The Cook County Circuit Court upheld county pay-to-play limits on Tuesday, ruling against County Assessor Joseph Berrios.

Berrios challenged the county’s campaign contribution limits for those who have sought official action from the county as unconstitutional. He also argued only the state Legislature has the authority to set contribution limits; Judge Sanjay Tailor disagreed.

Local governments are permitted to enact laws governing campaign finance, provided they do not interfere with voter registration and election mechanics.

Berrios is expected to appeal.

Campaign Finance

National: “Despite Pledge to ‘Drain the Swamp,’ Trump Has Shown Little Interest in Beefing Up the Federal Election Commission” by Michelle Ye Hee Lee for Washington Post

District of Columbia: “D.C. Mayor, Reversing Course, Signs Law Creating Publicly Financed Campaigns” by Peter Jamison for Washington Post

Illinois: “Assessor Berrios Loses Court Fight to Overturn Cook County’s Limits on Campaign Donations” by Ray Long and Hal Dardick for Chicago Tribune

Missouri: “Heavyweight D.C. Law Firm Represented Hawley for Free in 2016” by Jason Hancock (Kansas City Star) and Lindsey Wise for McClatchy DC

Wyoming: “An Effort to Crackdown on ‘Dark Money’ in Wyoming Quietly Died at the Legislature. Nobody Is Quite Sure Why.” by Arno Rosenfeld for Casper Star-Tribune

Elections

National: “Strong Performance by Democrat Conor Lamb in Pennsylvania Shakes Trump and G.O.P.” by Peter Baker and Michael Shear for New York Times

Ethics

National: “Feds: Ex-aide to U.S. Rep. Bob Brady Targeted in Murder-for-Hire Plot” by Jeremy Roebuck for Philadelphia Inquirer

National: “Trump Jr. and Texas Donor Have Longtime Undisclosed Ties” by Jake Pearson (Associated Press) for Chicago Tribune

Missouri: “‘Potential for Corruption Here Is Unbelievable’: Who’s paying Greitens’ legal bills?” by Lindsey Wise (McClatchy DC) and Jason Hancock for Kansas City Star

North Carolina: “Duke Energy Threatens Advocacy Group with Legal Action Over Financial Claims” by John Murawski for Raleigh News and Observer

Legislative Issues

North Carolina: “Cooper Sues Again While Court Rejects Elections Board Motion” by Gary Robertson (Associated Press) for Raleigh News and Observer

Gov. Ralph Northam called for a special session of the Legislature this week to finish work on the state’s budget.

The session will convene April 11, just one month after the adjournment of the regular session.

Lawmakers voted unanimously last week to request the special session.

Lawmakers must pass the two-year budget by June 30 in order to avoid a government shut down on July 1.

Washington D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser signed the Fair Elections Act creating publicly financed elections.

In this voluntary program, qualified candidates for mayor, attorney general, Council, or the State Board of Education must raise a certain amount of money from small-dollar donors.

The city would then provide start-up support and a 5:1 match on the small dollar-contributions.

Before receiving any public money, candidates would also have to accept lower contribution limits and reject all corporate and political action committee contributions.

The law is expected to take effect in 2020.

SXSW has been an event I have wanted to attend but I didn’t understand it…And, after being here five days, I don’t know if I understand it because it is huge.

Yes, there is music. There are films. But these are not just walk in opportunities. You need to have the right badge or wristband to attend.

I signed up with the City of Akron as a partner, which meant I had a table in the exhibit booth with the City…And, that is all I could do. I did speak with Libby Wuller and Joshua Hone from Quorum Analytics who gave me advice about signing up for events; but having only 48 hours between the PAC conference and SXSW, I had enough time to pack black slacks. I do thank them for the advice and will put it to better use next year. Also, a special thanks to Apple’s Steve Kester, who sent me a full list of night events. Yeah, after eight hours in the exhibit hall, there was little appetite for night events.

The exhibit booth is huge, and SXSW provides a lot of time for people to walk through. On Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday the booths are open from 10 am to 6 pm and on Wednesday it is open from 10 am to 2 pm. And, similar to NCSL, if you close up early, you are fined.

I did miss Melinda Gates, Elon Musk, the cast of This is Us and Roseanne because I only had the trade show badge. I could buy another one, which I will do for 2019. The big badge is the Platinum badge, which you can buy now for 2019 for $1,100, which is about $700 more than the regular price and you get in everything.

Everything? Impossible to staff the booth, attend events, see movies, get in line to hear Elon Musk, stay hydrated, eat, and do it for five days, at a minimum. The Interactive badge does allow you to attend sessions and the trade show, but not the films and concerts…you just don’t get a deal on that badge price.

So, if you are interested in SXSW, spend the rest of the year reading from the website about the programs and opportunities. If you have something technologically innovative, you should exhibit it.

Two pieces of advice:

1. It is a no tie zone. You won’t look more professional in your professional business attire. You will look out of place. Lots of jeans, boots, and leggings here.
2. Rest before flying into Austin…There is very little time to do so here.

I am available to answer questions if you have any about SXSW. I am hoping the City of Akron does this again because I did learn a lot and want to see more of the programs.

And, of course, it is the hippest place to be and I want to be hip!!

Check out some more of my photos from SXSW:
 

Campaign Finance

National: “A Super PAC Has Raised Millions to Mobilize Black Voters. Does It Matter That Its Funders Are White?” by Lateshia Beachum for Center for Public Integrity

Arizona: “Tom Horne Takes on ‘Dark Money’ Despite Past Campaign Investigations” by Richard Ruelas for Arizona Republic

Oregon: “Multnomah County to Appeal Campaign Finance Ruling” by Nick Budnick for Portland Tribune

Elections

National: “Despite Mueller’s Push, House Republicans Declare No Evidence of Collusion” by Nicholas Fandos for New York Times

Ethics

National: “White House Aides Blur the Legal Lines Between Partisans and Public Servants” by Julie Hirschfeld Davis for New York Times

National: “Ivanka Trump Never Cut Ties with the Trump Organization. That’s Turned into a Problem.” by Anita Kumar for McClatchy DC

Maryland: “Security Video Shows Maryland Lobbyist Touching Lawmaker. He Says It Vindicates Him. She Says It Vindicates Her.” by Erin Cox for Baltimore Sun

Missouri: “Missouri Ethics Watchdog Will Be Unable to Meet after Greitens’ Inaction” by Jack Suntrup for St. Louis Post-Dispatch

New York: “Joseph Percoco, Ex-Cuomo Aide, Found Guilty in Corruption Trial” by Vivian Wang and Benjamin Weiser for New York Times

Pennsylvania: “Gov. Wolf Proposes Ethics Reforms for Pennsylvania Lawmakers” by Kate Giammarise for Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Lobbying

National: “Companies Fretting Over ‘Foreign Agents’ Label” by Megan Wilson for The Hill

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced his Citizen First ethics reform plan this week. Gov. Wolf, who took office in 2015, has been a proponent of broad ethics and government reform.

The Citizens First ethics reform plan includes a gift ban for all public officials. Gov. Wolf already banned members of his administration from accepting gifts but is seeking a broader permanent ban to stop politicians from accepting unlimited gifts.

Along with a gift ban, the plan includes campaign finance reform creating contribution limits, restriction on political action committees, and heightened reporting requirements.

The proposed campaign finance reform would also include pay-to-play provisions requiring the disclosure of campaign contributions made by entities seeking contracts with the state.

The majority leader of the Iowa Senate, Sen. Bill Dix, resigned on Monday, March 12.

Dix resigned from his Senate District 25 seat after videos of the married lawmaker kissing a lobbyist were posted on Iowa Starting Line, a left-leaning website.

Dix was up for re-election this year and ran unopposed in 2014.  Gov. Kim Reynolds has yet to call a special election.

Campaign Finance

National: “Trump Company Email Was Used for Stormy Daniels Hush-Money Payment” by Michael Finnegan for Los Angeles Times

Ethics

National: “Out of Public View, Trumps and Kushners Are Talking Business” by Ben Protess, Steve Eder, and Jesse Drucker for New York Times

California: “‘Hamilton’ Tickets Without the Wait – or the Cost? It Helps to Be an L.A. Politician” by Emily Alpert Reyes for Los Angeles Times

Maryland: “Anne Arundel Prosecutor’s Campaign Paid $40,000 to Consulting Firm Owned by Top Aide’s Wife” by Phil Davis for Capital Gazette

New York: “Tackling Sexual Harassment With ‘Bipartisan Bad Behavior’ in Shadows” by Jesse McKinley for New York Times

Lobbying

Alabama: “Alabama Ethics Commission Director Says Bill Weakens Ethics Law” by Associated Press for AL.com

Iowa: “Bill Dix Resigns from Iowa Senate after Video with Lobbyist Is Posted” by William Petroski, Brianne Pfannensteil, and Jason Noble for Des Moines Register

Wisconsin: “Ethics Commission Won’t Fine Lobbyists After Audit” by Associated Press for Madison.com

The 2018 Arkansas fiscal session adjourned sine die on March 12.

Following adjournment, Gov. Asa Hutchinson formally called a special session to begin on March 13.

The special session will address highway funding and pharmacy reimbursement legislation.

The adjournment date has yet to be determined.

The Florida Legislature adjourned sine die on Sunday, March 11 after extending its annual session for several days to pass a state budget.

Lawmakers approved an $88.7 billion budget with $21 billion allocated for public schools.

Some of the funds were reserved for school resource officers and mental health counselors in response to last month’s mass shooting in Parkland.

The West Virginia Legislature adjourned sine die on March 10.

Senate Bill 283, which expands the scope of those who may be debarred for procurement violations and establishes direct-award procurement requirements, passed both chambers and is on the governor’s desk.

Gov. Jim Justice has 15 days to sign or veto the legislation.

The Washington State Legislature adjourned sine die on March 8.

House Bill 2938, which increases penalties for campaign finance violations, and Senate Bill 5991, which requires nonprofit organizations that participate in political campaigns to file organizational statements and periodic disclosure statements, have passed both chambers are on the governor’s desk.

Gov. Jay Inslee has 20 days from the days he received these bills to sign or veto the bills.

Virginia’s General Assembly adjourned its 2018 regular legislative session Saturday, March 10.

During the 60-day session, legislators were unable to pass a state budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

Gov. Ralph Northam promised to call a special session in the next two to three weeks to reconsider the state’s spending plans.

The budget impasse came over Medicaid expansion, and was not a disagreement between parties, but rather between the House and the Senate.

If a budget is not passed by July 1, the state will face a government shutdown.