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 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.

The City Ethics Commission is upgrading the Lobbyist Electronic Filing System (LEFS) at 5:00 p.m. on Wednesday, March 27, through 5:00 p.m. on Monday, April 1, 2013.

Filers will not have access to LEFS and will not be able to file or amend registrations and quarterly reports during this time.

Lobbyists and authorized signers for firms must submit a paper CEC Form 59 by April 1 in order to use the new paperless system.

Photo of the Los Angeles City Hall by Brion Vibber on Wikipedia.

The Ethics Commission has announced a system upgrade to the electronic filing system for campaign committees, available here. The San Francisco Electronic Disclosure System (SFEDS) now offers additional features including streamlined data entry, page help for every form, and an easier amendment process.

Committees will need to create a new user account, which will link to the existing committee filer account. The new user account will act as a gateway to access all accounts of multiple committee filers. The next filing deadline for committees is January 31, 2013.

Assistance is available by contacting the commission at 415-252-3100 or by e-mail.

Tomorrow at a public hearing at its offices at 11:00am, the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) will consider proposed changes to the administrative code allowing for electronic filing for lobbyists’ annual reports.

Electronic filing would be mandatory through ELEC’s website and would replace the requirement to file paper copies. Copies of what a lobbyist files electronically must be retained by the lobbyist. The proposed amendments cover governmental affairs agents, represented entities, and representatives of “persons communicating with the general public.” The proposals also make technical changes, such as substituting “represented entity” for “lobbyist” throughout the relevant sections.

Other issues to be addressed at the meeting include proposed amendments concerning campaign cost index adjustments and personal financial disclosure statements by candidates.

The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) has proposed changes to the administrative code allowing for electronic filing for lobbyists’ annual reports.

Electronic filing would be mandatory through ELEC’s website and would replace the requirement to file paper copies. Copies of what a lobbyist files electronically must be retained by the lobbyist.

The proposed amendments cover governmental affairs agents, represented entities, and representatives of “persons communicating with the general public.” The proposals also make technical changes, such as substituting “represented entity” for “lobbyist” throughout the relevant sections. A copy of the proposal can be found here.

ELEC will conduct a public hearing at its offices concerning this proposal on Tuesday, October 16 at 11:00 a.m.

The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance is holding a public hearing on July 25. The hearing will address implementation of new and changing regulations dealing with issues such as electronic filing, transference of funds between political committees, and procedures for informational guidance requests from the office.

The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. at One Ashburton Place, Room 411, Boston. The proposed regulations can be found here.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) unanimously approved five legislative recommendations to be submitted to the U.S. Congress.

One proposed change would require all Senate candidates and their committees to use electronic filing.

The FEC also recommends the Commission have permanent authority to assess administrative fines, Congress expand the prohibitions on fraudulent misrepresentation of campaign authority, and the personal use restrictions to all political committees be extended. Additionally, the FEC is advocating Congress amend the law to allow the FEC to create Senior Executive Service positions under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 in line with other comparable federal agencies.

The Chicago Board of Ethics rolled out a new electronic lobbyist registration system on May 1, 2012. Lobbyists can now register online on the Electronic Lobbyist Filing System page.

Electronic registration is voluntary, so lobbyists may still file paper registrations if they choose to do so. For lobbyists who are already registered, they can use the online system to add clients to their registration forms. Registered lobbyists should contact the board of ethics if they need their login information.

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.

The Philadelphia Board of Ethics issued an advisory alert announcing a delay in the availability of their online filing system for receipt of lobbyist and principal’s quarterly expense reports. The board’s online expense report function will not be available by April 30, the next date the reports are due.

However, because the quarterly expense reports, covering January 3 through March 31, remain due on April 30, the board intends to create an interim paper form expense reporting method. Lobbyists and principals will be able to fill out the interim form on the board’s website, which can then be downloaded and signed. The signed copy must be mailed or delivered to the board by the same April 30 deadline.

The board will advise all registered principals when the interim reporting method becomes available.

The current registration procedure is unaffected by the board’s announcement.

Governor Dennis Daugaard has signed House Bill 1196. The bill amends the lobbyist reporting requirements to reflect the secretary of state’s electronic filing capabilities.

The employer authorization and lobbyist expense report may be submitted in writing or electronically. The completed reports are open to public inspection and will no longer need to be notarized before filing.

Although the bill has an effective date of July 1, 2012, the EZ Lobby system is already accessible at the secretary of state’s website.

The site allows lobbyists and their employers to register, pay fees, update information, and report expenses electronically. Paper forms are still available for lobbyists who chose to register by mail.

Electronic filing for lobbyist reports will be available beginning with the report due February 15, 2012 covering the month of January 2012.

You can read the press release from the Office of the Secretary of State here.

The Washington House of Representatives, Committee on State Government and Tribal Affairs, has scheduled a public hearing for January 11, 2012 and a possible executive session for January 12, 2012 to discuss House Bill 1474 which would make electronic filing of lobbying reports mandatory.

It would also create new fees associated with electronic filings by lobbyists, lobbyist employers, and PACs.

If passed by both chambers and signed by the governor, changes will be effective July 1, 2012.

Photo of the Washington House of Representatives Chamber by Cacophony on Wikipedia.