The Utah Legislature adjourned its 2014 session sine die on March 13, 2014.

Governor Gary Herbert has until April 2 to veto or sign legislation. The Governor does not possess a pocket veto. May 12 is the last day a veto-override session may begin.

The normal effective date for bills passed this year is May 13.

Photo of the Utah State Capitol by Scott Catron on Wikimedia Commons.

Federal:

Activist Lawyer Aims to Drop Campaign Restrictions

USA Today – Fredreka Schouten | Published: 3/10/2014

Dan Backer is on a campaign finance crusade. Many of the lawyer’s far-fetched proposals have been rejected by federal regulators. But the conservative Republican could be on the brink of making election history – and his reputation – with a case the U.S. Supreme Court is deliberating. McCutcheon v. the Federal Election Commission seeks to eliminate the ceiling on what wealthy individuals can donate to federal candidates, parties, and PACs in a two-year election cycle.

Wanted by Ecuador, 2 Brothers Make Mark in U.S. Campaigns

New York Times – Frances Robles | Published: 3/11/2014

Roberto and William Isaias, who are fugitives from Ecuador now living in the U.S., have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from relatives for President Barack Obama and more than a dozen members of Congress. While the contributions were not illegal, campaign finance experts say they have opened the already politicized nature of extradition requests to greater scrutiny and raised questions about the access to power the donations provide.

From the States and Municipalities:

Arkansas – Federal Jury Convicts Former Arkansas Treasurer

ABC News – Chuck Bartels (Associated Press) | Published: 3/11/2014

A jury found former Arkansas Treasurer Martha Shoffner guilty on 14 counts of bribery and extortion. Prosecutors said during the federal trial that Shoffner received money from broker Steele Stephens and in exchange, she steered a disproportionate amount of the state’s investment business to Stephens. Shoffner was arrested in May when FBI agents raided her home and found $6,000 that was delivered in a pie box.

California – Sky’s the New Spending Limit in LA’s Westside Supervisor’s Race

KPCC – Sharon McNary | Published: 3/12/2014

Bobby Shriver, who is running for a seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in the June 3 primary, has rejected voluntary campaign spending limits and said he will at least partially self-fund his race. The action removes expenditure caps for all the candidates, and imposes a $300 limit on donations to Shriver.

District of Columbia – Prosecutors Say DC Mayor Knew of Illegal ‘Shadow Campaign,’ Personally Requested Funds

Star Tribune – Ben Nuckols (Associated Press) | Published: 3/10/2014

Prosecutors said District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray knew about an illegal fundraising operation that helped him capture the 2010 election and personally asked a prominent business executive to finance the scheme. The allegations were revealed in court documents detailing the activities of Jeffrey Thompson, the multimillionaire former owner of a well-connected accounting firm who pleaded guilty to two conspiracy charges.

Florida – Who Says Lobbyists Can’t Win Elections?

Politico – Byron Tau | Published: 3/12/2014

Despite his profession’s low approval ratings, lobbyist David Jolly edged out Alex Sink in Florida’s special election for the 13th Congressional District seat. It is the latest sign a Washington, D.C. lobbying or consultant background is not a deal-breaker at the ballot box. Jolly is the second prominent K Street denizen to get a nod from voters in recent months and two other candidates with ties to lobbying firms or trade associations will face voters this year: Ed Gillespie in Virginia and Debbie Dingell in Michigan.

Illinois – Campaign Finance Case Won’t Be Resolved This Election Cycle

Quad City Times – Kurt Erickson | Published: 3/6/2014

A lawsuit challenging Illinois’ caps on political donations is unlikely to be resolved before the 2014 elections, so limits put in place in 2009 will probably remain in place for the rest of this election season. U.S. District Court Judge Gary Feinerman dismissed most of a challenge to the landmark changes filed by the Liberty Justice Center, but kept one piece of the case alive for further debate, potentially extending arguments for several more months.

Kansas – Ex-Rep. Trent LeDoux Accused of Bank Fraud, Money Laundering

Topeka Capital Journal – Timothy Carpenter | Published: 3/12/2014

A federal grand jury indicted former Kansas Rep. Trent LeDoux, charging he used bank loans obtained to purchase cattle to finance his political activities. LeDoux faces three counts of bank fraud and two counts of money laundering for allegedly depositing funds from the cattle loans into his campaign account in 2011 and 2012.

Michigan – Mich. Slaps Health Care Union with 2nd Largest Elections Fine Ever

Detroit News – Chad Livengood | Published: 3/10/2014

The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) will pay almost $200,000 to settle alleged campaign finance violations from a failed 2012 ballot proposal seeking collective bargaining rights for home health workers in Michigan. The complaint accused the principals behind Home Care First and Citizens for Affordable Quality Home Care of intentionally delaying required filings with the secretary of state’s office to conceal that SEIU had made substantial contributions to support the proposal.

Minnesota – Minnesota House Votes to Reverse ‘Free Lunch’ Provision for Legislators

Minneapolis Star Tribune – Abby Simons | Published: 3/10/2014

The Minnesota House voted to reverse course on a recent change to the law that made it easier for lobbyists to buy meals for legislators. The bill would do away with an exception that allows lawmakers to get lobbyist-purchased meals at receptions as long as all legislators are invited. Under the state’s prior gift ban, lawmakers had to reimburse sponsoring group or lobbyists for the cost of those meals.

South Carolina – Ethics Regulators Question Lobbyist’s Campaign Contribution to S.C. Attorney General

Charleston City Paper – Corey Hutchins | Published: 3/7/2014

Onetime lobbyist Joyce Hearn gave a total of $200 to South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson’s campaign in 2009 and 2010. Hearn de-registered as a lobbyist on May 30, 2010, but that does not matter, said State Ethics Commission Deputy Director Cathy Hazelwood. Even if a lobbyist de-registers in South Carolina, he or she cannot give direct campaign contributions to a lawmaker or statewide candidate during the year they lobbied.

Utah  Report: Swallow put a ‘For Sale’ sign on the Utah AG’s office

Salt Lake Tribune – Robert Gehrke | Published: 3/12/2014

A House panel closed its investigation of former Utah Attorney General John Swallow by releasing a report that says he traded favors with businesspeople, obscured campaign donations, and destroyed records, among other allegations. “[Swallow] hung a veritable ‘for sale’ sign on the office door that invited moneyed interests to seek special treatment and favors,” alleges the report. Two county attorneys in Utah, with the assistance of the FBI, are in the middle of a criminal investigation of Swallow and others.

Virginia – Va. General Assembly Adjourns without Budget or Medicaid Expansion

Washington Post – Laura Vozella, Michael Laris, and Rachel Weiner | Published: 3/8/2014

Virginia lawmakers passed an omnibus ethics reform bill that sets a $250 annual limit on the amount of certain gifts elected officials can accept from lobbyists, principals, and anyone who has or is seeking business with the state. It requires disclosure of gifts given to spouses and immediate family members, establishes an ethics advisory council, and increases the transparency of financial disclosure forms by putting them online.

Washington – PDC Disclosure Bill for Lobbyists’ Freebies Gets ‘Lost in the Shuffle’

The Olympian – Brad Shannon | Published: 3/11/2014

Washington lawmakers most likely will adjourn their legislative session without addressing the issue of lobbyist-paid entertainment. A bill that would have required lobbyists to file spending reports electronically at the state Public Disclosure Commission failed to move out of Senate Ways and Means Committee at the deadline for policy bills.

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 80 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

News You Can Use is a news service provided at no charge only to clients of our online Executive Source Guides, or ALERTS™ consulting clients.

Lobbying

“Who says lobbyists can’t win elections?” by Byron Tau in Politico.

“Business groups: Don’t go overboard on Russia sanctions” by Doug Palmer, Adam Behsudi, Matthew Korade and Andrew Restuccia in Politico.

Kansas: “House panel studies bill adjusting definition of lobbyist” by Ryan McCarthy in the Topkea Capital-Journal.

Campaign Finance

“FEC Offers Seminar for Corporations and their PACs” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

“Corporations Can Expect To Pay More For Conventions” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Michigan: “State fines labor union for campaign finance violations” on WBUP NBC 10.

Ethics

Colorado: “Scott Gessler loses appeal over ethics ruling” by Lynn Bartels in The Denver Post.

Elections

Arizona: “Brewer announces political retirement, won’t seek 3rd term” by Howard Fischer in the Arizona Capitol Times.

Texas: “The Big Change in Texas Elections? More Time.” by Jim Malewitz and Shelby Cole in Governing.

The Service Employees International Union has agreed to pay a $199,000 fine in a settlement agreement arising out of allegations of campaign finance violations. This fine is the second-largest in the history of the state.

The violations were a result of a 2012 ballot question to amend the state Constitution regarding home health care. They included commingling of funds, late filings, not identifying all accounts used, and not providing complete or accurate campaign statements.

Secretary of State Ruth Johnson said of the settlement agreement, “This agreement reflects our commitment to transparency and accountability in the campaign finance process, especially in an election year.”

Lobbying

“Lobbying World” in The Hill.

“Inside a K Street success story” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Bitcoin Foundation Adds Ex-PayPal Lobbyist, Clinton Official” by Carter Dougherty in Bloomberg BusinessWeek.

Alabama: “Bill to limit Ala. legislator lobbying revised” by The Associated Press on WPMI NBC 15.

Alabama: “Alabama barbers use haircut time to lobby legislators for regulatory change” by Eddie Burkhalter in The Tribune.

Campaign Finance

“Lawmakers More Likely To Meet with Campaign Donors Than Constituents, New Study Finds” by Amanda Terkel in the Huffington Post.

“Liu sues city for blocking $3.8M in public funds during mayoral bid” by Rich Calder in the New York Post.

Ethics

“Associate of ex-Rep. Rivera pleads not guilty to 4 campaign finance violations” by Curt Anderson (Associated Press) in the Daily Reporter.

District of Columbia: “D.C. Businessman Pleads Guilty to Providing $3.3 Million to Campaigns” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

District of Columbia: “D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray in annual citywide address: ʹI didnʹt break the lawʹ” by Aaron C. Davis and Mike DeBonis in The Washington Post.

Elections

Delaware: “Panel wrapping up review of Del. election laws” by The Associated Press in The Washington Post.

Legislative Sessions

Wisconsin: “Walker to call special session if courts rule against voter ID” by Patrick Marley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

The Senate passed a bill to widen the ability of lobbyists to provide campaign contributions. Senate Bill 655 allows a lobbyist to deliver or personally make political contributions as early as April 15 of a general election year. Currently, lobbyists must wait till June 1 to personally make contributions.

A proposal to allow lobbyists to deliver campaign contributions during a floorperiod did not pass. The bill now goes to the Assembly.

Georgia lawmakers and lobbyists are adapting new gift limits to old reporting methods while the ethics commission attempts to draft rules. House Bill 142 established the first-ever limit on lobbyist spending by capping the value of a gift a lobbyist could give a lawmaker at $75.

The bill, effective January 1, 2014, has several exceptions including one to remove the $75 cap for any caucus approved by the House or Senate ethics committees.

Once approved as a caucus, the members can accept a gift greater than $75 without everyone in a caucus attending a dinner, so long as the entire group is invited. Even before committee approval, delegations and more traditional caucuses began accepting expensive meals from lobbyists, leaving lobbyists to figure out how to disclose the spending.

The Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission is still months away from unveiling rules governing the new ethics law.

A new Texas Ethics Commission Rule regarding contributions to direct campaign expenditure-only committees became effective today.

Texas Ethics Commission Rule §22.5 requires a political committee intending to act exclusively as a direct campaign expenditure-only committee to file an affidavit with the Texas Ethics Commission stating the committee intends to act exclusively as a direct campaign expenditure-only committee and will not use its contributions made to it to make political contributions to any candidate for elective office, any officeholder, or any political committee making a political contribution to a candidate or officeholder.

The new rule requires the committee file the statement before it can accept a political contribution from corporations or labor organizations.

The Virginia State Board of Elections is seeking public comment on a proposed change to its campaign finance filing deadline. The Board is proposing moving the deadline for electronic filing from 5:00 p.m. on the due date to 11:59 p.m. on the due date.

The change was proposed by Board Chairman Charles Judd, who said backup in online traffic shortly before the deadline could result in late filings, and the 5:00 p.m. deadline was based on a close-of-business mindset prior to the existence of electronic filing.

The Board will accept public comments through March 26, 2014, and may be submitted at http://www.sbe.virginia.gov/.

Amber Fish Linke, Director of Client and Product Operations at State and Federal Communications, will be a presenter at the Public Affairs Council’s “March in the Midwest: A State Government Relations Workshop” on March 13, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois.

Amber will team up with political activity lawyer Chris Ashby in the final session, “Overcoming State-Level Compliance Concerns.”

Here is a description of their talk, according to the Public Affairs Council website:

Even the best strategies mean nothing if they’re not carried out ethically. Make sure you’re staying in compliance, meeting your reporting deadlines and protecting your organization’s reputation by learning:

• Regional compliance trends and issues
• Lobbying laws at the state level
• How to comply with gift and pay-to-play rules
• How to build sound compliance procedures that minimize risk

Lobbying

“Bottom Line” in The Hill.

California: “Fourth client drops lobbyist firm hit with record fines” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.

Washington: “Lobbyist Paid Meals Legislation Appears To Die In Washington Statehouse” by Austin Jenkins in KUOW.

Campaign Finance

“Illegal Campaign Contributions By Lawyer at Florida Law Firm” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Utah: “House kills campaign donation limits bill” by Lee Davidson in The Salt Lake Tribune.

Wisconsin: “Wisconsin big business interests back campaign finance bill” by Jack Craver in The Capital Times.

Ethics

District of Columbia: “D.C. Businessman Tied to 2010 Mayoral Campaign, Federal Candidate Faces Corruption Charges” by Hannah Hess in Roll Call.

District of Columbia: “Gray knew of ‘shadow campaign,’ Thompson prosecutors say; mayor says it’s all a lie” by Ann E. Marimow, Matt Zapotosky and Paul Schwartzman in The Washington Post.

Honolulu, Hawaii: “Honolulu Ethics Director Takes His Case for More Money to City Council” by Sophie Cocke in the Honolulu Civil Beat.

Michigan: “Michigan campaign finance violation draws near-record fine for union’s actions in 2012 election” by Brian Smith in Michigan Live.

Contributions limits will likely remain in place for the entire 2014 election cycle as Illinois Liberty PAC v. Madigan carries on. In July 2012, the Liberty Justice Center filed suit against Attorney General Lisa Madigan, challenging the Illinois Disclosure and Regulation of Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Act on constitutional grounds.

Specifically, Plaintiffs claim the Act violates the First Amendment and the Equal Protection Clause by exempting political parties from the contribution limits applicable to PACs and individuals, by lifting contribution limits in races where a self-funding candidate or independent expenditure committee spends more than a particular threshold, and by imposing lower contribution limits on PACs than are imposed on corporations, labor unions, and other organizations.

The complaint also challenges the Act’s constitutionality because it classifies legislative caucus committees as political party committees and thereby treats them more favorable than PACs, corporations, and individuals, without valid reasoning.

On March 3, U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman denied Defendant’s motion to dismiss with respect to the treatment of legislative caucus committees but granted the motion with respect to all other challenges.

Although the court suspects legislative caucus committees are sufficiently similar to political party committees for purposes of constitutional analysis, the case remains open to give both sides a fair opportunity to address the issue.

Lawmakers sent Gov. Jerry Brown a bill designed to strengthen campaign finance laws in response to a recent case prompting the largest campaign reporting fine in state history. Assembly Bill 800 gives the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) the authority to audit campaign funds and seek court injunctions to force compliance with its investigations before elections.

The bill is a response to $15 million in anonymous donations given through an Arizona-based nonprofit that funneled the cash to California political action committees through intermediary groups. The FPPC issued a $1 million fine against two of the groups involved.

Lawmakers are considering a bill to block one of the firms seeking to bid on a multibillion-dollar light rail project from winning its bid unless it agrees to pay reparations to Holocaust victims. Delegate Kirill Reznik co-sponsored House Bill 1326 to block Paris-based Keolis from winning a contract worth $6 billion for the state’s Purple Line project.

Keolis is a subsidiary of the government-owned French railway Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer Français (SNCF), which has admitted transporting about 76,000 Holocaust victims to concentration camps in Nazi-occupied France.

The bill would expand a 2011 law requiring companies to disclose involvement in transporting victims during the Holocaust.