February 27, 2012 •
Free Sporting Tickets Doom Baltimore County’s Ethics Law
Maryland State Ethics Commission finds county law out of compliance
The State Ethics Commission has found the county’s new public ethics law to be below state standards because it allows elected leaders to accept tickets to sporting events from people who do business with the county.
Although state lawmakers are prohibited from free sports tickets, both state and county laws allow lawmakers to accept free admission to charitable, cultural, and political affairs events if the tickets come from the events’ sponsors.
Michael Lord, Executive Director of the commission, notes that the county’s ethics law does not call for disclosure of those tickets, which is required under state rules.
The county has maintained that its ethics laws are among the toughest in the state, but the commission has warned the county that it is not in compliance with a 2010 law that requires local ethics laws to be at least as strong as those state lawmakers must follow.
February 27, 2012 •
News You Can Use Digest – February 27, 2012
Here are highlights from the latest edition of News You Can Use:
Federal:
Foster Friess Aspirin Joke Shows Danger to Candidates of Outside Political Groups
Lobbyists Decertify after Obama Ban
From the States and Municipalities:
Arizona
Fiesta Bowl Case: Junker pleads guilty to felony charge
California
Ethics Commission Delays Vote on Raising Contribution Limits
Colorado
Colorado Supreme Court Upholds ‘Magic Words’ Test for Political Spending by 527s
Colorado
Secretary of State Scott Gessler Rewrites Colorado Campaign Finance Rules
Florida
Miami Beach House Rep. Steinberg under Investigation by Feds for Bizarre Texts
Illinois
William Beavers Indicted on Tax Fraud Charges
Indiana
Lawmaker Takes Jab at Girl Scouts
Iowa
Denied Jobs, Blacks in Iowa Test New Bias Theory
Montana
High Court Halts Montana Corporate Spending Ban
New York
Critics Wary of State Elections Panel Plan to Oversee Super PAC Operations
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.
February 24, 2012 •
Texas 30-day Pre-Election Reports Due March 5 Not Required
No April 3 Ballot
The Texas Ethics Commission announced there is no requirement to file the 30-day pre-election report due March 5th.
Normally, committees such as general and specific-purpose political committees that support or oppose a candidate or measure must file reports 30 days before an election in which the committee is involved, covering the first day after the period covered by the last report through 40 days before the election.
The Ethics Commission lifted the requirement because there is no ballot for the April 3rd election. The state’s primary election dates will likely be changed once redistricting in Texas has been finalized.
February 24, 2012 •
New York Bill Would Forbid Lobbying by Convicted Lobbyists
JCOPE Would Have Authority to Remove or Extend Suspension after Mandatory Period
New York Senator Gustavo Rivera has introduced Senate Bill 6533 that would forbid lobbyists convicted of class D felonies or more serious offenses from lobbying in the state for three years.
The barred person may seek to re-register as a lobbyist with the Joint Commission on Public Ethics after three years.
The commission may determine if the suspension should be lifted or extended for a maximum of an additional two years.
February 24, 2012 •
Los Angeles City Ethics Commission Votes to Shorten Fundraising Period
Delays Vote on Contribution Limits
The Los Angeles City Ethics Commission has voted to shorten the length of time during which candidates for office may conduct fundraising.
If the commission’s ruling is approved by city council, candidates for city council will have 12 months instead of the current 18 months for fundraising, and citywide candidates will have 18 months instead of the current two year period for fundraising.
The commission additionally decided to delay the vote on whether or not the campaign contribution limit should be increased from $500 to $1,100 per donor.
Photo of the Los Angeles City Hall by Brion VIBBER on Wikipedia.
February 24, 2012 •
Arizona Lobbying Disclosure Bill Passes
Without the ALEC disclosure measure
The Arizona House of Representatives passed House Bill 2642, which will require more disclosure for local governments who lobby the state lawmakers. Two amendments were not added to the bill – one requiring American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) disclosure and another that would remove the one year “revolving door” waiting period for lawmakers to become lobbyists.
To find out more about the details of the new lobbying law (and what did not pass with it), be sure to read:
“Insider: Lobbyist bill passes without extras” by Mary Jo Pitzl in The Arizona Republic.
“Lawmakers OK more disclosure on lobbying” by Howard Fischer in the Arizona Daily Sun.
Photo of the Arizona House of Representatives Chamber by Willem van Bergen on Wikipedia.
February 24, 2012 •
Highlighted Site of the Week – The Newseum’s New Exhibit
Every Four Years: Presidential Campaigns and the Press
Our Highlighted Site of the Week is The Newseum, a news and journalism interactive museum in Washington, D.C. On Level 6, the Newseum opened a new exhibit last Friday called Every Four Years: Presidential Campaigns and the Press.
On display are Tina Fey’s SNL Sarah Palin red suit and glasses, a microphone used by Franklin D. Roosevelt to deliver his famous “fireside chats,” handwritten notes taken by John F. Kennedy during a 1960 presidential debate with Richard Nixon, and much more.
According to their site: “The Newseum’s new election-year exhibit, ‘Every Four Years: Presidential Campaigns and the Press,’ explores how media coverage of presidential campaigns has evolved from William McKinley’s 1896 front porch campaign to Barack Obama’s 2008 Internet campaign, as candidates and reporters tangle over issues, images and control of the story.”
Take a look at this great article about the exhibit – “Campaign laughs and history on view at D.C.’s Newseum” by Brett Zongker (Associated Press) in the Washington Times.
You can follow the Newseum’s social media, too!
Have a great weekend everyone!
Thank you to News You Can Use Editor Jim Sedor for finding this great exhibit.
February 23, 2012 •
Changes Made to Campaign Finance Rules in Colorado
Critics Say Changes Beyond Secretary of State’s Authority
Secretary of State Scott Gessler announced on Wednesday the adoption of a recodified set of rules concerning Colorado campaign financing aimed at simplifying the state’s campaign finance process. Among the most notable changes to be made, total fines for late or incomplete campaign finance reports are now to be limited to $50 per day for up to 180 days for a maximum fine of $9,000.
Additionally, Gessler’s office will continue to utilize the $5,000 threshold at which issue committees must register and report, created by Gessler’s adoption of Campaign and Political Finance Rule 4.27, despite a state district court ruling Gessler did not have the authority to increase the threshold from the constitutionally-mandated figure of $200 after a finding by the court determining the threshold to be too burdensome.
Also, in accordance with the Colorado Supreme Court’s decision released the day prior to Gessler’s release of the recodified campaign finance rules, a 527 political group is limited to accepting up to $550 from any person every two years if the 527 group is engaging in express advocacy for a particular candidate by use of certain “magic words” such as “vote for” or “elect.”
Critics of Gessler have claimed the changes made are outside his authority and a legal challenge is expected. The rules are scheduled to temporarily take effect on March 7, 2012, with the rules being permanently effective on March 30, 2012.
February 23, 2012 •
Maryland’s State Ethics Commission Issues Memorandum
Addresses lobbying and campaign finance
The State Ethics Commission has issued a memorandum concerning provisions of the ethics law relating to regulated lobbyists and campaign finance activities.
State law prohibits a lobbyist or a person acting on behalf of a lobbyist to engage in certain campaign activities including soliciting contributions or forwarding tickets to fundraising events.
The memorandum does not constitute an advisory opinion but addresses common issues and provides approaches for compliance with the technical provisions of the law.
The memorandum is available online here.
February 22, 2012 •
Federal Lobbyist Bundling Disclosure Threshold Increased
$16,700
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) released its annual adjustment of the threshold limit for lobbyist bundling disclosure.
The federal lobbyist bundling disclosure threshold has been increased from $16,200 for 2011 to $16,700 for 2012.
The FEC is required to adjust the threshold amount annually to account for inflation, rounding to the nearest multiple of $100.
February 22, 2012 •
Missouri Ethics Reform, Blagojevich, and More Ethics News
Former Illinois Governor Rod Bagojevich will serve out his sentence in a prison near Denver, Colorado. Ethics reform in Missouri is up in the air, and New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez signed legislation that “could require public officials convicted of corruption-related crimes to give back to the state their salaries and forfeit their accrued state pension benefits.”
Ethics
“Blagojevich to serve sentence at Denver-area prison” by Natasha Korecki in the Chicago Sun-Times.
Missouri: “Mo. lawmaker says waiting for elections could mean better ethics bill” by The Associated Press in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Missouri: “Ethics reform in Missouri appears to be a nonstarter in election year” by Jason Hancock in the Kansas City Star.
New Mexico: “Governor signs bill intended to crack down on corruption within government” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
Government Transparency
South Carolina: “House panel OKs bill setting cost limits on FOIAs” by The Associated Press in the Greenville News.
February 22, 2012 •
New Campaign Finance Law for Alaska
Alaska Governor Sean Parnell signed a campaign finance bill into law and Super PACs in the news, too!
Alaska: “Governor signs campaign finance bill” by The Associated Press in USA Today.
“Financial disclosures show power of super PACs” by Fredreka Schouten in USA Today.
“Santorum ‘super’ PAC returned big foreign donation” by Stephen Braun in the Boston Globe.
February 22, 2012 •
Lobbying News in the States
Here is a look at news items in four states:
Massachusetts: “Casinos industry spent millions lobbying in Mass.” by The Associated Press in the Boston Herald.
Oklahoma: “Lobbyist: Lawmaker Morgan sought help for ‘friends’” by Nolan Clay in the Tulsa World.
South Carolina: “Senators hold moment of silence for missing lobbyist, search continues” by Noelle Phillips in The State.
Wisconsin: “Union lobbying plummets in last half of 2011” by Bill Lueders in Wisconsin Watch.
February 21, 2012 •
Gov 2.0 News
Here is a quick look at three news items where government and the internet meet:
Hawaii: “Tech-Savvy Leaders Push Honolulu Toward Gov 2.0” by Michael Levine in Honolulu Civil Beat.
Maryland: “NIC to Run Maryland’s Website” in Government Technology.
New York: “Mayor Bloomberg Puts N.Y. Government On Facebook” by Julie Andrews on All Facebook.
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