The Joint Commission on Public Ethics is aware there are duplicate profiles in the new lobbying reporting system. Duplicate profiles only impact those who utilized the old reporting system.

If you are an existing filer attempting to claim your organization profile in the new system and notice duplicate profiles, JCOPE does not want another new organization profile to be created.

Instead, call the JCOPE helpdesk at (518) 474-3973 and speak with a Filings Specialist.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics has launched a new lobbyist reporting system. The Organization Profile section has gone live.

All Organization Profiles from the previous system have been transferred to the new lobbying application and require an update to ensure all the information is correct.

The Commission has created an informational page to help users navigate the new system.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics will be launching a new online lobbying reporting system to coincide with the new lobbying regulations, effective January 1, 2019. The new system is expected to launch in November.

Reports covering 2018 must be submitted though the current system.

All filings covering 2019 activity, including registration and reportable business relationship forms, must be submitted through the new system.

Registrations for the 2019-20 biennial period may be submitted through the new system in early December.

The Commission will inform users when the registration function becomes available.

On April 24, the New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics adopted Part 943, commonly referred to as the Comprehensive Lobbying Regulations. The rules were originally introduced in October 2016 and have gone through several revisions.

The adopted regulations compile existing guidelines and advisory opinions regarding rules and requirements related to lobbying. For example, the adopted revised rules include an online ethics training requirement for lobbyists and provide further clarification regarding reportable expenses attributable to social media activities and grassroots lobbying.

The adopted rules will become effective January 1, 2019, and are available at the JCOPE website.

On January 30, the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) submitted a Notice of Revised Rulemaking for Part 943, commonly referred to as Comprehensive Lobbying Regulations, to the New York Department of State. The revised rules include an online ethics training requirement for lobbyists.

Additionally, the revised rules provide further clarification regarding reportable expenses attributable to social media activities and grassroots lobbying.

New York’s rule making process requires an additional comment period once a Notice of Revised Rulemaking is filed and published in the New York State Register.

The new comment period expires on March 16, and the revised rules are available at http://www.jcope.ny.gov/advice/complobbyregulations.html.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) will conduct a public hearing on proposed regulations in Hearing Room A of the Legislative Building, 198 State Street, Albany, New York on October 30, from 1-4 p.m.

The proposed regulations compile existing guidelines and advisory opinions regarding rules and requirements related to lobbying. The proposals were originally introduced in October 2016 and were reviewed in December 2016.

After the public hearing, JCOPE will review comments and decide if further amendments must be made. If the rules are adopted, JCOPE must follow the State Administrative Procedures Act and file the full text of the rule with the Department of State.

More information about the proposed regulations are available at JCOPE’s website.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) issued a call to concerned individuals for comments regarding the Notice of Proposed Rulemakings for Comprehensive Lobbying regulations and Source of Funding Disclosure Regulations.

The comprehensive regulations expand the definition of lobbying to include indirect lobbying, like setting up a meeting between a legislator and a lobbyist. According to JCOPE, the purpose of the proposed regulations is to fully incorporate existing guidelines and decades of advisory opinions.

The hearing will be held on Monday, October 30, 2017 in Hearing Room A of the Legislative Office Building. All public comments must be submitted by 5 p.m. on October 6, 2017, to Carol Quinn, Deputy Director of Lobbying Disclosure, at carol.quinn@jcope.ny.gov.

Additional details are available on the JCOPE website.

Home-sharing website Airbnb is planning to file a formal complaint to call on the Joint Commission on Public Ethics or the state Attorney General’s Office to investigate the ShareBetter coalition, which has spent money to run anti-Airbnb ads, organized lobby days, and established a website calling for grassroots action.

The lawsuit accuses ShareBetter of failing to register for lobbying activities and to file bimonthly and semiannual lobbying reports, among other offenses. However, sources close to ShareBetter say the three entities that make up the bulk of the funding are already registered as lobbyists and have disclosed their activities.

In response to Airbnb’s lawsuit, ShareBetter plans to file its own complaints against Airbnb for failing to report lobbying activities at both the state and city levels.

James Yates and Marvin Ray Raskin have been appointed to the Joint Commission of Public Ethics (JCOPE).

Yates previously served the state Supreme Court and served as counsel to ex-Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver. Raskin has served as the president of the Bronx County Bar Association and is a former assistant district attorney.

There are 14 members of JCOPE and each member serves a five-year term.

According to the American Civil Liberties Union (A.C.L.U.) and New York Civil Liberties Union (N.Y.C.L.U.), Attorney General Eric Schneiderman will not enforce certain provisions of the ethics law passed in 2016.

Specifically, Schneiderman is holding off on enforcing provisions of the New York Executive Law related to charitable lobbying donations (N.Y.E.L §172-e, f) until a federal lawsuit is decided. Schneiderman and officials from the Joint Commission on Public Ethics are both listed as defendants in the lawsuit filed by the A.C.L.U. and N.Y.C.L.U.

Plaintiffs contend the law requiring 501(c)(3) charities to disclose all their donors who contributed more than $2,500 to a substantial lobbying campaign run by an issue-oriented 501(c)(4) is unconstitutional and they are seeking an injunction prohibiting enforcement the ethics law.

On November 29, 2016, Daniel Horwitz’s departure as the chairman of the New York State Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) was announced at a panel meeting.

Horwitz has been a member of JCOPE since 2011 and the chairman since 2013. A replacement for Horwitz has not been appointed, but Gov. Andrew Cuomo is currently vetting candidates for the position.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) released a set of proposed lobbying regulations on October 13, 2016. The comprehensive regulations expand the definition of lobbying to include indirect lobbying, like setting up a meeting between a legislator and a lobbyist.

According to JCOPE, the purpose of the proposed regulations is to fully incorporate existing guidelines and decades of advisory opinions.

JCOPE is seeking public comment on the staff proposed regulations until November 21, 2016. Drafts of the rules may be found at http://www.jcope.ny.gov/advice/staffproposal.html.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) is investigating a series of donations to Manhattan nonprofit Pledge 2 Protect.

Under current law, groups engaged in lobbying activities exceeding $50,000 annually must disclose donors of $5,000 or more. The investigation arose from a series of donations nearing $700,000 from unknown sources to a newly founded law firm, Marquart & Small. These donations were ultimately given to Pledge 2 Protect, with only Marquart & Small disclosed as Pledge 2 Protect’s donor.

Depending on the outcome of the case, Marquart & Small may be required to name their undisclosed third-party donors, and similarly situated groups would have to do the same moving forward.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics has extended the deadline for the lobbyist amnesty program through September 30. The program is meant to encourage nonfiling lobbyists and employers to comply with the Lobbying Act by disclosing activity, as required by law.

The program remains open only to those who have never been contacted by JCOPE for noncompliance with filing requirements and have never been the subject of a criminal proceeding for a Lobbying Act violation. The parallel New York City program was not extended.