The Chicago Board of Ethics recently submitted two amendments to City Council, potentially affecting lobbyist filing procedures.

One amendment would require lobbyists to file all documents electronically in the Electronic Lobbyist Filing (ELF) system. The other amendment would establish enforcement provisions related to the electronic filing requirement.

Unless a majority of aldermen vote to disapprove them, the amendments will become effective on December 11, 2016. Once effective, the Board of Ethics will implement the new procedures beginning January 1, 2017. Paper filings will no longer be accepted after December 31, 2016.

Lobbying

“Ex-PMO Aide Bruce Carson Fined $50,000 for Illegal Lobbying” by Marco Vigliotti for The Hill Times

“Incoming Florida House Speaker Bans ‘Texting While Legislating’” by Mary Ellen Klas for Miami Herald

Campaign Finance

“Court Challenge Seeks to Outlaw Super PACs” by Kenneth Doyle for Bloomberg BNA

“California Ethics Watchdog Proposes $57,000 Fine Against Sen. Tony Mendoza” by Taryn Luna for Sacramento Bee

Ethics

“These Officials Help Write Ballot Questions. Companies Write Them Checks.” by Eric Lipton and Robert Faturechi for The New York Times

“2 Ex-Christie Allies Are Convicted in George Washington Bridge Case” by Kate Zernike for The New York Times

“Former Gov. Bob McDonnell Hosts Party to Celebrate Overturned Corruption Conviction” by Alissa Skelton for The Virginian-Pilot

Elections

“Memes, Myself and I: The Internet lets us all run the campaign” by Amanda Hess for The New York Times

“Donald Trump’s Extremist Supporters Feel Like Winners Either Way” by Jonathan Mahler and Julie Turkewitz for The New York Times

“Inside Donald Trump’s Last Stand: An anxious nominee seeks assurance” by Maggie Haberman, Ashley Parker, Jeremy Peters and Michael Barbaro for The New York Times

Lobbying

“Lobbying Commissioner Karen Shepherd Won’t Seek Another Term” by Marco Vigliotti for The Hill Times

“K Street Says Social Media Is Growing Faster Than Traditional Lobbying as Way to Influence Washington” by Catherine Ho for Washington Post

“Top Lobbyists 2016: Grassroots” by The Hill Staff for The Hill

“Top Lobbyists 2016: Associations” by The Hill Staff for The Hill

“JCOPE Hits Lobbyist with $180K Fine for Failure to File, Repeatedly” by Rick Karlin for Albany Times Union

Campaign Finance

“Washington Judge Fines Food Group $18M in 2013 GMO Fight” by Phuong Lee and Rachel LaCorte (Associated Press) for Fresno Bee

Ethics

“Lobbyist for State Aids Pence Campaign” by Brian Slodysko (Associated Press) for Fort Wayne Journal-Gazette

Elections

“Who Are You Writing In? The Overwhelming Allure of Voting for Someone Who Won’t Win.” by Amy Argetsinger for Washington Post

“Emails Warrant No New Action Against Hillary Clinton, F.B.I. Director Says.” by Matt Apuzzo, Michael S. Schmidt and Adam Goldman for New York Times

See what’s happening in government relations this week in our News You Can Use Video Digest. Enjoy!

National:

Election Maps Are Telling You Big Lies About Small Things
Washington Post – Lazaro Gamio | Published: 11/1/2016

November 8 is the Super Bowl for election maps, when red-and-blue geographical representations of the U.S. fill the front pages of news websites by night and newspapers the next morning. This kind of map is common in almost every election: 50 states (and the District of Columbia), two colors, one winner. Despite its ubiquity, it is profoundly flawed. These maps say only one thing – some states are bigger than others. In a presidential election, how much bigger the state of Wyoming is than New Jersey is not relevant to the outcome, which is based on how electoral votes are apportioned. If you chart the states by electoral votes, a more accurate picture of which states will elect Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton emerges.

Why Sexual Harassment Persists in Politics
New York Times – Sheryl Gay Stolberg | Published: 11/2/2016

It has been 25 years since Anita Hill testified against Clarence Thomas before an all-male Senate Judiciary Committee, and propelled the term sexual harassment into the national spotlight. Once again, the nation is debating gender roles, amid a presidential campaign that features a woman, Hillary Clinton, who stands a chance of becoming America’s first female president, against a man, Donald Trump, who has been caught on a recording bragging about kissing and groping women whenever he wanted. Politics and Legislatures, like many other environments, remain rife with sexual harassment – and young people, including men, are particularly at risk, and still reluctant to speak out.

Federal:

Abedin Tells Colleagues She’s in Dark About New Email Trove
Politico – Josh Gerstein | Published: 10/31/2016

Top Hillary Clinton aide Huma Abedin has told people she is unsure how her emails could have ended up on a device she viewed as her husband’s computer, the seizure of which has reignited the Clinton email investigation. A person familiar with the inquiry said Abedin was not a regular user of the computer, and when she agreed to turn over emails to the State Department for federal records purposes, her lawyers did not search it for materials, believing none of her messages to be there. That could be a significant oversight if Abedin’s work messages were indeed on the computer of her estranged husband, Anthony Weiner, who is under investigation for allegedly exchanging lewd messages with a 15-year-old girl. So far, it is unclear what – if any – new, work-related messages were found by authorities.

Evan Bayh’s Private Schedule Details Ties with Donors, Lobbyists
CNN – Manu Raju | Published: 11/1/2016

Former U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh is running to win back his seat in one of this year’s marquee races. His internal 2009 schedule obtained by CNN shows how he maneuvered behind the scenes during one of the most consequential periods of legislating on Capitol Hill. The schedule provides a rare account of how Bayh privately engaged with fundraisers, lobbyists, and donors who had a keen interest on issues. At times, his own campaign fundraiser was sitting in on his meetings with donors in his official Senate office, the schedule says, raising potential conflict-of-interest concerns. The schedule lays bare a reality of Washington, that well-connected donors often get a private audience with a powerful member of Congress, a luxury most Americans cannot afford.

For Democrats, Anthony Weiner Makes an Unwelcome Return
New York Times – Maggie Haberman and Alexander Burns | Published: 10/30/2016

Anthony Weiner – the name became almost a curse word among Democrats over the past few days as the disgraced former congressman unexpectedly surfaced in the final stretch of the presidential contest. Weiner, who lost his seat after repeated episodes in which he sent lewd messages to women, is now under federal investigation for allegedly sending sexual messages to a 15-year-old girl. In that inquiry, the FBI seized a laptop that contained thousands of messages belonging to Huma Abedin, Weiner’s estranged wife and a top aide to Hillary Clinton. FBI Director James Comey said investigators will now review those messages. “It’s like one of those ‘Damien’ movies – it’s like every time you think he’s dead, he keeps coming again,” said the Rev. Al Sharpton.

How Politicians Hide Their Spending from the Public
Politico – Shane Goldmacher | Published: 11/2/2016

Donald Trump has leveraged an increasingly popular loophole for politicians seeking to outmaneuver the campaign finance system: routing their spending through consulting firms to obscure the ultimate destination of their dollars, keeping the public in the dark about facts as basic as who they are paying and how much they are paying them. Hillary Clinton has paid her digital firm more than $55 million through payments from her campaign and joint committee with the party, and provided no specifics on the firm’s ad-buying or other activities. At its most extreme, a candidate could theoretically hire a single firm to run their entire campaign and only disclose that one payment.

Sleeping Like the Enemy
Politico – Shane Goldmacher and Annie Karni | Published: 11/1/2016

Since the debut of her official campaign plane on Labor Day, there have been full weeks when Hillary Clinton has campaigned every day in swing states and returned to her home every night in between. In total, she has spent a little over half a dozen nights on the road. Instead of more efficient campaign trips, Clinton has prioritized ending her days in either her farmhouse in New York or her mansion in Washington. In a campaign of contrasts, it is one of the most striking similarities between Clinton and Donald Trump – two well-to-do New Yorkers who add hours of travel to their schedules, and thousands of dollars to their campaign expenses, in order to avoid sleeping in hotels.

The Residents in the Nerdiest Group House in Washington Want to Shake Up Washington’s Oldest Trade
Washingtonian Magazine – Michael Gaylord | Published: 10/30/2016

Since its debut, Quorum has cranked out the political charts and graphics that websites and blogs feast on. At the same time, the company has signed up a passel of heavy-hitter clients who pay into the six figures per year, with Covington & Burling, the United Nations Foundation, Toyota, the Podesta Group, the Club for Growth, and U.S. House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy among them. Quorum produces political intelligence for lobbyists and companies that monitor minute changes in policy. Its platform features bill tracking, social-media alerts, a searchable Congressional Record, and tools to connect and set up meetings with staffers.

From the States and Municipalities:

California – A $72-Million Apartment Project. Top Politicians. Unlikely Donors.
Los Angeles Times – David Zahniser and Emily Alpert Reyes | Published: 10/30/2016

Dozens of donors with direct or indirect connections to real estate developer Samuel Leung gave more than $600,000 to Los Angeles-area politicians as his $72-million project was being reviewed. Of those who donated, 11 said they did not give or do not remember doing so, raising questions about whether they were the true source of the money. Several donors said they could not recall basic information about their contributions, including why they gave and to whom. One donor said she was reimbursed for at least one conrtribution, a practice that is not permitted under the city’s ethics law.

Kentucky – Lobbyist Donations Aid Candidates Despite Law
Louisville Courier-Journal – Tom Loftus | Published: 10/31/2016

Those who lobby the General Assembly are forbidden by state law from making campaign contributions to candidates for the Kentucky House or Senate. But they are allowed to donate to state political parties, which this year have no higher priority than electing their candidates in the high-stakes races that will decide control of the House. And most major lobbyists are taking advantage of the opportunity.

Massachusetts – Law Firm ‘Bonuses’ Tied to Political Donations
Boston Globe – Viveca Novak (Center for Responsive Politics) and Andrea Estes | Published: 10/30/2016

The Thornton Law Firm in Boston commonly reimbursed the firm’s partners for their campaign contributions by awarding them bonuses. From 2010 through 2014, three partners donated nearly $1.6 million to Democratic Party fundraising committees and a parade of politicians. Over the same span, the lawyers received $1.4 million listed as “bonuses” in the firm’s records. Thornton said its donation reimbursement program was reviewed by outside lawyers and complied with applicable laws. Campaign finance experts said without reviewing the firm’s records, they cannot say the payback system breaks the law, but it raises numerous red flags.

Montana – Federal Judge Upholds Montana Campaign Disclosure Law
Montana Public Radio – Matt Volz (Associated Press) | Published: 11/1/2016

A federal judge upheld Montana’s campaign finance reporting and disclosure laws, rejecting arguments it unconstitutionally interferes with the free speech of groups that want to influence elections without revealing where they get their money or how they spend it. Montanans for Community Development, which had previously sued the state over its campaign finance laws, amended its lawsuit last year to challenge the Disclose Act. U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christensen knocked down each of the group’s arguments. Besides ruling the law serves an important government interest, the judge also rejected arguments it was overly burdensome to political committees and unconstitutionally vague on what constitutes a committee, expenditure, and contribution.

New York – Behind Closed Doors, Measures to Reform City’s Campaign Laws Raise Concerns
New York Times – Jim Dwyer | Published: 11/1/2016

Three years after elections revealed flaws in New York City’s campaign finance laws, the city council may be moving to fix some of the worst problems, but not without including a few changes that would benefit individual council members. Up to a dozen new bills are being shaped behind closed doors, and although no drafts have been released yet, word coming from the council has alarmed some of the city’s advocates for better and fairer elections.

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 60 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

Campaign Finance

“How Politicians Hide Their Spending from the Public” by Shane Goldmacher for Politico

Connecticut: “Business, Labor Bet Big on Fight for Connecticut Capitol” by Mark Pazniokas for Connecticut Mirror

Montana: “Federal Judge Upholds Montana Campaign Disclosure Law” by Matt Volz (Associated Press) for Montana Public Radio

New York: “Behind Closed Doors, Measures to Reform City’s Campaign Laws Raise Concerns” by Jim Dwyer for New York Times

Ethics

“Why Sexual Harassment Persists in Politics” by Sheryl Gay Stolberg for New York Times

“Pentagon OKs General’s Rent-Free Living Courtesy of Defense Contractor” by Tom Vanden Brook for USA Today

“Podesta Paid $7,000 a Month by Top Donor” by Kenneth Vogel and Danny Vinik for Politico

Elections

“Sleeping Like the Enemy” by Shane Goldmacher and Annie Karni for Politico

Campaign Finance

“GOP Asks 11th Circuit to Toss Contribution Limits” by Ellen Robinson for Courthouse News Service

“Pro-Hillary Clinton Super PAC Accepted Illegal Contributions” by Dave Levinthal for Center for Public Integrity

South Carolina: “State Senator Cleary Reprimanded, Fined by Ethics Committee” by Chloe Johnson for Myrtle Beach Sun News

Ethics

“Hatch Backers Hit up K Street for ‘Orrin Hatch Foundation’ Funds” by Anna Palmer and John Bresnahan for Politico

“Evan Bayh’s Private Schedule Details Ties with Donors, Lobbyists” by Manu Raju for CNN

Elections

“Election Maps Are Telling You Big Lies About Small Things” by Lazaro Gamio for Washington Post

“Donald Trump Used Legally Dubious Method to Avoid Paying Taxes” by David Barstow. Mike McIntire, Patricia Cohen, Susanne Craig, and Russ Beuttner for New York Times

“Abedin Tells Colleagues She’s in Dark About New Email Trove” by Josh Gerstein for Politico

“Investigating Donald Trump, F.B.I. Sees No Clear Link to Russia” by Eric Lichtblau and Steven Lee Myers for New York Times

A bill introduced in 2015 is finally advancing to the full City Council.

If passed, Bill 15-0568 would require Baltimore’s Finance Department to post on its website a searchable list of all entities doing business with the city by February 1 of each year. Similarly, the bill would require the Ethics Board to post on its website a searchable list of all lobbyists by February 1 of each year.

The bill will likely be voted on by City Council on November 14, 2016.

Lobbying

Kentucky: “Lobbyist Donations Aid Candidates Despite Law” by Tom Loftus for Louisville Courier-Journal

Campaign Finance

California: “A $72-Million Apartment Project. Top Politicians. Unlikely Donors.” by David Zahniser and Emily Alpert Reyes for Los Angeles Times

Massachusetts: “Law Firm ‘Bonuses’ Tied to Political Donations” by Viveca Novak (Center for Responsive Politics) and Andrea Estes for Boston Globe

Ethics

“FBI Agents Pressed Justice Unsuccessfully for Probe of Clinton Foundation” by Matt Zapotosky, Rosalind Helderman, and Tom Hamburger for Washington Post

“The Residents in the Nerdiest Group House in Washington Want to Shake Up Washington’s Oldest Trade” by Michael Gaylord for Washingtonian Magazine

California: “After $38-Million Deal Collapsed, L.A. County Secretly Launched Public Corruption Probe of Retired CEO” by Adam Elmahrek for Los Angeles Times

New York: “Bridge Scandal Has Become Thorny Issue for Another Governor: Cuomo” by Vivian Yee for New York Times

Elections

“For Democrats, Anthony Weiner Makes an Unwelcome Return” by Maggie Haberman and Alexander Burns for New York Times

Legislative Issues

Minnesota: “Why Minnesota Lawmakers May Get Their First Raise Since ’97” by Alan Greenblatt for Governing

Lobbying

“It’s About to Become a Very Busy Time for K Street Headhunters” by Cartherine Ho for Washington Post

Campaign Finance

“Behind the Retreat of the Koch Brothers’ Operation” by Kenneth Vogel for Politico

Washington: “State GOP Says PDC Chief Is Biased for Dems, Needs to Resign” by Jim Brunner for Seattle Times

Ethics

“Inside ‘Bill Clinton Inc.’: Hacked memo reveals intersection of charity and personal income” by Rosalind Helderman and Tom Hamburger for Washington Post

Elections

“FBI Agents Waited Weeks to Tell Comey About Emails Possibly Relevant to Clinton Probe” by Matt Zapotosky, Ellen Nakashima, and Rosalind Helderman for Washington Post

“Beneath Cheers at Donald Trump’s Rallies, Dark Fears Take Hold” by Ashley Parker and Nick Corasaniti for New York Times

“‘We Are in for a Pretty Long Civil War’” by Julia Ioffe for Politico

California: “Prop Prep: Californians tackle jumbo ballot with humor” by Katherine Seligman for CALmatters.org

Procurement

“Company Vying for Central Park Boathouse Contract Suing City, Claiming de Blasio Donor Was Granted the Deal Unfairly” by Ginger Adams Otis for New York Daily News

Lobbying Commissioner Karen Shepherd says her office is investigating Liberal Party fundraisers to see if they violate the Lobbying Act.

Opposition members of Parliament argue the fundraisers are “pay to play” and violate Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ethic guidelines.

Conflict of Interest and Ethics Commissioner Mary Dawson stated the fundraisers do not violate the Conflict of Interest Act, but she believes the practice to be unsavory and is calling for changes to Canada’s laws to restrict the practice.

See what’s happening in government relations this week in our News You Can Use Video Digest. Enjoy!

Mayor Jim Kenney signed an executive order this week making changes to the city’s ban on gifts to executive branch employees.

Executive Order 10-16 specifically mentions lobbyists as a prohibited source of gifts, whereas the previous administration’s order only mentions persons seeking business with the city or those seeking legislative or administrative action. Furthermore, gifts are now prohibited for a 12-month period from anyone seeking official action to the specific officer or employee from whom action was sought.

The new order does, however, carve out several exceptions to the prohibition, including the acceptance of food, beverage, and entertainment at a reception open to the public. These changes are effective immediately.

Photo of Mayor Jim Kenney by Jeff Meade on Wikimedia Commons.

National:

Insurers Give Big to Races Determining Their Regulators
Center for Public Integrity – Michael Mishak | Published: 10/20/2016

The insurance industry has pumped more than $6 million into political efforts to influence a dozen state races that determine who regulates the nation’s insurance companies. The giving is a critical part of a larger operation aimed at affecting the sleepy world of insurance regulation. A Center for Public Integrity investigation found a pattern of coziness between state insurance commissioners and the insurers they regulate, involving lavish dinners, corporate-backed trips to luxury resorts, and the implicit promise of industry jobs once commissioners leave office. Yet it starts with campaign contributions. Over the past decade, insurance companies and their employees were among the top political donors to commissioner candidates in at least six of the 11 states that elect regulators. And they are consistently among the top contributors to the two major political groups active in gubernatorial races.

Federal:

Brand Promotions Suggest Donald Trump Is Looking Past Election Day
New York Times – Maggie Haberman and Nick Corasaniti | Published: 10/26/2016

Time is running out on Donald Trump’s presidential campaign, but his closing argument sounds as much about his business interests as his electoral ones. As Hillary Clinton and her surrogates fan out across the battleground states, Trump’s schedule has found plenty of room for self-promotion. His actions are a remarkable display of personal promotion by a presidential nominee, raising questions about whether Trump, who has lived by the mantra that “all publicity is good publicity,” is at least partly casting his eye past the 2016 race, and toward bolstering the brand that bears his name.

Clinton Sticks with Obama’s Strict Lobbying Rules – for Now
Politico – Anna Palmer and Andrew Restuccia | Published: 10/26/2016

Hillary Clinton’s campaign is limiting how federal lobbyists can work with the transition teams that are tasked with planning for the transfer of power at dozens of key agencies. The campaign’s policy operation, which is a separate entity from the transition team, continues to be the point of contact for companies, consultants, and lobbyists. It is an indication that Clinton is unlikely to abandon all of the lobbying restrictions imposed by President Obama. The transition operation’s ethics pledge mandates that transition officials recuse themselves from working on any issues on which they have lobbied in the past year. The rules also require transition staff who stay in the private sector to agree, for one year, not to appear before or seek to influence any federal agency they focused on during the transition.

For Some Conservative Female Pundits, This Election Has Been a Nightmare
Washington Post – Kelsey Snell | Published: 10/25/2016

In CNN’s green room, the conservative women saturating the cable network’s prime-time lineup this election season typically make small talk. But recently, the silence backstage can be deafening. Especially when the subject is Donald Trump and his behavior toward women. This painful debate plays out nearly every night in front of millions of viewers, and it has only gotten more graphic and personal since the release of a videotape depicting Trump boasting about groping women. For conservative women like S.E. Cupp, a Trump opponent, this election has become a nightmare. These women say they would rather be explaining why Hillary Clinton is a bad choice for president, but Trump is like an asteroid blocking out all of the sun that might shine in a normal election.

How Mega-Donors Helped Raise $1 Billion for Hillary Clinton
Washington Post – Matea Gold and Anu Narayanswamy | Published: 10/24/2016

Determined not to fall behind in raising money for her presidential bid, Hillary Clinton ramped up her appeals to rich donors and shrugged off restrictions that President Obama had imposed on his fundraising team. Even as her advisers fretted about the perception that she was too cozy with wealthy interests, they agreed to let lobbyists bundle checks for her campaign, including those representing some foreign governments, emails show. Top aides wooed major donors for super PACs, taking advantage of the leeway that campaigns have to legally collaborate with the groups on fundraising. The effort paid off. Together with the party and pro-Clinton super PACs, the Democratic nominee had amassed $1.14 billion to support her campaign by the end of September.

Judge Preserves Fattah Bribery Conviction, Overturns Other Parts of June Verdict
Philadelphia Inquirer – Jeremy Roebuck | Published: 10/21/2016

A federal judge rejected former U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah’s bid for a new trial, spurning arguments that a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision narrowing the legal definition of bribery would have changed the outcome of his case. U.S. District Court Judge Harvey Bartle III overturned Fattah’s convictions on four counts of fraud and falsifying records, but otherwise endorsed the jury’s conclusion that he had accepted bribes from wealthy supporter Herbert Vederman in exchange for official acts. The decision was one of the first to affirm a guilty verdict in a federal bribery case since the Supreme Court vacated the conviction of former Virginia Gov. Robert McDonnell, a ruling that legal experts feared would make prosecuting public corruption cases more difficult.

Want a Presidential Appointment? Step 1: Oppo research on yourself
Politico – Sarah Wheaton, Nancy Cook, and Andrew Restuccia | Published: 10/24/2016

More than a dozen people who expect, or simply hope, to be tapped by Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump have already reached out to top lawyers for help in sifting through their finances and business dealings in anticipation of being nominated to a top post in the next administration. This need for private professional help – before an election is even over and the confirmation process has begun – has spawned a small yet influential cottage industry within big Washington, D.C law firms of professional vetters, who can charge anywhere from hundreds of dollars to as much as $1,000 per hour to sort through a potential nominee’s convoluted finances, tax returns, or even old arrest records.

What Drives Donald Trump? Fear of Losing Status, Tapes Show
New York Times – Michael Barbaro | Published: 10/25/2016

The intense ambitions and undisciplined behaviors of Donald Trump have confounded even those close to him, especially as his presidential campaign comes to a tumultuous end, and he confronts the possibility of the most stinging defeat of his life. But in the more than five hours of conversations – the last extensive biographical interviews Trump granted before running for president – powerful driving force emerges: his deep-seated fear of public embarrassment. The recordings reveal a man who is fixated on his own celebrity, anxious about losing his status, and contemptuous of those who fall from grace. They capture the visceral pleasure he derives from fighting, his willful lack of interest in history, his reluctance to reflect on his life, and his belief that most people do not deserve his respect.

From the States and Municipalities:

California – California Politician Shows Little Remorse, Gets Prison Time
Sacramento Bee – Brian Melley (Associated Press) | Published: 10/21/2016

Former California Sen. Ronald Calderon, once the most powerful member of a politically influential family, was sentenced to 42 months in prison after he pleaded guilty in a federal corruption case. Calderon admitted he had accepted tens of thousands of dollars in bribes in return for official favors. He took $12,000 worth of trips to Las Vegas from an undercover FBI agent who posed as the owner of a Los Angeles movie studio seeking his support for film tax credits, though the legislation never passed. The agent hired Calderon’s daughter for a $3,000 a month no-show job and paid $5,000 toward his son’s college tuition. Calderon also acknowledged helping a hospital owner maintain a health care fraud scheme in exchange for hiring his son each summer over three years.

California – The GOP Dead Zone: You won’t find any Republicans to vote for in L.A. County
Los Angeles Times – Javier Panzar | Published: 10/26/2016

When 818,000 voters in Los Angeles County fill out their ballots this election, they will find themselves in strange political territory: the only Republican names they will see will be presidential nominee Donald Trump and his running mate Mike Pence. In this GOP “dead zone” – spanning parts of five congressional districts, five state Assembly districts, and one state Senate district – not a single Republican candidate made it on to the November ballot. This scenario is the result of California’s relatively new, voter-approved primary system in which the two candidates who finish with the most votes in the June election go on to the general election, even if they are from the same party.

New Jersey – Bridgegate Offers Peek at Trenton’s ‘Political Shop’
MyCentralJersey.com – Dustin Racioppi | Published: 10/24/2016

Since the lane closings on the George Washington Bridge in 2013, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, and the private investigators his office hired, have maintained the Intergovernmental Affairs department led by Bill Stepien did not become politicized until after he left and turned over duties to Bridget Anne Kelly, who is accused of working with other officials to block access to the bridge as political retribution. But testimony and evidence in Kelly’s trial have contradicted those assertions and showed Stepien and his staff regularly mixing politics with policy, raising questions of ethics violations in the governor’s office and suggesting instances of quid pro quo.

North Carolina – Protests and Storms Make North Carolina’s Election Year ‘a Bizarre Experience’
New York Times – Richard Fausset | Published: 10/25/2016

There may be no other state with as much to sort through, or as much at stake on November 8, as North Carolina. Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump are in a tight battle there, one of the most contested swing states. The governor’s race between Pat McCrory and his Democratic challenger, state Attorney General Roy Cooper, may be the closest in the country, as well as being a sort of referendum on the state’s sharp right turn in recent years. And control of the U.S. Senate could be determined by an equally close race between U.S. Sen. Richard Burr, an incumbent Republican, and his Democratic challenger, Deborah Ross.

Pennsylvania – Kathleen Kane, Former Pennsylvania Attorney General, Is Sentenced to Prison
New York Times – Jon Hurdle and Richard Pérez-Peña | Published: 10/24/2016

Former Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane was sentenced to 10 to 23 months in jail for illegally disclosing details from a grand jury investigation to embarrass a rival and lying about it under oath. She was also sentenced to eight years of probation by a Montgomery County judge who said Kane’s ego drove her to take down enemies and break the law. Kane feuded with Frank Fina, a former top state prosecutor. Seeking to undercut Fina, Kane leaked to The Philadelphia Daily News information about a grand jury investigation he had been involved in, a leak that would lead to the criminal investigation of her actions.

Pennsylvania – Kenney Amends Gifts Rules for His Staff
Philadelphia Inquirer – Claudia Vargas | Published: 10/27/2016

Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney signed an executive order that expands restrictions on gifts to city employees working in the executive branch. His action updated the Executive Order on Gifts to specifically prohibit executive branch employees from receiving gifts from registered lobbyists. The new executive order creates some specific exemptions, including that employees can accept food, beverages, or entertainment at a reception open to the public for which no ticket or invitation is required. Another change is that a city employee may not receive a gift from a person who sought some action from that employee within the preceding 12 months. The order takes effect immediately.

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 60 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.