Lobbying

“The Shadow Lobbyist” opinion piece by Tom Edsall in The New York Times.

Georgia: “New ethics law’s Jan. 1 start creates uncertainty for lobbyists, legislators” by Aaron Gould Sheinin in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

North Carolina: “NC elections board supports investigation on sweepstakes cash” by Michael Biesecker and Mitch Weiss (Associated Press) in the News & Observer.

Campaign Finance

“Donor Gets Jail Time for Illegal Contributions” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call’s Political MoneyLine.

“Does Stephen Colbert’s Endorsement of His Sister Violate Election Laws?” by Megan Wiegand in Slate.

Florida: “Common Cause: campaign finance ‘reform’ bill is a ‘farce’” by Mary Ellen Klas in the Miami Herald.

Florida: “Legislators send campaign finance and ethics bills to governor” by Mary Ellen Klas in the Miami Herald.

Ethics

“’Hacking’ Open Financial Disclosure Data” by Scott Detrow in KQED Public Media.

Alabama: “Former state senator Lowell Barron indicted on campaign finance, ethics charges” by Kim Chandler in Alabama Live.

Colorado: “San Francisco Considers Ethics Reforms” by Ryan Parker in the Denver Post.

Illinois: “State Sen. Trotter pleads guilty to misdemeanor” by Jason Meisner in the Chicago Tribune.

Government Tech and Social Media

“Get Ready for Mobile Only” by Joseph Marks in Nextgov.

Redistricting

Alaska: “Redistricting Board asks Supreme Court to clarify ruling” by Richard Mauer in the Anchorage Daily News.

Lobbying

“McCain roasts lobbyist at awards dinner” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

“OFA files lobbying registration in New York” by Reid J. Epstein in Politico.

Florida: “House advances ethics bill to ban ‘revolving door’ lobbying” by Aaron Deslatte in the Orlando Sentinel.

North Carolina: “Bill would allow legislators to receive gifts from lobbyists” by Claire Bennett in The Daily Tar Heel.

Ottawa, Ontario: “City lobbying registry due for upgrade, weeks behind schedule” by David Reevely in the Ottawa Citizen.

Wisconsin: “Lobby outlays drop in 2011-12” by Bill Lueders in WisconsinWatch.org.

Campaign Finance

Hawaii: “Bill boosts public campaign funds” by Sarah Zoellick in the Honolulu Star Advertiser.

Massachusetts: “DeLeo, Murray break Mass. campaign spending tally” by The Associated Press in the Boston Globe.

Ethics

“Congressional Travel Costs Questioned” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call’s Political Moneyline.

New York: Prosecutors: “Liu Aides Didn’t Count On Getting Caught In Campaign Finance Scheme” by The Associated Press in CBS New York.

South Carolina: “SC House panel revives ethics reform effort” by Adam Beam in The State.

Election Law

New York: “Tougher state elections rules” by Jimmy Vielkind in the Albany Times Union.

New York: “Cuomo Adds Election Law Office to Anticorruption Proposals” by Thomas Kaplan in The New York Times.

From the State Legislatures

Nevada: “Senate OKs resolution seeking annual legislative sessions” by Sean Whaley in the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Redistricting

North Carolina: “Bill would make N.C. redistricting nonpartisan” by Travis Fain in the News & Record.

Lobbying

Florida: “Florida lawmakers weigh bill to tweak lobbyist gift ban” by Jim Saunders in the Miami Herald.

Georgia: “New lobbyist law leaves possible loopholes” by Aaron Gould Sheinin, Chris Joyner and James Salzer in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Kentucky: “Ethics Commission reports $4.2M spent on lobbying in Frankfort in January, February” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

New York: “Lobbying spending in N.Y. dropped to $205M in 2012” by Jon Campbell in the Democrat and Chronicle.

New York: “Pro-Cuomo Group Repeats as Top Spender on Lobbying” by Thomas Kaplan in the New York Times.

Oregon: “State, colleges lobbying costs top $1M” by Raju Chebium in the Statesman Journal.

Campaign Finance

Connecticut: “Boosting public financing for campaigns is off the table” by Mark Pazniokas in the Connecticut Mirror.

Nebraska: “Measure repeals Neb. campaign finance law but seeks to put campaign spending reports online” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

New York: “New Ads to Press Albany on Campaign Financing” by Thomas Kaplan in the New York Times.

Vermont: “Campaign finance reform bill in jeopardy” in the Rutland Herald.

West Virginia: “W.Va. House seeks anti-Citizens United amendment” by The Associated Press in WTRF.com.

Ethics

“Larry Craig Loses Major Battle in Fight Against FEC” by Steven T. Dennis in Roll Call.

“STOCK Act Endangers National Security, Report Says” by Niels Lesniewski in Roll Call.

North Dakota: “Gov. Dalrymple’s energy stocks, contributions raise questions” by Amy Dalrymple in InForum.

Ohio: “Jimmy Dimora files federal appeal claiming innocence” by James F. McCarty in the Plain Dealer.

From the State Legislatures

Georgia: “Ga. lawmakers take flurry of votes on final day” by The Associated Press in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Redistricting

Texas: “Texas redistricting fight resumes” by Tim Eaton in the Austin American-Statesman.

Open Government

“Which States Aced the Spending Transparency Test?” in Government Technology.

Government Tech and Social Media

“Internal Website HouseNet Gets a Makeover” by Emma Dumain in Roll Call.

“NASA Becomes The Most-Followed Government Twitter Account, Nominated For Second Shorty Award” by Benny Luo in NewMediaRockstars.com.

Hawaii: “Bill would require state to post more information online” by The Associated Press in the Honolulu Star Advertiser.

The Kentucky Legislature adjourned its regular session on March 26, 2013. In the final hours of the session, lawmakers passed a bill to secure the state’s pension fund; had they been unable to reach an agreement, a special session would have been likely.

However, the House of Representatives’ redistricting plan was not passed. The Kentucky Supreme Court struck down the Legislature’s first attempt at redistricting last year, finding the districts weren’t population-balanced and didn’t comply with the “one person, one vote” mandate.

The Senate decided to wait until next year’s legislative session to tackle redistricting, with leaders saying they wanted to pass both houses’ plans at the same time.

Lobbying

“K St. winners and losers in budget votes” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

“Under Contract” in The Hill.

“K Street Files: SEIU Launches Immigration Ads” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

Georgia: “Drama over ethics reform builds toward session’s finale” by Aaron Gould Sheinin, Chris Joyner and Kristina Torres in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Nevada: “State Senate votes for more lobbyist transparency” by Ed Vogel in the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Campaign Finance

New York: “OFA joins New York campaign finance reform fight” by Maggie Haberman in Politico.

West Virginia: “Campaign financing bill advances” by Phil Kabler in the Charleston Gazette.

Ethics

Maryland: “Dixon to give talk, consider return to politics” by Jena Marbella in the Baltimore Sun.

From the State Legislatures

“Committee recommends Brooks be expelled from Legislature” by Anjeanette Damon in the Las Vegas Sun.

Political Advertising

“Think Your Advocacy Group is Not Subject to FEC Rules? Think Again.” in Political Law Briefing via Eric Brown’s Political Activity Law Blog.

Open Government

“New Transparency Grades Issued for States” by Mike Maciag in Government Technology.

Arkansas: “Arkansas gets ‘C’ in spending transparency report” in Arkansas News.

Tennessee: “Rep. Glen Casada withdraws bill on open meetings law” by The Associated Press in The Tennessean.

West Virginia: “W.Va.’s spending transparency grade falls” by Eric Eyre in the Charleston Gazette.

Redistricting

Florida: “Legislators ask court to shield them from having to testify over maps” by Mary Ellen Klas in the Miami Herald.

Lobbying

“K Street Files: Both Sides Rev Up for Wage War” by Elizabeth Newlin Carney in Roll Call.

“K Street’s gravy train runs dry as Georgian leaders move past election” by Kevin Bogardus and Julian Pecquet in The Hill.

“Former Sen. Jon Kyl joins lobby shop at Covington” by Catherine Ho in the Washington Post.

New York: “Best-paid lobbyists, spenders unveiled” by Chris Bragg in Crain’s New York.

Pennsylvania: “Pa.’s Corbett and wife disclose gifts from lobbyists and businesses” by The Associated Press in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Pennsylvania: “Corbett’s acceptance of gifts give rise to calls for laws on gift bans” by Jan Murphy in the Patriot-News.

Campaign Finance

“Study shows Super PACs made mockery of campaign law” by Taylor Lincoln in The Hill.

Arizona: “Arizona senate approves contribution limits to recall campaigns” by Howard Fischer in the East Valley Tribune.

Kentucky: “Ky. House passes bill to publicly finance state SC races” by Jessica M. Karmasek in Legal Newsline.

Ethics

Florida: “Florida lawmakers vote for ethics and early voting changes” by Mary Ellen Klas in the Tampa Bay Times.

Legislative Issues

Missouri: “Mo. House endorses change to term limits” by The Associated Press in the News Tribune.

South Dakota: “SD Senate approves boost in expenses for lawmakers” in the Rapid City Journal.

Open Government

“Sen. Del Marsh says GOP committee members did not violate Open Meetings Act” by Mike Cason in the Birmingham News.

Redistricting

Kentucky: “House redistricting plan would create new Lexington district” by Jack Brammer and Beth Musgrave in the Lexington Herald-Leader.

Lobbying

“Web Entrepreneur Tries to Bridge K Street and Grass-Roots Advocacy” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“K Street Files: Manufacturers, Citing Job Losses, Oppose Carbon Tax” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“Lobbying World” in The Hill.

“Lincoln actor joins museum leaders lobbying in DC” by The Associated Press in the Peoria Journal Star.

Campaign Finance

“Pay to play?” by Allison MacDonald on MSNBC.

Arizona: “Clean Elections consolidation bill advances” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Daily Sun.

Montana: “Montana Senate endorses limit on corporate campaign spending” by The Associated Press in the Missoulian.

Ethics

“Feinstein asks court for campaign treasurer’s records” by John Myers in KXTV News 10.

Open Government

Minnesota: “Social media tests Minn. open meeting law” by Brian Bakst in Minnesota Public Radio.

South Carolina: “S.C. legislators wouldn’t be able to keep communication secret under altered House bill” by Stephen Largen in the Post and Courier.

Redistricting

North Carolina: “Attorneys wrap up arguments in NC redistricting” by Gary D. Robertson in the Winston-Salem Journal.

Lobbying

“K Street Files: New Faces at Harlow Foundation, Thorn Run” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“Abramoff lists 8 tips to overhaul lobbying laws” by Keith Matheny in USA Today.

“10 Strange Lobbying Groups That We Swear Are Real” by Elizabeth Flock in U.S. News & World Report.

Kentucky:  “Kentucky sets lobbying record in 2012” by Phil Impellizzeri in the Bluegrass Institute.

Nevada: “Former Nevada legislative director joins high profile public relations, lobbying firm” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

Campaign Finance

Missouri: “Nixon makes pitch for Medicaid, campaign donation limits” by Virginia Young in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Utah:  “Some ethics bills advance, while calls arise for more” by Lee Davidson in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Vermont: “Ben and Jerry push campaign finance ‘petition on steroids’” Dan D’Ambrosio in the Burlington Free Press.

Ethics

Arizona: “Arizona Democrats introduce trio of ethics bills” by AJ Vicens in Cronkite News.

Arizona: “Arizona Democrats introduce trio of ethics bills” by Mary Jo Pitzl in the Arizona Republic.

New Jersey: “Christie make case for taking over independent agencies” by Matt Katz in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

South Carolina: “Gov.’s commission suggests ‘clean, honest’ ethics plan” by Andrew Shain in The State.

Texas: “Ethics Commission to Debate Fundraising Opinion” by Emily Ramshaw in the Texas Tribune.

Virginia: “Va. lawmakers’ gifts last year were padded with travel” by Bill Sizemore in the Virginian-Pilot.

Redistricting

North Carolina: “Judges to hear N.C. redistricting challenge” by Dale Gibson in the Triangle Business Journal.

Virginia: “Va. Senate OK’s constitutional amendments” by Laura Vozzella in the Washington Post.

Wisconsin: “Rep. Vos subpoenaed in Wisconsin redistricting case” by The Associated Press in the Post Crescent.

Lobbying

“Sandy adds a twist to some firms’ lobbying efforts” by Alex Guillen in Politico.

“Business Lobbying In 2012 Soared, Buoyed By Fiscal Cliff Crisis” by Christina Wilkie in the Huffington Post.

“K Street stumbles for the second straight year” by Catherine Ho in the Washington Post.

Georgia:  “Road contractors shower governor with campaign donations” by Greg Bluestein, Ariel Hart and James Salzer in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Wisconsin: “Contract lobbying still ‘under the radar’” by Bill Lueders in Wisconsin Watch.

Campaign Finance

Arizona:  “Jan Brewer taps lawyer for Clean Elections post” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Capitol Times.

Florida:  “Florida group wants to end caps on campaign donations” by T.W. Farnam in the Washington Post.

Washington:  “Lawmaker wants to fix Public Disclosure Commission online system” by Brad Shannon in the News Tribune.

Ethics

“Ethics Panel Requires Added Disclosure of Funds, Accounts” by Amanda Becker in Roll Call.

Connecticut:  “Smoke shop owner pleads guilty in campaign finance case” by Mark Pazniokas in the Connecticut Mirror.

Iowa:  “Iowa Ethics and Campaign Finance Disclosure Board seeks complaint process change” by Rod Boshart in the Sioux City Journal.

Texas:  “Weak Disclosure Laws Keep Public in the Dark” by Ryan Murphy and Jay Root in the Texas Tribune.

Elections

“Missouri House passes elections bill” by Elizabeth Crisp in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Virginia: “Lawmakers move to change Va. electoral vote system” by Julian Walker in the Virginian-Pilot.

Washington:  “Washington state lawmakers press for speedier election results” by The Associated Press in the Oregonian.

From the State Legislatures

Idaho:  “Wednesday highlights in the Idaho Legislature” in the Idaho Statesman.

Redistricting

Virginia: “Va. House Speaker holds key to redistricting vote” by Errin Haines and Laura Vozzella in the Washington Post.

Virginia: “Stewart cheers Va. Senate redistricting” by Laura Vozella in the Washington Post.

Lobbying

“K Street says goodbye, good riddance to 2012, expects upturn this year” by Kevin Bogardus and Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“K Street Files: At Start of Second Term, Lobbyists Get Over Obama’s Cold Shoulder” by Kate Ackley and Janie Lorber in Roll Call.

“Interests’ Presence Felt In 2012, Filings Show” by Janie Lorber and Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“K Street sings the blues” by Byron Tau and Tarini Parti in Politico.

Campaign Finance

“Florida GOP donor Jay Odom indicted on campaign finance fraud charges” by Lucy Morgan in the Miami Herald.

Maine: “Maine lawmakers join effort to amend Constitution to allow campaign funding limits” by Robert Long in the Bangor Daily News.

Ethics

Colorado: “Ethics bill clears Senate committee hurdle” by Arek Sarkissian II in the Tallahassee Democrat.

Ohio: “Ex-legislator sent to prison for corruption” by Jim Siegel in the Columbus Dispatch.

Redistricting

“In quirk, some California residents have two state senators, others none” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.

“Va. Republicans’ redistricting maneuver draws criticism” by Laura Vozzella and Errin Haines in the Washington Post.

From the State Legislatures

“Top 10 legislative issues facing lawmakers in 2013” by Mark Wolfe from NCSL.

“In Michigan and Wisconsin, Some Lawmakers Want to Go Part-Time” by Jim Malewitz in Stateline.

Campaign Finance

“2012 presidential election nearing all-time record, final campaign finance reports show” by The Associated Press in The Washington Post.

Arkansas: “3 GOP lawmakers fined by Ark. ethics commission” in the San Francisco Chronicle.

District of Columbia: “Reneging on campaign finance reform” column by Jonetta Rose Barras in the Examiner.

Texas: “Contributions Blackout Serves Many Functions” by Ross Ramsey in The New York Times.

“Bad News for Campaign Finance” editorial by David Firestone in The New York Times.

Lobbying

“Think Tanks or Partisan Advocates? Distinction Is Getting Harder to See” by Janie Lorber in Roll Call.

Florida: “Former lobbyist Allison Tant joins race to lead Florida Democratic Party” by Adam C. Smith in the Tampa Bay Times.

Texas:  “Ex-Arlington lawmaker forms lobbying firm” by Maria Recio, Anna M. Tinsley and Scott Nishimura in the Star-Telegram.

Wyoming: “Groups challenge Wyoming lawmakers’ lack of transparency with ALEC” by Joan Barron in the Star-Tribune.

Ethics

District of Columbia:  “DC lottery contract is subject of federal probe” by Ben Nuckols in Bloomberg BusinessWeek.

West Virginia: “W.Va. Ethics Commission director gets exemption” by The Associated Press in the Herald-Dispatch.

Redistricting

“Redrawn districts complicate inquiries to incoming representatives” by Brad Shannon in The Olympian.

“Redistricting fight puts Doggett in awkward situation” by Tim Eaton in the Austin American-Statesman.

Government Social Media

“North Carolina Archives Social Media” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.

Campaign Finance

“Column: Campaign-finance tweaks can fix big problems” editorial by Peter Schweizer in USA Today.

Missouri: “Missouri House Democrats propose new campaign finance restrictions, stiffer ethics rules” by Chris Blank (Associated Press) in The Republic.

Lobbying

“Lobbying group’s next president expected to fight White House rules” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

“Marlowe to Step Down as Head of American League of Lobbyists” by Andrew Ramonas in The Blog of Legal Times.

“Lobbying World” in The Hill.

“Lobbying, America’s One Truly Unstoppable Growth Industry” by Jim Geraghty in the National Review.

“When ‘Super PACs’ Become Lobbyists” editorial in The New York Times.

“VIDEO: Rep. Shuler Said He Wouldn’t Become A Lobbyist; Now He Will” by David Halperin in The Huffington Post.

Florida: “Slow revolving door to lobbying in Fla. Capitol” editorial in the Orlando Sentinel.

Florida:  “Dorworth has a new career – as a lobbyist” by Jason Garcia in the Orlando Sentinel.

Ethics

New York:  “Ethics panel investigating New York Republican” by The Associated Press in CBS News.

Pennsylvania: “Ethics board fines Philadelphia official for Facebook posts” by Dave Davies in Newsworks.

Redistricting

Montana: “Redistricting panel works on Montana Senate boundaries” by The Associated Press in the Billings Gazette.

Ohio:  “Ohio Supreme Court upholds legislative maps” by Jim Siegel in the Columbus Dispatch.

Campaign Finance

“Campaign Finance Reformers Get Back To Work After Record Election Spending” by Paul Blumenthal in the Huffington Post.

“Abramoff, Occupy Wall Street join forces on campaign finance reform” by Megan M. Wilson in The Hill.

“U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown calls for campaign finance reform” by Stephanie Warsmith in the Akron Beacon Journal.

Lobbying

“Lobbyists Woo New Lawmakers in D.C. Mating Dance” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“Incoming freshman lawmakers already have bundlers on K St.” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

“Tax fight sneaks up on K Street” by Bernie Becker and Peter Schroeder in The Hill.

“Rove Super PAC will try lobbying” by Rachel Weiner in The Washington Post.

Florida:  “Cretul, Cannon are lobbyists; former speakers start new firm” by Bill Thompson in the Gainesville Sun.

Ethics

“Secretary of state accused of moving too slow on PAC ethics complaint” by Steve Terrell in the Santa Fe New Mexican.

“Montreal Hackathon Aims to Combat Government Corruption” by Elisabeth Fraser in TechPresident.

Redistricting

“Ohio State Bar Association urges commission to take up redistricting reform” by Kate Irby in the Plain Dealer.

Campaign Finance
“Ethics czar angers bloggers with proposal to shine light on campaign pay” by Patrick McGreevey in the Los Angeles Times.

“Contributions to PACs in Vt. may be known soon” by Dave Gram (Associated Press) in the Bennington Banner.

Lobbying

Minnesota:  “Lobbyist fined who donated to Davids’ campaign” by Heather J. Carlson in the Post-Bulletin.

Redistricting

Arkansas: “Judges uphold Senate district redistricting” by John Lyon in the Arkansas News.

Elections

Kansas: “Ex-lawmaker named elections official” by The Associated Press in the Lawrence Journal World.

Procurement

“Contractor suspensions and debarments on the rise, says White House” by Charles Clark in Government Executive.