LobbyComply Blog

The City of Austin, Texas increased campaign contribution limits for candidates for mayor and city council from $450 to $500 per contributor per election. The aggregate contribution limit to candidates from donors outside of Austin increased to $48,000 per election, and $32,000 per runoff election.

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The Texas Ethics Commission amended, readopted, and repealed certain campaign finance rules regarding contributions and expenditures generally, and as applicable to corporations and labor organizations. These actions are part of a comprehensive review of the Texas Ethics Commission Rules to shorten, simplify, and clarify. The changes include a repeal of the rule amplifying the independent expenditure reporting requirements of a person not acting in concert with another person. The rules also clarify the prohibition on cash contributions over $100 refers to paper currency and coinage. The changes take effect December 31.

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Gov. Greg Abbott ordered a special election to fill the vacancy in Senate District 4 after Sen. Brandon Creighton resigned to become chancellor of the Texas Tech University System. The special election date is set for May 2, 2026.

The Second Special Session of the 89th Legislature adjourned sine die on September 4. Lawmakers passed House Bill 18, restricting the per person aggregate amount in political contributions that can be accepted by legislators and certain committees during a legislator’s impeding absence from a legislative session. If signed by Gov. Greg Abbott, the law will take effect December 4. The 90th Legislature convenes January 12, 2027.

The Texas Legislature adjourned the First Special Session of the 89th Legislature sine die on August 15. A congressional redistricting map and other bills were passed by the Senate, but no bills advanced through the House on account of a lack of quorum. On Gov. Greg Abbott’s call, a Second Special Session convened the same day. Legislators are being asked to address the same agenda as the First Special Session, including congressional redistricting, flooding preparedness and relief, taxpayer funded lobbying, and other matters, as well as an additional item concerning youth camp safety. The special session may last up to 30 days.

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Gov. Greg Abbott called a special election to be held on November 4 for state Senate District 9. The special election will determine who will serve the unexpired term of Sen. Kelly Hancock, who resigned to become acting state comptroller. The special election coincides with the Texas uniform election for local offices and ballot measures.

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Gov. Abbott announced he will call a special session to begin on Monday, July 21. Gov. Abbott has placed several bills that were vetoed or filed without signature on the agenda, including bills on regulating products derived from hemp and recording requirements for certain instruments concerning real property. The special session will last 30 days.

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The 89th Texas Legislature adjourned sine die on June 2. Lawmakers passed various bills related to lobbyists.  House Bill 119 requires registration for lobbying on the behalf of a foreign adversary and prohibits compensation for lobbying activities on the behalf of a foreign adversary. Another passed bill, Senate Bill 2781, establishes a penalty for political contributions or political expenditures made or authorized in violation of the prohibition on lobbyist contributions. If approved by Gov. Abbott both bills will be effective September 1.

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Former Houston mayor and current U.S. Congressman Sylvester Turner unexpectedly died March 5 at the age of 70 after suffering a medical emergency. Turner’s 18th Congressional District seat will be filled through a special election to determine who will finish his current term. Gov. Greg Abbott has called for the special election to be held on November 4.

Lobbying and campaign finance thresholds increase January 1, 2025, to reflect changes in the consumer price index.

The thresholds for lobbyist compensation and reimbursement increased from $1,870 to $1,930.

Lobbyist expenditures increased from $940 to $970 per calendar quarter, not including expenditures for an individual’s travel, food, lodging, or membership dues.

If a lobbyist does not intend to exceed $2,220 during a calendar year in expenditures, the lobbyist may file an annual report due on January 10.

Salary reporting thresholds have also increased.

Compensation or reimbursement required to be reported must be reported as an exact amount if the compensation or reimbursement received exceeds $1,112,200.

Regarding campaign finance, a general-purpose and specific-purpose committee may not accept political contributions or expenditures totaling more than $1,080 without filing a campaign treasurer appointment.

Other changes include the threshold at which a contribution from an out-of-state PAC requires certain paperwork increased from $1,080 to $1,110.

Gov. Greg Abbott has set a special election to fill the seat left open by U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.

Rep. Jackson Lee passed away on July 19 due to pancreatic cancer.

She was one of the longest serving members of the Texas congressional delegation and served the 18^th congressional district.

The election has been set to coincide with the November 5, general election.

The winner will fill the seat for the remainder of the term.

Texas lobbying and campaign finance thresholds have increased to reflect changes in the consumer price index.

The thresholds for lobbyist compensation and reimbursement increased from $1,760 to $1,870.

Lobbyist expenditures increased from $810 to $820 per calendar quarter, not including expenditures for an individual’s travel, food, lodging, or membership dues.

If a lobbyist does not intend to exceed $2,150 during a calendar year in expenditures, the lobbyist may file an annual report due on January 10.

Salary reporting thresholds have also increased.

Compensation or reimbursement required to be reported must be reported as an exact amount if the compensation or reimbursement received exceeds $1,076,130.

Regarding campaign finance, a general-purpose and specific-purpose committee may not accept political contributions or expenditures totaling more than $1,050 without filing a campaign treasurer appointment.

Other changes include PAC contribution and expenditure report increases for the amount of political contributions from each person in the aggregate exceeding $110 during the reporting period; the amount of loans that exceed in the aggregate $140; and the amount of political expenditures that exceed in the aggregate $220.

The Texas Legislature adjourned its third special session November 7 and announced a fourth special session on the same day to address the unresolved issue of school vouchers.

In Gov. Greg Abbott’s special session proclamation, he acknowledged the Texas Legislature made progress over the past month protecting Texans from forced COVID-19 vaccinations and increasing penalties for human smuggling but said more work must be done.

The agenda items of the fourth special session include the establishment of an education savings account program, and state border security.

Q: My organization wants to sponsor a reception in Texas. State legislators, staff, and family members are likely to be in attendance. As a registered lobbyist, what are my limits and reporting obligations?

As a registered lobbyist, there are several items to keep in mind when sponsoring an event. First, a lobbyist can provide an unlimited amount of food and beverage to an official, employee, immediate family member, or guest when the lobbyist attends the event. If not present at the event, food and beverage expenditures are limited to $100 or less.

Next, when engaging with officials at the event, sponsorship is considered a lobbying expenditure and will need to be disclosed on the appropriate lobbying report. These reports break expenditures down by type (food and beverage, entertainment, transportation, etc.) and by recipient. This may seem straightforward, but if your sponsorship goes to the organizing entity, how do you know how your dollars are being used?

The state provides some guidance here. When reporting expenditures for a reception or banquet type event, the Food and Beverage category includes all items needed to hold the event such as room rental, table settings, and printing costs. Other categories may need to be included depending on the specific event.

Additionally, you will need to know who among the attendees are in a reportable category of persons benefitted. Generally, this is state senators/representatives, state officers, state employees, immediate family members, and guests. If a combination of these groups are in attendance, or a combination of covered and non-covered individuals, the expenditure should be divided appropriately based on the numbers in each category. If all members of the legislature are invited, the entire expenditure is reported under that category. As long as all members are invited, it does not matter how many actually attend.

Finally, keep in mind the detailed reporting threshold. If the per person costs exceed the threshold, currently $132.60, the individuals must be identified and other details disclosed.

For more information, please see the “Reports Required” and “Gift Law” sections of the Lobbying Compliance Laws online  publication for Texas. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us.