The provisions of a campaign finance reform bill passed by the Council of the District of Columbia take effect January 31, 2015. The special election set for April 28, 2015, will be the first test to the new restrictions found in Bill 20-0076.

However, according to the Office of Campaign Finance, all campaigns registering prior to the effective date of the law will not be subject to its provisions. The new law will only affect those campaigns registering on or after February 1, 2015.

Among the changes, Bill 20-0076 imposes a training requirement for committee treasurers and requires all campaign finance reports to be filed electronically. The new law also restricts contributions from affiliated entities, thereby closing the “LLC loophole”.

A special election has been scheduled for April 28, 2015, to fill vacant council seats in Wards 4 and 8. Several prospective candidates for the Ward 8 seat have already obtained nominating petitions, and several other candidates are expected to enter the race before the petition filing deadline on January 28, 2015.

The Ward 8 seat was held by long-time District politician Marion Barry, who recently passed away. The Ward 4 seat was held by Muriel Bowser, who is the mayor-elect.

Washington, D.C. voters will elect their attorney general for the first time on November 4, 2014. Up until this year, the attorney general has been appointed by the mayor.

In 2010, voters approved a charter amendment authorizing the first election of the city’s attorney general and setting a primary election for April 2014. In late 2013, the council passed a law delaying the election from 2014 to 2018, fearing the city lacked the necessary preparation.

Paul Zukerberg, a candidate for attorney general, challenged the 2013 law in court. In June 2014, the Court of Appeals ruled an election must be held in 2014 unless it would not be practically possible for the D.C. Board of Elections to do so.

Following a directive by the Court of Appeals to set a date for the election, the D.C. Superior Court decided the election will be held on November 4, 2014, the same day as the mayoral election.

Whether Washington, D.C. voters will have the chance to elect an attorney general this year remains a hot topic on the D.C. Council floor. Currently, the attorney general is appointed by the mayor. In 2010, voters approved a charter amendment authorizing the first election of the city’s attorney general and setting a primary election for April of this year.

In late 2013, the council passed a law delaying the election from 2014 to 2018, fearing the city lacked the necessary preparation. Paul Zukerberg, the only candidate for the city’s first attorney general race, challenged the 2013 law in the District of Columbia Superior Court. Judge Laura Cordero denied Zukerberg’s motion for a preliminary injunction, stating that he would not suffer irreparable harm from the delay and therefore did not meet the standard to grant the injunction.

Upon the judge’s ruling, the council acted quickly to introduce a bill scheduling an election for attorney general in November 2014. The bill has sparked heated debate, both on the floor of the council and with current Attorney General Irvin Nathan. Nathan criticized the bill, stating it does not comport with the city charter. The bill would put the attorney general office on the November ballot without allowing for a primary election, thus circumventing the requirement of an election on a partisan basis as required by the 2010 charter amendment.

If the new bill passes the council, the possibility of a mayoral veto is likely, based on Nathan’s opposition to the measure. However, Council Chairman Phil Mendelson still plans to move the bill to passage, likely bringing it to a final vote in the next month.

Phil Mendelson, the chairman of the Council of the District of Columbia, introduced a bill that would bar people who made political contributions from obtaining contracts or doing other business with the city.

Mendelson said the motivation behind his bill was to end the perception of pay-to-play in Washington, D.C.

The topic of a living wage in Washington, D.C. has been revived in the City Council.

A new proposal would increase the DC minimum wage to $11.50 per hour by 2016, making the wage one of the highest in the country.

The Council could vote on the measure as early as December.

Voters in the District of Columbia participated in a special election Tuesday and chose a familiar face. Anita Bonds held off five challengers to win the council seat she currently occupies. Bonds was chosen to temporarily hold the at-large seat after Phil Mendelson became the council chairman.

Bonds declared victory shortly after midnight and according to unofficial results collected 32 percent of the vote. Her closest competitor, Elissa Silverman garnered 28 percent of the vote.

Turnout was very low for the special election, which was the district’s second special election in the past three years. One voter said, “I didn’t know any of them. But I’m a Democrat. So I voted for – who was it? – Anita (Bonds).”

The voters also passed a ballot measure seeking to give the district autonomy over spending its tax dollars. The measure, which passed with more than 80 percent approval, would allow the district to spend its tax dollars without congressional approval.

The measure will become law unless the United States Congress passes a disapproval resolution and that resolution is also signed by President Obama. The measure is the latest in the long struggle for district citizens to break free from the leash of the federal government.

One voter said, “We can take care of ourselves.”

Photo of the John A. Wilson Building by Awiseman on Wikipedia.

The District of Columbia Board of Elections has announced that a special election will take place on April 23, 2013.

This special election will be held to fill the at-large D.C. council seat of Phil Mendelson.

Mayor Vincent Gray and Attorney General Irvin Nathan have introduced a proposal for an overhaul of the city’s campaign finance laws. The proposal includes pay-to-pay provisions that will limit when contractors may contribute to public officials. It will also make electronic disclosure mandatory and increase the disclosures already in place. The proposal would also ban lobbyists from bundling political contributions.

These proposed reforms come at a time when the district has been inflicted with a rash of campaign scandals, including one involving Mayor Gray’s campaign.

The proposal will now go through a public comment period until September 17th. At that point, the proposal will be formally sent to the district council.

Photo of the John A. Wilson Building by Awiseman on Wikipedia.

A former D.C. council candidate and a ward commissioner are submitting a ballot measure which would ban corporate contributions to electoral campaigns if approved by voters this November.

The summary of the initiative states that it will restore the public trust by eliminating the outsized influence corporate money has in D.C. government and elections by prohibiting direct contributions from corporations to elected officials and candidates for public office. The measure would align D.C. with federal law, which bans direct corporate contributions to public officials and candidates.

Proponents of the measure need to collect over 22,000 signatures from registered voters within six months for it to appear on the November ballot.