For the first time in three months, the Obama campaign and the DNC outraised Gov. Romney and the RNC. The President’s campaign reported a monthly total of $114 million raised in August, narrowly beating the Romney campaign’s $111.6 million in total fundraising. The last time President Obama won the fundraising race was in April of this year when his campaign raised $43.6 million to Gov. Romney’s $40.1 million. August is also the first time this election cycle that the President has raised over $100 million; Gov. Romney previously raised over $100 million in June, July and August. The Romney campaign also reported a cash on hand total of $168.5 million while the Obama campaign has not yet released that figure.

The Obama campaign has petitioned supporters for the past few months to help close the fundraising gap with numerous emails and phone calls. Obama campaign spokesman Jim Messina said the campaign received contributions, “from more than 1.1 million Americans, donating an average of $58 per person – more than 317,000 who had never donated to the campaign before.” Gov. Romney’s campaign did not release a total number of donor’s but said that 94% of donations were for $250 or less.

The new fundraising totals come at a good time for President Obama as the President has started to open a bit of a lead in daily tracking polls following the completion of the national conventions. The Rasmussen Tracking Poll gives Obama a slight advantage at 46% to 45% over Romney and a Reuters/Ipsos poll gives Obama a 48% to 45% edge. Additionally, a Gallup daily tracking poll shows Obama with a 50% to 43% advantage.

Other notes from the trail…

• Roll Call has released its annual study of the 50 richest members of congress. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) tops the list for the second straight year with a net worth over $300 million. Senator John Kerry once again topped the list of richest senators and is the second richest overall member of Congress with a net worth of $198.65 million. Both McCaul and Kerry benefit from the sizable assets of their spouses. McCaul’s wife is the daughter of Clear Channel Communications founder and CEO Lowry Mays, and Kerry’s wife is the widow of the late Senator John Heinz of Heinz Ketchup fame.
• Freshman Rhode Island Representative David Cicilline (D-1st) won a challenging primary Tuesday amid concerns about his tenure as the mayor of Providence. At issue were Cicilline’s statements and reports as mayor regarding the financial state of the city including his decision to tap into the city’s rainy day fund. Cicilline released a series of apologies in April regarding a lack of transparency in city finances and his efforts to balance the budget. Cicilline will now face Brendan Doherty, a retired police colonel for the heavily democratic district.
• On Sunday, the New York Times Magazine profiles Joseph Kennedy III (D-Massachusetts) who is running for the seat being vacated by retiring Congressman Barney Frank. Kennedy is the grandson of the late Robert F. Kennedy and son of six-term congressman Joseph Kennedy II. If Kennedy wins the seat in the heavily democratic district, it will mark a return to Washington for the Kennedy family for the first time since Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) retired from his Congressional seat in 2011. Prior to Patrick’s retirement, a member of the Kennedy family had served in national elected office every year since 1947.

“Watchdog group blasts Andrews” by Jim Walsh in the Courier Post.

Alabama: “Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman turns himself in at Louisiana federal prison” by The Associated Press in the Birmingham News.

Indiana: “Daniels’ work at Purdue target of state rep’s ethics complaint” in the Journal and Courier.

New York: “Ethics panel issues Lopez-probe subpoenas, eyeing state bigs” by Josh Margolin, Beth DeFalco and Carl Campanile in the New York Post.

Rhode Island: “RI Ethics Commission takes step toward new rule requiring travel disclosure by politicians” by The Associated Press in The Republic.

Utah: “Audit accuses former DABC licensing director of accepting gifts” by Dennis Romboy in the Deseret News.

A federal appeals court in Chicago upheld an Illinois state law regarding disclosure related to campaign advertisements. The Center for Individual Freedom, a Virginia based advocacy group, sued the state, claiming that its First Amendment rights were violated by a law that requires all entities, regardless of whether their main purpose is influencing elections, to register and report as a political committee once it spends $3,000 for independent expenditures in a 12-month period.

In dismissing the case, the court ruled this law did not violate the free speech rights of organizations. The case was originally dismissed in district court last year on the same grounds.

This continues an ongoing cycle where groups are suing states, and obtaining mixed results, for the state’s disclosure laws based on the Supreme Court’s landmark Citizens United decision in 2010. Most experts believe these cases will eventually end up in Supreme Court, where the nation’s highest court will determine whether states can force groups to disclose donors who wish to remain anonymous.

“Swing-State Stations Are Election Winners” by Amy Schatz and Suzanne Vranica in the Wall Street Journal.

“Political Spending on Television Media Projected to Reach $5.2 billion” by Cirina Catania in Technorati.

“Political Ad Season Has Really Begun” by Elspeth Reeve in The Atlantic.

“Political Perceptions: Ad Burnout Ahead?” by Gerald F. Seib in the Wall Street Journal.

“Ind. political ads suspended on 9/11” by The Associated Press in WISH TV.

“Ads: A state-by-state breakdown of who’s spending where” by Domenico Montanaro on NBC News.

September 6-7, 2012   Practising Law Institute, Washington, D.C.

September 12, 2012   United Way of Summit County Cornhole Tournament, Lock 3, Akron, OH

September 19-21, 2012   PAC State and Local Government Seminar, Washington, D.C.

Lobbying

“ALEC Finds New Friends” by Janie Lorber in Roll Call.

Arizona: “Ex-Fiesta Bowl lobbyist takes plea deal in probe” by Craig Harris in the Arizona Republic.

Campaign Finance

“Appeals court upholds Illinois campaign disclosure law” by Nate Raymond (Reuters) in the Chicago Tribune.

Minnesota: “Minnesota to keep enforcing campaign disclosure law; federal judge called part of it ‘onerous’” by Martiga Lohn (Associated Press) in the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

“Nonstop Fundraising Stretch Starts” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“Rahm Emanuel suspends super PAC fundraising” by Kenneth P. Vogel in Politico.

“Shop Talk: Celebrating Campaign Women” by Kyle Trygstad in Roll Call.

“Look-alike sites funnel big money to mystery PAC” by Shaqne Goldmacher in NextGov.

“Corporate Contributions and Disclosure” editorial in the New York Times.

Social Media

“Twitter adopts new targeting method for advertisers” by Steve Friess in Politico.

“Cementing social media’s place in the campaign world” in Campaigns & Elections.

“Social-Media Insights Inspired By Barack Obama, America’s First Truly Social President” by Amber Mac in Fast Company.

“Nine Tech Tips for Starting a New Government Job” by Mark Micheli in Government Executive.

“Social Media Mistakes That Can Ruin Your Government Career” by Mark Malseed in OhMyGov!

Governor Brown has ordered a special election resulting from the resignation of Senator Doug LaMalfa.

The special election for the 4th Senate District will be held on January 8, 2013. The special election’s primary will be held on November 6, 2012.

Photo of the California State Capitol by Henri Sivonen on Wikipedia.

The Board of County Commissioners passed an amendment to the county’s lobbying ordinance on September 6, 2012. Expenditure reports are no longer required if a lobbyist had no expenditures during the reporting period.

The ordinance previously required expenditure reports to be filed even if no lobbying expenditures were made.

The ordinance will become effective 10 days from the date of enactment.

Q. Are there any additional compliance requirements of which to be aware because this is a Presidential election year?

 A. In a word, no. However, given the substantial increase in federal, state, and local contributions, it is important to keep in mind some compliance basics during an election year:

• Be aware of what restrictions exist in a specific jurisdiction regarding pre-election contributions and/or communications. Several states have laws restricting contributions within a certain time period of an election. Federally, there are time-period restrictions associated with election communications;
• Track reportable contributions that may only come into play during an election year. For instance, at the federal level, contributions made to an inaugural committee are reportable on the LD-203;
• The same gift laws apply leading up to an election as the rest of the year. Understand the definition of a gift as it relates to a “covered official” from any given jurisdiction and don’t violate it because you happen to be attending an election-related activity, including conventions;
• Most jurisdictions have personal, corporate and/or PAC contribution limits. Be diligent in monitoring contributions so as not to surpass those limits;
• Don’t rely on a “covered official” from any jurisdiction to know his/her jurisdiction’s limits or restrictions. Be proactive in determining restrictions ahead of time; and
• Consider implementing “Election Year” guidelines within your organization to keep everyone on the same page.

In an election year, the increase in activity coupled with jurisdictional differences can make compliance a little trickier. By following these fundamental guidelines, you are more likely to ensure that at the end of the day you can say, “I Comply.” As always, should you have any questions regarding your compliance efforts, don’t hesitate to refer to State and Federal Communication’s on-line source books or contact us directly.

You can directly submit questions for this feature, and we will select those most appropriate and answer them here. Send your questions to: marketing@stateandfed.com.

(We are always available to answer questions from clients that are specific to your needs, and we encourage you to continue to call or e-mail us with questions about your particular company or organization. As always, we will confidentially and directly provide answers or information you need.) Our replies to your questions are not legal advice. Instead, these replies represent our analysis of laws, rules, and regulations.

National:

Republicans Losing Election Law War as Campaign Ramps Up

Federal:

Parties Raise Record Cash after ‘Soft Money’ Ban

Politics and Truth: Uneasy partners, easy enemies

From the States and Municipalities:

California: Campaigns against Proposition 8 Fined $80,000 for Reporting Violations

District of Columbia: D.C. Corporate Donations Ban Won’t Be on November Ballot

Georgia: Oversight Weak on Expense System for Georgia Lawmakers

Massachusetts: Lobbyists Sue Galvin Over Disclosure Rule

Minnesota: Court Quashes Part of Minnesota’s Campaign Finance Law

Montana: Denny Rehberg, GOP Senate Candidate, Said Lobbyists Are ‘Solution,’ Government Is ‘Enemy’

New York: New York Ethics Inquiry Won’t Look at Speaker’s Actions

New York: NY Super PAC Disclosures May Miss 2012 Elections

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.

For those of you who may have missed some recent relevant social media articles, here are a few for you to check out!

• WeForPresident, The Social Victory Center, I Voted, Nation Builder, and Votizen are each playing their part in the election. 5 Facebook Apps That Are Shaking Up Politics.
• Twitter has been tracking your election-related tweets for months, and using that data to build the Twitter Political Index — or “Twindex” for short. Take a Tour of the Twitter Political Index.
• YouTube launched the “YouTube Elections Hub” Wednesday, providing a one-stop spot for live footage and video news coverage of the 2012 presidential election. YouTube Wants to Be Your Go-To for Election Coverage.
• Facebook has stepped up its security on brand pages, working to remove fraudulent Likes caused by spambots, malware or fake account users. Facebook Weeds Out Fake ‘Likes,’ Improves Brand Integrity.
• More than 2.5 million people have signed online petitions posted to the White House’s We the People website since its September 2011 launch. ‘We the People Nets More Than 3,000,000 Signatures.

As the United States continues to follow the 2012 presidential candidates down the campaign trail, social media is playing an ever growing role in both campaigns.

During the 2008 election, the use of social media by President Obama was considered innovative and a significant contributing factor to his success. While he is still hard at work to keep his title as the most social media savvy politician (even having a 50-state Twitter campaign), Republicans are catching up.

There now seems to be an ever-present competition going on between Republicans and Democrats, each trying to get the most traffic and largest response to their continuously updated social media platforms.

Although, the Democratic National Convention is still going on, it is already very apparent that this competition has extended with full force to both parties’ respective national conventions.

According to this article provided on Mashable, social media was dominated by GOP related traffic during their convention. There were over 4 million tweets and over 2.5 million YouTube views, as well as 300,000 streaming video hours.

Not to be outdone, an app created by ABC will provide a continuous news flow this week of the Democratic National Convention, including three live streams for mobile and desktop.

An interesting consequential outcome to the rising importance of social media in political campaigns is the rising competition among social media platforms to be the most innovative and utilized source.

It will be interesting to see which party comes out as the social media winner after all the statistics are tallied up for the DNC.

An alert for municipal securities dealers concerning pay-to-play rules has been issued by a department of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

The SEC Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has released a National Examination Risk Alert summarizing observations and providing some guidance of pay-to-play compliance by firms engaged in municipal securities.

The alert identifies issues found “in the course of examinations regarding compliance by firms” subject to municipal securities pay-to-play prohibitions. Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) Rule G-37 prohibits certain political contributions for two years prior to engaging in a municipal securities business where a related official received contributions.

The alert details problems with recordkeeping, inaccurate filing of reports, and inadequate supervision by firms to ensure compliance with MSRB Rule G-37.

Additionally, the alert’s reporting staff “has observed facts that suggest that some firms may have engaged in municipal securities business with issuers within two years of their MFPs making [prohibited] contributions.”

The full report can be found at http://www.sec.gov/about/offices/ocie/riskalert-munipaytoplay.pdf.