August 30, 2011 •
Mississippi to Hold Special Session
Governor called it for Friday, September 2
The Mississippi State Legislature will convene in special session at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, September 2, 2011.
Governor Haley Barbour called the special session on Monday in order to consider a state bond issue. Other projects may be undertaken as well, but details about these projects have not yet been released.
The session is expected to last one day.
Photo of the Mississippi State Capitol by Shawn Lea (Szlea) on Wikipedia.
August 30, 2011 •
New Milford, NJ Adopts Pay-to-Play Ordinance
Possible 4 Year Ban for Vendor Violators
The Borough Council of New Milford, New Jersey has adopted a new pay-to-play ordinance.
Ordinance #2011:17 prohibits any business entity who submits a proposal for, enters into negotiations for, or agrees to any contract or agreement with the borough, from knowingly making any contribution to local candidates, candidate committee or joint candidates committees, PACs, or to holders of public office having ultimate responsibility for the award of a contract or agreement.
Certain threshold amounts apply to this prohibition, such as a maximum of $300 per calendar year for any purpose to any candidate or candidate committee for mayor or a governing body. In order to cure any violations in excess of the limits, a reimbursement of contributions is allowed if made within 30 days. The new ordinance also applies to renewal and material modifications of existing contracts. Prior to the awarding of a contract, vendors will be required to submit sworn statements attesting to compliance with the regulations.
Vendors found in violation could face disqualification from eligibility for future contracts with the Borough for four years from the date of the violation.
Some exceptions to the new ordinance are allowed, including contracts awarded in the case of emergencies
August 30, 2011 •
“Fair Fight” Not Fair Constitutionally According to Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission
Nebraska to Cease Enforcement of “Fair Fight” Campaign Statute
The Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission voted unanimously Friday to stop enforcement of a 1992 law aimed at leveling the playing field in state political races. This decision stems from the recent United States Supreme Court decision concerning the state of Arizona where a similar law was deemed unconstitutional.
Under Nebraska’s law, candidates could qualify for “fair fight” money from the state if they adhered to voluntary spending limits and their opponent had exceeded such limits.
Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, who had recently opined the law would be found unconstitutional if challenged in court, will have 10 days to file suit once the Commission officially notifies his office of the refusal to enforce the law, as is required in Nebraska any time a state agency refuses to enforce a law.
Photo of the Nebraska State Capitol by Decumanus on Wikipedia.
August 30, 2011 •
FPPC Releases Draft of Text Message Contribution Regulation
Interested persons’ meeting to be held.
The Fair Political Practices Commission will hold an interested persons’ meeting on Tuesday, September 13, 2011 at 10:00 a.m. to discuss the proposed text message contribution regulation. The commission has also issued a notice to adopt the text message regulation at a public hearing to be held on or after October 13, 2011.
The proposed regulation permits candidates and committees to raise funds through low-dollar text message contributions. For the purposes of the regulation, contributions are deemed to be received on the date that a mobile fundraising vendor, acting as an agent of the candidate or committee, obtains possession and control of the funds. Once received by the mobile fundraising vendor, contributions must be promptly reported to the candidate or committee’s treasurer or a designated agent thereof no later than the closing date of any campaign statement the candidate or committee is required to file.
For text message contributions of less than $25, candidates and committees will be required to maintain the dates and daily totals of contributions. For contributions exceeding $25 but less than $100, the proposed regulation requires that candidates and committees record the full name and street address of the contributor, the cumulative amount received from each contribution, and any information regarding an intermediary where applicable. When a contribution exceeding $100 is received, the regulation requires that the candidate or committee maintain a record of the contributor’s name and address, occupation, employer, the cumulative amount received from the contributor, and any information regarding an intermediary where applicable.
Under the proposed regulation, a contribution made by text message will be attributed to the person who is subscribed to the cell phone number from which the contribution is received.
August 29, 2011 •
Good Ideas Might Yield a Free Lunch
Ohio state representative trades free lunch for good idea
On Ohio.com, the Associated Press report that Ohio Republican state Rep. Marlene Anielski of Cleveland is beginning a contest she named “There Ought to Be a Law” where constituents from her district will be competing for a free lunch provided by none other than Rep. Anielski.
Participants will enter their proposals for possible legislation by September 30th, and whoever provides the proposal Rep. Anielski deems the best will get a free lunch, as well as the satisfaction of their proposal possibly being drafted into a bill.
August 29, 2011 •
Contact Law-Makers Through OpenCongress.org
Another way to contact your lawmaker.
While social media has offered a new medium for constituents to interact with their legislators, it is very rare to receive a detailed, satisfying response from their representatives.
OpenCongress.org added a new feature to their website about a month ago that allows users to send letters to their representatives. While it is definitely not guaranteed that you will receive a response, a blog post by Donny Shaw shows 9 examples of the 1,500+ letter submissions made on the new feature, 2 of which received responses.
While this does not prove that this platform is the key to easy communication between the public and their representatives, it is yet another step taken in response to the Open Government Initiative that is making interaction between every day citizens and law-makers a possibility.
To learn more about this new feature, read “In Search of a Citizen-Congress Feedback Loop” on TechPresident.com
August 29, 2011 •
News You Can Use Digest – August 29, 2011
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
National:
National Organization for Marriage Repeatedly Rebuked For Disclosure Violations
Federal:
Super Committee and K St. Creativity
From the States and Municipalities:
California
California Lawmakers-Turned-Lobbyists Cultivate Relationships under the Dome
Florida
Firefighters’ Fundraiser Gets Ethics OK, with Difficult Restrictions
Georgia
State Utility Commissioner’s Pursuit of Masters Tickets Improper, Critics Say
Nebraska
In-Session Fundraisers Questioned
Nevada
Fake Twitter Accounts Force Their Way onto Political Landscape
New Jersey
How an Irate Response to a Carl Lewis E-Mail Cost an N.J. Assemblyman His Job
New Jersey
Union Sidestep Donation Limits
Pennsylvania
Experts Question Use of $400,000 in Private, Anonymous Funds to Buy out Philadelphia Superintendent
Texas
Perry’s Fundraising for Governors Group Draws Scrutiny
Washington
Longtime Government Worker Now PDC Director
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.
Jim Sedor is editor of News You Can Use.
August 26, 2011 •
Political Campaigns Break Fundraising Record for First Half of Year
FEC Issues Report
Disclosure reports filed with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) show that U.S. House and Senate candidates set a new record in campaign fundraising for the first half of 2011. The total was more than $285 million dollars.
Here is the Federal Election Commission’s news release from August 24. The FEC also has great interactive campaign finance maps for both Presidential Campaigns as well as House and Senate Elections. The maps offer campaign finance information down to the zip code level for the current and previous election cycles.
You can read Emily Goodin’s story “House and Senate candidates raise $285.2 million in first half of 2011” from The Hill.
Alex Knott offers “Election Fundraising Sets Records in First Half of 2011” in Roll Call.
August 26, 2011 •
Report Problems to Your City From Your Smart Phone
Salt Lake City 311 App Allows Citizens to Make Reports From Their Phones
A new 311 smart phone app for Salt Lake City, Utah allows a citizen to take a geo-coded picture with his or her smartphone and enter more detailed information about the problem. In response to the citizen’s entry, a real-time case is created that’s sent directly to the staff person who will handle the situation.
According to this article on GovTech, the app called Salt Lake City 311 transmits the request to the city’s GIS database, which then provides an address match for the city responder to answer the notification personally, with no middleman in between.
This app streamlines the process of fieldworkers responding to calls, as well as creating a convenient and easy way for everyday citizens to report problems.
This kind of 311 app is something that is likely to be seen in many other municipalities across the nation in the near future.
August 26, 2011 •
Georgia Ethics Commission Chooses LaBerge as New Executive Secretary
Chosen to Replace Stacey Kalberman
The Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission has named Holly LaBerge as its new Executive Secretary.
LaBerge, a former Budget Analyst for the House Budget Office and Director of Government Relations for the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council, beat out Jerry R. Presley, a former lobbyist, government official, and private consultant, for the position.
The commission interviewed each candidate at its meeting Friday before meeting in private to make a decision.
LaBerge takes over for Stacey Kalberman, who left the commission over disputes concerning the agency’s budget and her request for subpoenas to investigate Governor Nathan Deal’s campaign.
August 26, 2011 •
New Municipalities Update
In a continuing effort to better serve the needs of its clients, State and Federal Communications, Inc. is expanding coverage of laws and regulations in more municipalities.
We now provide information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for:
Sterling Heights, Michigan
Lafayette, Louisiana
August 26, 2011 •
Highlighted Site Of The Week – Power IT Down
Turn Your Computer Off For the Weekend
Join the multitudes of people today who are taking part in the 4th Annual Power IT Down Day. Just shut down your computer at the end of the work day today, and over the course of the weekend, the energy saved by the these thousands of computers will save thousands of costly kilowatt hours.
This week’s Highlighted Site Of The Week is supporting the cause of Power IT Down. It is a time of increasing frugality, where everyone is looking at cutting costs and saving money. To show that huge benefits can be received by this minimal effort, Power IT Down’s sponsors (Citrix, HP, Intel, and GTSI) will donate the sum of money saved–which last year amounted to $60,000–to Wounded Warrior Project. It would be one of the easiest contributions you ever made!
As I’m writing this blog post, 10,000 people have already signed up to Power IT Down and 43,000 kilowatt hours have already been saved.
While turning off one computer doesn’t seem like much, by joining together, much can be accomplished.
To learn more about Power IT Down, you can like them on Facebook, follow them on Twitter, and read this article from GovLoop.
Everyone have a great weekend!
August 26, 2011 •
Washington P.D.C. Selects New Director
Andrea McNamara Doyle to Replace Interim Director Doug Ellis
Andrea McNamara Doyle has been selected to be the new director of the Washington Public Disclosure Commission.
Doyle, who has previous experience as a government manager and legislative staff attorney, was chosen from 71 applicants after a several month search.
She will replace interim director Doug Ellis who is retiring from the agency later this year.
August 25, 2011 •
Creator of @CrazyKhazei Gets Caught
Romney Strategist Is Responsible For @CrazyKhazei
Another example of mock Twitter accounts similar to the ones discussed in yesterday’s blog post popped up today.
Eric Fehrnstrom, a strategist for Mitt Romney and Senator Scott Brown, admitted in an email to the Boston Globe that he was the one responsible for the mock Twitter account @CrazyKhazei which produces satirical tweets at the expense of Brown’s 2012 opponent, Alan Khazei.
An example of a tweet posted on this Twitter account read:
Hiring my brother at my charity was not a conflict of interest. It was an act of kindness.
Unlike many political figures who have been targeted by fake Twitter profiles and don’t seem to be especially bothered by the account, the Khazei campaign reacted angrily to the allegations, calling on Brown to denounce the tactics, close the Twitter account, and apologize.
Read more about this in the article posted by TheHill, “Brown adviser admits to running Twitter account mocking Democratic opponent“.
State and Federal Communications, Inc. provides research and consulting services for government relations professionals on lobbying laws, procurement lobbying laws, political contribution laws in the United States and Canada. Learn more by visiting stateandfed.com.