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.
Thank you to Political Activity Law blog for bringing this to our attention. As part of its series about lobbying and U.S. politics on Morning Edition, NPR broadcast a story about how a study calculated what money corporations saved through a tax break from the American Jobs Creation Act versus what they spent lobbying on the legislation.
The exhibit that shows the Washington, D.C. that could have been.
What if the nation’s capitol had been built with a giant bronze chicken on top of it? What if the Washington Monument had been built with a giant statue of the first president standing atop? How about a Lincoln Memorial built as a giant pyramid?
This week’s Highlighted Site of the Week is the National Building Museum’s Unbuilt Washington, the official site for the exhibit that shows you “what might have been” in our nation’s capital.
The proposed pyramid-style Lincoln Memorial.
According to the site: “Unbuilt Washington reveals the Washington that could have been by presenting architectural and urban design projects that were proposed but, for widely varied reasons, never executed. … The physical character of Washington, D.C., that we take for granted today is the unique result of countless decisions, debates, successes, failures, reconsiderations, missed opportunities, and lucky breaks. To tourists and residents alike, the city’s greatest landmarks may seem so appropriate, so correct—it is hard to imagine that they could have turned out completely differently. But nothing in the built environment of Washington [or in any other city, for that matter] is predestined.”
You will find an interactive Google map for the sites of the would-be sites and memorials described in Unbuilt Washington.
Don’t miss the exhibit, which runs from November 19, 2011 – May 28, 2012. Here is the National Building Museum’s Twitter feed and Facebook.
A new law signed by President Obama precludes federal agencies from requiring vendors bidding on federal contracts to disclose political contributions.
Buried in the 565-page National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 2012, House Resolution 1540, is language amending Chapter 137 of Title 10 of the United States Code.
The amendment explicitly prohibits requiring a contractor to submit political information as part of a solicitation, or a request for bid or proposal. It also bars contractors from being required to submit political information during the modifications of a contract, or while exercising a contract option.
The language was added as an amendment to HR 1540 in response to a leaked draft executive order which required every entity submitting offers for federal contracts to disclose certain political contributions and expenditures made within the two years prior to submission of their offer.
For previous articles on Lobby Comply by George Ticoras on this topic, you can read posts from June 1, May 20, May 12, and May 10, and July 28, 2011.
“An Act to End Taxpayer-funded Campaigns for Gubernatorial Candidates” was held over from last session, but the Joint Committee voted for a recommendation of “ought not to pass” with little debate.
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange has appealed the judge’s ruling in Alabama Democratic Conference v. Strange, the case overturning a portion of the state ban on the transfer of funds from one PAC to another.
While the appeal is pending, the attorney general is prohibited from enforcing the PAC-to-PAC transfer law against the Alabama Democratic Conference.
CivSource reports about the implications for SuperPACs
In response to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision, there are states and cities taking action to deny personhood to corporations. The Montana Supreme Court upheld a ban on corporate spending in local elections and a measure was introduced in the Vermont Legislature calling for a constitutional amendment distinguishing the rights of individuals from those of corporations.
The city councils of Los Angeles, Oakland, Albany, Boulder, and New York City are listed in the article as having passed resolutions – some calling for a constitutional amendment – eliminating corporate personhood, which could affect SuperPAC spending in their jurisdictions.
House Bill 4421 grants Ethics Commission oversight of Legislature
Representative Kevin Ryan has pre-filed a bill to end the practice of state lawmakers policing themselves in ethics matters.
The bill would abolish the legislative ethics committees and empower the Ethics Commission to enforce the law as it applies to legislators.
Currently, the Ethics Commission oversees the state’s nine constitutional officers, certain appointed state officials, and locally elected officials. However, the Ethics Commission does not have jurisdiction over legislators. Instead, lawmakers police themselves through separate House and Senate ethics committees.
State Senator Mike Rose has sponsored a proposal in the Senate that would give the legislature explicit authority to delegate ethics enforcement to an outside entity.
Lawmakers are scheduled to begin the second half of the 2011-12 legislative session on Tuesday, January 10, 2012.
The State and Federal Communications, Inc. research staff has updated this Executive Source Guidebook and we are pleased to provide it to our valued clients.
This quick desk reference combines information from our online resources and lists the information by state:
This guidebook is filled with valuable information. However, we also caution it has two limitations:
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Last year, Maryland’s legislature passed a public ethics law, Title 15, after finding an erosion of public confidence in government decisions due to improper influence.
Title 15 requires government officials and employees to disclose their financial affairs and sets minimum ethical standards for the conduct of state and local business. The law also requires all counties, municipalities, and school boards adopt ethics standards at least equal to the state’s ethics law with regard to conflicts of interest, financial disclosure, and lobbying. Each local ethics commission is required to certify its compliance with the Maryland Ethics Commission on or before October 1st of each year, beginning in 2011.
Some local officials are still working toward agreement and passage of the required bills. Although officials may follow the state’s guidelines, many are choosing their own paths. For instance, the registration thresholds for lobbyists in Title 15 include an expenditure clause and a gift clause: $500 in expenditures towards influencing legislative or executive action; or $100 in gifts for the purpose of influencing executive action. The recently passed Charles County bill has a $100 gift threshold, while Alleghany County’s gift threshold is $200. Neither bill includes an expenditure clause. However, in Howard County, there is a $100 expenditure threshold for any lobbying activity, but no gift threshold.
Conflict of interest rules have also been the subject of debate. Title 15 forbids former public officials (other than legislators) and employees from assisting or representing a party in a contract or other specific matter for compensation if the former official or employee participated significantly in the matter as an official or employee. Frederick County attempted to limit this prohibition to one year for former commissioners with an exemption for former employees. This modification was rejected by the state. The Frederick County delegation now plans to propose changes to Title 15 before the general assembly to allow the one year limitations.
Counties such as Baltimore and Montgomery continue to debate and, as of December 1, 2011, had yet to approve a final version of the required ethics bill.
In the latest development, the State Ethics Commission met to respond to exemption requests. According to the Maryland Municipal League web site:
“The Maryland State Ethics Commission met on December 8 to consider a number of exemption requests from various municipalities around the state. Several jurisdictions were requesting an extension of an existing exemption, while some cities and towns were requesting new exemptions from the recently enacted financial disclosure reporting requirement. The results were varied, although it seemed as though population and budget size were the criteria most often cited by the members of the Ethics Commission when exemptions were being considered. For more information, please contact Tom Reynolds or Candace Donoho on the MML staff.”
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.
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. 
“Ethics watchdog alleges that Gingrich might have violated lobbying laws” by Rachel Leven in The Hill.
Thank you to Political Activity Law blog for bringing this to our attention. As part of its series about lobbying and U.S. politics on Morning Edition, NPR broadcast a story about how a study calculated what money corporations saved through a tax break from the American Jobs Creation Act versus what they spent lobbying on the legislation.
What if the nation’s capitol had been built with a giant bronze chicken on top of it? What if the Washington Monument had been built with a giant statue of the first president standing atop? How about a Lincoln Memorial built as a giant pyramid?
The Joint Standing Committee on Veterans and Legal Affairs of the Maine State Legislature has killed LD 120, a bill aiming to stop gubernatorial candidates from participating in the state’s clean elections program.
Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange has appealed the judge’s ruling in Alabama Democratic Conference v. Strange, the case overturning a portion of the state ban on the transfer of funds from one PAC to another.
In response to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision, there are states and cities taking action to deny personhood to corporations. The Montana Supreme Court upheld a ban on corporate spending in local elections and a measure was introduced in the Vermont Legislature calling for a constitutional amendment distinguishing the rights of individuals from those of corporations.
“Lobbyist Is Expected to Plead Guilty in Corruption Case” by Benjamin Weiser in The New York Times .
This quick desk reference combines information from our online resources and lists the information by state:
Title 15 requires government officials and employees to disclose their financial affairs and sets minimum ethical standards for the conduct of state and local business. The law also requires all counties, municipalities, and school boards adopt ethics standards at least equal to the state’s ethics law with regard to conflicts of interest, financial disclosure, and lobbying. Each local ethics commission is required to certify its compliance with the Maryland Ethics Commission on or before October 1st of each year, beginning in 2011.January 8-13, 2012 Public Affairs Council Institute, Laguna, Calif.
