Lobbying

“At Holland & Knight, lobbyists no longer have corner offices” by Catherine Ho in the Washington Post.

Florida: “Lobbyist’s lobbying group coming to Jacksonville for annual conference” by Matt Dixon in the Florida Times-Union.

Campaign Finance

“Poll: Americans largely in favor of campaign spending limitations” by Morgan Little in the Los Angeles Times.

“Republican super PACs ramp up spending in House races” by Jake Sherman in Politico.

District of Columbia:  “Michael A. Brown’s missing campaign funds” in the Washington Post.

Washington: “Parties pouring cash into race for governor” by Andrew Garber and Justin Mayo in the Seattle Times.

Elections

“Voter Information Guides Go Social With TheBallot.org” by Sarah Lai Stirland in TechPresident.

Ethics

Georgia: “Ethics commission: State has defanged its watchdog” by Chris Joyner in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

New Hampshire: Opinion piece by Grant Bosse,“Election laws grow more confusing” in the New Hampshire Watchdog.

Social Media

“Could a workplace social network replace email and phone? One agency thinks so.” by Joseph Marks in NextGov.

“Facebook knows how to trick you into voting” by Kevin Charles Redmon in Nextgov.

The West Virginia Supreme Court has struck down the state’s public campaign financing pilot program.

The program, similar to other programs invalidated in Arizona and Nebraska, provided additional public financing to candidates whose privately-financed opponents made expenditures beyond a certain amount.

The court held that West Virginia’s program violated privately-financed candidates’ free speech rights by essentially preventing them from making expenditures in order to avoid their opponents’ receipt of additional funds.

Campaign Finance

“House Dems push new campaign finance reform” by T.W. Farnam in the Washington Post.

“FEC move on wireless campaign contributions could aid Democrats” by Adam Mazmanian in Nextgov.

“Groups Ask Appeals Court to Keep Issue-Ad Donors Secret” by Tom Schoenberg in Bloomberg News.

“US election system criticised over finance rules and voting restrictions” by Karen McVeigh in The Guardian.

Minnesota:  “Campaign Finance Board stands by ‘John Doe decision’” by Tom Scheck in MPR News.

“’Citizens United’ on the Corporate Court” by Jamie Raskin in The Nation.

Lobbying

“Lansing lobbyists’ spending on record pace” by Rich Robinson in the Michigan Campaign Finance Network.

Ethics

“Gov. Christie to stop showing GOP-produced video before town hall meetings” by Jenna Portnoy in the Star-Ledger.

Social Media

“New Tool Verifies Authenticity of Gov’t Social Media Sites” by John K. Higgins in E-Commerce Times.

Redistricting

“Serious problems still exist’ with redistricting maps, attorney tells Pennsylvania Supreme Court” by Nick Malawskey in the Patriot-News.

City Council has approved campaign reform measures for candidates and political committees. The new ordinance raises contribution limits to candidate campaigns from $500 to $700 in council races and from $1,000 to $1,300 in citywide races.

Beginning in 2015, public matching funds will be given for donations raised only within city limits. To be eligible for the city money, candidates will have to collect contributions from at least 200 people living in the district they hope to represent.

Beginning next year, candidates will also be eligible for increased matching funds, including four public dollars for every dollar contributed during the general election and two dollars for every dollar contributed during the primary. Donors will also be able to give to campaigns via text message.

The ordinance is scheduled for a final vote next week.

Photo of Los Angeles by Bobak on Wikipedia.

National:

Democrats Risk No Female Governor, First Time in 17 Years

U.S. Election System Criticized Over Finance Rules and Voting Restrictions

Federal:

Andrews Used wife to Vet Use of Campaign Funds on Trip

Look-Alike Sites Funnel Big Money to Mystery PAC

From the States and Municipalities:

Arizona

Ex-Fiesta Bowl Lobbyist Takes Plea Deal in Probe

Illinois

Appeals Court Upholds Illinois Campaign Disclosure Law

Minnesota

Despite Campaign Finance Ruling, Regulators to Continue Requiring Disclosures

Montana

Republicans Ask Court to Axe Montana’s Campaign Contribution Laws

Nebraska

AG: Sen. Council withdrew campaign funds at casinos

New Jersey

Mayor of NJ’s Capital Arrested in Corruption Probe

New York

Under Scrutiny, JCOPE Speaks

West Virginia

West Virginia Court Candidate Denied ‘Rescue Funds’

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.

In an attempt to set a Guinness World Record for “the greatest number of people playing cornhole in the same competition” the United Way of Summit County invited local area businesses and residents to Lock 3 Park in Akron to participate in a lunchtime event. With a reported total of 258 participants, the United Way estimates that indeed a new record was set and submitted the information to the Guinness World Record organization.

State and Federal Communications sent five teams to the tournament with hopes of bringing home a first prize of $100 and two custom made United Way Cornhole Board sets. State and Federal’s teams of Amber Fish-Linke and Sarah Gray, Myra Cottrill and Becky Campbell, Michael Beckett and Shamus Williams, John Cozine and Steve Quinn, and Jen Zona and Jon Spontarelli each competed alongside a deep field of Akron’s best tossers. While we were unsuccessful in our bid to win the tournament, State and Federal was proud to be a part of what could be a new Guinness World Record.

The New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) has proposed changes to the administrative code allowing for electronic filing for lobbyists’ annual reports.

Electronic filing would be mandatory through ELEC’s website and would replace the requirement to file paper copies. Copies of what a lobbyist files electronically must be retained by the lobbyist.

The proposed amendments cover governmental affairs agents, represented entities, and representatives of “persons communicating with the general public.” The proposals also make technical changes, such as substituting “represented entity” for “lobbyist” throughout the relevant sections. A copy of the proposal can be found here.

ELEC will conduct a public hearing at its offices concerning this proposal on Tuesday, October 16 at 11:00 a.m.

Lobbying

“Lobbyists Keep Busy Despite Legislative Lull” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

“How Many Lobbyists Are Really Breaking the Law?” by Elahe Izadi in the National Journal.

Campaign Finance

Montana: “Republicans ask court to axe Montana’s campaign contribution laws” by Matt Gouras (Associated Press) in The Republic.

New Jersey: “Political action committees gave $18M to N.J. campaigns last year, analysis shows” by Matt Friedman in the Trenton Times.

Redistricting

Ohio: “Ohio Supreme Court says ballot summary for redistricting issue is inaccurate” by Joe Guillen in the Plain Dealer.

Pennsylvania: “Supreme Court to hear redistricting arguments today” in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Ethics

“HHS chief violated law restricting political activity, OSC finds” by Eric Katz in Government Executive.

“Scandals are making uphill battles even steeper for some lawmakers” by Alexandra Jaffe in The Hill.

Alaska: “APOC says Senate candidate failed to disclose clients” by Richard Mauer in the Anchorage Daily News.

Social Media and tech

“You Gotta Have Friends: New Study Shows Facebook Can Get Out the Vote” by Micah L. Sifry in TechPresident.

“Study: Facebook drove turnout in 2010” by Steve Friess in Politico.

“Facebook to Cities: Change Page Names, or Else” by Noelle Knell in Governing.

“Web pioneer providing voter database for free” by Gregory Korte in USA Today.

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.