Lobbying

Georgia: “Exclusive: Ralston to propose total lobbyist gift ban” by Aaron Gould Sheinin and Kristina Torres in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Indiana: “Ethics rulings say Daniels can lobby for Purdue” by The Associated Press in the Indiana Business Journal.

Campaign Finance

Colorado:  “Judge rejects Colorado Secretary of State Scott Gessler’s changes” by Erin Udell in the Denver Post.

Florida:  “Unlimited Corporate Money In Fla. Political Races ‘Worries Political Scientists’” by Jessica Palombo on WFSU.org.

Minnesota: “Top state court rules campaign finance laws apply to schools” by Jennifer Brooks in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

“When is a campaign contribution a bribe?” by Robert Barnes in The Washington Post.

Social Media

“Paul Ryan VP pick adds social media muscle” by Steve Friess in Politico.

Oregon: “More Oregon lawmakers harness power of Twitter, Facebook” by Laura Barron-Lopez in The Oregonian.

Lobbying

“Top congressional staffer to lead new Internet lobbying group” by Brendan Sasso in The Hill.

Campaign Finance

California: “Divided Richmond council approves major campaign finance reforms” by Robert Rogers in the Mercury News.

Rhode Island: “Speaker Fox Cops to Campaign Finance Violation; Writes Check to Cover 2007 Fundraiser” by Dan McGowan in GoLocalProv.

“The rise of the Mom and Pop super PAC” by Charles Mathesian in Politico.

“Senate Democrats Push Constitutional Amendment to Reverse Citizens United” by Seth Cline in U.S. News and World Report.

“Citizens United Constitutional Amendment Floated By Senate Democrats” by Paul Blumenthal in the Huffington Post.

Ethics

“Murky Standards for Ethics Cases” by Amanda Becker in Roll Call.

Georgia: “House ethics chairman: 49 candidates tout ethics, flout campaign laws” by Jim Galloway in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Hawaii:  “Ethics Commission fining 22 legislative candidates for not filing financial disclosures” by The Associated Press in the Honolulu Star Advertiser.

Social Media

“DC Political Firms Launch Embarrassingly Silly Social Media Tool” by Micah L. Sifry in TechPresident.

Electronic filing of returns will be required by all consultant and in-house lobbyists in the Canadian province of Manitoba beginning April 30. The Lobbyists Registration Act, originally passed in 2008, comes into force only this year upon proclamation.

The Act outlines the registration and reporting requirements for individuals undertaking efforts to lobby the province, defines lobbyists as consultant or in-house lobbyists, establishes deadlines for filing returns, and lists which officials of the Manitoba government are covered.

User IDs and passwords will be required to file returns electronically, but will not be available for lobbyists to set up until April 30. There will be no fees for filing returns.

Penalties for violating the act can include a fine of up to $25,000.

The Ethics and Petitioning Commission of OZ has opened an investigation into the activities of Ms. Dorothy Gale following a complaint by Citizens for an Ethical Oz (CEO), which alleges Ms. Gale not only failed to register with the commission prior to petitioning the Wizard of Oz, but committed acts of bribery, violated Oz’s gifts laws, used public money and property for personal gain, and failed to report agreements made to petition on behalf of others.

Its complaint alleges Ms. Gale and the Wizard entered a quid pro quo contract trading use of the state-owned hot air balloon for the Wicked Witch of the West’s broomstick. This same contract also provided Ms. Gales’ companions—who had contracted with her to petition the Wizard on their behalf—with intellect, courage, and a heart. Additionally, Ms. Gale and her companions received the use of state funds illegally when they received full make overs by city employees. CEO contends it does not matter Ms. Gale was unable to utilize the hot air balloon, but merely the formation of the contract alone is in violation of petitioning statutes.

CEO leader Ambrose Smythe points out that when Ms. Gale made her agreement with the Wizard, she was under investigation in Munchkinland for destruction of private property, manslaughter, impersonation of a magical being, and grand theft of ruby slippers. Additionally, when Ms. Gale fled the Land of Oz, she was under further investigation for theft and murder by authorities in the West lands.

“I would like to believe Ms. Gale was merely a young girl who didn’t know any better,” Smythe said, “but this can’t even be called a good April Fools story.”

Photo of the ruby slippers by RadioFan on Wikipedia.

California: “Teachers union leads in record year of lobbying lawmakers” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.

Michigan: “Report: As Michigan economy floundered, spending by Michigan lobbyists soared 86%” in the Detroit Free Press.

New Jersey: “N.J. lobbyist spending hits new high at $73M; teachers union tops list again” by Matt Friedman in the Star-Ledger.

New Jersey: “N.J. Teachers Union Spent Record $11.3 Million on Ads Criticizing Christie” by Terrence Dopp in Bloomberg.

Georgia Senator Josh McKoon has introduced Senate Bill 391, which could put limits on gifts lobbyists give to lawmakers in the state, as wells as other requirements.

For the full story read “With House bill stalled, senator targets lobbyist gifts” by Kristina Torres in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Photo of the Georgia State Capitol Building by AUtiger on Wikipedia.

The United States District Court for the Southern District of California has issued an opinion in Thalheimer v. City of San Diego. The court upheld the ban on corporate contributions made directly to candidates. Further, the court upheld San Diego’s $500 individual contribution limit to city candidates. Additionally, the court upheld the ban on contributions made to a city candidate more than 12 months before the election.

The court struck down the ban on political party contributions to candidates and the $1,000 limit on direct contributions to candidates by political parties, which was enacted after the district court granted a preliminary injunction. Lastly, the court struck down restrictions on how much individuals and corporations can give to PACs making independent expenditures.

The National Conference of State Legislatures just published two summaries:

In “NCSL News: New Laws Ring in the New Year,” they list the new laws in the states that take effect as of January 1. Don’t miss the “Elections” section for news about laws in California, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Texas.

NCSL also posted “Top 12 for 2012” by Meagan Dorsch, who lists what she expects to be top issues on the agendas in the state legislatures.

Roll Call sums up what redistricting issues remain unresolved in “Between the Lines: 5 Unknowns as 2012 Begins” by Shira Toeplitz.

Rod Blagojevich looks ahead to 2012 and sends his supporters a message on Twitter according to this Associated Press article.

Here is a techPresident article about how Google has launched a new elections portal that will allow everyone to follow the caucuses and primaries in a new way in 2012.

A group that began as entertainment meant to spice up one holiday party thrown by then Illinois Senator Charles H. Percy in 1981 evolved into the well known political satire troupe called “Capitol Steps”.

The Capitol Steps have performed in every U.S. state and several different countries. They have earned their fame by writing satire and performing it while the news and scandals it is based on are circulating through the nation.

When the group first decided to pursue the transition from a one-time party performance to a political satire troupe, one founder, Elaina Newport said,

“We thought, if we add some Democrats, some House people, spread the risk around and make fun of everybody, maybe we’ll get away with this.”

No one is immune from becoming the next muse for the Capitol Steps. They have songs about the presidents who have served since the establishment of the group including their song about George W. Bush called “Don’t Go Faking You’re Smart,” a duet with a Laura Bush singing to her husband. His response: “I couldn’t if I tried.”

Even if they have bruised a few egos along the way, Capitol Steps is an accepted and loved part of the political culture. As long as they have scandal and breaking news they can use as inspiration, it doesn’t look like they are going anywhere.

Read “Capitol Steps Turn 30” from the Washington Post.

Every year since 1984, PNC Bank has launched a version of “The True Cost of Christmas”, the bank’s annual Christmas Price Index. The 2011 report takes the viewer through a Winter Wonderland with interactive train stations that allow the viewer to find the different gifts of the “12 Days of Christmas.”

If you stop at the Inflation Station, the price of every gift since 1998 is provided, as well as the change in price that occurred from last year. The prices range from $58 for eight maids-a-milking to $6,294.03 for nine ladies dancing.

The Christmas Price Index hit a record $24,263 this year, but that isn’t even the “true cost of Christmas.” The true cost of Christmas includes a total of 364 gifts spread out over 12 days as described in the Christmas carol, which this year would cost you $101,119.84 – of course a gift to your true love is definitely worth that, right?

The Atlantic created a graph of the development of the true cost of Christmas, and it shows that excluding a steep decline in 1994, the “true price of Christmas” has been steadily rising and reaching record highs nearly every year. How much will you have to pay for your true love in 5 years?!

Even though I doubt many people are going to spend that amount of money to recreate the “12 days of Christmas” for someone, it is fun to see how a Christmas Carol that has been around for hundreds of years applies to the 21st century.

Happy Holidays everyone!

As the presidential primaries are quickly approaching, alleged threats have surfaced from the “hacktivist” group Anonymous that some worry could jeopardize the caucus results.

Anonymous is a group known for its cyber-attacks on companies and agencies which it deems corrupt. The alleged threat reported by the Associated Press surfaced in a YouTube video and targets the Iowa contest.

“We are calling on you to occupy the campaign offices of presidential headquarters … and peacefully shut down the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses on Jan. 3,” the voice in the video says.

These threats which target Iowa are putting other states who are holding early primaries, such as South Carolina who is holding primaries on January 21st, on the alert.

“Everybody in the computer security world is aware of [Anonymous] and its capabilities. Their threats are not taken lightly,” said Chris Whitmire, a public information officer with the South Carolina Election Commission.

In a world that is becoming more and more reliant on web based programs and tools, security on the web seems to be getting worse instead of better, and every program seems to have a loophole that hackers can use to their advantage.

Read this article from The Hill to learn more about the steps South Carolina is taking to protect their primary from hackers.

The New York Times has sent out a request. They are looking for photos of buttons and brochures, screenshots of campaign messages, and photos of campaign signs and billboards for what they are calling an archive of the “ground game” of the 2012 presidential race.

According to the newspaper’s “Submit Photos of Campaign Materials” page, “Have you spotted interesting flyers around town or in local publications? Take a picture and send it to us. We’ll even accept screenshots of text messages and materials from candidates and other groups. We’re looking more for the raw materials of the campaign — postcards, posters and the like — than pictures of campaign events.”

They have an online form you can fill out to submit photos. The pictures can be up to 5 MB in size.

California’s government transparency website, transparency.ca.gov, has been shut down. Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzeneggar set up the site, and it is being closed by current Gov. Jerry Brown. In a note placed on the derelict site, Gov. Brown says much of the transparency information is available on other websites, like the FPPC. While remaining committed to government transparency, Brown says he is aiming for “eliminating inefficiencies and unnecessary costs.”

One concern has been raised in the news. The site offered easy access to travel expense claims from the Governor’s Office and now with the site gone, an inquirer must send a request for such information.

The Sacramento Bee published “Jerry Brown closes website for some public records” by David Siders.

Government Technology posted “Calif. Transparency Website Shuttered” by Sarah Rich.