March 26, 2012 •
Lobbying News Roundup
Gen X on K Street, the Obama staff revolving door, the latest news in Illinois lobbying reform, spending in Massachusetts and Minnesota, and more:
Federal
“Generation X joining K Street” by Jonathan Allen and Jennifer Martinez in Politico.
“Administration Staffers Head Out the Revolving Door” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
In the States
Illinois: “Illinois Senate panel blocks lobbyist ethics legislation” by Shannon McFarland (Associated Press) in the Jacksonville Journal Courier.
Illinois: “Lobbying reforms buried in subcommittee” by Rick Miller in Capitol Fax.
Iowa: “Iowa’s lobbying free-for-all” by Jason Clayworth and Jeffrey Kummer in the Des Moines Register.
Massachusetts: “AP: Mass. health care 5-year lobbying topped $51M” by Steve LeBlanc (Associated Press) in Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
Minnesota: “$61M spent on lobbying in 2011” by Matt Herbert in Minnesota Daily.
March 21, 2012 •
Mass. Lobbyists Need to Schedule Photograph for Identification Card
Lobbyist Section of the Public Records Division of the Secretary of the Commonwealth
Registered Massachusetts legislative and executive agents must schedule an appointment with the Lobbyist Section of the Public Records Division of the Secretary of the Commonwealth to have their photographs taken for their lobbyist identification card.
The photographs will be taken on Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the hours of 10 to 4pm beginning March 27 and continuing through April.
Agents must request appointments by e-mail at lob@sec.state.ma.us. Schedules will not be accepted by phone or walk-in. Agents should suggest three dates and times convenient for them in their e-mails.
All appointments will be given on a first come first serve basis.
March 21, 2012 •
South Dakota Bill to Recognize Electronic Filing for Lobbyists
Secretary of State’s online system already up and running
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.
March 21, 2012 •
Today’s Lobbying News Roundup
Revolving doors, spending on lobbying in Minnesota, and a new ethics bill in Missouri in the news:
“Revolving Door: Hill Staffers with Retiring Bosses Hit K Street” by Andrew Joseph in National Journal’s Influence Alley.
“Minnesota Capitol the recipient of $59 million lobbying effort” by Megan Boldt in the Grand Forks Herald.
“Business groups spent $14 million lobbying Minn. Legislators” by Rachel E. Stassen-Berger in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune.
“Democrats propose new Missouri ethics bill” by Elizabeth Crisp in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. According to the article, “the bill would restrict the amount lawmakers and their immediate family members could accept from lobbyists, prohibit lawmakers from working as paid political consultants while in office and limit the investment of campaign contributions to interest-bearing checking or savings accounts.”
“Utah’s revolving door keeps spinning out lobbyists” by Britny Mortensen in The Salt Lake Tribune.
March 19, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – March 19, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
2012 GOP Primary Shaping Up to Be Cheapest Race in Years
Group Offers $25,000 Reward for Exposing Secret Corporate Giving
From the States and Municipalities:
Alabama
Alabama Public Corruption Trials Focus on Bribes vs. Donations
Colorado
Spending by Super PACs in Colorado Is the Dominion of Democrats
Illinois
Part of Campaign Finance Law Nixed
Illinois
State Rep. Derrick Smith, of Chicago, Is Charged with Accepting Bribe
Kentucky
Senate Changes Schedule, Allowing David Williams to Attend Kentucky Basketball Game
Minnesota
Business-Backed ALEC’s Relations with Conservative Lawmakers Riles Democrats
New Mexico
Arrests Mount in Sunland Park Scandal; New Details about Alleged Extortion Threat Emerge
Ohio
Jimmy Dimora Convicted of Racketeering, 32 Other Corruption-Related Charges
Ohio
Legislator Charged in FBI Bribery Sting
South Carolina
Ard Resigns, Is Indicted, Gets Probation
State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.
News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.
March 14, 2012 •
Lobbyist Compliance and Other Resources Online
State and Federal Communications, Inc. is your compliance information source for campaign finance, lobbying compliance, procurement, and ethics laws.
Take a tour of our site and click on the “Free Live Online Demo” on the middle of the left column of the home page. You will open a page with three blue links, located in the middle of the page:
•Executive Source Guide on Lobbying Laws
•Executive Source Guide on Political Contributions
•Executive Source Guide on Procurement Lobbying
Click on any one – or all three – to view the state of Alaska compliance information we provide to clients. This comprehensive and vital compliance information is updated continuously.
We have this same online information for all 50 states, the federal government, and 226 municipal and regional governments.
If you would like to view everything we have for online clients, contact us at info@stateandfed.com or 330-761-9960 and ask about our two-week trial. There is no cost for the trial, and you are under no obligation to purchase.
We can think of no better way for you to see the value in our online resources than for you and your team to actually use them for two weeks in your compliance efforts.
March 14, 2012 •
American League of Lobbyists Writes to President Obama
The organization connects the president’s anti-lobbyist position with an increase in unregistered lobbying.
Howard Marlowe, president of the American League of Lobbyists, recently sent a letter to President Obama asking him to change his tone toward lobbyists and the lobbying profession. The organization is making a connection between the administration’s anti-lobbyist rhetoric and the rising number of unregistered lobbyists.
Whether they are calling themselves consultants or advisers, Marlowe points out that these people are lobbying and their activity thus goes on without any oversight:
“Those who are not registered are protected from discovery by the lack of an effective enforcement mechanism. Our primary concern with incentivizing deregistration is that the public loses knowledge of who these people are lobbying, who is paying for their advocacy work, how much they are being paid, and what issues are they being paid to work on.”
For full news coverage, please read “Lobbyists to Obama: Tone down the rhetoric!” by Byron Tau in Politico.
Photo of the White House by UpstateNYer on Wikipedia.
March 13, 2012 •
Miami-Dade to Require Ethics Training for Lobbyists
Course to Cost $100 Every Two Years
The Miami-Dade County Board of Commissioners has passed an ordinance requiring registered lobbyists to complete ethics training. The effective date of the ordinance is March 16, 2012.
Registered lobbyists must, within 60 days of registration, submit to the clerk of the board a certificate of completion of an ethics course offered by the Miami-Dade County Commission on Ethics and Public Trust. Lobbyists must also complete a refresher course every two years. The cost of the ethics course will be $100.
Additionally, the requirement is not applicable to any municipal lobbyist in the county unless the municipality has adopted an ordinance requiring ethics training and an agreement with the county authorizes the county ethics commission to provide an ethics training course.
Finally, the executive director of the Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission may waive the ethics course requirement for a particular lobbyist when it is determined that the lobbyist has taken an initial or refresher ethics course offered by a municipality satisfying the requirements pertaining to the Miami-Dade County ethics course requirements.
The Miami-Dade County Ethics Commission has noted their intent to contact all registered lobbyists in regards to this course once the course is prepared and ready to be offered.
March 12, 2012 •
Today’s Campaign Finance and Lobbying News
Super PACs, the revolving door, and Facebook’s lobbying in the news:
Campaign Finance
“The Super PAC Paradox” by Eliza Newlin Carney in Roll Call.
“The year’s busiest day of campaign fundraising shows how Springfield really works” by Ray Long and Alissa Groeninger in the Chicago Tribune.
“Group to appeal Iowa campaign finance ruling” by The Associated Press in the Globe Gazette.
Lobbying
“Retiring lawmakers openly eye K Street” by Anna Palmer and Jake Sherman in Politico.
“Lobbying pays off big for business” by Toluse Olorunnipa in the Miami Herald.
“Facebook ‘friends’ a new lobby firm” by Rachel Leven in The Hill.
March 12, 2012 •
News You Can Use – March 12, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
One Super PAC Takes Aim at Incumbents of Any Party
From the States and Municipalities:
Alabama
Jury Acquits All Defendants, Including Means, in Gambling Corruption Case
California
Ethics Panel Raises Donation Limits in Municipal Campaigns
California
Trutanich Paid for YouTube Views of D.A. Campaign Videos
Georgia
Some Priorities Fade as Lawmakers Favor Social Issues Ahead of Election Season
Maryland
Bereano’s 1994 Conviction Upheld
Maryland
Leopold Indicted on Charges of Using Police Detail for Political Gain
Missouri
Honor for Rush Limbaugh is Fracas for Missouri
Nevada
Ethics Case Back before Nevada Supreme Court
New Mexico
Newly Elected Sunland Park Mayor to Seek Court Order to Do Job
Oklahoma
Ex-Senator Convicted of Bribery; Co-Defendant Free
Utah
Special Interests Busy Providing Perks to Legislators
West Virginia
W.Va. Ethics Panel Clarifies Cohabitation Law
State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.
News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.
March 9, 2012 •
Ethics.gov Arrives
The much anticipated government ethics clearing house is here as the White House promised.
The Obama administration has unveiled Ethics.gov, the site that provides sets of data for those interested in White House visitors, data from Lobbying Disclosure Act reports, campaign finance data, travel records of elected officials, and much more.
As part of the larger Data.gov, the new site has a great deal of muscle: “Ethics.Data.gov brings records and data from across the federal government to one central location, making it easier for citizens to hold public officials accountable.”
According to the Ethics.gov site, this is what you’ll find:
“On www.Ethics.gov, the public will be able to find millions of White House Visitor records. You will be able to see agency reports of payments from non-Federal sources for travel to meetings and conferences.
You’ll find records for entities registered with the Federal Election Commission. This includes federal political action committees and party committees, campaign committees for presidential, House and Senate candidates, as well as groups or organizations who are spending money in connection with elections for federal office.
You’ll also find records for each candidate who has either registered with the Federal Election Commission or appeared on a ballot list prepared by a state elections office. This includes contributor information for each contribution of $200 or more from an individual to a federal committee.
Finally, you’ll be able to find lobbying registrations and reports filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act.”
For a good summary, read “White House Launches Ethics.gov” by Samuel Rubenfeld in The Wall Street Journal.
March 8, 2012 •
Today’s Campaign Finance and Lobbying News Summary
Today we have stories about the FEC, the latest news on the investigation surrounding the D.C. mayor’s 2010 campaign, Super PACs, Super Tuesday, and more:
Campaign Finance
“FEC told to tread carefully with post-Citizens United rule” by Rachel Leven in The Hill.
“FEC moves on outdated rules” by Robin Bravender in Politico.
“DC mayor defends himself amid probe into campaign finance irregularities” by The Associated Press in The Washington Post.
Super PACs
“Super PACs Outspent Candidates in Run-Up to Tuesday” by Brody Mullins and Alicia Mundy in The Wall Street Journal.
“Super PACs Could Drive Total 2012 Election Spending to $9.8B” by Cotton Delo in Ad Age.
Lobbying
“Son of legendary lobbyist starts own firm” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
Redistricting
“Between the Lines: The Last Two Redistricting Holdouts” by Shira Toeplitz, Abby Livingston, and Joshua Miller in Roll Call.
March 7, 2012 •
How Is the Lobbying Oversight in Your State?
A new report offers ratings.
The State Integrity Investigation, a project by the Center for Public Integrity and other partners, is giving each state a grade in various areas of accountability and transparency. “Keep Government Honest” is their motto.
Lobbying is one of the categories they are measuring. The report considers a state’s definition of lobbying, its registration and reporting requirements, disclosure by lobbyist employers and principals, its citizen access to data, and the monitoring of lobbying requirements. The grades they are giving are “weak,” “fair,” or “strong”.
What is the corruption risk data for your state? It is easy to check by using this interactive map. (Some states’ grades are still being compiled.)
Take a look at “Michigan ‘weak’ in lobbying oversight,” where Peter Luke of Bridge Magazine discusses the mixed grades in Michigan’s report card.
March 7, 2012 •
Lobbying Spending in the News
Spending on lobbying is up in California, Michigan, and New Jersey according to these articles:
California: “Teachers union leads in record year of lobbying lawmakers” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.
Michigan: “Report: As Michigan economy floundered, spending by Michigan lobbyists soared 86%” in the Detroit Free Press.
New Jersey: “N.J. lobbyist spending hits new high at $73M; teachers union tops list again” by Matt Friedman in the Star-Ledger.
New Jersey: “N.J. Teachers Union Spent Record $11.3 Million on Ads Criticizing Christie” by Terrence Dopp in Bloomberg.
State and Federal Communications, Inc. provides research and consulting services for government relations professionals on lobbying laws, procurement lobbying laws, political contribution laws in the United States and Canada. Learn more by visiting stateandfed.com.
