On February 2, 2015, the commissioners of the Joint Commission on Public Ethics (JCOPE) issued a report to the governor and the Legislature outlining requested changes to existing ethics and lobbying laws. Among their recommendations are mandatory electronic filing for lobbyists and lobbyist employers, disclosure of political consulting or fundraising activities undertaken by lobbyists, assessment of financial penalties for non-compliance with audits, and barring individuals or entities from acting as lobbyists if they have repeat violations of the Lobbying Act.

The report also notes the need for a review of the Lobbying Act to ensure all forms of government advocacy, including grassroots lobbying and strategic consulting, are being captured for reporting purposes.

According to the Times Union, Gov. Cuomo said he is willing to delay budget negotiations in exchange for an ethics reform package from the Legislature, incorporating the recommendations of the JCOPE.

The entire report is available here.

A federal lawsuit has been filed against Gov. Andrew Cuomo in an attempt to force the governor to call a special election for the congressional vacancy left by former Rep. Michael Grimm. Grimm resigned from Congress in early 2015 after pleading guilty to felony tax fraud.

By law, Cuomo must call a special election to fill the seat and such election must take place 70 to 80 days after it is announced. However, the governor has no present plans of calling a special election, angering the constituents of Grimm’s former district, which encompasses Staten Island and southern Brooklyn.

The suit alleges constitutional violations and requests the court to compel Cuomo to call a special election.

Judge Jack Weinstein of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York will hear the case on February 13, 2015.

Photo of Governor Cuomo courtesy of Pat Arnow on Wikipedia.

Assemblyman Carl Heastie has been elected speaker of the New York State Assembly. The election was held due to outgoing speaker Sheldon Silver being arrested on federal corruption charges.

Heastie, a Democrat from the Bronx, has served in the Assembly since 2000. He is the first speaker from the Bronx, and also the first African-American to be speaker.

Photo of Assemblyman Carl Heastie courtesy of the New York State Assembly website.

A bill introduced in the New York Senate would impose new reporting requirements on lobbyists and lobbyist employers, as well as limit political contributions from lobbyists and certain other persons. The bill also contains pay-to-play restrictions.

Senate Bill 02505 requires lobbyists, certain business entities, persons with ownership interests or senior level management within such entities, and family members of any of the foregoing to file campaign finance reports when making contributions to the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, and state legislators.

The bill further limits the amount of any contribution made to any of those offices or associated political committees. The bill requires lobbyists and lobbyist employers to disclose contributions to the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, and state legislators on their periodic reports.

Senate Bill 02505 requires state contractors with contracts totaling more than $50,000 and persons who own more than 10 percent of any business entity having such a contract, senior management personnel in such a business entity, and family members of the foregoing persons to file campaign finance reports. The bill also limits contributions from such persons to the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, and state legislators and affiliated political committees for the duration of the qualifying contract.

Senate Bill 02505 was referred to the Senate Committee on Finance on January 28, 2015.

State Rep. Sheldon Silver will no longer be speaker of the New York State Assembly beginning Monday, February 2, 2015. Silver was arrested on federal corruption and bribery charges earlier this month. It is not clear whether Silver is resigning voluntarily or being forced out by a vote.

Silver said, “I won’t hinder any succession process . . . [but] I will be a member of this house. I was elected by my constituents and I do not intend to resign my seat in this house.”

Assembly Majority Leader Joe Morelle will serve as the acting speaker until an election for a new speaker is held on February 10, 2015.

Assemblyman Sheldon Silver, speaker of the New York State Assembly, was arrested on federal corruption charges. He is accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes. Mr. Silver, a Democrat, has served as speaker for more than 20 years.

According to the New York Times, the corruption charges stem from accusations of using his position to obtain corrupt payments misrepresented as referral fees from a law firm; funneling state research funds and other benefits to a doctor who in return referred asbestos claims to the law firm where the speaker worked; and secretly helping real estate developers win tax breaks.

In New York, state legislators who are charged with crimes can continue to serve unless and until convicted of a felony, at which point the legislator must leave office.

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.

The Suffolk County Legislature introduced an ordinance amending the county’s lobbying law. Resolution No. 1658-2014 expands the definition of lobbying to include attempts to influence county agencies with respect to the procurement of goods, services, or public works. The ordinance also changes the overseeing body of lobbyist filings from the Clerk of the Legislature to the Board of Ethics.

The ordinance would further require the Board to develop a protocol to review sources of information that may assist the Board in identifying non-complying lobbyists. This provision is similar to a recent change made to New York City’s lobbying law aimed at identifying non-complying lobbyists.

If passed, the ordinance will take effect January 1, 2015.

The New York Times Editorial Board has declined to endorse Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the New York gubernatorial primary election. Citing Cuomo’s failure to eliminate political corruption in Albany and throughout the state, despite campaign promises to do so, the editorial board wrote, “The state government remains as subservient to big money as ever.”

The board further declined to endorse any candidate in the Democratic primary, because the other candidate, Fordham law professor Zephyr Teachout, “does not have the breadth of interests and experience needed to govern a big and diverse state.”

Cuomo is heavily favored in the primary as he is the incumbent and has amassed vastly greater resources than his opponent. The New York state primary election will take place on September 9, 2014.

Photo of Gov. Andrew Cuomo by Diana Robinson on Wikimedia Commons.

The New York City Council is considering a measure increasing disclosure requirements for those making independent expenditures to influence city elections. Introduction 148 will require individuals and entities making independent expenditures totaling $5,000 or more to disclose the owners, partners, board members, or their equivalents of any entity reporting the expenditure. The measure further requires an individual or entity who transfers $1,000 or more to another individual or entity for the purpose of such other individual or entity making independent expenditures to report the transfer of money as if the transferor has directly made the independent expenditure.

Another provision of the measure requires individuals or entities to disclose detailed information on any electioneering communications, such as the top five donors to the entity responsible for the communication, and names of the owner and CEO of the entity.

Amy Loprest, the executive director of the New York City Campaign Finance Board, applauded the new disclosure requirements, saying, “This legislation will give voters a more complete view of who is paying for the campaign ads that fill their mailboxes and airwaves.”

If passed, Introduction 148 will take effect one year after its enactment.

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 New York State Board of Elections will no longer enforce the $150,000 yearly aggregate limit on political contributions from individuals. In its May 2014 meeting, the board determined the limit can no longer be enforced in light of recent federal court decisions.

New York campaign finance law imposes a similar aggregate limit of $5,000 on a corporation’s yearly contributions. The board made no ruling with regard to the corporate limit; however that limit is currently being challenged in federal court.

In late 2013, the New York City Council passed Local Law 129 of 2013, making many changes to current lobbying law in the city and surrounding boroughs. Many of the new law’s provisions are effective today, May 16, 2014.

The definition of lobbying is revised to include attempts to influence legislation not yet introduced, legislation at the state and federal level, and mayoral executive vetoes. It is also revised to include attempts to influence the agenda or calendaring of a meeting of a board or commission. The revised definition excludes architects and engineers as lobbyists under certain parameters, and the law now imposes a $10,000 registration threshold for such individuals should they undertake lobbying activities. The registration threshold for all other lobbyists is $5,000.

Local Law 129 of 2013 requires more detailed disclosure on the statement of registration and on periodic reports. The new law further establishes a first-of-its-kind amnesty program, allowing noncomplying lobbyists to enroll in the program and be exonerated of late filing fees and applicable civil and criminal penalties dating back to December 10, 2006.

Provisions taking effect in the future include a mandatory lobbyist training program and the practice of the city clerk reviewing sources of information such as state lobbyist filings and the Doing Business Database to identify lobbyists required to register who have not done so.

Photo of the New York City Hall courtesy of Momos on Wikimedia Commons.