We now provide information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for:

Hampton, Virginia

Hollywood, Florida

We now provide information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for:

Elizabeth, New Jersey

Eugene, Oregon

Lakewood, Colorado

U.S. Representative Anna G. Eshoo has sent a letter to President Obama in support of a proposed executive order requiring federal contractors to disclose their political expenditures. The letter was signed by more than sixty members of the House.

In part the letter reads, “[D]isclosure will not politicize the procurement process–it will improve it. Political expenditures are already well-known to those that make them and to the officials who benefit. With disclosure, the public will have access to this information as well, allowing them to judge whether contracts were awarded based on merit.”

The proposed executive order has received both support and opposition since its leak in the spring, and even sparked a house committee hearing in May.

For previous articles on Lobby Comply by George Ticoras on this topic, you can read posts from June 1, May 20, May 12, and May 10.

By Labor Day, our clients will find 36 additional municipalities included on our website. As they are completed, we will update our postings so you can check out the additional resources.

Right now, we have provided information on lobbying, political contributions, and procurement lobbying for Alexandria, Virginia (my former home) and Tacoma, Washington.

In the future look for additional cities in New York, Arizona, and Michigan.

Massachusetts House Republicans have introduced an outline of ethics reform for members which includes some restrictions on lobbyists. The ethics changes, which have not yet been introduced, would require lobbyists to wear badges identifying themselves as such and prohibit lobbyists from entering the House chamber or the members’ lounge, with some exceptions. Additionally, House members and their staff would be forbidden from contacting public entities regarding pending procurement decisions.

The Republican members have stated the proposed code will not be introduced until next week to allow the House Democrats to co-sponsor the new ethics rules.

Photo of the interior of the Massachusetts State House by Daniel Schwen on Wikipedia.

As part of the Governor’s Entrepreneurial Business Conference, Governor Jack Markell unveiled a new website to expedite the process of doing business with the state.

The new website http://mymarketplace.delaware.gov, serves as a single information source for the entire procurement process.

The website was developed by Delaware’s Office of Management and Budget to combine information from different sources regarding vendor registration, bidding procedure, and bid solicitation.

The President of the Council on Reorganization and Modernization of the Executive Branch has announced a plan to restructure Puerto Rico’s procurement processes.

Entitled the Reorganization Plan of the Administration of General Services, the plan aims to make the procurement process a more efficient, just, impartial, and transparent process.

Coat of Arms of Puerto Rico by HansenBCN on Wikipedia.

As part of Governor Deval Patrick’s reforms for small businesses operating in the state, starting July 1 the Operational Services Division will no longer charge the annual $275 fee for businesses participating in the Commonwealth’s Procurement Access and Solicitation System (Comm-PASS). The state is also eliminating the fee it charges businesses to shop for health care under the independent state agency Commonwealth Choice. Another announced reform increases the upper threshold of Massachusetts’s preferential small procurement competitive bidding range from $50,000 to $150,000.

Secretary of Administration and Finance Jay Gonzalez said the reforms are focused on “creating opportunities for small businesses, creating jobs for our residents, and containing health care costs so businesses can survive and thrive.”

Photo of Governor Devol Patrick by Scott LaPierre on Wikipedia.

New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez has signed two executive orders that seek to improve the procurement process in New Mexico.

Executive Order 2011-030 authorizes the suspension or debarment of businesses for conviction of fraud, embezzlement, theft, forgery, bribery, falsification, destruction of records, receiving stolen property, antitrust violations, willful failure to perform in accordance with contracts, and any other cause occurring within the preceding three years of a procurement which the state purchasing agent or a central purchasing office determines to be so serious and compelling as to affect responsibility as a contractor.

Executive Order 2011-031 created the Governor’s Task Force on Procurement Reform to review and update the current statutory and regulatory Procurement Code and to increase transparency and efficiency in the procurement process.

Governor Lincoln Chafee has sent letters to the directors of Rhode Island’s 17 quasi-public agencies requesting, among other things, they terminate non-critical contracts with lobbyists. He is also requesting any procurement activities by these agencies be open and transparent, instructing the agencies to post all procurement rules and regulations applicable to each agency’s contract practices on a public website.

Governor Chafee indicates the purpose of the letters is to help find cost reductions that are available through increased efficiency and productivity, stating, “Under my appointment authority I take very seriously the responsibility of placing highly qualified individuals who strive to ensure value in the services provided by our quasi-public agencies.”

Some of the quasi-public agencies include the Rhode Island Industrial-Recreational Building Authority, the Rhode Island Airport Corporation, and the Rhode Island Health and Educational Building Corporation.

The three reissued executive orders include a ban on political contributions to the mayor from the owners of companies that do business with the city, an order requiring city employees to comply with hiring oversight rules, and an order reaffirming that it is the duty of every city employee to report wrongdoing to the inspector general.

The first new executive order prohibits new appointees from lobbying city government for two years after leaving the administration, bars lower level employees from lobbying the departments or agencies in which they work, and bars appointees to boards and commissions from lobbying the board or commission on which they sit.

The second new executive order protects city employees from being pressured to give gifts or make political contributions to their superiors.

The third new executive order prohibits city lobbyists from making political contributions to the mayor.

Governor Martinez has signed Senate Bill 432 prohibiting state and local government employees who are involved in the contracting process from subsequently being employed by a contractor. The bill expands the existing Governmental Conduct Act to apply to state and local government employees involved in the procurement process.

Under the new law, state agencies are barred from entering into contracts with a business represented by a person who has been an employee of the state within one year if the value of the contract is in excess of $1,000 and the contract is a direct result of an official act by the former employee. The law becomes effective July 1, 2011.

Cole County Circuit Court Judge Daniel Green ruled that Senate Bill 844, which became effective August 28, 2010, is unconstitutional because it covers multiple subjects.   The Missouri constitution requires that bills contain only one subject.

The bill sharply restricted transfers between campaign committees, boosted the enforcement powers of the Missouri Ethics Commission, and created measures aimed at reducing situations in which candidates channeled money through several committees to obscure their source.   The court found that the procurement measures in the bill were the “original controlling purpose,” and thus should be upheld while all other measures relating to campaign finance are void.

The Missouri Attorney General’s office and the Missouri Ethics Commission are currently reviewing the decision to examine both enforcement procedures and further legal action.

Two bills were introduced before the Council of the District of Columbia as part of a series of measures to enhance transparency in the District government.

The first bill seeks to enact the Sunshine in Procurement Act of 2011 which requires the Council to post contract information, including the contract, solicitation, purchase orders, invoices, and change orders on its website. Additionally, sole-source and emergency procurement information would need to be posted, including the determination and findings supporting those procurements.

The second bill, referred to as the Open Government Act of 2011, expands the responsibilities of the newly created Open Government Office, improves the District’s Freedom of Information Act, requires agencies to prepare biennial transparency plans, and improves the transparency of the District’s budget information.

Photo of the John A. Wilson Building, home of the city government of Washington, D.C., by Awiseman on Wikipedia.