The Virginia General Assembly may be taking steps toward substantive ethics reform in its upcoming session. Ethics bills have already been prefiled in anticipation of the session’s start on January 8, most notably Senate Bill 274, limiting gifts to officers and employees of the state and local governments to $100 per calendar year, and requiring disclosure of gifts to immediate family members.

Virginia does not currently limit the amount of gifts officials and employees may receive, and many called for reform after Gov. Bob McDonnell became embroiled in scandal after accepting thousands of dollars worth of gifts from Star Scientific CEO Jonnie Williams. Williams had also made gifts to McDonnell’s wife and daughters, prompting the addition of disclosure requirements to immediate family members.

Photo of the Virginia Capitol courtesy of Varmin on Wikimedia Commons.

The inauguration for Virginia Governor-Elect Terry McAuliffe will be held Saturday, January 11, 2014 in Capitol Square in Richmond Virginia. The day will begin with a prayer breakfast, followed by the inauguration ceremony, parade, executive mansion open house, and the Richmond Inaugural Ball. More information is available at http://www.inauguration2014.com/.

Virginia does not place any limits on the source or amount of political contributions or gifts, including to inaugural committees. Contributions to inaugural committees are not required to be reported on lobbying reports.

Photo of Virginia Governor-Elect Terry McAuliffe courtesy of Edward Kimmel on Wikimedia Commons.

The Iowa Ethics and Campaign Finance Disclosure Board has proposed a requirement for all campaign finance reports to be filed electronically. Currently, the only reports required to be filed electronically are those of legislative and statewide campaigns.

In order for the proposal to become law, it must be approved by the Iowa Legislature. An amendment to the bill allowing waiver by the state ethics board of the e-filing requirement for extenuating circumstances is likely to be considered by the House State Government Committee.

The Chicago Board of Ethics recently posted two new publications on its website, both of which outline ethics restrictions for city officials.

The first addresses, among other things, general conflicts of interest, lobbying on behalf of others, financial interests in city contracts, financial disclosure requirements, gifts, revolving door provisions, and penalties for ethics violations.

The second addition is a publication delineating what city employees and officials may or may not do in terms of contracting with the city.

Both documents are intended to provide a basic understanding of ethics rules and are not deemed legal advice.

Governor Rick Snyder signed a bill Friday revising Michigan’s campaign finance law. Under the new law, an individual will be able to donate up to $6,800 to a candidate for statewide office in a single election cycle, up from $3,400. An individual will be able to donate $2,000 for state House and Senate candidates, up from $1,000. Local candidate caps depend on the size of the community.

The new law marks the first increase to state contribution limits since the late 1970s. The new law also requires the sponsors of “issue ads” to include disclaimers on their materials identifying the party responsible for the ad.

The Legislative Research Commission (LRC) will conduct an optional lobbyist workshop on Wednesday, January 8, 2014.

Legislative leaders and LRC employees will provide information about the legislative process, bill tracking, and ethics requirements.

The workshop will begin at 9:00 a.m. and will be held in Room 149 of the Capitol Annex in Frankfort.

The Legislative Ethics Board in Washington dismissed a complaint related to Washington state lawmakers accepting free meals from lobbyists. Washington law prohibits public officials from accepting free meals on more than “infrequent occasions.” However, there is no enforceable standard for “infrequent occasions.”

The complaint was prompted by a reported $65,000 being spent on free meals by the state’s most active lobbyists in the first four months of 2013.

The Ethics Board is turning to the Legislature for an enforceable standard for the ethics law. If the Legislature fails to do so in the upcoming session beginning in January, the board plans to establish its own rules.

The board also noted in its decision the lack of an enforceable standard affects the consistency of lobbyist reports in terms of what is being reported.

Photo of the Washington State Capitol by Nikopoley on Wikimedia Commons.

A special election for the Massachusetts Fourth Hampden Representative District has been called to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of state Representative Donald F. Humason, Jr.

The Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin announced the special primary election will be held on March 4, 2014. The general election will follow on April 1, 2014.

Humason resigned from the House after he was elected to the Senate for the 2nd Hampden-Hampshire District.

Effective January 1, 2014, new rules generally ban lobbyists from providing public officials with gifts valued at more than $75 or any tickets to games, concerts, and other recreational events. The ethics overhaul in House Bill 142 provides the state’s first legislative limitation on gifts to public officials.

Exceptions to the $75 limit include committee dinners, dinners for caucuses, and certain lobbyist-funded travel. The $75 cap is per occurrence and per lobbyist.

Although the bill was signed in May, 2013, lobbyists were permitted to provide unlimited gifts until the January 1 effective date.

New York’s City Council passed legislation this week containing many changes to lobbying regulations. The majority of the law’s provisions take effect May 8, 2014.

As part of the new law, the definition of “lobbying” has been expanded to include attempts to influence “any determination made by an elected city official or an officer of employee of the city to support or oppose any state or federal legislation, rule or regulation.”

This provision is unique because very few cities regulate lobbying a city official to weigh in on state or federal policy. The new law also directs the City Clerk to search for noncompliance with registration requirements by scouring public records.

Further, lobbyists will be required to file six periodic reports each year, up from four reports under the outgoing law. Also, as of January 1, 2014, the registration threshold will increase from $2,000 to $5,000 per calendar year.

Photo of Manhattan by AngMoKio in Wikimedia Commons.

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.

The Philadelphia Board of Ethics staff has released a revised gift proposal following claims its initial proposed limits were too lax. The new suggested limits are a ban on gifts of more than $100, with a limit of $25 on cash gifts, per calendar year from any source not a family member of the recipient. The initial limits proposed were $200 per year, with a cap of $50 for cash gifts, resulting in outcry from watchdogs.

The new proposed limits were greeted with skepticism, however, because the provision allowing for cash gifts remained. Executive Director Shane Creamer insisted the Board cannot ban cash gifts altogether because the city code permits cash gifts, prompting the Board to decide on formally requesting the City Council to consider amending the code.

The suggested limits could drop yet again before the Board votes, as a number of Board members suggested a $50 annual limit was preferable. The Board could potentially vote on the rules at its January meeting.

The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the lower court was right in issuing a preliminary injunction to keep the state from imposing limitations on certain contributions going to and from political parties and political action committees.

The underlying issue in the case is whether political committees not formally affiliated with a political party or candidate can receive unlimited contributions for independent expenditures.

The state Republican Party, GOP lawmakers, and others argue the state’s cap on such contributions is unconstitutional. The state appealed, arguing limiting such contributions is in New Mexico’s interest as it tries to prevent corruption and the appearance of corruption in campaign spending.

The case now moves back to the federal district court where a decision on the merits is expected to be in favor of those challenging the contribution limits.

On December 17, 2013, the Arizona Supreme Court found House Bill 2593 to be constitutional, allowing newer and higher political contribution limits to take effect.

On October 15, 2013, a state Court of Appeals had directed the secretary of state not to enforce the new law, which had become effective on September 13, 2013. The lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the new law was brought by the Citizens Clean Elections Commission and others from the state.

Individuals and noncertified political committees may now give $2,000 to candidates running for legislative and statewide offices who do not participate in the state’s Citizens Clean Elections Act campaign financing system. Contributions made to candidates running for local office may be made in amounts up to $2,500. Contribution limits by committees certified by the secretary of state have also been increased.

Additionally, H.B. 2593 removes aggregate contribution limitations for individuals and some political committees.