April 25, 2012 •
U.S. Senate Could Begin Electronic Campaign Filing
The bill currently has 24 co-sponsors and bipartisan support
During a Rules Committee hearing, the U.S. Senate considered a bill requiring senators to file electronically with the Federal Election Commission, just as members of the House of Representatives and presidential candidates do. The bill, called the Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act, was sponsored by Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and received support from Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.).
For full news coverage, be sure to read:
“Senate considers entering digital age for campaign filings” by Susan Davis in USA Today.
“Schumer: Senators should file campaign reports electronically” by Tom Brune in Newsday.
Image of the Seal of the United States Senate by Ipankonin on Wikipedia.
April 23, 2012 •
Campaign Finance in the News
Here is an opinion piece about Citizens United. Blogs as paid political platforms – California’s FPPC may require disclosure of the payments to political blogs. Also, Virginia successfully meets its first electronic filing deadline:
Federal: “How to Beat Citizens United” by E.J. Dionne, Jr. in The Washington Post.
Arkansas: “Arkansas attorney general certifies ballot wording for item on lobbying, campaign finance” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
California: “State political watchdog chair wants bloggers to reveal payments” by Brian Joseph in the Orange County Register.
California: “California ethics czar urges disclosure of payments to Web pundits” by Patrick McGreevey in the Los Angeles Times.
California: “California looks to crack down on political bloggers paid by campaigns” by Jim Sanders in The Sacramento Bee.
Virginia: “New Electronic Campaign Filing Lauded in Virginia” by The Associated Press in Governing.
April 20, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – April 20, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
National:
WellPoint Is Focus of Aggressive Effort to Force Political Spending Disclosures
Federal:
Federal Judge Rules for FEC in Contractor Donation Dispute
Mystery Donor Gives $10 Million to Crossroads GPS Group to Run Anti-Obama Ads
From the States and Municipalities:
Alabama
Arizona
Arizona Senate Rejects New Bans on Meals, Donations
California
Corruption Can Leave Cities with Enormous Legal Bills
California
S.B. County Seeks to Bring in Political Watchdogs
Florida
Authorities Call for Tougher Campaign Finance Laws Following Rivera Probe
Illinois
Small Town Rocked by $30 Million Theft Case
New Jersey
How N.J. PACs Are Skirting the Law on ‘Pay-to-Play’
South Carolina
State Ethics Agency Pinched by Staff Shortage
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.
April 17, 2012 •
The Ubiquitous Super PACs
Here are just a few of the many articles surfacing in the news:
“Rules of the Game: Dissecting Super PAC Consulting” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.
“One Donor Gave One-Third of Pro-Republican Group’s Funds” by Heidi Przybyla and Jonathan D. Salant in Bloomberg.
“What happens to funds in defunct super PACs?” by Jeremy Roebuck in the Boston Herald.
“Secretive ‘Grassroots’ political group — vehicle for the very rich” by Joel Connelly in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
“Big donors diversify Super PAC donations” by Alexander Cohen and Alina Selyukh in Reuters.
“Billionaires fall in line” by Kenneth P. Vogel in Politico.
April 17, 2012 •
Today’s News Roundup
Keep up with the latest campaign finance, ethics, and lobbying news:
Campaign Finance
“Rep. Ted Deutch Holds Summit on Overturning Citizens United” via a press release on Rep. Ted Deutsch’s website. The meeting is set for tomorrow.
Alabama: “Campaign finance, PAC-to-PAC transfer law needs teeth, grand jury says” by Brian Lyman in the Montgomery Advertiser.
“Fundraising Numbers Tip Scales of Power” by Joshua Miller in Roll Call.
ALEC
“Midwest Democracy | Study accuses ALEC of ‘secretive influence’ in Missouri Capitol” by Jason Hancock in The Kansas City Star.
Government Ethics
“Figure at center of D.C. campaign finance probe resigns from health-care company” by Mike DeBonis in The Washington Post.
“U.S. congressman under fire for campaign expenses turns to high-powered law firm” by Matt Friedman in the Star-Ledger.
April 17, 2012 •
Preliminary Injunction Denied: Plaintiff federal contractors still prohibited from making federal political contributions
Wagner v. FEC
A Federal District Court denied a preliminary injunction request demanding the Federal Election Commission (FEC) not enforce a law prohibiting individuals with federal contracts from making political contributions to federal candidates or political parties.
In Wagner v. Federal Election Commission, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, the Court rejected challenges to the constitutionality of section 441c of Title 2 of the U.S. Code, which prohibits any vendors with contracts with the federal government from making such contributions.
The case, brought by the ACLU, asked the Court to declare the law unconstitutional as applied to individuals who have personal services contracts with federal agencies. Because federal workers who are not contractors may make federal political contributions, while contractors performing the same work may not, the suit argued section 441c violates both the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution and the First Amendment.
In denying the preliminary injunction request, the Court concluded the plaintiffs do not have a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims.
April 16, 2012 •
Lobbying and Campaign Finance in the News
Super PACs, Citizens United, lobbying the White House, and more in today’s news:
Campaign Finance
Federal: “Md. lawmakers take on political spending spree” by John Fritze in the Baltimore Sun.
Vermont: “Vermont lawmakers work to unravel Citizens United ruling” by Nicole Gaudiano in the Burlington Free Press.
Missouri: “St. Louis attorney pleads guilty in campaign donation scheme” by Virginia Young in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Lobbying
“Courting the White House: Don’t call it lobbying” by Anna Palmer and Abby Phillip in Politico.
“White House Opens Door to Big Donors, and Lobbyists Slip In” by Mike Mcintire and Michael Luo in The New York Times.
“Is dialoguing lobbying?” by Donovan Slack in Politico.
California: “The lobbyists’ bumbles and foibles” by Ray LeBov in Capitol Weekly.
April 13, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – April 13, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
Democrats Give Special Interests a Role at Convention
Lobbyists Push Congress to Toughen Rules for Their Industry
White House Abandons Push for Federal Contractors to Disclose Political Giving
From the States and Municipalities:
Alaska
Commission Nominee Withdraws after Racism Accusation Revived
Arkansas
Ethics, Campaign Finance Reform Measure Inspired by Occupy Movement
California
L.A. County Supervisors Campaign for Funds in Lightly Contested Races
Georgia
Gifts Continue to Rain on Lawmakers
Indiana
Union Says Right-to-Work Law Violates Free Speech
Massachusetts
House May Pull PR, CEOs, Communications Specialists into Lobbying Definition
Michigan
Wayne Co. Ethics Rules Get Mixed Welcome
Missouri
Former Missouri Governor Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering
New Mexico
New Charges Filed against NM Town’s Mayor-Elect
Ohio
Josh Mandel, Ohio Treasurer, Sent Top Aide to Beginner’s Course
South Carolina
Ethics Commission Probes Haley’s Campaign Finances
Washington
Ex-Evergreen Instructor Who Owes $119,000 for Ethics Violations Has Disappeared
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.
April 12, 2012 •
Today’s Campaign Finance and Lobbying News Summary
Here are the latest articles:
Florida: “In wake of ‘Taj Mahal’ scandal, Florida Supreme Court approves new lobbying rules for judges” by Lucy Morgan in the Tampa Bay Times.
Florida: “Florida Supreme Court to judges: No lobbying” by Lucy Morgan in The Miami Herald.
Georgia: “Georgia ethics commission goes easy on late campaign reports after change in process” by Walter C. Jones in The Florida Times-Union.
Idaho: “Retiring ID Rep. lands at lobbying, marketing firm” by The Associated Press in the Idaho Statesman.
Kansas: “Corporations drop memberships in ALEC, which has strong ties to Kansas Legislature” by Scott Rohtschild in the Lawrence Journal-World.
Maryland: “Campaign Finance Transparency Measures Pass General Assembly” by Megan Poinski in Southern Maryland Online.
Massachusetts: “House may pull PR, CEOs, communications specialists into lobbying definition” by Colleen Quinn in the Boston Herald.
April 12, 2012 •
Governors and Ethics
Here are news articles about two state governors and a former governor facing campaign finance issues:
Georgia: “Gov. Deal still has 3 pending ethics complaints” by the Morris News Service in the Augusta Chronicle.
Missouri: “Former Missouri governor, St. Louis attorney indicted in campaign contributions case” by Robert Patrick in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
South Carolina: “Ethics Commission to hear 7 allegations against Haley” by Gina Smith in The State.
April 9, 2012 •
ELEC Says PAC Contributions from Contractors Increasing
Calls for Reform
Jeff Brindle, Executive Director of the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC), has renewed efforts calling for campaign finance reform, specifically concerning political contributions from contractors.
In a press release detailing public contractors’ political contributions for 2011, ELEC’s analysis concludes that while contractors are making fewer contributions directly to candidates, they are making substantially more contributions to PACs.
Director Brindle states, “In some cases, contractors may be evading the intent of pay-to-play restrictions and contribution limits by giving indirectly through these PACs. That is why the Commission has recommended making it harder for one candidate or group to establish multiple, affiliated PACs.”
Director Brindle also reiterates the Commission’s recommendation to adopt a single statewide pay-to-play law. Previous LobbyComply blog posts discusses the earlier recommendations can be found here and here.
April 9, 2012 •
Lobbying and Campaign Finance News
Keep up with the latest lobbying and campaign finance news:
“White House abandons push for federal contractors to disclose political giving” by Mike Lillis in The Hill.
“F.C.C. Pushes for Web Site on TV Political Ad Spending” by Brian Stelter in The New York Times.
“Limits on Lobbyists as Hosts? Simply Unworkable, They Say” by Robert Pear in The New York Times.
“FEC Ruling Leaves Ad Uncertainty” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.
Arkansas: “Campaign Finance Reform in Arkansas Enters a New Phase” by KARK 4 News.
Maryland: “Lobbyist scores a ‘scoop’ of sorts” by Michael Dresser in The Baltimore Sun.
April 6, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – April 6, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
National:
Boycotts Hitting Group behind ‘Stand Your Ground’
GE, J&J among Firms to Give More Lobbying Detail
Federal:
As Women’s Issues Become More Prominent, Men Dominate Super PAC Funders
Campaign Donor Advertising Rule Invalidated by U.S. Judge
GAO: Lobbyist disclosure compliance ‘similar’ compared to prior years
From the States and Municipalities:
Arizona
Rep. Patterson to Keep Seat amid Ethics Inquiry
California
Campaign Treasurer Kinde Durkee Admits $7-Million Theft
California
Figure in Coliseum Corruption Case Is in ‘Jungles of Brazil’
Georgia
Lawmaker Returns $800 after Expenses Questioned
Illinois
Blagojevich’s Chief of Staff Gets 10 Days in Prison
Massachusetts
Timothy Cahill Indicted in Corruption Case
Mississippi
Political Stress Erupts at Capitol
New Jersey
Some of Christie’s Biggest Bills Match Model Legislation from D.C. Group Called ALEC
New York
State Ethics Board Won’t Disclose Record of Hiring Cuomo Aide
Wisconsin
Recall Elections Ordered for Walker, Kleefisch, 4 GOP Senators
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.
Signatures needed by July 6th to get on the ballot
Attorney General Dustin McDaniel certified the language of a proposed initiated act regarding campaign finance and ethics law. The measure would prohibit direct corporate and union contributions to individual campaigns. Currently, corporations and unions are able to directly contribute at the same $2,000 level as individuals.
The measure would also ban lawmakers from accepting gifts of any value from lobbyists. Legislators can currently receive gifts, food, or other items valued up to $100 from a lobbyist.
The group supporting the measure, Regnat Populus, must gather at least 62,507 signatures by July 6 to qualify for the November ballot.
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.
