LobbyComply Blog

The Oklahoma Ethics Commission recently passed a series of rule changes pertaining to political contribution limits. Under the new rules, the dollar restrictions on contributions to state candidates would change from family limits to individual limits.

Each person would be allowed to give up to $2,600 to a candidate per election. The old rules prohibit families from donating more than $5,000 to a candidate in a political campaign.

Lee Slater, executive director of the Oklahoma Ethics Commission, believes the family contribution limit to be unconstitutional as it discriminates against a married person. The new rules, also changing individual contribution limits to political parties and PACs, will go into effect unless they are rejected, in whole, by the Legislature.

State Rep. Mike Reynolds filed hundreds of ethics complaints with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. The complaints, filed against candidates and legislators, call attention to what he believes is a lack of enforcement.

Most of the violations involved late filings of campaign contribution and expenditure reports. Reynolds reports he spent three weeks, using computer programs he developed, to analyze Ethics Commission data. Lee Slater, the Oklahoma Ethics Commission’s new executive director, declined to comment on the complaints. –

State Rep. Mike Reynolds is criticizing officials at the state Ethics Commission for offering proposed changes to lobbyist reporting and registration, conflict of interest, and financial disclosure rules.

According to Reynolds, “the Ethics Commission seems to be declaring open season for lobbyists on elected officials” as the proposed changes “. . . have the potential of increasing lobbyists’ gifts to lawmakers by hundreds of thousands of dollars each year.”

Opponents of the proposed changes argue expansion of the current guidelines will increase undue influence on elected officials and reduce the efficacy of the commission in and of itself.

On September 9, 2013, the Oklahoma Legislature adjourned its special session sine die.

Gov. Mary Fallin had called the special session to address the issue of how lawsuits are filed, which became a problem after the Oklahoma Supreme Court invalidated a law on that topic. The special session, which began on September 3, produced 23 bills related to lawsuit reform.

In her press release, Fallin stated, “These measures will help to keep jobs in Oklahoma and further our reputation as a business friendly state.”

Governor Mary Fallin issued an executive order calling for legislators to return to the capitol for a special session to begin September 3, 2013.

The order specifies the special session will deal only with the issue of how lawsuits are filed, which became a problem after the Oklahoma Supreme Court invalidated a law on that topic.

The Oklahoma Legislature adjourned sine die one week early on May 24. Adjourning a week early saved $140,000 in expenses for the Legislature, according to The Times Record News.

Governor Mary Fallin, who has pocket veto power, has until June 8 to sign or veto any bills presented to her.

PACs and candidates behind in filing their scheduled reports with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission may be facing thousands of dollars in fines, according to NewsOK.com.

Executive Director Lee Slater will be focusing efforts this summer on clearing up the backlog of PACs and candidates not keeping up with reporting requirements. More than two dozen PACs have not filed their latest quarterly reports due April 30.

The commission can charge each committee or candidate $100 per day for each day it is late filing, with a total maximum penalty of $1,000. NewsOK.com reports the commission will be hiring a hearing officer before it starts to mail out its penalty assessments, anticipating candidates’ guaranteed right to protest.

The Oklahoma Ethics Commission has hired Lee Slater as its new executive director.

According to The Oklahoman, Mr. Slater will begin working part time with the commission on February 1 and become the full time executive director on July 1, 2013.

The position recently became vacant when Marilyn Hughes retired as executive director after 25 years with the agency.

A new executive director for the Oklahoma Ethics Commission may be selected next week.

According to The Oklahoman, commissioners intend to interview the final four applicants, all from Oklahoma, for the position on November 27.

Outgoing executive director Marilyn Hughes, who has held the position for nearly 25 years, is leaving the job on November 30.

Also retiring on November 30 are the Ethics Commission’s general counsel, Rebecca Adams, and its investigator, Darey Roberts. Ms. Adams was general counsel for the last 21 years and Mr. Roberts its investigator for 17 years.

The state of Oklahoma has just announced the debut of its new web portal, OK.gov. The site sports a new look and promises to offer a wealth of searchable  datasets on Data.OK.gov. For instance, you can view state expenditures and vendor payments by quarter.

According to their site: “Data.OK.gov strives to make Oklahoma government more transparent through an unprecedented level of openness in Oklahoma government. By publishing raw datasets in different formats, you can look up statistics, build applications, conduct analysis and perform research. Data.OK.gov allows for a simple way to gather Oklahoma government data about the economy, public health, transportation, environment, and more on one website. Centralized access to this data saves you from having to visit multiple websites.”

Perhaps you don’t find the information you need on OK.gov? The state invites you to send your feedback and let them know what data you would like to see included.

Here is the press release for the new site.

Massachusetts: “Casinos industry spent millions lobbying in Mass.” by The Associated Press in the Boston Herald.

Oklahoma: “Lobbyist: Lawmaker Morgan sought help for ‘friends’” by Nolan Clay in the Tulsa World.

South Carolina: “Senators hold moment of silence for missing lobbyist, search continues” by Noelle Phillips in The State.

Wisconsin: “Union lobbying plummets in last half of 2011” by Bill Lueders in Wisconsin Watch.

The Oklahoma State Ethics Commission has approved a rule which creates an exception to the $100 annual gift limit. The rule allows lobbyists to provide a lunch or dinner for a group of legislators once a year, during the legislative session, at the state capitol, without counting the meal against the annual limit. Lobbyists would be required to report the amount spent.

The rule will go into effect on January 1, 2013 unless the legislature disapproves by the end of the 2012 session.

The Oklahoma State Ethics Commission has approved a series of changes to the campaign finance rules. The changes are intended to provide more disclosure from PACs and super PACs.

The new rules impose additional registration and reporting requirements on PACs that make any independent expenditure or electioneering communications in state level races. The changes require disclosure of the amount, date, a brief description or statement of each expenditure, the name of the candidate and office supported or opposed, and whether the expenditure is made to support or oppose the candidate.

The approved rule changes will now go before the state legislature which has until the end of the session to disapprove. If the legislature does not disapprove, the rule changes will go into effect January 1, 2013.

Federal:

Colbert Declares Victory at FEC

FEC Limits Lawmakers’ Fundraising for Super PACs

From the States and Municipalities:

Alabama

Gambling Trial Highlights Fees Paid to Legislators

Arizona

Justices Strike Down Arizona Campaign Finance Law

Florida

Judge Strikes Down Florida Campaign Finance Matching Law

Illinois

Jury Finds Blagojevich Guilty of Corruption

Massachusetts

Ethics Changes Generate Talk as Proposal to Require Lobbyists to Wear ID Badges Is Likened to Nazi Germany

Massachusetts

Special Education Director Said to Siphon $10 Million

Missouri

Missouri Lawmakers Eat for Free

Nevada

Tougher Nevada Campaign Money Laws Come into Play

New York

New Contribution Rule Limits Assignments to Elected Judges

Oklahoma

Oklahoma Ethics Commission Reprimands NRA Lobbyist

Wisconsin

Wisconsin Justices in Altercation

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.