The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) created a six-month amnesty program to help lobbyists and clients of lobbyists comply with the New York Lobbying Act. This program will assist those who have never turned in required filings.

To be eligible to participate, the lobbyist or client cannot have previously been contacted by JCOPE for failure to comply, or been subject to criminal proceedings concerning a violation of the Lobbying Act.

The program will run from January 1 to June 30, 2016.

Executive Director of New York’s Joint Commission on Public Ethics Letizia Tagliafierro is resigning, effective July 31, 2015.

Tagliafierro has served as the executive director since October of 2013. She is moving to the state Department of Taxation and Finance where she will be a deputy commissioner, leading the criminal investigations division.

The next meeting of the JCOPE is scheduled for August 4 and the commissioners are expected to begin a national search for a replacement for Tagliafierro.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics has developed online ethics training, as required by the New York Legislative Law. Enrollment in the online training is available here.

All registered lobbyists, including principals, must complete the online training.

All lobbyists registered for both the 2011-2012 and 2013-2014 biennia must complete the online training by December 31, 2014. Beginning in 2015, all registered lobbyists will be required to complete the training once every three years.

Under New York ethics regulations, a registered lobbyist, under certain circumstances, must report the names of each source of funding of more than $5,000 from a single source used to fund the lobbying activity reported and the amounts received from each identified source. The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) can grant an exemption to this disclosure requirement if such disclosure would put contributors at risk of harm, threats, harassment, or reprisals.

Recently, the JCOPE denied an exemption to Family Planning Advocates, the New York Women’s Equality Coalition, New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, and the New York Civil Liberties Union. The groups appealed the ruling to an independent judicial hearing officer who must determine whether the denial of an exemption was clearly erroneous in view of the evidence of record.

On July 11, 2014, George C. Pratt, the presiding judicial hearing officer, reversed the JCOPE’s denial of the exemption, finding the commission’s decision to be clearly erroneous in light of the specific evidence presented. In his decision, Pratt stated the advocacy groups had experienced several incidents over a period of years showing a pattern of threats and manifestations of public hostility. As a result of Pratt’s ruling, all four groups will be granted an exemption from the donor disclosure requirement.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics has created a tip line and website allowing the public to report alleged ethical violations by state officials and lobbyists, including improper gifts, conflicts of interest, nepotism, abuse of power, and sexual harassment.

To report violations, call 1-800-87-ETHICS or visit http://reportmisconduct.ny.gov.

The Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) rejected a request made by several activist groups to grant an exemption from the donor disclosure requirement provided by New York law. Under the ethics law, a registered lobbyist, under certain circumstances, must report the names of each source of funding over $5,000 from a single source used to fund the lobbying activity reported and the amounts received from each identified source.

Under the same law, the JCOPE can grant an exemption to the donor disclosure requirement if that disclosure would put contributors at risk. The party requesting the exemption must demonstrate that the disclosure of their donors would cause harm, threats, harassment, or reprisals.

The JCOPE denied the exemption requested by Family Planning Advocates, the New York Women’s Equality Coalition, New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms and the New York Civil Liberties Union. The groups can appeal the decision to an independent judicial hearing officer within 15 days of the JCOPE’s written ruling, which has not yet been completed.

At the same meeting, the commission also limited one exemption that it had already granted to NARAL Pro-Choice NY by scheduling the donor disclosure exemption to expire with the group’s next filing.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) unveiled proposed changes to the ethics rules Tuesday, which could make it easier for lobbyists to conceal their donors and funders from the public. At its monthly meeting, JCOPE proposed changes to the gift regulations and the recently enacted source of funding regulations.

Under the source of funding regulations, lobbyists must disclose the names of anybody who provided them with funding in excess of $5,000 for lobbying purposes, but only if they meet a certain threshold. The current rules allow for a waiver of this requirement only if there is a substantial likelihood of harm. Under the proposed change, JCOPE would lower the standard to a reasonable likelihood or probability of harm.

Executive Director Ellen Biben said the current standard may be unconstitutional, thus necessitating the change. “The substantial likelihood standard may be constitutionally too high,” Biben said. “We agree.”

In the proposed change to the gift ban, JCOPE puts a concrete dollar amount on the term “nominal value.” Under current law, a lobbyist is prohibited from giving a gift to a public official and gift is defined as something worth more than nominal value. However, there is no dollar figure attached to the current definition of nominal value.

Under the proposed definition, nominal value will be defined as an item or service with a value of $10 or less. Therefore, if the proposed change is enacted, lobbyists will be prohibited from giving a public official a gift with a value in excess of $10.

In order for the rules to go into effect, JCOPE commissioners must approve the proposals. There is no set time table on when the commissioners will review the proposals and make a decision on their enactment.

The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) is currently in the process of developing draft regulations for the state’s gift laws. These draft regulations will attempt to provide clarity and guidance to those regulated by the commission.

The draft regulations concerning gifts given by lobbyists allow lobbyists to follow a step-by-step guide to determine whether he or she is allowed to legally give the gift. JCOPE is accepting written comments on the draft regulations until February 15, 2013. JCOPE will then use those written comments to draft proposed regulations.

Updated February 13, 2013: The New York Joint Commission on Public Ethics has extended the deadline to submit written comments on the draft regulations to March 8, 2013.