September 15, 2017 •
Recognizing the 10-Year Anniversary of HLOGA—Cheers
The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA) of 2007 was enacted 10 years ago. It is a law of the US federal government, which in part, amended parts of the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) of 1995. What did it […]
The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA) of 2007 was enacted 10 years ago. It is a law of the US federal government, which in part, amended parts of the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) of 1995.
What did it do? For one, it strengthened the public disclosure requirements regarding lobbying activity and placed restrictions on gifts. The bill was signed into law by President George W. Bush on September 15, 2007.
In addition, it closed the revolving door for many people in the federal government from lobbying for a certain period of time; it increased the number of reports due a year—from twice a year to four times a year; it prohibited Members of Congress from attending parties held in their honor at national party conventions—if they were sponsored by lobbyists; requires candidates, other than those running for a seat in the House, pay the fair market value of airfare (charter rates) when using non-commercial jets to travel; requires candidates for the House to not use non-commercial aircraft; requires lobbyists to certify they have not given gifts or travel that would violate Senate or House rules; requires the disclosure of businesses or organizations contributing more than $5,000 and actively participating in lobbying activities by certain coalitions and associations; instituted a lot of prohibitions between spouses who are registered lobbyists unless they were registered at least one year prior to the most recent election of the spouse to office; and requires entertainment and sports tickets be valued at market rates.
There is definitely more to HLOGA which affected lobbyists, Members of Congress, Cabinet Secretaries, senior Senate staff, and senior House staff. It is the #1 reason State and Federal Communications strengthened its federal presence in DC by bringing on Rebecca South, formerly from Blank Rome, and Gamble Hayden, formerly from PhRMA and Boehringer Ingelheim. Our FedALERTS program is the key to capturing the information needed for 100% compliance on the federal level.
Will there be changes in the future? Probably…In the meantime, we are celebrating HLOGA today at State and Federal Communications.
April 4, 2012 •
Federal Filings Are Due This Month
Some insight about federal lobbying reports from President and CEO Elizabeth Bartz.
There still might be a few of you out there who remember before BCRA and HLOGA, when we only needed to submit a quarter of a page card as our federal lobbying report. Those were the days, my friend!
These days you need to clear your schedule so you can:
- Compile and track activity in accordance with your organization’s needs;
- Conduct extensive outreach and follow up to capture applicable expenses/costs;
- Obtain salaries of all employees engaged in lobbying activities—whether registered or not;
- Respond to questions about reporting requirements;
- Provide definitions for determining applicability;
- Institute tracking mechanisms for Issues and Agency contacts;
- Coordinate with outside consultants to ensure accurate reporting;
- Coordinate LD-203 filing process;
- Prepare documentation in case of an audit; and
- File the report.
What??? You are not doing this? You are guesstimating! Tell me that is not the case.
If you are in DC you have probably seen me with Rebecca South, Federal Compliance Associate. She has created an amazing program to help the top Fortune 500 companies insure timely and accurate compliance for the LD-2 and LD-203 reports. If we can help alleviate your quarterly headaches, please feel free to contact her at rsouth@stateandfed.com.
Until next month, remember the LD-2 isn’t the only report due in April. According to our Key Dates chart, there are 112 lobbying/employer reports due in this country’s states, counties, and cities.
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.