“How the President Tweets” by Nick Judd in TechPresident.

“Rep. Polis wins social-media contest for House Democrats” by Alicia M. Cohn in The Hill.

“Will Online Political Targeting Generate a Voter Backlash?” by Micah L. Sifry in TechPresident.

“Dems have new mobile app for convention” by Adam Mazmanian in NextGov.

“House Dems Battle for Social Media Supremecy” by Corey Bennett in NextGov.

“Local Governments Do Not ‘Like’ Facebook’s New Page Name Policy” by Lindsey Tepe in GovLoop.

Q. My company has existing, ongoing contracts with various state agencies. Sometimes, I have discussions with employees of these agencies (technicians, managers, and directors) regarding their use of my company’s products. Do I have to register and report as a lobbyist?

A. As a general rule for state-level lobbying, as long as discussions are limited to the evaluation and servicing of existing contracts, this type of activity will not typically be considered lobbying, the definition of which often includes influencing executive branch action.

However, in some states, executive branch action encompasses the state’s procurement process, including decisions to modify, extend, expand, or renew existing contracts. Once discussions of this type occur, lobbyist registration and reporting may be triggered, depending on the state’s specific time and expenditure thresholds. Every state has different thresholds, and requires its own specific analysis.

Here are some important things to track when evaluating whether you need to be registered in a specific jurisdiction:

1. Who are you talking to? In jurisdictions requiring registration for procurement lobbying, registration may hinge on whether the agency employee is considered a covered official. In some states, covered official is broadly defined to include all employees, while other jurisdictions require registration and reporting for attempting to influence directors or other major decision makers.
2. How many contacts have you had with the agency? How much time have you spent? Some jurisdictions require registration before the very first contact, while other jurisdictions require registration and reporting once you spend a certain amount of time engaging in procurement lobbying. You may need to determine your pro-rata share of compensation for time you have spent preparing for and engaging in the communication.
3. Is there a pending RFP or a contract renewal on the horizon? In some jurisdictions, the timing of your conversation with an agency official is important. Is there a pending decision before the state agency which would affect your company’s bottom line? If so, registration as a lobbyist may be required before engaging in communication which could be perceived as influencing the decision making process.
4. Did you expend any money on behalf of agency employees or officials? In some jurisdictions, registration may be triggered by expenditures on behalf of employees or officials.

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.

Governor Andrew Cuomo has signed a bill he hopes will help ease the financial burdens facing some local governments within the state. Senate Bill 5525, which was passed by the state legislature in late June, allows all New York cities and counties to piggyback contacts from other cities and counties.

If a public contract already exists, a city or county may choose to use the contract already in existence, instead of having to solicit the work itself. In order to take advantage of this opportunity, the original contract must have followed all state and local laws involving the procurement of government contracts, including competitive bidding requirements.

The law takes effect immediately.

You can receive session updates, alerts, a list of exhibitors, and the summit agenda. The app works for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices.

According to their site:

“At this year’s NCSL Legislative Summit, we’re offering a mobile app that will help you navigate the meeting with ease, take advantage of all its features, and enjoy the great cultural resources of Chicago during your visit. The app includes the entire agenda, automatic updates, alerts, maps, personalized agenda and note-taking features.”

The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that Ohio’s ban on political contributions from doctors who treat Medicaid patients to candidates for state attorney general or county prosecutor is unconstitutional.

The provision was designed to prevent fraud by banning contributions to those officials who prosecute Medicaid fraud, but the court held that the prohibition was a violation of doctors’ free speech rights.

The secretary of state’s office announced it was reviewing the decision and had no further comment on the case.

Lobbying

“Conventions Lose Appeal for D.C. Lobbyists” by Janie Lorber in Roll Call.

California: “Highest-billing lobbying firms” by Laurel Rosenhall in the Sacramento Bee.

Colorado: “University of Colorado’s in-house lobbyists hire out for other firms” by Allison Sherry in the Denver Post.

Indiana: “Daniels still waiting on lobbying decision” by The Associated Press in the Indianapolis Business Journal.

Missouri: “Missouri lawmakers keep reeling in gifts from lobbyists” by Virginia Young in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Campaign Finance

“O’Connor: Declining approval for high court a ‘disappointment’” by Meghashyam Mali in The Hill.

Ethics

Alabama: “Former Gov. Don Siegelman sentenced to 78 months in prison” by Kim Chandler in the Birmingham News.

Government Social Media

“More government officials embrace social media” by Adam Silverman in USA Today.

“Tweets, social media help more officials get the word out” by Adam Silverman in USA Today.

South Carolina “SC governor goes to Facebook to get message across” by The Associated Press in GoUpstate.com.

The state supreme court has held Nebraska’s Campaign Finance Limitation Act (CFLA) unconstitutional. The CFLA allowed candidates participating in the public financing program to receive additional public funds if their privately-funded opponents exceeded certain spending limits.

The Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission issued a statement in August 2011 that it would not enforce the CFLA for the 2012 elections after the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated a similar Arizona law. Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning then filed an action asking the state supreme court to rule on the CFLA’s constitutionality.

The supreme court also determined that the public financing portion of the CFLA was not severable from the other provisions of the law, including those providing for aggregate contribution limits and rules governing acceptance of contributions from independent groups, and declared the entire law unconstitutional.

Delicately wrapped treats in a wicker basket laced by a gold ribbon arrived in a package outside the offices of State and Federal Communications yesterday. Along with the treat basket came a small card that read: A Special Gift…Just for You!

The Public Affairs Council congratulated State and Federal Communications on winning the Ready, Set, Walk challenge by sending a basket of treats from Wine Country Gift Baskets on August 2^nd.

President and CEO Elizabeth Bartz announced the arrival of the gift basket during the company staff meeting.

A special thank you to the Public Affairs Council for providing us with this wonderful surprise!

In a few days, we are leaving for Chicago to attend our 13th National Conference of State Legislatures. This is no small feat for State and Federal Communications anymore—we are taking seven (7) staff people and our exhibit booth, which I refer to as my “retirement condo.”

Our schedule for the week is color coded for exhibit times, NCSL meetings we attend, State Government Affairs Council (SGAC) events, Washington Area State Relations Group (WASRG) events, Women’s Legislative network events, and other social events held throughout the week.

In addition, State and Federal Communications is a sponsor to both Ohio Night and Virginia Night—but we are definitely more involved with Ohio Night. Our friends from Whirlpool are providing the Penthouse level from the World of Whirlpool for our function. We are definitely excited that so many folks from the state legislature are attending this year’s NCSL Legislative Summit.

The best thing about NCSL is you will find us if you have any questions or concerns about taking legislators out to dinner or a baseball game (Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday – White Sox vs. the Royals Thursday through Sunday – Cubs vs. the Reds ). You can find us in Booth 923 in the Exhibit Hall on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Stop on by to say hello.

The sad part of this year’s program is Bill Pound’s wife, Margie, passed away on July 25th after a long illness. Our hearts and prayers are with Bill and his children at this time. May Margie’s Memory Be Eternal.

Thank you.

National:

Conservatives Work to Cull Moderate Republicans

Poll: Public doesn’t like lobbyists, OK with lobbying

Federal:

Conservative Group Challenges Red Line Dividing Candidates, Super-PACs

FEC Says It Will Enforce Nonprofit Disclosure Rules

Households Divided by Campaign Donations

From the States and Municipalities:

California

Two Former Lynwood Officials Guilty of Illegally Boosting Salaries

Georgia

Georgia Voters Back Limits on Lobbyist Spending

Iowa

Contributions Dodged Rules, Records Show

Kentucky

Kentucky Lawyer’s Threatened Sanction Rejected on Free-Speech Grounds

New Jersey

Trenton Residents Lobby for Creation of City Ethics Board

New York

Lobbyists to Disclose Donors Since July 1

North Carolina

New Lobbyist Rankings Reflect GOP Takeover of NC Legislature

Ohio

Jimmy Dimora Sentenced to 28 Years in Prison, ‘A Life Sentence,’ Lawyers Say

Utah

Utah Supreme Court Ruling Ends Ethics Initiative Bid

West Virginia

W.Va. Election Commission Votes to Defend Public Financing Plan

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.

“New App Delivers Latest Political Polls Instantly to Your iPhone” by Alex Fitzpatrick in Mashable.

“Twitter will gauge voter sentiment in new venture” by Stephen Shepard in NextGov.

“Twitter Political Index Launches, But Is It Actually Measuring ‘Voter Sentiment?’” by Micah Sifry in TechPresident.

“Obama Campaign Debuts Mobile Canvassing App” by Sarah Lai Stirland in TechPresident.

“Ohio Democrats cry foul over Republican Gov. John Kasich’s social media blasting of Obama during president’s visit” by Reginald Fields in the Plain Dealer.

“It’s the Romney Veepstakes, Pushed Straight to Your Phone” by Sarah Lai Stirland in TechPresident.

Lobbying

“Commish claims board shields lobbyist” by The Associated Press in The Wall Street Journal.

“GOP Hits Obama on Lobbyist Meetings at ‘Caribou’” by Devin Dwyer, Shushannah Walshe and Mary Bruce on ABC News.

Campaign Finance

“TV stations begin publishing political ad spending” by Mark Binker on WRAL.com.

“Oregon Gets Low Marks For Campaign Finance” by April Baer in Oregon Public Broadcasting.

“The New Rules Of Campaign Finance: Small Dollars Are No Longer King” by Michael Scherer in TIME Magazine.

Ethics

“Laura Richardson fined $10K by ethics panel” by John Bresnahan in Politico.

Utah: “Push for ethics initiative will continue, backers say” by Robert Gehrke in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Republicans and Democrats voted overwhelming to limit gifts from lobbyists to lawmakers. The issue was among several nonbinding questions appearing on Republican and Democratic primary ballots.

The vote will not change state law, but it may put political pressure on lawmakers to enact gift limits. Unofficial results show 87 percent of Republicans voted to cap gifts at $100, while 71 percent of Democrats voted in support of setting some kind of limit on what lobbyists can spend.