Thank you for joining us on another statehouse tour. This week we will be visiting Arizona’s capitol building, located in Phoenix.

Arizona’s previous statehouse is now known as the Old Capitol. It is defined by frugality; many of the building’s plans did not come into being because they were “too expensive”. These plans included a grand rotunda and wings off the main building for each house. Many of the building’s features were even incorrectly executed by the contractors.

In the mid-1950s, Frank Lloyd Wright drew up plans for a new statehouse, but those plans also were rejected because of cost. The Old Capitol is topped with a copper dome. which is crowned with a statue called Winged Victory.

The Old Capitol was used as the statehouse from 1901 to 1960. In 1960, separate House and Senate buildings were built on the north and south sides of the Capitol. The Arizona Legislature currently uses these House and Senate buildings. There are plans in the works to build a new Capitol because of the Old Capitol’s inadequacies.

The Old Capitol is now a museum. It exhibits local and state history with an emphasis on the state government and statehood. The museum also has exhibits on historical figures from the state and explanations of state symbols. One of the most notable exhibits there is a silver punchbowl service and silver statue from the battleship USS Arizona. These artifacts survived when the ship was sunk during the Pearl Harbor attack. People of all states can appreciate Arizona’s statehouse for its historical significance and its survival through frugal times.

To learn more, visit the Arizona State Government page.

Photo of the California State House by Jeff Dean on Wikimedia Commons.

The U.S. Statehouse Series is a project of the State and Federal Communications team of summer interns: Alessandra Dickos, Zack Koozer, Elaina Laikos, and Rachel Rodgers.

In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed a lower court order requiring the state to begin early voting on September 30, 2014.

The stay eliminates the period known as the “Golden Week,” when voters were able to register and vote on the same day.

The stay will remain in effect until the state formally appeals the lower court’s order and the Court acts upon that appeal.

Governor Jerry Brown has issued a proclamation declaring a special election for Senate District 35 on February 10, 2015.

The primary will be held on December 9, 2014.

The special election became necessary following the resignation of Sen. Roderick D. Wright (D), who was sentenced last week to three months in jail for lying about where he lived when he ran for office.

New regulations to compliment the Lobbyist Ordinance take effect today, September 26, 2014.

Preparation and research are included in the definition of “lobbyist services” and a single conversation (or email) with multiple officials counts as multiple “contacts” for purposes of the new registration threshold.

The new regulations are designed to interpret and otherwise provide guidance concerning recent amendments to the ordinance effective July 26, 2014.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics has developed online ethics training, as required by the New York Legislative Law. Enrollment in the online training is available here.

All registered lobbyists, including principals, must complete the online training.

All lobbyists registered for both the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 biennia must complete the online training by December 31, 2014. Beginning in 2015, all registered lobbyists will be required to complete the training once every three years.

New Jersey Assemblyman Michael Patrick Carroll recently introduced Assembly Bill 3650 to abolish the Election Law Enforcement Commission, repeal New Jersey’s restrictions on campaign finance and lobbying, and end public financing of gubernatorial campaigns.

Carroll claims contribution limits do not actually limit contributions but simply encourage candidates to find money in other ways, such as through PACs or other non-profit issue advocacy organizations. He said he’s not wholly averse to reporting contributions, however, and suggested the creation of a website to which every candidate would periodically download contribution and expenditure data.

A federal judge rejected Citizens United’s request to air a documentary critical of Colorado Democrats without disclosing its donors in accordance with state law.

The conservative group argues its free speech rights are violated when the law requires it to disclose donors while effectively exempting traditional print media and broadcasters from the same requirement.

Although its motion for a preliminary injunction was denied, Citizens United President David Bossie claims the organization will appeal to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.

Reggie Drummond, administrator of the Alaska Legislature’s Select Committee on Legislative Ethics, resigned effective September 15. He claims he simply did not enjoy the job and was not a good fit.

The ethics committee advises legislators on ethical matters and has the authority to issue penalties for ethics violations. Although the committee is charged with overseeing compliance with ethical standards, many of the ethics rules remain subject to interpretation. Drummond was not comfortable interpreting a limited statute and admits he failed to read the statute prior to accepting the position in June.

Joyce Anderson, who served as the committee’s administrator for 13 years before retiring earlier this year, has been named acting committee administrator.

Gov. Terry McAuliffe announced the appointment of a bipartisan panel to review state campaign finance, gift, and public disclosure laws. The panel is co-chaired by former Virginia Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling and former U.S. Rep. Rick Boucher, who represented a district in southwestern Virginia.

The governor’s announcement comes just weeks after former Gov. Bob McDonnell was convicted of corruption charges for accepting close to $200,000 of gifts in exchange for public acts.

Other topics on the table include merit selection of judges and redrawing of legislative district lines.

Gov. McAuliffe has asked the panel for a report by December 1, giving the General Assembly time to take action in 2015.

Photo of Gov. Terry McAuliffe courtesy of Kate Wellington in Wikimedia Commons.

The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance (OCPF) issued an advisory opinion last week to clarify when an organization may be required to register with the state as an independent expenditure political action committee (IEPAC). An IEPAC is a political committee or other entity receiving contributions to make independent expenditures.

On September 18, the OCPF issued AO-14-05, which explains how an organization raising funds for political purposes is generally not required to register as an IEPAC in Massachusetts unless donors are told or otherwise know “that at least a portion of funds given will be used to influence” an election in the state. Registration as an IEPC with the state would not be required even if a portion of the funds raised by the organization is subsequently transferred to a Massachusetts IEPAC or is used by the organization itself to make independent expenditures in the state.

A committee of City Council has endorsed new campaign contribution rules to monitor independent political action committees. The rules would classify a committee’s otherwise independent payment as a “contribution” if the payment is for an advertisement duplicating materials found in a candidate’s advertisement or on the candidate’s website. Such payments would be subject to both contribution limits and source prohibitions.

The full City Council will now consider the amendments to the Election Campaign Control Ordinance (ECCO).

Photo of the San Diego skyline courtesy of Tomcio77 on Wikimedia Commons.

Former Gov. John G. Rowland was convicted Friday in federal court on seven counts of corrupt political acts. The charges, including obstructing justice, conspiracy, and falsifying documents, followed Rowland’s connection to the congressional campaigns of Lisa Wilson-Foley in 2012 and Mark Greenberg in 2010.

Foley pleaded guilty to related crimes earlier this year and is awaiting sentencing. The obstruction charge in relation to Greenberg’s campaign centered around a contract presented to Greenberg by Rowland. Greenberg testified he was not interested and tore up the contract.

Facing a maximum of 57 years in prison, Rowland will be sentenced on December 12.

Photo of former Gov. John G. Rowland by CT State Library on Wikimedia Commons.

The executive director of the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance is stepping down. Sarah Jackson, who has held the position since 1999, announced her retirement effective November 1.

During her tenure, Jackson expanded the state’s electronic campaign finance reporting program and established an online searchable database.

Rebecca Feland, a budget analyst with the Registry, has been named the interim director.

Proposed changes to the Providence, Rhode Island lobbying law are drawing criticism from various civic groups.

In a letter dated September 18 to the City Council, 11 nonprofit and community organizations urge the rejection of the proposal. The letter argues the proposed expansions effectively “discourage community activism” by “aiming explicitly at organizations that rely on non-compensated volunteers to advocate for the community.”

Samuel Zurier, the ordinance’s sponsor, claims the ordinance and amendments are “within the mainstream of what other [municipalities] do,” according to the Providence Journal. If passed, the changes would take effect on January 1, 2015.