Outgoing senate president Tom Niehaus has introduced a bill to overhaul the state’s ethics law. Senate Bill 391, if passed, will:

• Increase the lobbyist registration fee to $35 (will take effect 12/1/14 if passed);
• Change the registration period for executive and retirement system lobbyists to two years, expiring on December 31 of even-numbered years (will take effect 12/1/14 if passed);
• Codify the percentage of time a lobbyist must spend on lobbying before being required to register;
• Increase the itemizing threshold for lobbyist expenditure reporting to $100;
• Exclude maintenance of office facilities and compensation paid to legislative agents from the definition of expenditure; and
• Increase the limit on gifts to public officials to $250, aggregated per calendar year.

The bill also provides additional requirements for financial disclosures from public officials.

With the November elections on the horizon, a number of lawsuits have been filed by potential campaign contributors seeking to determine the constitutionality of their states’ campaign finance laws. The following states have seen campaign finance laws invalidated in August.

In Nebraska, the state supreme court held the Campaign Finance Limitation Act (CFLA) unconstitutional. The CFLA allowed candidates participating in the public financing program to receive additional public funds if their privately-funded opponents exceeded certain spending limits. The court also struck down the CFLA’s aggregate contribution limits and rules governing acceptance of contributions from independent groups after the court determined the public financing portion of the CFLA was not severable from the rest of the law.

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Ohio’s ban on political contributions to candidates for state attorney general or county prosecutor from doctors who treat Medicaid patients unconstitutional. The provision was designed to prevent fraud by banning contributions to those officials who prosecute Medicaid fraud, but the court held the prohibition a violation of doctors’ free speech rights.

In Florida, a federal judge issued a temporary injunction blocking enforcement of Florida’s $100 per election contribution limit for persons 17 and under, holding the law an unconstitutional infringement on free speech rights. Florida allows persons aged 18 and over to contribute $500 per election.

A federal judge in West Virginia granted a preliminary injunction to prevent enforcement of West Virginia’s $1,000-per-election limit on contributions to independent expenditure PACs, on the grounds that the limit chills First Amendment free speech rights. The injunction will remain in place pending a final resolution of the case.

Finally, in Colorado, a federal judge invalidated several campaign finance rule changes made by the secretary of state. The rules struck down include one providing that organizations are only subject to reporting requirements if more than 30 percent of their spending was for or against a ballot issue, and one limiting penalties for certain campaign finance violations. The secretary of state’s rule defining electioneering communications was upheld. Two additional rules await a decision.

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Ohio’s ban on political contributions from doctors who treat Medicaid patients to candidates for state attorney general or county prosecutor is unconstitutional.

The provision was designed to prevent fraud by banning contributions to those officials who prosecute Medicaid fraud, but the court held that the prohibition was a violation of doctors’ free speech rights.

The secretary of state’s office announced it was reviewing the decision and had no further comment on the case.

Planning on attending NCSL in Chicago and want to be involved with Ohio Night? Be sure to save the date!

For more information, contact Elizabeth Bartz of State and Federal Communications, Inc. at
330-761-9960.

Elizabeth Bartz, President and CEO of State and Federal Communications, was recently the master of ceremonies for a parish banquet recognizing the achievements of the church’s recent graduates. The event was held on Sunday, June 10, 2012 at Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church in Akron, Ohio.

The keynote speaker for the banquet was Dr. Lester Lefton, President of Kent State University.

Federal: “Lawmakers profit from positions in Congress” by Gary Martin in the San Antonio Express-News.

Federal: “Ethics committee: Sen. Vitter of Louisiana violated public trust in blocking Salazar salary” by The Associated Press in The Washington Post.

Florida: “Senate to decide punishment on Norman ethics violation” by Brittany Davis in the Miami Herald.

Idaho: “Idaho Senate approves series of new ethics rules” by Alex Morrell and Todd Dvorak (Associated Press) in the Idaho Statesman.

Mississippi: “Lawmaker appeals $346K ethics violation order” in The Clarion-Ledger.

New York:  “APNewsBreak: NY board won’t disclose hire record” by The Associated Press in The Wall Street Journal.

Ohio:  “Cleveland lawmaker requests legislative group’s financial records after recent bribery charge” by Joe Guillen in The Plain Dealer.

South Carolina: “Blame enough to go around for ethics rank” in the Orangeburg Times and Democrat.

Texas: “Two-thirds of Texas congressional delegation named in report on ethics lapses” by Gary Martin in the Houston Chronicle.

The Cuyahoga County Inspector General, Nailah Byrd, has issued an advisory opinion (IGADV-0005) regarding whether a public official or employee’s acceptance of a ticket to a charitable fundraising event violates any provision of the ethics ordinance.

The opinion states that while the ethics ordinance does not explicitly prohibit the acceptance of a ticket, it does require certain conditions to be met.

A charitable event ticket given by a lobbyist or contractor must not include an extravagant or lavish meal, entertainment of significant value, or a fair market value price exceeding $75.

State and Federal Communications will be attending the State of the County Address for Summit County, Ohio.

Summit County Executive Russel M. Pry will be delivering his fifth address today at 11:30 in the John S. Knight Center in Akron, Ohio.

State and Federal Communications is proud to be one of the sponsors of the Ohio Birthday Reception in Washington D.C.! The grand event will take place tonight at the Library of Congress.

Elizabeth Bartz, the company’s President and CEO, will be in attendance.

Bruce E. Bailey, an attorney from Westerville, Ohio, has been appointed to the Ohio Ethics Commission. Bailey will be taking the seat held previously by former commission chairman Ben Rose.

Rose had requested Governor John Kasich not reappoint him for another term.Bailey’s term will run through January 1, 2018.

The Ohio Joint Legislative Ethics Committee has released Advisory Opinion 2012-001, which prohibits members and employees of the Ohio General Assembly from using their office or employment status in order to promote a registered lobbyist. In its first advisory opinion to be released since 2009, the Committee pointed to Ohio Revised Code section 102.03(D), which prohibits a public official or employee from using his or her status acquired by such position in order to secure anything of value.

The Committee opined that the use of the member or employee in his or her official capacity as Senator, Representative, or legislative staffer in an advertisement or other promotional item would result in a value to the lobbyist, thus resulting in the prohibition. Additionally, the Committee cautioned against allowing such a promotion in merely a personal capacity in order to avoid the appearance of impropriety despite no specific prohibition existing.

The opinion, which was requested by an Ohio registered lobbyist, was deemed necessary after things such as requests for quotes on websites or letters of recommendation to be sent to potential clients had been made of members and employees of the Ohio General Assembly by registered lobbyists.

Ohio Ethics Commission Chair Ben Rose has asked Governor John Kasich not to reappoint him to the Commission in 2012.

Rose, who was first appointed to the Commission in 2006, has been elected Chair during each of his last three years.

In making his request, Rose cited desires to become involved in endeavors where a conflict of interest may have been previously raised due to his Commission membership and to spend more time with his family as reasons for his decision.

Rose, whose term expires January 1, 2012, has indicated a willingness to remain on the Commission for a reasonable period of time after the expiration of his appointment until a successor is appointed, if permitted.

Governor John Kasich signed HB 369 on Thursday, December 15, 2011. The bill consolidated Ohio’s June 12, 2012 primary for the President and U.S. House of Representatives into the state’s March 6, 2012 primary.

The bill also established new boundaries for the state’s 16 congressional districts to settle a dispute over the previous boundaries established earlier this year.