controller who withdrew from the race earlier in the week. Lamb had given his campaign $53,000 of his own money, which voided the contribution limits and allowed Wagner to use the $300,000 in question. Lamb attempted to give $3,000 from the campaign back to himself in order to undo the contribution, but the judge ruled that the refund did not repair the breach.

The primary election for the mayoral office takes place on May 21, 2013 and the general election on November 5, 2013.

Photo of downtown Pittsburgh by Theeditor93 on Wikipedia.

Campaign Finance

“As Obama begins fundraising swing, campaign finance watchdogs growl” by David Nakamura in the Washington Post.

Maryland: “Campaign finance reform advances in Senate” by Michael Dresser in the Baltimore Sun.

New York: “Campaign finance reform gains momentum” by Dan Levy in WNYT News.

New York: “Campaign reform advocates say NY scandals show need to change Albany culture” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

Ethics

Florida: “Palm Beach County ethics board targeted for state audit” by Jennifer Sorentrue in the Palm Beach Post.

New York: “Lawmakers in New York Tied to Bribery Plot in Mayor Race” by Michael Wilson and William K. Rashbaum  in the New York Times.

New York: “Rogues gallery of corruption cases” by Rick Karlin in the Albany Times Union.

From the State Legislatures

Alaska: “Kawasaki draws rebuke for conduct on House floor” by The Associated Press in the Juneau Empire.

Nebraska: “Late nights planned for state lawmakers” by The Associated Press in the Lincoln Journal Star.

Oregon: “Many bills in Oregon Legislature won’t see the light of day” by Laura Fosmire in the Statesman Journal.

It has been a long cold winter for most of the country and though it may be hard to see, sunshine and warm weather are fast approaching. While cold temperatures and snow are making summer seem far in the distance, Major League Baseball’s opening week is upon us and that means summer is close. With America’s pastime finally here, the Sunlight Foundation did a report on how much Major League Baseball and its clubs contributed to campaigns and PACs throughout the last election cycle.

According to the report, MLB organizations contributed more than $24 million last election cycle. The Chicago Cubs can’t win on the field (they have not been to a World Series since 1945 and have not won since 1908), but they certainly won the political spending war. The Cubs spent $13.9 million, more than $12 million more than any other team. Most of that money, more than $12 million, went to a PAC started by the Ricketts family (the team’s ownership group) established to fight wasteful spending in Washington and the defeat of President Obama. However, not all of the family veered to the right with their spending. Laura Ricketts spend more than $500,000 on Democratic candidates and PACs.

The Cubs rival, and President Obama’s favorite team, the Chicago White Sox were one of the few teams who favored the Democrats in their spending. The White Sox gave several donations to Obama, amounting to $60,000 and only $7,000 to Obama’s opponent in the presidential election, Mitt Romney.

Not all teams spend heavily though. The Toronto Blue Jays did not contribute a single penny, as federal laws do not allow foreign contributions to campaigns. The Oakland Athletics only gave a $5,000 contribution to the league’s PAC and gave nothing to either the Republican or Democratic parties. The New York Yankees, owners of the league’s highest payroll at nearly $229 million, only spent $43,000 off the field in political donations.

In addition to the individual teams contributing, Major League Baseball operates its own PAC, called the MLB Commissioner’s Office PAC. The league collects donations from each team and contributes fairly evenly to both the Democrats and Republicans. The Los Angeles Dodgers were the only team to eschew a donation to the league’s PAC.

Most of the donations coming from baseball were made by team executives and owners. However, a few current and former players decided to contribute. Players to contribute to the Republicans included White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham, New York Yankees designated hitter Travis Hafner, and San Diego Padres closer Huston Street. Los Angeles Dodgers outfield Tony Gwynn Jr. was the only current player to contribute to the Democrats, but he was joined by Hall of Famers Hank Aaron and Lou Brock.

For a complete look at how each team contributed, check out the Sunlight Foundation’s report. And just remember, no matter how miserable the weather may be today, baseball is here and summer is right around the corner.

Lobbying

“Street Talk: The Curious Cases of Vanishing Lobbyists” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

California: “Special interests spent $277 million lobbying in 2012 at state Capitol” by Marc Lifsher in the Los Angeles Times. (via the Political Activity Law blog.)

New Mexico: “Former New Mexico state senator, ex-lobbyist Odis Echols dies at 82” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

North Carolina: “NC Court of Appeals sends case against former lobbyist back to trial court” by Anne Blythe in the News & Observer.

Campaign Finance

Los Angeles, California: “Our porous campaign laws” op-ed piece in the Los Angeles Times.

New York: “Groups Seek State Campaign Finance Reform” on WNYF News.

Ethics

Connecticut: “Bills to address the costs of blight and conflicts of interest” by Ken Dixon in the Connecticut Post.

Iowa: “Session may adjourn with ethics charges unresolved” by William Petroski in the Des Moines Register.

Texas: “Senate panel OKs tweaks to ethics panel; critics say major reforms ignored again” by Mike Ward in the Austin American-Statesman.

From the State Legislatures

New Jersey: “150 candidates file peititons to seek legislative nominations” by Anthony Campisi in the Bergen Record.

“Expulsions of State Legislators are Rare” in NCSL’s The Thicket.

Elections

“Presidential Election Commission: It’s Official” by Wendy Underhill and Karen Shanton in NCSL’s The Thicket.

Government Teach and Social Media

“The Present, and Future, of Social Media in Government” by Mark Micheli in Government Executive.

Lobbying

Florida: “Florida lawmakers weigh bill to tweak lobbyist gift ban” by Jim Saunders in the Miami Herald.

Georgia: “New lobbyist law leaves possible loopholes” by Aaron Gould Sheinin, Chris Joyner and James Salzer in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Kentucky: “Ethics Commission reports $4.2M spent on lobbying in Frankfort in January, February” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

New York: “Lobbying spending in N.Y. dropped to $205M in 2012” by Jon Campbell in the Democrat and Chronicle.

New York: “Pro-Cuomo Group Repeats as Top Spender on Lobbying” by Thomas Kaplan in the New York Times.

Oregon: “State, colleges lobbying costs top $1M” by Raju Chebium in the Statesman Journal.

Campaign Finance

Connecticut: “Boosting public financing for campaigns is off the table” by Mark Pazniokas in the Connecticut Mirror.

Nebraska: “Measure repeals Neb. campaign finance law but seeks to put campaign spending reports online” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

New York: “New Ads to Press Albany on Campaign Financing” by Thomas Kaplan in the New York Times.

Vermont: “Campaign finance reform bill in jeopardy” in the Rutland Herald.

West Virginia: “W.Va. House seeks anti-Citizens United amendment” by The Associated Press in WTRF.com.

Ethics

“Larry Craig Loses Major Battle in Fight Against FEC” by Steven T. Dennis in Roll Call.

“STOCK Act Endangers National Security, Report Says” by Niels Lesniewski in Roll Call.

North Dakota: “Gov. Dalrymple’s energy stocks, contributions raise questions” by Amy Dalrymple in InForum.

Ohio: “Jimmy Dimora files federal appeal claiming innocence” by James F. McCarty in the Plain Dealer.

From the State Legislatures

Georgia: “Ga. lawmakers take flurry of votes on final day” by The Associated Press in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Redistricting

Texas: “Texas redistricting fight resumes” by Tim Eaton in the Austin American-Statesman.

Open Government

“Which States Aced the Spending Transparency Test?” in Government Technology.

Government Tech and Social Media

“Internal Website HouseNet Gets a Makeover” by Emma Dumain in Roll Call.

“NASA Becomes The Most-Followed Government Twitter Account, Nominated For Second Shorty Award” by Benny Luo in NewMediaRockstars.com.

Hawaii: “Bill would require state to post more information online” by The Associated Press in the Honolulu Star Advertiser.

Federal:

Why Republicans Still Run K Street

From the States and Municipalities:

Arizona – Arizona Legislature Is Short on Ethics Rules

Florida – Florida Governor Shuts Down Office after Resignation

Georgia – Georgia Lawmakers Reach Deal on Lobbying Rules

Illinois – Illinois Supreme Court Reverses Ruling on Chicago Inspector General’s Power

Illinois – Lobbyist Uses Political Savvy in Springfield to Tackle Bill – Her Water Bill

Kentucky – Richie Farmer’s Sister Placed on Leave over Ethics Charges against Her

Montana – Murry Will Not Seek Confirmation to Political Practice Post

Nevada – Banishment Ends Brooks Saga: ‘We did not feel safe’

Nevada – Senate OKs Bill for Quarterly Lobbyist Reports

New Jersey – Campaign Finance Watchdog Agency Says Outside Democratic Group Must Adhere to Contribution Limits

New Jersey – Seven from Birdsall Services Group Engineering Firm Indicted in Plot to Hide Political Gifts

Pennsylvania – Turnpike Case Has Bribery Charges, But Not Against Bribers

Wyoming – Judge Rejects Lawsuit by Wyoming Free Speech

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.