National:

Lax State Rules Provide Cover for Sponsors of Attack Ads

Federal:

IG Report: ‘Inappropriate criteria’ stalled IRS approvals of conservative groups

SEC Pressed to Abandon Corporate Political Spending Disclosures Petition

From the States and Municipalities:

Alabama – GOP Considers Campaign Changes While Raising Money

Alabama – The Alabama Democratic Party: “We’re broke, broke, broke”

California – Cap on Political Party Contributions Moves Forward

Hawaii – Campaign Spending and Ethics Get Tech Upgrades

Missouri – Missouri Ethics Panel Fines Ex-Sen. Wright-Jones $270,000

New Jersey – Pay-to-Play Rollback Will Get One More Volley in Bergen, Pitting County Executive vs. Freeholders

New York – Ethics Panel Criticizes Assembly’s Response to Allegations against Lopez

Tennessee – Ethics Commission to Hold Hearing on Ingram Group ‘Oversight’

Tennessee – Lobbying Still Thriving Business in Nashville

Texas – House Sends Donor Disclosure Bill to Gov. Perry

Vermont – Campaign Finance Reform Failure Means Caps on Donations Unlikely to Occur until 2016 Campaign Cycle

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.

Lobbying

“Lobbyists Snag Top Staff Positions on Capitol Hill” by Lee Fang in The Nation.

Tennessee: “Tom Ingram faces possible fine for failing to register as lobbyist” by Tom Humphrey in the Knoxville News.

Texas: “Lobbyist transparency bill sent to Perry” by The Associated Press in the Houston Chronicle.

Campaign Finance

FEC commissioners speak: “Hard truths of campaign finance” opinion piece by Donald F. McGahn, Caroline Hunter and Matthew Petersen in Politico.

“Why Big Money Still Won in 2012” by Jonathan Backer in the Huffington Post.

Alabama: “Bill before House today repeal state limit on corporate campaign contributions; Lawmaker says it’s a ‘pretend’ cap” by Kim Chandler in the Birmingham News.

New Jersey:  “Lawmakers Get Cold Feet About Campaign Finance” by Hank Kalet in NJ Spotlight.

New York: “Carlucci, other senators study plans for campaign finance reform” by Laura Incalcaterra in the Journal News.

Ethics

New York: “Ex-lawmaker to be sentenced in NYC in fraud case” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Daily Star.

Political Advertising

“House Backs Updating Rules on Political Ad Disclosures” by Becca Aaronson in the Texas Tribune.

Government Tech and Social Media

“Ohio City Deploys 2-in-1 Email and Social Media Archiving” by Sarah Rich in Government Technology.

Procurement

“Most Top Contractors Increased Business With Federal Government in 2012” by Eric Katz in Government Executive.

Lobbying

“K Street’s bounce proves elusive” by Kevin Bogardus and Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.

“Chamber of Commerce Still Keeping Lobbyists Busy” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

“Religious Groups Throw Lobbying Cash at Immigration Reform” by Elizabeth Flock in U.S. News & World Report.

Montreal, Quebec: “City asked to investigate undeclared lobbying” by Monique Beaudin in the Montreal Gazette.

Pennsylvania: “Mensch: Improve Campaign Finance, Lobbyist Reporting” in the Lehigh Valley Patch.

Campaign Finance

New York: “Reform does work, New York” editorial piece by Denise Merrill,  the Connecticut secretary of the state and Miles Rapoport, president of Demos and former Connecticut secretary of the state in the Albany Times Union.

Ethics

District of Columbia: “D.C. wraps audit of Gray campaign, doesn’t release findings” by Alan Blinder in the Washington Examiner.

New York: “NY governor replaces head of troubled ethics board with lawyer who represented Bernard Madoff” by The Associated Press in the Washington Post.

Procurement

Ohio: “Franklin County, Ohio, Builds Transparent Procurement System From Scratch” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.

Government Tech and Social Media

“Federal Web Visitors are Coming Via Mobile” by Joseph Marks in Nextgov.

Lobbying

“Former Rep. Connie Mack joins lobby firm” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

Washington: “66 Wash. lobbyists get warning letters for lack of transparency” by Austin Jenkins on KPLU.org.

Campaign Finance

“Proposal could drag political funding into the light” by Michael Kirkland in the United Press International.

“Influence of big-money ‘SuperPACs’ not so clear” by Aaron Delatte in the Orlando Sentinel.

“Members of Congress Fill War Chests for Next Campaign” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

California: “Universities Join Effort to Overturn Citizens United Decision” by Anjuli Sastry on ABC News.

Florida: “Lawmakers raking in contributions even as they debate campaign law changes” by Jim Saunders in the Daytona Beach News-Journal.

Maryland: “Massive Campaign Finance Revamping Awaits Gov. O’Malley’s Pen” by The Associated Press on WNEW.

Missouri: “Ethics rules changes considered for KC leaders, employees” by Mike Hendricks in the Kansas City Star.

Missouri: “Time running short for Mo. campaign finance issues” by The Associated Press in the San Francisco Chronicle.

New York: “Public financing of campaigns could be a key issue in Albany” by Tom Wrobleski in the Staten Island Advance.

New York: “Senator Carlucci Unveils New Campaign Finance Reform Proposal” by Michael Riconda in the Rockland County Times.

Texas: “$27 Million Republican Political Donor Dies” by Kent Cooper in Roll Call.

Vermont: “Vt. Senate passes campaign finance law” by The Associated Press in the Boston Globe.

Ethics

Connecticut: “Donovan Campaign Manager Pleads Guilty” by Dave Altimari in the Hartford Courant.

Pennsylvania: “Latest Pa. scandal has some eyeing pay-to-play law” by Marc Levy in the Beaver County Times.

Texas: “Ethics commission up for review at Legislature” by Chris Tomlinson (Associated Press) in the Houston Chronicle.

Texas: “Exotic Trips, Luxury Gifts Are Perks of Elective Office” by Emily Ramshaw in the Texas Tribune.

Texas: “A Slim Chance for Lawmakers to Self-Regulate” by Ross Ramsey in the Texas Tribune.

From the State Legislatures

Nevada: “It’s roundup time for Nevada legislators, bills” by Sandra Chereb (Associated Press) in the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

Ohio:  “Former Rep. Charlie Wilson of Ohio dies at 70 after suffering stroke” by Jonathan Easley in The Hill.

Elections

“Alaska Legislature passes elections bill” by Joshua Berlinger (Associated Press) in the Anchorage Daily News.

Social Media and Government Technology

“Top Phoenix lobbyists sound off on the impact of social media” by Dale Brown in the Phoenix Business Journal.

“TechPresident Podcast: ‘Open Government’” by Nick Judd on TechPresident.

Lobbying

Georgia: “House makes ethics changes; Deal urges action” by Greg Bluestein, Aaron Gould Sheinin and Kristina Torres in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“Ex-lawmakers go to lobbying-related jobs” by Fredreka Schouten in USA Today.

“Facebook’s Zuckerberg to launch lobby group with Washington consultants” by Jennifer Martinez in The Hill.

Campaign Finance

Florida: “Friend of U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan evades prison time for illegal fundraising” by Susan Taylor Martin in the Tampa Bay Times.

Montana: “Bill to overhaul campaign finance law passes” by Charles S. Johnson in the Billings Gazette.

Ethics

“Michele Bachmann under investigation for campaign finance violations” by John Bresnahan and Byron Tau in Politico.

Connecticut: “Today’s lesson: Politicians dislike being called corrupt” by Mark Pazniokas in the Connecticut Mirror.

Texas: “Donations to Judicial Campaigns Spur Ethics Worries” by Maurice Chammah in the Texas Tribune.

Elections

Alabama: “Election runoffs targeted; legislation would allow candidates to win nominations with just 35 percent to win in a primary vote” by Brian Lyman in the Montgomery Advertiser.

Maine: “Bill would bar secretary of state, attorney general and treasurer from running for office” by Christopher Cousins in the Bangor Daily News.

From the State Legislatures

Idaho: “House targets Friday adjournment – barring mishaps” by The Associated Press in the Idaho State Journal.

South Dakota: “SD Legislature ends annual legislative session” in the Rapid City Journal.

Utah: “Utah Legislature passed record number of bills” by Lee Davidson in the Salt Lake Tribune.

Government Tech

“San Francisco Tells New York: Our Data Is Bigger Than Your Data” by Sarah Lai Stirland in TechPresident.

National:

Conflicts of Interest Run Rampant in State Legislatures

Democratic Women Eye City Hall Gains

From the States and Municipalities:

Arizona – Supreme Court Hears Arguments over Whether States Can Ask for Proof of Citizenship to Register

California – Bell Trial Ends in Chaos

California – Judge Orders San Jose to Disclose Officials’ Messages on Private Devices

Florida – Gaming Committee Chairman Relies on Flights from Gaming Lobbyist for Travel to Tallahassee

Georgia – State Senate Offers $100 Lobbying Cap in Split Plan

Kansas – Kansas House Passes Bill on Union Pay Deductions

Kentucky – Richie Farmer Could Be Fined $210,000 over 42 Ethics Violations

Maryland – Campaign Finance Reform Passes House and Is Moving in Senate

Maryland – Former Anne Arundel County Executive John Leopold Gets Jail Time from Judge

New Mexico – Social Media Plays a Bigger Role in Legislative Session

New York – Artists Against Fracking May Not Be Registered As New York Lobbying Group

South Carolina – Former Governor Advances in South Carolina Race

South Carolina – Misuse of SC State Plane Alleged

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.

State Representative Scott Drury has recently introduced two bills that would change the way lobbyists operate within the state. House Bill 2957 would change the definition of lobbying, thus causing more people to register as a lobbyist.

The bill would add communicating with a local government to influence action to the definition of lobbying. Therefore, all people who lobby a local government without a lobbying ordinance, the cities of Rockford and Springfield for example, would have to register as a lobbyist with the state. Also, those who lobby in a city with a lobbying ordinance, such as Chicago, would have to register with the state, in addition to their current city registration.

House Bill 2964 is a bill aimed at the state’s current prohibition on gifts. It would prohibit the relatives of a state officer, legislator, or employee from receiving prohibited gifts from a prohibited source (under state law, a lobbyist is considered a prohibited source). The bill also adds a new exception to the ban, adjusts one of the current exceptions, and abolishes another of the exceptions.

If the bill passes, a state officer, legislator, or employee would be allowed to accept admission to and the cost of food and beverages consumed at a reception, meal, or meeting by an organization before whom the recipient appears to speak or answer questions as part of a scheduled program where all members of the General Assembly were invited. This would replace the current exception for food and beverage, which allows for those to be provided if catered or consumed on the premises.

The bill would also limit the amount of travel expenses provided to $111 per day and the travel must be on a carrier available to the general public.

It remains to be seen whether either one of the bills will pass, but should they pass in their current form, it will change how lobbyists do business in the state.

Photo of the Illinois State Capitol by Daniel Schwen on Wikipedia.

Lobbying

“K St. ready for cybersercurity cash grab” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.

“Under Contract” in The Hill.

Illinois: “Lobbying push at Capitol as gun issue looms” by Rafael Guerrero in the Chicago Tribune.

Pennsylvania: “Gov. Tom Corbett may be open to a gift ban, spokeswoman suggests” by Jan Murphy in the Patriot-News.

Texas: “Watchdogs: Ethics Loopholes Obscure Lobby Perks” by Jay Root in the Texas Tribune.

Campaign Finance

Colorado: “David Sirota Moderates Discussion On Campaign Finance Reform, Democracy In Colorado” by Matt Ferner in the Huffington Post.

Ethics

California: “STATE LEGISLATURE: Area lawmakers given gifts, trips in 2012” by Jim Miller in the Press-Enterprise.

Florida: “Florida House bridles at Senate’s proposed ethics reforms” by Dara Kam in the Palm Beach Post.

Florida: “Matt Reed: Something to cheer, for a change, as Legislature opens” by Matt Reed in Florida Today.

Hawaii: “Hawaii Legislators Exempt Themselves from State Ethics Code” by Barbara Polk in the Hawaii Reporter.

Lobbying

“Ethics Watchdogs Planning to Crash Convention Parties” by Elizabeth Flock in U.S. News and World Report.

“Conservative lobby group’s guard shot in D.C.” by The Associated Press on CBS News.

Alabama: “Former lobbyist Jimmie Clements convicted in two-year college corruption case” by Jeremy Gray in the Birmingham News.

Maryland: “Last-minute lobbying intense for gambling expansion” by Earl Kelly in the Capital Gazette.

Campaign Finance

“Romney campaign bars press from Adelson, Ryan ‘finance meeting’” by Justin Sink in The Hill.

New Mexico:  “State Senate Dems launch PACs” by The Associated Press in the Santa Fe New Mexican.

West Virginia: “Lawsuit Filed Against Campaign Finance Pilot Program” on WDTV.com.

Ethics

New York: “State pols can’t accept US Open freebies, ethics panel rules” by Sally Goldenberg in the New York Post.

Hollywood’s new lobbyist ordinance takes effect August 1, 2012. Lobbyist registrations now expire yearly, and will be effective from August 1 to July 31 of the following year. All current lobbyist registrations will expire July 31, 2012, and a new registration statement must be filed.

There will also be an annual registration fee of $50 for each principal or client identified on the registration statement, except for those principals or clients that do not compensate the lobbyist for lobbying. Lobbyists who do not receive compensation are now required to register.

The city clerk will also offer electronic filing of lobbyist registrations beginning August 1.

Hawaii Governor Neil Abercrombie signed House Bill 2175 into law, exempting certain people from the state’s revolving door provisions.

In an effort to increase participation amongst the state’s experts and those with special knowledge, the law exempts members of a state task force from the revolving door provisions. A task force is a group which is created to study a specific problem for a specified period of time.

The law will take effect immediately.

Photo of Governor Abercrombie courtesy of Wikipedia.

“Jack Abramoff: Healthy ruling for lobbyists” by MJ Lee in Politico.

“Maryland lobbying totals led by gambling interests” by Annie Linskey in the Baltimore Sun.

“Groups Admit to Lobbying Illegally to Aid Mayor’s Plans” by Ray Rivera in The New York Times.

Take a look at The Hill’s “Lobbying World” news summary.

“Common Cause files complaint against Minnesota Majority” by Jennifer Brooks in the Star Tribune.

Video courtesy of Politico.

The Kentucky Legislative Ethics Commission has submitted a recommendation to the legislative research commission for several changes to the code of legislative ethics.

The recommended changes include:

• requiring employers of lobbyists to report the cost of advertising supporting or opposing legislation that appears during a session of the general assembly, if the cost is paid by an employer of lobbyists or a person affiliated with an employer;

• prohibiting employers of lobbyists and PACs from making campaign contributions to legislative candidates or legislators during a regular session of the general assembly, and prohibiting lobbyists from directly soliciting contributions for an election campaign of a legislator or legislative candidate;

• repeal the provision allowing each lobbyist and employer to spend up to $100 annually on food and beverages for each legislator and his or her immediate family, and prohibit lobbyists and employers from paying for out-of-state travel, food, or lodging expenses for legislators or candidates; and

• limiting the interaction between lobbyists and candidates who have filed to run for election to the general assembly, who are currently not subject to the $100 limit on food and beverage or prohibition on receiving anything of value from a lobbyist or employer.

“Washington’s Top Lobbying Groups Hire Mostly Men: BGOV Barometer” by Jonathan D. Salant and Jennifer Prince in Bloomberg News.

“Study: Lobbying bad for business?” by Tim Mak in Politico.

Here is the original study the above article references: “Corporate political giving doesn’t pay” by Amy Hodges in Rice University News & Media.

“K Street: ‘Let’s meet’; Hill staffers: ‘Text me’” by Dave Levinthal in Politico.

“The State of K Street: Work in the Shadows – Lobbying Rules That Were Meant to Regulate the Industry Have Spawned the Emergence of the Unlobbyist” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.

New York:  “Lobbyists directed contributions” by Jimmy Vielkind in the Albany Times Union.

New York: “Lobbyists gave state pols $1.8M” by Erik Kriss in the New York Post.

“Are politicians too rich to understand us?” by Timothy Stanley on CNN.

“Hotel industry’s top lobbyist bringing it back to Main Street” by Elise Viebeck in The Hill.