The Saskatchewan government has introduced legislation requiring paid lobbyists to register with the province. The impetus for the legislation is public accountability for the actions of lobbyists.

The proposed law would cover people paid to lobby elected officials on behalf of organizations or groups. It includes a provision for electronic registration.

Saskatchewan is one of the last Canadian provinces to pass legislation for lobbyist registration.

Legislation has been introduced capping political contributions for candidates seeking the leadership of a political party or electoral district candidacy under a political party. Currently, the Political Process Financing Act only limits contributions to a party or an independent candidate.

The legislation would also require disclosure of all contributions made during campaigns for party leadership or electoral districts, rather than disclosure of only the unexpended balance.

The Ontario, Canada, Legislature’s Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills is considering changes to the province’s Lobbying Act. Bill 115, Lobbyists Registration Amendment Act, 2013, introduced last month, makes several amendments to the Lobbyists Registration Act, 1998. These changes include requiring consultant lobbyists to register within five business days of beginning to lobbying, requiring lobbyists to file monthly reports when lobbying high-level public officeholders, and requiring consultant lobbyists to report political contributions if the Election Finance Act applies.

This bill also provides a new definition of grassroots communication and amends the definition of in-house lobbyist. Additional requirements and changes regarding penalties, revolving-door restrictions, and protections are also a part of Bill 115.

According to a bulletin by Fasken Martineu, LLP, the Progressive Conservatives are critical of the bill and the Liberal Government “would prefer to introduce its own lobbying law reforms.”

A new Lobbyists’ Registration Act is now pending in the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly.

It would require lobbyists to register and pay a fee, and would impose fines of up to $25,000 for failing to register and up to $100,000 for repeat offenses.

Prior attempts to create a lobbyist registry failed in 2007 and 2011.

On August 21, 2013, the British Columbia Ministry of Community, Sport and Cultural Development announced the province will be making changes to the rules regarding local government elections starting in 2014. The rules apply to candidates, elector organizations, and third party advertisers in elections held for municipalities, regional districts, parks boards, the Islands Trust, and boards of education.

According to the press release, this new set of laws include requiring disclosure and registration by third-party advertisers, requiring sponsorship information be displayed on all election advertising, requiring all campaign finance disclosure statements to be filed 90 days after the election, and banning anonymous contributions. Additional changes will allow Elections BC to play a greater role in the enforcement of campaign finance rules in local elections.

The changes are based upon the recommendations of the joint Provincial and Union of BC Municipalities Local Government Elections Task Force.

In September a white paper outlining the government’s intention will be released. Public comment on the white paper will be open until October 23. Once consolidated, the rules for the November 2014 local elections will be introduced as a new campaign finance act in the spring of 2014.

Consultation with key stakeholders will begin in November to consider further legislative changes for the 2017 elections.

Coralee Oakes, Minister of Community, Sport and Cultural Development, states in the press release, “These changes are about enhancing transparency and accountability.”

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.

Elections Alberta and its Chief Electoral Officer Brian Fjeldheim have spoken on the Daryl Katz contribution scandal and they believe there was no scandal at all. Daryl Katz, chairman and CEO of The Katz Group and the National Hockey League’s Edmonton Oilers, has been under fire recently after a contribution of $430,000 was delivered to the Alberta Progressive Conservative party from his company last year.

Under Alberta laws, a corporation or individual is only allowed to contribute $30,000 to a political party during a campaign period. However, Fjeldheim ruled the contribution to be legal because the corporation simply collected contributions from individual donors and gave a bundled contribution of $430,000. Seventeen members of the company all contributed no more than the maximum $30,000 to the entire contribution and every person reimbursed the corporation.

In his ruling, Fjeldheim said, “There was no breach [of the contribution laws] because there was clear identification of the funds connected with the actual contributors and each contribution respected the $30,000 limit. Without more, a single payment of $430,000 would have exceeded the limit for a single contribution. However, the investigation revealed that this was not a single contribution of $430,000.”

There is concern within the province this ruling is a sign of things to come and Canadian elections could become similar to the money-happy American way.

However, Alberta Premier Alison Redford said she will not be looking to change the election laws. “What has been put in place is entirely appropriate.”

Not everyone agrees though. York University election financing expert Robert MacDermid said, “It would be simply a license to allow people to give money without disclosing the truth about it. When you have a system that doesn’t control disclosure adequately, when there are holes where people can give significant sums of money and not have to disclose their true identity…that absence of openness and disclosure really does make people question politicians.”

While the next Alberta election is not until 2016, this campaign finance issue is sure to be among the biggest at the time.

The government’s new bill reducing contributions to political parties became effective on Tuesday, January 1, 2013. National Assembly Bill 2 reduces the limit for private donations from $1,000 to $100, while increasing direct government funding to parties. The bill applies to provincial politics but not municipalities or school boards.

In an election year, voters will have the right to contribute an additional $100, for a maximum of $200. The bill further limits cash donations to $50, down from $100. Leadership candidates, unaffected by the bill, will still be able to collect donations of up to $1,000.

The Legislative Assembly of Alberta crept closer to approving changes to the province’s elections act last week. The bill, which is in the process of going through its second reading, will give the chief electoral officer the power to inform the public who is being fined and to better identify parties receiving cash.

This past May, Elections Alberta fined over 20 corporations for making illegal donations, but was unable to identify the corporations fined or the parties receiving the illegal contributions. The bill will allow the department to go back and reveal the fines of the past three years.

The new bill will also increase disclosure rules for people making political contributions. If the bill is approved, parties or constituency associations will have to disclose any donors who contribute $250 or more. Currently, donors can remain anonymous until they contributed at least $375.

However, many in the province do not think the bill goes far enough. Liberal MLA Laurie Blakeman said the new bill is “feeble, weak, pale, insufficient, and poor. This is not 21st century thinking and it does not address any of the recent scandals that have come up.”

Once the bill passes the second reading, which it is expected to do, it will head to the Committee of the Whole.

The federal government has announced plans to extend the reach of the Lobbying Act to senior public servants with spending decision responsibilities. Currently, more than 1,000 people are covered as designated public office holders under the act, which governs interactions between registered lobbyists and politicians, their staffs, and senior bureaucrats. The proposal could more than double the number covered.

The government continues to consider adding small monetary penalties for minor infractions, as well as a removing the exemption for in-house lobbyists whose lobbying activities constitute less than 20 percent of their duties.

Ontario Integrity Commissioner Lynn Morrison has called for changes to the province’s Lobbyists Registration Act.

Commissioner Morrison, who is also the Lobbyist Registrar, recommends eliminating the “significant part of duties” threshold for registration of lobbyists. Currently, lobbyists must register only if they spend 20 percent or more of their time on lobbying activities. Ms. Morrison recommends all paid lobbyists register regardless of the time spent lobbying.

She also recommends the Lobbyists Registrar have the power to issue administrative monetary penalties and to introduce and require new categories of information reporting for lobbyists. Additionally, the commissioner recommends the different distinctions between the two types of in-house lobbyists be eliminated.

In an Office of the Integrity Commissioner press release, Commissioner Morrison said, “The registration system has worked well since it was introduced in 1999, but times have changed. The roles of lobbyists and public officials have evolved, making it even more important that a registry provide clear, accessible information on who is lobbying whom, and about what.”

Photo of the Toronto skyline by John Vetterli on Wikipedia.

Quebec’s Lobbying Commissioner, François Casgrain, has proposed a major overhaul of the province’s law on lobbying that would expand the number of people required to register as lobbyists. Currently, only people who spend a “significant part” of their time lobbying must register. The proposed changes would require anyone seeking to influence the decision of a public official to register.

Registration would have to be completed by individual lobbyists, ending the practice of employers registering for them. Casgrain wants to expand the enforcement powers of the commission and increase fines for breaking the law. There also would be a blackout on lobbying between publication of a call for tenders on a public contract and the awarding of the contract.

The call for change follows a finding that some parties failed to register as lobbyists during negotiations of a controversial contract award for the still-unbuilt arena.

On April 30, 2012, the Lobbyists Registration Act came into force in the Canadian province of Manitoba. The act requires lobbyists to file returns using an electronic registry system. Although the act was originally passed in 2008, it came into force only this year upon proclamation, allowing the lobbyist registrar the opportunity to create the system with its online component.

The act categorizes lobbyists as either consultant lobbyists or in-house lobbyists. Consultant lobbyists are individuals who, for pay or other benefit, undertake to lobby on behalf of a client. An in-house lobbyist is defined as an employee, partner, or sole proprietor of an organization who lobbies, or has a duty to lobby, on behalf of the organization. However, to be designated as an in-house lobbyist, an individual’s lobbying or duty to lobby has to constitute a significant part of his or her activities, which the regulations define as meeting or exceeding 100 hours annually. Additionally, if an individual’s lobbying, together with lobbying by others in the organization, meets or exceeds 100 hours annually, the senior officer of the organization must file a return.

The act defines lobby to mean communicating with a public official in an attempt to influence the development of a legislative proposal; introducing a bill or resolution before the assembly; making or amending a regulation; developing, amending, or terminating a program or policy; or awarding a financial benefit. For consultant lobbyists the definition of lobby also includes arranging a meeting with a public official or communicating with a public official in an attempt to influence the award of a contract.

Consultant lobbyists already lobbying before April 30th have 30 days to begin filing. If lobbying begins after April 30th, consultant lobbyists have 10 days to file. A senior officer filing on behalf of an organization with in-house lobbyists has two months in which to file, regardless of whether lobbying begins before or after April 30th. Additionally, the officer must file returns within two months after the end of each six-month period after filing the previous return.

The Ottawa City Council Governance Renewal Sub-Committee has directed the city clerk to refine a proposed lobbyist code of conduct.

The councillors explicitly want the differences between advocacy and lobbying to be delineated in order to exempt advocacy activities from registration. The subcommittee differentiated advocacy activities, “communications that state a position for the purpose of a general community benefit, either city-wide or local,” from lobbying activities, “communications that seek to influence a decision for the direct benefit of an individual or the group they represent.”

The clerk’s office is also directed to develop options for a definition of a community association.

Also unsure of the best manner for the city to handle lobbyist activity disclosure, an additional demand was made of the clerk’s staff to “provide a high level overview of options for disclosure, including pros and cons of disclosure by Public Officials only, disclosure by lobbyists only, and dual disclosure.”

A response to the sub-committee is during sometime in the first quarter of 2012. The Governance Renew Sub-Committee is a sub-committee of the Finance and Economic Development standing committee.

Photo of Ottawa in January by SimonP on Wikipedia.