January 4, 2012 •
2012 Guidebooks Are Here!
The State and Federal Communications, Inc. research staff has updated this Executive Source Guidebook and we are pleased to provide it to our valued clients.
This quick desk reference combines information from our online resources and lists the information by state:
– The Executive Source Guide on Lobbying Laws™;
– The Executive Source Guide on Political Contributions™; and
– The Executive Source Guide on Procurement Lobbying™.
This guidebook is filled with valuable information. However, we also caution it has two limitations:
The online resources, which you receive either through your subscription or as part of your lobbying compliance service, are comprehensive. This guidebook summarizes information in the online resources, and is meant only as a quick-reference guide.
While this guidebook is accurate and timely when we print it, please understand our online resources are updated continually. We provide this guidebook to you as a convenience, but your ultimate source of information should always be the online resource(s) to which you subscribe.
We consider this guidebook another value-added benefit of your partnership with State and Federal Communications. You also receive, via e-mail, monthly updates of important compliance legislation on the federal and state levels; News You Can Use™, our weekly summary of current news and events regarding compliance; and the Compliance Now newsletter with even more information.
Please call us at (330)761-9960 or email marketing@stateandfed.com if you would like to learn more about State and Federal Communications’ compliance services. Be sure to contact us if you are already a client and need to have your subscription username or password forwarded.
We are privileged to have you as clients, and are pleased to be your trusted adviser for government affairs compliance.
December 5, 2011 •
News You Can Use Digest – December 5, 2011
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
FEC Leaves Unclear Path for Super PACs
Gingrich’s Work Shows Limits of U.S. Lobbying Law
From the States and Municipalities:
Arizona
Clean Elections Foes Say Public Funds Are Used to Influence Election Outcomes
Colorado
Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler Proposes Rewriting of State Campaign Finance Rules
Georgia
Ethics Commission Deals with Challenges of Change
Indiana
Marion County Judge Scolded for Fundraising Language
Kansas
Kansas Governor Says Staff Overreacted to Teen’s Tweet
Massachusetts
Columbus Center Developer Fined $1.6 Million
Nevada
Ethics Commission Party May Not Have Been So Ethical
New York
Second Bribe Case for Lawmaker Just Acquitted
North Carolina
Three Perdue Associates Indicted
South Carolina
S.C. Governor’s Chef Told to Reimburse State after Using Its Resources for Catering
Washington
Washington Rep. Hinkle Seeks Change to Fundraising 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.
November 7, 2011 •
Did Missouri Lawmakers Act Illegally with Ethics Bill?
Missouri Supreme Court Will Hear Arguments
This week the Missouri Supreme Court will hear arguments about whether lawmakers acted illegally in a legislative attempt to increase ethics requirements. The case appeals a ruling by Circuit Judge Daniel Green finding Senate Bill 844 to be a violation of the constitution’s single subject requirement.
What began as a one-page bill allowing officials to use the Office of Administration for procurement decisions became a 69-page bill entitled “relating to ethics.” The bill changed campaign finance laws, gave greater authority to the Missouri Ethics Commission, created new crimes for ethics violations, and required Capitol dome keys be given to all lawmakers.
Judge Green’s ruling struck down all but the original procurement provision. The Attorney General believes the bill can be saved by striking only the provision regarding Capitol dome keys. Those challenging the bill argue the entire bill is unconstitutional.
Photo of the Missouri Supreme Court building by Americasroof on Wikipedia.
October 20, 2011 •
Suit Asks Court to Allow Federal Contractors to Make Federal Political Contributions
Wagner v. FEC
Individuals with federal contracts should be allowed to make political contributions to federal candidates or political parties, a lawsuit filed yesterday by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) argues.
The suit, Wagner v. Federal Election Commission, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, challenges the constitutionality of section 441c of Title 2 of the U.S. Code, which prohibits any vendors with contracts with the federal government from making such contributions.
According to its press release, the ACLU is asking the Court, on behalf of the three named plaintiffs, to declare the law unconstitutional as applied to individuals who have personal services contracts with federal agencies. Because federal workers who are not contractors may make federal political contributions, while contractors performing the same work may not, the suit argues section 441c violates both the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution and the First Amendment.
Photo of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia courtesy of the Court’s website.
October 17, 2011 •
Proposed Rule Would Require Privacy Training for Certain Federal Contractors
Comments Until December 13
A proposed federal regulation would require mandatory privacy training for certain contractors.
Under a new rule put forward by the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and NASA, contractors would be required to identify employees designing, operating or having access to government systems of records, or handling personally identifiable information.
This training would be required upon the award of a contract and at least annually thereafter. Vendors would be required to maintain records of employee training for request by the government.
This rule does not apply to commercial items. The Regulatory Secretariat is accepting comments until December 13.
October 10, 2011 •
News You Can Use Digest – October 10, 2011
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
How One Criminal Case Hit K Street
Hybrid PACs: Super PACs and Traditional PACs Can Merge
Lobbyists In On ‘Super’ Secrets
OMB Finalizes Details on White House Lobbying Reform Rules
From the States and Municipalities:
Alabama
Commission’s Opinions Further Define 2010 Ethics Law
Delaware
Colbert Takes Satirical Swipe at Abuse of Delaware Spending Disclosure Laws
Minnesota
Disclosure Rules Apply, Campaign Finance Board Says
New Jersey
N.J. Ethics Reform Efforts Bogged Down for Year
New Mexico
New Mexico Governor Signs Bill to Close Loopholes in State Contract Bidding
New York
NYC Mayor Cross-Examined at Ex-Operative’s Trial
Texas
Recall Case Likely to Extend Beyond El Paso
Utah
Lobbyists Want Keys to the Gym and Valet Parking at Capitol
Virginia
Trackers an Evolving but Undeniable Political Force
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.
Jim Sedor is editor of News You Can Use.
September 28, 2011 •
E-X-P-A-N-D-I-N-G Our Online Guides
Dear Clients:
We are always looking to add value to our services. You may have noticed in the past three months we have added 36 new jurisdictions to our online website.
Now that we are starting the last quarter of the year, we are going to increase the amount of information in each section.
Executive Sourcebook on Lobbying Laws:
-
We are separating the penalties so you will see what they are for registration, reporting, and gift violations.
-
Does the jurisdiction have a document retention policy?
-
Is gift splitting allowed?
-
We are also separating the gift restrictions for lobbyists and non-lobbyists.
Executive’s Sourcebook on Political Contributions:
-
What is the jurisdiction’s document retention policy?
-
What restrictions are there on fundraising, as applied both to corporations attending a political event and as applied to corporations holding its own fundraiser?
Executive’s Sourcebook on Procurement Lobbying:
-
Restrictions on pre-RFP communications between a bidder and the procurement department?
-
Are there any post-RFP “cone of silence” restrictions?
-
Difference between “bidder” and “contractor.”
It continues to be our goal to be your #1 online resource for lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying.
Until next month, let your fingers do the walking at www.stateandfed.com and see the amount of information available to you and your organization.
Elizabeth Z. Bartz
President and CEO
September 26, 2011 •
New Mexico Special Session Adjourned
No Deal Reached on Redistricting
The special session of the New Mexico Legislature adjourned on September 24, 2011.
The Legislature failed to reach a compromise on congressional redistricting, but passed a bill strengthening the preference given to New Mexico businesses bidding on state government contracts.
September 23, 2011 •
Indianapolis Purchasing Department Software Change
Complete by October 3
Today the Indianapolis Office of Finance and Management begins implementation of its new Enterprise Resource Planning software, which will cause a temporary halt on generating request for bids or quotes, and vendor payments.
The new system will allow informal quotes to be e-mailed as long as the Office has a vendor’s current contact information and a valid e-mail address. Invitations to bid will be formatted differently but contain the same information. The vendor notification of this change can be found here and the Purchasing Division home page can be found here.
The conversion is expected to be complete by October 3.
September 15, 2011 •
Calls for Change to New Jersey Pay-to-Play Laws
Comptroller and ELEC Director
Today the New Jersey State Comptroller A. Matthew Boxer and the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) Executive Director Jeff Brindle called for a simpler pay-to-play system, tighter contracting rules, and more complete disclosure of contractor contributions.
Comptroller Boxer issued a report finding the state’s pay-to-play laws contain “a series of fatal flaws [that] have essentially rendered New Jersey’s Pay-to-Play law meaningless in the effort to prevent local governments from steering contracts to politically favored vendors.” Director Brindle stated, “Unfortunately, New Jersey’s political history is littered with examples of private contractors securing lucrative public contracts through targeted contributions.”
The comptroller’s report suggests several changes, such as eliminating the fair-and-open exception which has different regulatory systems at the state and local levels, strengthening fair-and-open guidelines to require more competitive contracting, and reforming New Jersey’s contract laws to allow a more competitive vendor-selection process.
Drawing on earlier recommendations from ELEC, Director Brindle also made calls for changes, including for one state pay-to-play law to apply “across the board” for all jurisdictions, emphasizing “the current maze of local and state laws is terribly confusing.” Additionally, ELEC proposes that any public contractor receiving a contract over $17,500 file an annual report with the agency, listing the contractor’s contributions and public contracts. The current disclosure threshold is $50,000. Director Brindle also stated the contribution limits for contractors should be raised to help address fundraising concerns and not discourage participation in the political process.
“Combined with competitive bidding reform as suggested by the Comptroller, together these changes would, I believe, constitute the strongest pay-to-play law in the nation,” Director Brindle said.
Comptroller Boxer’s press release is here. Director Brindle’s press release is here.
September 12, 2011 •
News You Can Use Digest – September 12, 2011
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
Bipartisan Bill Would Require Transparency of Super Committee
Facing Voter Discontent, Lawmakers Skip Town Halls
Members of Debt Panel Have Ties to Lobbyists
From the States and Municipalities:
California
Campaign Accountant Held in Theft of Funds
Connecticut
Watchdog Agencies Spared as Malloy Nails Down Budget Cuts
Georgia
Ethics Chief Arrives Amid Makeover
Rhode Island
R.I. Rep. Leo Medina Is Charged with a Felony
Washington
Seattle City Employee to Be Fined for Driving City Car to Casino
Wisconsin
Attorney: New Wisconsin ad rules too broad
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.
Jim Sedor is editor of News You Can Use.
September 2, 2011 •
Government Contractors and Social Media
GovWin discusses communications strategies
Elliot Volkman has written a piece, “Contractors Use Webinars, Social Media To Extend Their Voices,” on GovWin.com’s blog. He discusses the benefits and limitations government contractors may face when using social media for their communications strategies.
Aside from discussing how to make the most out of using Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn, Volkman also gives advice on hosting webinars and how they can fit in with the use of social media.
August 24, 2011 •
Our Online Executive Source Guides
Our Online Executive Source Guides give you everything you need for your compliance work in one place!
State and Federal Communications is the most trusted source in the nation for comprehensive, accurate, and timely compliance information lobbying laws, political contributions, procurement lobbying, and Canadian Compliance for U.S. Companies.
Our Executive Source Guides cover every important jurisdiction – federal, all 50 states, and more than 200 municipalities. We cover Canada too!
August 19, 2011 •
We Cover New Jurisdictions
In a continuing effort to better serve the needs of its clients, State and Federal Communications, Inc. is expanding coverage of laws and regulations in more municipalities.
We now provide information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for:
Chandler, Arizona
Fort Collins, Colorado
New Haven, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Chesapeake, Virginia
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.
