Lobbying

California: “California Senate OKs Scaled-Down Travel Disclosure Bill” by Judy Lin (Associated Press) for Santa Cruz Sentinel

California: “Law Students Propose Bill to Close Lucrative Capitol Lobbying Loophole” by Melanie Mason for Los Angeles Times

Hawaii: “Antiquated Law Spares Lobbyists in Honolulu Ethics Scandal” by Nick Grube for Honolulu Civil Beat

New Jersey: “ELEC Report Reveals Healthcare Most Heavily Lobbied Sector in New Jersey” by Andrew Kitchenman for NJ Spotlight

New York: “How Lobbying in Albany Works” by Chris Smith for New Yorker

Campaign Finance

Colorado: “High-Powered Attorneys, Lobbyists Give Big to Denver Candidates” by Jon Murray for Denver Post

Connecticut: “Senate Democrats Reject Campaign Finance Overhaul” by Jenny Wilson for Hartford Courant

Ethics

Alaska: “Juneau APOC Office Skeletal after Cuts” by Katie Moritz (Morris News Service) for Peninsula Chronicle

Oregon: “House Unanimously Passes Kate Brown’s Plan to Remake Oregon Ethics Panel” by Denis Theriault for Portland Oregonian

South Carolina: “Former State Senator Robert Ford Gets No Jail Times” by John Monk for The State

Texas: “Abbott Gets Bill Limiting Ethics Disclosures” by Jay Root for Texas Tribune

Vermont: “Condos Pitches Ethics Commission in Wake of Impropriety Allegations” by Anne Galloway for VTDigger.org

Procurement

Texas: “Overhaul of Scandal-Torn State-Contracting System Wins Final Approval” by Dave Montgomery for Fort Worth Star-Telegram

Q. The Canadian branch of our company would like to set up some meetings with the federal government.  Does Canada have lobbying laws too?

A. Canada does have lobbying laws at the federal, provincial, and even municipal levels of government.

For the federal government, in-house lobbyists must register when the collective time devoted to lobbying activities by all of its employees reaches or exceeds 20 percent of the duties of a single equivalent-paid employee of the corporation or organization during a calendar month. Lobbying is communicating with public officeholders on behalf of another person or entity.

If the above threshold is reached, the senior most paid person of the company is required to file a registration and become the registrant. This registration will contain a list of all the names of the employees whose job duties include lobbying in some fashion.

Once registered, the registrant is required to file monthly returns. A return is the Canadian form of a report. The returns are due on the 15th day of the month. On this return, the registrant simply reports any communications that were had with public officeholders and the date and content of those meetings. The monthly return does not need to be filed if: (1) no communications with public officeholders took place that month; (2) no information on the registration needs to be amended; and (3) the undertaking has not been performed or terminated.

It isn’t just lobbying the federal government that you have to worry about, either. Almost all of the provinces have a separate lobbying law, and the major cities throughout the country are starting to pass lobbying laws as well. If you have specific questions related to your company’s activities in Canada, we will be more than happy to help you.

You can directly submit questions for this feature, and we will select those most appropriate and answer them here. Send your questions to: marketing@stateandfed.com.

(We are always available to answer questions from clients that are specific to your needs, and we encourage you to continue to call or e-mail us with questions about your particular company or organization. As always, we will confidentially and directly provide answers or information you need.) Our replies to your questions are not legal advice. Instead, these replies represent our analysis of laws, rules, and regulations.

Lobbying Commissioner Karen Shepherd has released the new Lobbyists’ Code of Conduct, providing additional regulation of those attempting to influence federal decision making.

Among other provisions, the new code creates a “sense of obligation” test, prohibiting a lobbyist from lobbying an official where they share a relationship close enough to create a sense of obligation. Additionally, the new code prohibits a lobbyist from providing gifts to a government official, regardless of whether or not the official is being lobbied.

The code’s effective date has yet to be determined; however, it is expected to take effect sometime after the summer.

Lobbying

“Bottom Line” in The Hill.

“Feds have few tools to track foreign lobbying” by Julian Hattem in The Hill.

“Squire Patton Boggs turns 1” by Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Hastert’s Lobbying Firm Rocked by His Indictment” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

Kansas: “Kansas Lawmakers Approve Changes In Election, Lobbying Laws” by The Associated Press on KMUW Witchita Public Radio.

Campaign Finance

“Poll Shows Americans Favor Overhaul of Campaign Financing” by Nicholas Confessore and Megan Thee-Brenan in The New York Times.

“Why States’ Campaign Donation Limits Could Be in Jeopardy” by Alan Greenblatt in Governing.

Ethics

“Hastert to appear before judge who donated to campaign” by Michael Tarm and Sara Burnett (Associated Press) in the San Francisco Chronicle.

“Dennis Hastert’s abrupt fall from college prestige” by Tarini Parti in Politico.

Pennsylvania: “2 Philadelphia Democrats Plead Guilty in Sting Case” by Angela Couloumbis and Craig R. McCoy in Governing.

Redistricting

Texas: “U.S. Supreme Court Takes On Texas Redistricting Case” by Patrick Svitek in Governing.

Government Tech

“Should Governments Trademark Twitter Hashtags?” by Brian Heaton in GovTech.

Lobbying

“JCOPE’s New Guidance, or: You might be a lobbyist if …” by Chris Bragg for Albany Times Union

Campaign Finance

Connecticut: “House Passes Significant Campaign Reforms; Will the Senate Take Up the Bill?” by Christine Stuart for CTNewsJunkie.com

Louisiana: “Report Urges Louisiana to Ban ‘Troublesome’ Utility Campaign Contributions” by Jennifer Larino for New Orleans Times-Picayune

Minnesota: “After Criticism, Sen. Alberta Darling Cancels Fundraiser” by Scott Bauer (Associated Press) for Minneapolis Star Tribune

Pennsylvania: “City Council Gives Initial Thumbs Up To New Rules on Independent PACs” by Mike Dunn for KYW

Ethics

“Should We Pay Politicians More?” by Kevin Hartnett for Politico

“Clinton Foundation Paid Blumenthal $10K per Month While He Advised on Libya” by Kenneth Vogel for Politico

“How Dennis Hastert Made His Millions” by Tarini Parti for Politico

“Payments by Hastert Linked to Report of Sexual Abuse” by Michael Shear and Michael Schmidt for New York Times

Hawaii: “Under Fire: Hawaii ethics director defends his strict ethical views” by Ian Lind for Honolulu Civil Beat

New York: “Schneiderman Vows ‘Reform for All New Yorkers’ With Anti-Corruption Bill” by Will Bredderman for New York Observer

Oregon: “High-Ranking State Official Leaked Thousands of John Kitzhaber’s Personal Emails” by Laura Gunderson and Jeff Manning for Portland Oregonian

New York: “Grand Jury Indicts Dean Skelos, Ex-New York Senate Leader, and Son in Corruption Case” by William Rashbaum for New York Times

Elections

“George Pataki Announces Presidential Campaign” by David Fahrenthold for Washington Post

Legislative Issues

Arkansas: “Arkansas Primary Change Would Be Temporary under Compromise” by Andrew DeMillo and Claudia Lauer (Associated Press) for Washington Times

National:

Meet the ‘Dark Money’ Phantom
Center for Public Integrity – Carrie Levine | Published: 5/26/2015

David Langdon is a behind-the-scenes player among the small army of lawyers working to keep secret the origins of millions of dollars flowing to candidates. Langdon is also a legal soldier for conservative, often Christian, nonprofit organizations that together spend millions more to influence public policy and wield great influence among evangelical voters. Since the 2010 election cycle, at least 11 groups connected to Langdon or his firm have collectively spent at least $22 million on federal and state elections and ballot initiatives around the country.

Should We Pay Politicians More?
Politico – Kevin Hartnett | Published: 5/27/2015

The prime minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, makes $1.7 million a year, more than four times as much as the next highest paid national executive – Barack Obama, who earns $400,000 a year. In Singapore, the salaries are seen as an anti-corruption measure. In the U.S., the idea of paying elected officials like corporate chief executives is politically unthinkable. But Renee Bowen, an economist at Stanford, and Cecilia Mo, a political scientist at Vanderbilt, used a game-theory model to argue that when elected representatives are paid more, they are more invested in keeping their jobs, and more likely to pursue citizen-friendly policies.

Federal:

FEC Deadlocks on Wealthy Donor Giving Limits
Washington Times – Tom Howell, Jr. | Published: 5/21/2015

The FEC deadlocked on a proposal to write new rules in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s McCutcheon decision last year that struck down aggregate campaign finance limits, freeing wealthy Americans to contribute money to as many candidates and political parties as they want. Democrats on the FEC signaled they had been chastened by another effort last year to impose campaign finance rules on Internet videos, after 5,000 comments poured in to commissioners telling them to lay off Internet speech as they considered post-McCutcheon rules.

K Street’s Gains Felt at Boutique Firms, Too
The Hill – Megan Wilson | Published: 5/27/2015

The surge in business on K Street during the first months of 2015 was not limited to Washington’s biggest lobby shops as many smaller lobby and law firms also saw gains. Smaller firms have long decried the standard practice of evaluating Washington’s top shops by earnings alone, arguing it puts them at a disadvantage by appearing to not keep up with their much larger counterparts. When looking at the figures posted by K Street for the first three months of the year, analysts instead ranked industry players on year-over-year increases in total and average per-client revenue, fees per lobbyist, and client retention rates.

Supreme Court to Weigh Meaning of ‘One Person One Vote’
New York Times – Adam Liptak | Published: 5/26/2015

The U.S. Supreme Court said it will decide an important “one person, one vote” case next term to determine whether states should consider total population – or only eligible voters – when drawing roughly equal legislative districts. A shift from using total population would have an enormous impact in states with large immigrant populations, where greater numbers are children or noncitizens. It would shift power from urban areas to more rural districts. The Supreme Court in 1964 ruled states must divide electoral districts population-wise so that political power is equally shared. But it did not specify whether total population or eligible voters was the standard to use.

From the States and Municipalities:

Arizona – Phone Records Show Close Contact between Regulator, APS and ‘Dark Money’
Arizona Republic – Ryan Randazzo | Published: 5/21/2015

Debates over solar energy, and a flood of money from non-profit groups into the campaigns for those who sought to regulate utilities, marked the 2014 Arizona Corporation Commission election. During that time, commission Chairperson Bob Stump sent more than 50 private text messages to an Arizona Public Service Co. (APS) executive and 46 to a political “dark money” organizer, according to a non-profit investigating the commission. Critics say regulators should not have such close contact with the utilities they oversee, and the utilities should not be participating in political campaigns, which could violate election laws and rules that prevent elected officials from campaigning with public resources. APS is widely believed to have contributed to groups that supported two Republicans in the Corporation Commission race, but utility officials will neither confirm nor deny such contributions.

Hawaii – Under Fire: Hawaii ethics director defends his strict ethical views
Honolulu Civil Beat – Ian Lind | Published: 5/27/2015

The Hawaii Ethics Commission is evaluating its executive director, Les Kondo, following complaints that he was going too far with ethics rules. House Speaker Joseph Souki sent a letter to the commission complaining about its “recent attempts to prohibit common and regular practices,” including receiving gifts, meals, and charitable fundraiser tickets of a certain value. Teachers also have been upset about a recommendation that educators who organize and chaperone educational trips should not get a free ride from tour companies. “It’s not my job to tell people what they want to hear or let them do what they want to do; it’s my job to do what’s right, not what’s popular,” Kondo told his colleagues.

Missouri – Lawmakers Fail to Ramp up Ethics Laws for Missouri Officials
Columbia Missourian – Summer Ballentine (Associated Press) | Published: 5/24/2015

Despite months of discussions and assurances from legislative leaders who said this year would be different, ethics reform fell apart in the last few weeks of the session. That means Missouri for at least another year will remain the only state with the trio of unlimited campaign contributions, uncapped lobbyist gifts, and no laws preventing legislators from leaving office and immediately becoming lobbyists. Lawmakers’ failure to pass ethics bills comes as the Capitol is under increased scrutiny after the House ended the legislative session in scandal. Former House Speaker John Diehl admitted to exchanging sexually suggestive text messages with a 19-year-old Capitol intern and resigned the last day of the session.

Montana – Court Reverses Ruling on Montana Campaign Contribution Limits
The Missoulian – Matt Volz (Associated Press) | Published: 5/26/2015

The Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals invoked the Supreme Court’s Citizen United decision to raise the bar for states to justify limiting campaign donations. States can limit contributions if they have a legitimate interest in doing so. But proving that interest has changed since the Citizens United decision that said corporations can spend unlimited amounts in elections, said the three-judge panel. Before Citizens United, states only had to show they aimed to curb the influence of big money on politicians. After Citizens United, states must show more specifically that their laws are stopping an exchange of money for political favors, according to the opinion. The ruling by the Ninth Circuit was made in a case that challenged Montana’s contribution limits as violating donors’ rights to free speech.

New York – JCOPE’s New Guidance, or: You might be a lobbyist if …
Albany Times Union – Chris Bragg | Published: 5/27/2015

Proposed rules issued by the Joint Commission on Public Ethics said political consultants who take certain actions related to lobbying efforts must register, even if they do not directly ask lawmakers or agencies to act on bills or regulations. That could force firms that currently enjoy close relationships with New York lawmakers, and which simultaneously have clients with interests before those legislators, to start disclosing more interactions with them. Another provision directs firms who control the message and content of grassroots lobbying campaigns to register as lobbyists.

Oregon – Forget Fines – Oregon Prefers Warnings for Public Officials Guilty of Ethics Violations
Portland Oregonian – Nick Budnick and Laura Gunderson | Published: 5/26/2015

The Portland Oregonian found the state ethics commission has deliberately lightened up on those accused of abusing their public positions. The Oregon Government Ethics Commission has negotiated reduced penalties for every case it has handled involving a public official since 2008. “The commission is not one where we stand there looking to punish someone,” said Chairperson Kenny Montoya. Ron Bersin, the agency’s executive director, said the commission relies on education and training to keep public officials honest, but the panel hammers errant public officials when it is justified.

Tennessee – Ethics Panel Fading to Obscurity 10 Years after Tenn. Waltz
Albany Times Union – Erik Schelzig (Associated Press) | Published: 5/25/2015

May 26 marked the 10th anniversary of the arrest of five former lawmakers in the FBI’s sting operation called “Tennessee Waltz.” The case involved a scheme by state lawmakers to collect money in exchange for shepherding through bills on behalf of E-Cycle Management, which was an FBI front company. Following the scandal, lawmakers were spurred into trying to improve transparency and ethics in the statehouse. A decade later, most of those efforts have faded.

Texas – House Passes Ethics Bill, Senate Showdown Likely
Texas Tribune – Jay Root | Published: 5/26/2015

The Texas House approved an ethics bill that would force disclosure of “dark money” in campaigns. The legislation would also lower the amount lobbyists can spend to entertain state officials without disclosing the names of the politicians. But the House turned down an amendment to close a loophole that allows lobbyists to easily evade that disclosure by teaming up with other lobbyists to spend far more than the current $114, lowered to $50 in the House bill. The measure faces a showdown with the Senate over the details of their competing versions.

Vermont – Legislative Wrap: Lobbyist disclosure tops transparency effort
VTDigger.org – Erin Mansfield | Published: 5/22/2015

Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin is expected to sign Senate Bill 93, which increases the number of times per year that lobbyists and their employers must file expenditure reports from three to seven. Lobbyists are already required to register with the secretary of state’s office, but they only need to report spending once during the legislative session – April 25, when the session is almost over. The new law would require monthly reporting while lawmakers are in Montpelier. The bill also requires lobbying groups to disclose the name of the organization in ads and file a report within 48 hours of running an advertising campaign worth $1,000 or more.

Virginia – Conservative Group Paying Ken Cuccinelli’s Campaign
Washington Post – Rachel Weiner | Published: 5/26/2015

Former Virginia Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli won a legal victory against a conservative PAC he accused of duping campaign donors. Cuccinelli and the Conservative StrikeForce PAC reached a settlement that will prohibit the PAC from using a candidate’s name for future fundraising efforts against the candidate’s wishes. The PAC also agreed to pay Cuccinelli’s failed gubernatorial campaign $85,000 and give it exclusive rights to the PAC’s direct mail and email donor lists. Cuccinelli said the PAC used his name without his permission to mislead “thousands of innocent Americans” who thought they were helping his campaign.

State and Federal Communications produces a weekly summary of national news, offering more than 60 articles per week focused on ethics, lobbying, and campaign finance.

The Miami-Dade Clerk of the Courts has announced a new online lobbyist registration system will launch on June 1, 2015.

Current lobbyist information will be transferred to the new system and lobbyists will receive temporary log in information via email in order to create a profile.

This release only affects registration; however, plans to incorporate expenditure reporting are forthcoming.

Lobbying

“K Street’s Gains Felt at Boutique Firms, Too” by Megan Wilson for The Hill

Campaign Finance

“Campaign Finance Watchdogs Push Justice Dept. to Investigate Jeb Bush’s PAC” by Ed O’Keefe for Washington Post

“Arkansas AG Rejects Language for Campaign Finance Issue” by The Associated Press for Washington Times

Virginia: “Conservative Group Paying Ken Cuccinelli’s Campaign” by Rachel Weiner for Washington Post

Wisconsin: “Sen. Alberta Darling Fundraiser Called ‘Shakedown’ for Lobbyist Cash” by Mike Ivey for Capital Times

Ethics

New York: “Fired Aide Pays $4,000 in Sandy Scandal” by Casey Seiler for Albany Times Union

New York: “Judge Rules Larry Seabrook, Ex-New York Councilman, Must Forfeit His Pension” by Benjamin Weiser for New York Times

Texas: “House Passes Ethics Bill, Senate Showdown Likely” by Jay Root for Texas Tribune

Elections

“Rick Santorum Is Entering Republican 2016 Presidential Race” by Trip Gabriel for New York Times

Legislative Issues

“Members Living in Their Offices Rent-Free Adds Up” by David Hawkings for Roll Call

Lobbying

Georgia: “Legislators and Corporate Lobbyists Meet in Secret at Georgia Resort” by Brendan Keefe and Michael King for WXIA

Vermont: “Legislative Wrap: Lobbyist disclosure tops transparency effort” by Erin Mansfield for VTDigger.org

Campaign Finance

“Meet the ‘Dark Money’ Phantom” by Carrie Levine for Center for Public Integrity

“Push to Name Donors in Political Ads Hits FCC Roadblock” by Mario Trujillo for The Hill

Montana: “MT’s Campaign-Donor Limits Still Up in the Air” by Katherine Proctor for Courthouse News Service

Ethics

“Clinton Foundation Reveals Up to $26 Million in Additional Payments” by Rosalind Helderman and Tom Hamburger for Washington Post

California: “California Fund Has Little Oversight” by The Associated Press for Contra Costa Times

Missouri: “Lawmakers Fail to Ramp up Ethics Laws for Missouri Officials” by Summer Ballentine (Associated Press) for Columbia Missourian

Oklahoma; “Former Oklahoma Legislators’ Bribery Convictions Upheld” by Nolan Clay for The Oklahoman

Oregon: “Forget Fines – Oregon Prefers Warnings for Public Officials Guilty of Ethics Violations” by Nick Budnick and Laura Gunderson for Portland Oregonian

Tennessee: “Ethics Panel Fading to Obscurity 10 Years after Tenn. Waltz” by Erik Schelzig (Associated Press) for Albany Times Union

Elections

“Republicans Seek to Bridge Gap with Latinos in Colorado and Beyond” by Jack Healy for New York Times

Redistricting

“Supreme Court to Weigh Meaning of ‘One Person One Vote’” by Adam Liptak for New York Times

Lobbying

“At K Street’s No. 1 Lobby Shop, Ties to Clinton Run Deep” by Megan Wilson for The Hill

California: “‘Stalking’ of Pro-Vaccine Lobbyists Prompts Warning from Doctors’ Group” by Jeremy White for Fresno Bee

Kansas: “Records: Gov. Sam Brownback, aides still consult with ex-chief of staff, now a lobbyist” by Bryan Lowry for Wichita Eagle

Nevada: “Legislative ‘Cooling Off’ Lobbying Law Passes Nevada Senate” by Sandra Chereb for Las Vegas Review-Journal

Campaign Finance

“FEC Deadlocks on Wealthy Donor Giving Limits” by Tom Howell, Jr. for Washington Times

“Gyrocopter Pilot Indicted on Six Charges” by Jesse Byrnes for The Hill

“Rove’s Crossroads PAC Is No Longer G.O.P.’s ‘Big Dog;” by Eric Lichtblau and Maggie Haberman for New York Times

Arizona: “Phone Records Show Close Contact between Regulator, APS and ‘Dark Money’” by Ryan Randazzo for Arizona Republic

Ethics

New Jersey: “Christie Leaves Cowboys Tickets off His Disclosure Form” by Maddie Hanna and Andrew Seidman for Philadelphia Inquirer

South Carolina: “Pinson Given 5 Years in Prison” by John Monk for The State

The Suffolk County Legislature passed a resolution on May 12, 2015, to strengthen county lobbying law. Resolution 356 amends the definition of lobbying to include every person or organization retained, employed, or designated by any client to engage in lobbying before the county.

The ordinance also changes the administering body of lobbying regulations to the Clerk of the Legislature.

The resolution becomes effective upon approval by the County Executive; such approval is expected as early as the end of June.

The state’s legislature has agreed to a bill amending the code of ethics.

Senate Bill 850, now known as Public Act 15-15, creates an additional exception to the definition of expenditure, adds to who is not included in the definition of a lobbyist, and raises the threshold for lobbyist registration from $2,000 to $3,000.

After passing both chambers, the measure awaits the governor’s signature. If signed, the new provisions will be effective January 1, 2016.

Photo of the Connecticut State Capitol by jglazer75 on Wikimedia Commons.

Lobbying

“Much of Northrop Grumman’s Washington Influence Flies under the Radar” by Peter Olsen-Phillips for Sunlight Foundation

Maine: “Senator Accepted Flight from J.D. Irving While Promoting Looser Mining Laws” by Lance Tapley (Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting) for The Sun Journal

Pennsylvania: “Pa. Officials Report More than $160K in Gifts, Travel in 2014” by Mark Scolforo (Associated Press) for Harrisburg Patriot-News

Rhode Island: “R.I. Secretary of State Gorbea Seeks Lobbying Changes” by Jennifer Bogdan for Providence Journal

Campaign Finance

“Partisanship Stalemates FEC, Says Report” by Ben Kamisar for The Hill

California: “LACMA Expansion, Ridley-Thomas, ‘Super PAC’ Intersect in Email Trail” by Robert Faturechi and Jack Dolan for Los Angeles Times

Ethics

North Carolina: “NC Senator’s Private Legal Work Mixes with State Policy” by Lynn Bonner for Charlotte Observer

Oregon: “Oregon House Passes Resolution to Create Impeachment Process for Governor” by Ian Kullgren for Portland Oregonian

Elections

Pennsylvania: “Jim Kenney Wins Philadelphia’s Democratic Primary for Mayor” by Sheryl Gay Stolberg for New York Times

Legislative Issues

California: “Details Hidden On Legislative Lawyers Drafting Bills for Influential Groups” by John Meyers (CaliforniaReport.org) for Capitol Public Radio

Lobbying

EU: “A Test of the EU’s Revolving Door” by James Panichi for Politico

“Critics Hear E.P.A.’s Voice in ‘Public Comments’” by Eric Lipton and Coral Davenport for New York Times

Louisiana: “Lobbyists Pay for Louisiana Officials’ Trip, Recipients Don’t Disclose It” by Lee Zurik (WVUE) and Ben Myers for New Orleans Times-Picayune

Maryland: “Maryland Changes Rules Again on Political Contribution Disclosure by Government Contractors; Lobbyist-Employers Also Affected” by Lawrence Norton, Ronald Jacobs, and Julie McConnell for Lexology

Campaign Finance

New Jersey: “N.J. Election Watchdog Gets New Member, but Remains Short-Staffed” by Ted Sherman (NJ Advance Media) for Newark Star-Ledger

Wisconsin: “Records Indicate Scott Walker Was Copied on Letter Promising Loan to Donor” by Jason Stein and Patrick Marley for Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Ethics

“Clinton Friend’s Libya Role Blurs Lines of Politics and Business” by Nicholas Confessore and Michael Schmidt for New York Times

Arkansas: “Fiscal 2016 Budget Cut Vexes Ethics Panel Chief” by Spencer Willems for Arkansas Online

Kansas: “Gov. Sam Brownback Also Used Private E-Mail Address to Communicate with Staff” by Bryan Lowry for Wichita Eagle

New York: “Albany Corruption Inquiry Hurts Arizona Company That Hired Dean Skelos’s Son” by Susanne Craig for New York Times