Lawmakers adjourned abruptly last week on April 4, resulting in many bills being carried over to the second year of the session in 2026. One important passed bill awaiting the governor’s approval is Senate Bill 199. The bill removes the requirement for legislative lobbyists to report semi-monthly during the session. Under this new system only a single monthly report will be required for lobbyists beginning in 2026. The bill also changes campaign finance reporting requirements. Reports for election as well as nonelection years are due January 31, April 30, July 31, and October 20. This does affect lobbying reporting. The final semi-monthly lobbyist report is due April 15.

The Georgia House has just passed a bill removing the requirement to submit semi-monthly lobbyist activity reports when the Legislature is in session. Senate Bill 199 requires all reporting to be filed on the fifth of each month, which would bring reporting of state-level legislative lobbying in line with executive branch lobbying. The bill now goes to Gov. Kemp and if signed, will be effective January 1, 2026

The state Democratic Party filed suit against Gov. Kemp in federal court over a 2021 state law allowing candidates to accept unlimited contributions through leadership committees.

Last Thursday, a federal judge ruled in favor of Gov. Kemp.

U.S. District Judge Mark Cohen found the complaint to be speculative in nature and the Democratic Party lacked standing to sue the governor.

Democrats could not point to a specific contribution that had infringed the right of free speech and equal protection rights.

The court noted the attorney general and the Georgia Ethics Commission would be the appropriate parties to sue.

State Democrats filed suit against Gov. Kemp in federal court over a 2021 state law allowing candidates to accept unlimited contributions through leadership committees.

Legislative candidate committees are limited to accepting $3,300 per election and may not fundraise during the legislative session.

However, leadership committees are allowed to receive unlimited funds on behalf of candidates and may do so while the Legislature is in session.

Democrats argue the fact that losing party nominees must shut down their leadership committee while the winner’s committee may continue collecting funds unconstitutionally favors incumbents.

Democrats seek a preliminary injunction against leadership committee fundraising and spending until the case is concluded.

Q: I need to register as a lobbyist in Georgia and I have heard Georgia has overhauled their system. Were there any changes to how one registers or to what is required on lobbying reports?

A: Georgia has undergone a massive renovation of their lobbyist system. Registration is now a complex process that requires clients to make an account, which was not necessary under the old system.

When creating a client account, the system will request a list of officers and authorized agents. Any officers listed will have a client account created, using the email provided as a Login ID. Only officers are able to file reports, while authorized agents may only input information into the system.

Once the registration is submitted, an email will be sent to each of the listed officers, prompting them to create a password. The Ethics Commission will only discuss issues with the client account with the listed officers.

Following the creation of the client account, the lobbyist account may be created.

Once the lobbyist registration is submitted, a “token” will be created and emailed to the officers of the listed client. The client must then accept the “token” by clicking on the link and authorizing the lobbyist. The system will then send an email to the lobbyist to create their password. Once the password is created, the lobbyist is officially registered. It is important to note the lobbyist’s account will not be created until the client accepts the relationship. The $20 badge fee may be paid from the lobbyist account or the client account.

While the changes to lobbyist reporting are more modest, there are still differences between the old and new systems.

A large change is that there are now only three different reports: Local, Legislative, and Agency. The Agency report has combined Agency, Vendor, and State Board of Transportation into one report. Even if you only registered as an Agency lobbyist, your report will be labeled as an Agency, Vendor, and State Board of Transportation report.

The new system now requires additional information to file a report. Each expenditure disclosure must now contain:

•     Date of the expenditure

•     Amount

•     The client of the lobbyist

•     The “type” of expenditure

•     A description of the expenditure

•     The name of the payee

•     Whether the recipient is a public officer or group and their name.

The system also allows for the disclosure of the purpose of the expenditure and the number of the bill, resolution, or regulation, but this is an optional disclosure.

A special election will be held on April 9 to fill the vacancy in House District 139 due to the death of Rep. Richard Smith in January.

A runoff is scheduled for May 7, if necessary.

Georgia is replacing its lobbyist e-filing system for 2024.

Clients and lobbyists will have to register, but only once in the new system.

Lobbyists will be able to reregister every year based on this initial registration and clients will only register once to establish their account.

Lobbyists are currently authorized to lobby on behalf of new clients they register while authorization approval is pending.

This ability to lobby on behalf of new clients while awaiting approval of clients is for calendar year 2024 only.

Due to the new system, the Ethics Commission has decided to not collect or assess late fees for lobbyists provided they make a concerted effort to file reports and comply with their reporting requirements until March 31.

A special election has been scheduled on February 13 for state Senate District 30.

The vacancy is due to the resignation of Sen. Mike Dugan, who is running for Congress.

A runoff, if needed, will be held on March 12.

Gov. Brian Kemp signed a bill changing the name of the Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission back to the State Ethics Commission.

The much longer commission name was the product of a major ethics overhaul in 2010.

In addition to the name change, House Bill 572 also clarifies rules for late contribution reporting.

A contribution designated for a general election given close to a primary election date does not need reported within two days.

The new law will take effect on July 1.

The Georgia Campaign Finance Commission has voted to approve the increase to the campaign contribution limits.

The limit for statewide offices increased from $800 to $8,400 for each primary and general election and from $400 to $4,800 for each runoff.

The limit for other offices increased from $300 to $3,300 for each general and primary election and from $200 to $1,800 for each runoff.

These changes are effective immediately.

The Florida Legislature has ended its special session today, February 10.

Legislators passed bills supporting state control over Disney’s special district, migrant flights, and police election units.

The bills will now be sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis where it is expected he will sign the bills into law.

Lawmakers will now prepare for the start of their upcoming regular session on March 7.

Rep. Mike Glanton resigned this past week after serving 14 years in the state House.

Glanton was a Democrat who represented House District 75, which consists of Clayton County.

Gov. Brian Kemp set the special election for March 21. A runoff will be scheduled if necessary.

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp has won his bid for reelection.

Kemp defeated his Democratic challenger Stacey Abrams.

Kemp won by a wide margin, winning 53.4% of the vote while Abrams won 45.8%.

Georgia State Rep. Henry “Wayne” Howard died on October 13. Howard represented the 124^th District, which covers portions of Augusta-Richmond County.

He was running unopposed in next month’s midterm election after also running unopposed in the Democratic primary.

A special election to fill the seat will be held on December 20, 2022.