The governor has set the special election timeline to fill the House District 11 seat, vacated by Jeremy Oden upon accepting an appointment to the state public service commission:

• The special primary election will be held February 12, 2013, if needed, otherwise the special general election will be held on that date;
• The runoff following the primary, if needed, or the special general election if no runoff is needed following a primary, will be held March 26, 2013; and
• The special general election will be held on May 7, 2013 if both a primary and runoff are required.

Governor Bryant has set the date of a special election to fill Senate District 16.

The election is scheduled for January 15, 2013.

The seat was held by Senator Bennie Turner, who passed away November 27.

Akron City Council has increased the city’s campaign contribution limits, to take effect for the council elections in 2013.

The limit for mayoral and at-large candidates will increase to $650 from $450, and the limits for ward council candidates will increase to $400 from the current $200 limit.

The limits were previously raised in February 2011.

The city council has introduced a bill that would change the way unions and corporations, among others, could contribute to elections. The bill, introduced by Councilmember Rosie Mendez, would remove contribution limits on unions or other membership organizations and corporations for communications aimed at its members, stockholders, or employees. The only catch would be that the union or corporation must use reasonable efforts to restrict the communication to its members, employees, or stockholders.

Those in favor say that it will allow a small non-profit group to disseminate a candidate’s photograph in its newsletter. Councilmember Gale Brewer said, “You cannot put a television ad, you cannot do that now, and have a communication. This is just member to member.”

However, not everyone agrees. Amy Loprest, executive director of the city’s campaign finance board said, “I think we have one of the best campaign finance laws in the country, and this is a big step backwards.”

The bill was sent to the council’s committee of governmental operations where a hearing will be held on Thursday. A full city council vote could come as soon as next week. At this point, it is impossible to tell whether the council will pass the bill. But, either way, it is sure to drum up some strong emotions during debate.

Photo of the New York City Hall courtesy of Howrealisreal on Wikipedia.

The Ethics Commission has announced a system upgrade to the electronic filing system for campaign committees, available here. The San Francisco Electronic Disclosure System (SFEDS) now offers additional features including streamlined data entry, page help for every form, and an easier amendment process.

Committees will need to create a new user account, which will link to the existing committee filer account. The new user account will act as a gateway to access all accounts of multiple committee filers. The next filing deadline for committees is January 31, 2013.

Assistance is available by contacting the commission at 415-252-3100 or by e-mail.

The Federal Election Commission issued an Advisory Opinion on December 6, 2012, concluding a federal candidate’s campaign committee may make a contribution to an independent expenditure-only committee from funds raised for the federal candidate’s terminated political campaign.

Friends of Mike H, the principal campaign committee of former candidate Mike Haridopolos, requested an opinion to determine whether it could give $10,000 or more of its excess funds raised for Mr. Haridopolos’s 2012 U.S. Senate primary election campaign in Florida, from which he withdrew, to an independent expenditure-only committee called Freedom PAC. Currently, Mr. Haridopolos does not hold federal office and is not seeking any elected federal office.

Because Friends of Mike H. is not using its funds for personal use or for any unlawful use, the Commission found Mr. Haridopolos’s political committee may make its requested contributions to Freedom PAC. The Commission also noted that “amount limitations are generally unconstitutional as applied to contributions that will be used to finance independent activity.”

Governor Terry Branstad announced that a special election will take place on January 22, 2013 to fill the now-vacated district 52 house seat.

Representative Brian Quirk had won the seat in the November elections, but due to a new job he recently accepted, decided he could not fulfill his duties as a lawmaker.

State lawmakers convened the 2013-2014 legislative session on Monday, December 3, 2012.

Democrats hold a two-thirds supermajority in both houses, allowing passage of bills without Republican votes.

Photo of the California State Capitol Building by Sascha Brück on Wikipedia.

Governor Nathan Deal has announced January 8, 2013 as the date for a special election in Senate District 21.

Chip Rogers announced his resignation from the senate on Wednesday, December 5, two weeks after his decision not to seek re-election as the majority leader.

Rogers will be joining Georgia Public Broadcasting focusing on new programming efforts concerning economic news and development.

State and Federal Communications is excited to be sending 11 people to the Council on Government Ethics Laws (COGEL) 34th Annual Conference in Columbus, Ohio. We are excited to have the conference in our home state capitol and we are helping every way we can – setting up, breakfast table topic leaders, a panelist for a breakout session, helping with social media, and more! It should be an exciting conference.

Maybe we’ll see you there?

Here is COGEL’s description of the conference:

JOIN US

COGEL and its Ohio Partners invite you to the 34th Annual Conference in COLUMBUS, Ohio! This thought provoking and educational conference is an opportunity to celebrate US — professionals in the fields of ethics, campaign finance, lobbying, elections and freedom of information.

FOCUS

With dynamic sessions, stimulating guest speakers, challenging discussions and endless opportunities for networking, this year’s COGEL Conference is not to be missed! The program includes elements of communicating your mission, understanding new technology, and catching up on legislation and litigation.

BONUS

There’s always something fun happening in Ohio’s capital city. With a lively arts scene, plenty of restaurants, shops, sports and entertainment venues, you don’t have to venture far to have a good time. This year’s Sunday evening reception will take place in the beautiful and historic Ohio Statehouse, directly across the street from the Sheraton Hotel at Capitol Square.

Governor Phil Bryant has scheduled the special election for Mississippi House District 59 for January 8, 2013.

The seat was vacated on November 19 by Representative Kevin McGee, who resigned after paying a $10,000 fine to resolve an ethics case involving public contracts that went to his family’s printing company.

Governor Jack Markell has announced that he plans to call a special session of the state senate on December 5 to consider various judicial nominations.

The senate will be considering and voting on seven judicial appointees nominated by the governor.

The Ethics Commission is considering ways in which an individual’s role in fundraising may be more accurately disclosed on the lobbyist quarterly disclosure reports. Currently lobbying firms and organization lobbyists must disclose the total amount of all contributions attributable to a reportable individual who has any degree of fundraising responsibility.

For individuals with limited involvement on a host committee, the total amount raised at a particular event may not be reflective of the individual’s limited fundraising efforts. In response, the commission’s staff has prepared three alternative options.

One option would simply allow notation on the report when the individual is not solely responsible for the amount raised. The other two options would amend the lobbying ordinance to remove the dollar amount disclosure requirement for those “assisting a host committee,” or to require reporting of only the amount an individual knows or has reason to know where collected as a result of his or her solicitations.

Discussions on this matter will be held at the commission’s December 13, 2012 meeting at 5:00 p.m. in Room 202 of Council Committee. Feedback may also be sent by email to ethicscommission@sandiego.gov.

Seal of San Diegocourtesy of Zscout370 on Wikipedia.

The Ethics Commission will conduct two interested persons meetings following a report comparing the city’s campaign finance, enforcement, and lobbying laws with the laws of the city of Los Angeles.

Discussion topics include whether or not the city should increase pay-to-play restrictions, prohibit political contributions from lobbyists, and whether to adopt more stringent enforcement policies.

The meetings are scheduled for Tuesday, December 4, 2012 at 5:30 p.m. in Room 408 of City Hall and for Monday, December 10, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. in Room 416 of City Hall.

Feedback may also be sent by email to ethics.commission@sfgov.org.