Gov. Terry McAuliffe approved changes to Virginia’s gift rules this week, marking the fourth consecutive year lawmakers have adjusted ethics provisions. Among other changes, House Bill 1854, and identical Senate Bill 1312, requires lobbyists to send legislators and executive officials a summary of gifts provided from January 1 through adjournment sine die of the regular session of the General Assembly. The summary must be provided within three weeks of adjournment and does not include the reconvened session.

The bill also eliminates the “common interest” exception to the $100 gift limit on lobbyists for widely attended events. This exception was used to justify luxury suite tickets to football games. An exception is added, however, for attendance at a reception where hors d’oeuvres and beverages are provided and can be consumed while standing or walking.

These changes are effective July 1, 2017, except the gift notification requirement is effective immediately.

Q: Our company is a registered lobbyist employer in many states, and we regularly do business with universities. Can my company give gifts to university officials and employees?

A: Gifts to university officials and employees fall under the purview of state ethics laws in a majority of states.  Additionally, universities will often have more restrictive gift policies with respect to vendors. It is especially important to understand what your company can and can’t do at this level, because university employees (especially professors) are sometimes unaware of potential restrictions. Potential penalties can include loss of contracts with a university and/or state fines. Further, if your company is registered as a lobbyist employer, some gifts will need to be disclosed on appropriate reports.

The first step to determine whether a gift to a university official or employee will be permissible is to determine the scope of a state’s gift restrictions…

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On March 10, Gov. Dennis Daugaard signed a series of bills aimed at replacing ethics and campaign finance laws after the repeal of Initiated Measure 22.

Among the bills signed into law, Senate Bill 131 prohibits elected officers and officials from lobbying in the two-year period after termination of service in the state government.

House Bill 1073 was approved to set a $100 annual cap on gifts from lobbyists to elected officials. House Bill 1073 also defines “gift” to exclude food, beverages, and entertainment.

The Governor also signed House Bill 1076, establishing a government accountability board.

The Governor is expected to approve other pending Initiated Measure 22 replacement bills. The pending bills currently on the Governor’s desk include Senate Bill 54 to revise campaign finance limits and disclosure requirements and Senate Bill 171 to establish a government accountability task force to study campaign finance.

Gov. Asa Hutchinson signed House Bill 1401 and Senate Bill 169 into law. Both bills provide exceptions to the definition of gift.

For example, House Bill 1401 excludes nonalcoholic beverages provided to attendees at a meeting of a civic, social, or cultural organization or group from the definition of gift, as well as food and nonalcoholic beverages provided to participants at a bona fide panel, seminar, or speaking engagement at which the audience is a civic, social, or cultural organization or group.

Senate Bill 169 provides the use of one or more rooms or facilities owned, operated, or otherwise utilized by a state agency or political subdivision of the state for the purpose of conducting a meeting of a specific governmental body is not a gift.

House Bill 1401 is effective immediately and Senate Bill 169 will become effective 90 days after the Legislature adjourns sine die, or June 9, 2017.

Denver City Council approved legislation on Monday amending the city gift rules. Council Bill No. 16-1202 establishes a $300 annual limit on meals, tickets, or free or reduced price admissions from persons or donors with a city interest.

Officers, officials, and employees may accept meals, tickets, or free admission to events regardless of the annual cap if the meals are provided to all attendees at a public meeting and consumed while the meeting is in progress.

The $300 limit also excludes meals provided to all members of any governmental, civic, or non-profit board if the officer, official, or employee is a member and if the meals are consumed in conjunction with any meeting of the board.

Finally, the limit excludes tickets or free admission offered by a charitable or other non-profit entity hosting the event and not by any third party.

The bill will be forwarded today to the mayor for approval and to the city clerk and recorder for attestation; it is effective tomorrow, March 8.

On Tuesday, the House unanimously passed House Bill 1073.

The bill seeks to ban lawmakers from accepting gifts from lobbyists exceeding $100 in value per year.

Lawmakers advanced HB 1073 in response to the recent repeal of Initiated Measure 22, which left the state with no limit on gifts lawmakers could accept from lobbyists.

The bill is now headed to the Senate for consideration.

Reviving his concern from last year’s legislative session, Sen. Ernie Chambers introduced a bill to prevent lawmakers from accepting meals from lobbyists in the Capitol. Legislative Bill 445 is similar to a proposal Sen. Chambers sponsored last year, but it never made it to a vote. The bill specifically aims to prohibit meals served to lawmakers at the end of the session, when last minute decisions are made.

Lobbyists typically pool their money and provide large, buffet-style meals for legislators as they work into the night. Sen. Chambers said he is concerned the meals create the appearance improper influence.

The Denver City Council was expected to accept ethics changes on January 17, but postponed the vote until February 21.

New gift rules proposed by Councilman Kevin Flynn will impose a $300 limit per year on what officials and employees may accept. Councilmembers voiced concerns about what gifts qualify.

To eliminate the confusion, officials are going to address their questions face-to-face before the official vote a month from now.

The Colorado Independent Ethics Commission recently issued a position statement notifying home-rule municipalities of its intent to consider ethics complaints against local officials and employees if their local ethics codes are less restrictive than state law.

Constitutional Amendment 41, passed by voters in 2006, sets a $59 (adjusted for inflation) gift limit for public officers, legislators, local government officials and government employees as well as for their spouses and dependent children. More than 70 municipalities, however, are designated as home-rule and, therefore, can adopt local ethics rules in lieu of state law. In addition to the opt-out provision, there is also a provision allowing other local governments to adopt stricter ethics rules.

According to the commission, the constitutional provision permitting local governments to enact more stringent rules still applies to those home-rule municipalities choosing to opt out of the state law provisions.

Critics of the position statement, including Colorado Ethics Watch and Colorado Common Cause, believe the commission is misinterpreting Amendment 41; local governments with home-rule powers should be permitted to opt out if they adopt local laws covering the same ground. They dispute any interpretation wherein Amendment 41 simultaneously applies to and does not apply to home-rule municipalities with adopted ethics rules.

City attorneys throughout the state are currently taking no action while the Colorado Municipal League looks at potential legal options.

A Missouri ethics bill, being fast-tracked through the House, cleared committee yesterday with just three dissenting votes.

The bill would prohibit legislators from receiving certain gifts from lobbyists. Exemptions to the proposed ban would include honorary plaques, flowers and gifts customarily received by someone before they became a legislator.

The bill is just one of a handful of ethics bills on the legislative agenda. The measure could hit the House floor as early as Thursday.

Republican Attorney General Josh Hawley implemented a new ethics policy on Tuesday, January 10. His employees are now prohibited from accepting gifts from lobbyists.

The policy also prohibits staff from discussing business of the attorney general’s office with anyone attempting to lobby on behalf of a client, unless such person is a registered lobbyist. This includes licensed attorneys who fall within the scope of state lobbying law.

Hawley’s policy also establishes a pay-to-play provision prohibiting campaign contributions from those who have applied for or who have pending state contracts if the attorney general’s office has decision-making authority over the contract. Hawley’s ethics policy is effective immediately.

Sen. Mike Delph introduced a bill prohibiting Indiana legislators from accepting gifts from lobbyists. The gift ban would include any property with value, including sporting event tickets and anything classified as entertainment.

Along with the gift ban, the bill would require lobbyists to keep a log of all communication between a lobbyist and legislator, or employees of the general assembly, about a legislative matter. The log would be public record and filed weekly. If passed, the bill would be effective January 1, 2018.

On January 1, new changes to regulations concerning gifts for federal employees took effect.

Among the changes the Office of Government Ethics (OGE) made to the federal regulations include a non-binding recommendation employees “consider declining otherwise permissible gifts if they believe that a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts would question the employee’s integrity or impartiality as a result of accepting the gift.”

Additionally, federal officials who are required to be granted permission to attend “widely attended events” must now seek the permission in writing.

The $20 threshold for accepting a gift remains the same.

Today, a new chapter of New Hampshire’s ethics laws came into effect.

Chapter 14-C of the New Hampshire Revised Statutes concerns gifts, honorariums, and expense reimbursements requirements for legislators and legislative employees. Legislators and legislative employees can receive gifts not having a value greater than $50 and not having an aggregate value greater than $250 from any single source during any calendar year. The law defines a legislative employee as any person employed by the legislative branch.

House Bill 458, which enacted the chapter, also amended portions of other sections of state law, including a provision requiring lobbyists to affirm having read the newly enacted chapter upon registration.