March 14, 2013 •
Thursday News Roundup
Here are some great articles for today’s government relations news summary:
Lobbying
“Howard Berman signs up for K Street job” by Tarini Parti in Politico.
“K Street Files: Under Attack, Gamers Add In-House Lobbyists” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“K Street lobbyists leap to the planet’s defense after asteroid scare” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
Utah: “Legislature to change law on who probes campaign violations” by Robert Gehrke in the Salt Lake Tribune.
Vermont: “Vermont Senate panel delays vote on campaign finance” by Dave Gram in the Burlington Free Press.
Ethics
“Florida Official Resigns in Wake of Gambling Probe” by Cameron McWhirter and Ana Campoy in the Wall Street Journal.
“Fla. charity probe to next focus on campaign money” by Mike Schneider and Gary Fineout in the Miami Herald.
Open Government
“Oversight panel pushes for transparency” by Eric Martinson in Politico.
Kansas: “Senate committee discusses changes to ‘open records’ law” by Stevi Wilson in the Lawrence Journal-World.
North Carolina: “How to bring more sunshine to the NC legislature” by John Frank in the News & Observer.
Procurement
Iowa: “Panel told of revised process for equipment procurement” by Jason Noble in the Des Moines Register.
Legislative Issues
Kentucky: “Ky. lawmakers approve 107 bills during first 28 days of legislative session” by Jack Brammer in the Herald-Leader.
Montana: “Montana lawmakers consider longer term limits” by The Associated Press in the Billings Gazette.
Redistricting
Wisconsin: “New court filing: Documents were deleted from GOP redistricting computers” by Patrick Marley in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
March 6, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Keep up with the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, and more!
Lobbying
“K Street Files: Both Sides Rev Up for Wage War” by Elizabeth Newlin Carney in Roll Call.
“K Street’s gravy train runs dry as Georgian leaders move past election” by Kevin Bogardus and Julian Pecquet in The Hill.
“Former Sen. Jon Kyl joins lobby shop at Covington” by Catherine Ho in the Washington Post.
New York: “Best-paid lobbyists, spenders unveiled” by Chris Bragg in Crain’s New York.
Pennsylvania: “Pa.’s Corbett and wife disclose gifts from lobbyists and businesses” by The Associated Press in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Pennsylvania: “Corbett’s acceptance of gifts give rise to calls for laws on gift bans” by Jan Murphy in the Patriot-News.
Campaign Finance
“Study shows Super PACs made mockery of campaign law” by Taylor Lincoln in The Hill.
Arizona: “Arizona senate approves contribution limits to recall campaigns” by Howard Fischer in the East Valley Tribune.
Kentucky: “Ky. House passes bill to publicly finance state SC races” by Jessica M. Karmasek in Legal Newsline.
Ethics
Florida: “Florida lawmakers vote for ethics and early voting changes” by Mary Ellen Klas in the Tampa Bay Times.
Legislative Issues
Missouri: “Mo. House endorses change to term limits” by The Associated Press in the News Tribune.
South Dakota: “SD Senate approves boost in expenses for lawmakers” in the Rapid City Journal.
Open Government
“Sen. Del Marsh says GOP committee members did not violate Open Meetings Act” by Mike Cason in the Birmingham News.
Redistricting
Kentucky: “House redistricting plan would create new Lexington district” by Jack Brammer and Beth Musgrave in the Lexington Herald-Leader.
February 27, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Keep up with the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, and more!
Lobbying
“Web Entrepreneur Tries to Bridge K Street and Grass-Roots Advocacy” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“K Street Files: Manufacturers, Citing Job Losses, Oppose Carbon Tax” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“Lobbying World” in The Hill.
“Lincoln actor joins museum leaders lobbying in DC” by The Associated Press in the Peoria Journal Star.
Campaign Finance
“Pay to play?” by Allison MacDonald on MSNBC.
Arizona: “Clean Elections consolidation bill advances” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Daily Sun.
Montana: “Montana Senate endorses limit on corporate campaign spending” by The Associated Press in the Missoulian.
Ethics
“Feinstein asks court for campaign treasurer’s records” by John Myers in KXTV News 10.
Open Government
Minnesota: “Social media tests Minn. open meeting law” by Brian Bakst in Minnesota Public Radio.
South Carolina: “S.C. legislators wouldn’t be able to keep communication secret under altered House bill” by Stephen Largen in the Post and Courier.
Redistricting
North Carolina: “Attorneys wrap up arguments in NC redistricting” by Gary D. Robertson in the Winston-Salem Journal.
February 13, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Keep up with the latest articles on lobbying, campaign finance, and more!
Lobbying
“The Dodd-Frank Cashout: Frank staffers launch lobbying firm” by Timothy P. Carney in the Washington Examiner.
“Al Jazeera signs a lobbying firm” by Anna Palmer in Politico.
“K Street Files: Ex-Frank Aides Open Lobbying Shop” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“Lobbying World” in The Hill.
Campaign Finance
Arizona: “Teeth sought for campaign-finance law” by Howard Fischer in the Arizona Daily Star.
Utah: “Senate OKs $50 limit on anonymous campaign contributions” by David Montero in the Salt Lake Tribune.
Redistricting
“Redistricting board waiting on word from court” by The Associated Press in the Juneau Empire.
Open Government
“Mo. lawmakers endorse Sunshine Law measures” by The Associated Press in the News Tribune.
State of the Union
“Word cloud: Obama’s State of the Union speech” by Megan H. Chan in Politico.
“The State of the Union speech — in word clouds” by Aaron Blake in the Washington Post.
January 29, 2013 •
Tuesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News
Keep up with the latest government relations news with these articles:
Lobbying
“K Street Files: New Faces at Harlow Foundation, Thorn Run” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“Abramoff lists 8 tips to overhaul lobbying laws” by Keith Matheny in USA Today.
“10 Strange Lobbying Groups That We Swear Are Real” by Elizabeth Flock in U.S. News & World Report.
Kentucky: “Kentucky sets lobbying record in 2012” by Phil Impellizzeri in the Bluegrass Institute.
Nevada: “Former Nevada legislative director joins high profile public relations, lobbying firm” by The Associated Press in The Republic.
Campaign Finance
Missouri: “Nixon makes pitch for Medicaid, campaign donation limits” by Virginia Young in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Utah: “Some ethics bills advance, while calls arise for more” by Lee Davidson in the Salt Lake Tribune.
Vermont: “Ben and Jerry push campaign finance ‘petition on steroids’” Dan D’Ambrosio in the Burlington Free Press.
Ethics
Arizona: “Arizona Democrats introduce trio of ethics bills” by AJ Vicens in Cronkite News.
Arizona: “Arizona Democrats introduce trio of ethics bills” by Mary Jo Pitzl in the Arizona Republic.
New Jersey: “Christie make case for taking over independent agencies” by Matt Katz in the Philadelphia Inquirer.
South Carolina: “Gov.’s commission suggests ‘clean, honest’ ethics plan” by Andrew Shain in The State.
Texas: “Ethics Commission to Debate Fundraising Opinion” by Emily Ramshaw in the Texas Tribune.
Virginia: “Va. lawmakers’ gifts last year were padded with travel” by Bill Sizemore in the Virginian-Pilot.
Redistricting
North Carolina: “Judges to hear N.C. redistricting challenge” by Dale Gibson in the Triangle Business Journal.
Virginia: “Va. Senate OK’s constitutional amendments” by Laura Vozzella in the Washington Post.
Wisconsin: “Rep. Vos subpoenaed in Wisconsin redistricting case” by The Associated Press in the Post Crescent.
January 24, 2013 •
Thursday News Roundup
Here are some great articles for today’s government relations news summary:
Lobbying
“Sandy adds a twist to some firms’ lobbying efforts” by Alex Guillen in Politico.
“Business Lobbying In 2012 Soared, Buoyed By Fiscal Cliff Crisis” by Christina Wilkie in the Huffington Post.
“K Street stumbles for the second straight year” by Catherine Ho in the Washington Post.
Georgia: “Road contractors shower governor with campaign donations” by Greg Bluestein, Ariel Hart and James Salzer in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Wisconsin: “Contract lobbying still ‘under the radar’” by Bill Lueders in Wisconsin Watch.
Campaign Finance
Arizona: “Jan Brewer taps lawyer for Clean Elections post” by The Associated Press in the Arizona Capitol Times.
Florida: “Florida group wants to end caps on campaign donations” by T.W. Farnam in the Washington Post.
Washington: “Lawmaker wants to fix Public Disclosure Commission online system” by Brad Shannon in the News Tribune.
Ethics
“Ethics Panel Requires Added Disclosure of Funds, Accounts” by Amanda Becker in Roll Call.
Connecticut: “Smoke shop owner pleads guilty in campaign finance case” by Mark Pazniokas in the Connecticut Mirror.
Iowa: “Iowa Ethics and Campaign Finance Disclosure Board seeks complaint process change” by Rod Boshart in the Sioux City Journal.
Texas: “Weak Disclosure Laws Keep Public in the Dark” by Ryan Murphy and Jay Root in the Texas Tribune.
Elections
“Missouri House passes elections bill” by Elizabeth Crisp in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Virginia: “Lawmakers move to change Va. electoral vote system” by Julian Walker in the Virginian-Pilot.
Washington: “Washington state lawmakers press for speedier election results” by The Associated Press in the Oregonian.
From the State Legislatures
Idaho: “Wednesday highlights in the Idaho Legislature” in the Idaho Statesman.
Redistricting
Virginia: “Va. House Speaker holds key to redistricting vote” by Errin Haines and Laura Vozzella in the Washington Post.
Virginia: “Stewart cheers Va. Senate redistricting” by Laura Vozella in the Washington Post.
January 23, 2013 •
Wednesday Government Relations News
Keep up with the latest articles on campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics!
Lobbying
“K Street says goodbye, good riddance to 2012, expects upturn this year” by Kevin Bogardus and Megan R. Wilson in The Hill.
“K Street Files: At Start of Second Term, Lobbyists Get Over Obama’s Cold Shoulder” by Kate Ackley and Janie Lorber in Roll Call.
“Interests’ Presence Felt In 2012, Filings Show” by Janie Lorber and Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“K Street sings the blues” by Byron Tau and Tarini Parti in Politico.
Campaign Finance
“Florida GOP donor Jay Odom indicted on campaign finance fraud charges” by Lucy Morgan in the Miami Herald.
Maine: “Maine lawmakers join effort to amend Constitution to allow campaign funding limits” by Robert Long in the Bangor Daily News.
Ethics
Colorado: “Ethics bill clears Senate committee hurdle” by Arek Sarkissian II in the Tallahassee Democrat.
Ohio: “Ex-legislator sent to prison for corruption” by Jim Siegel in the Columbus Dispatch.
Redistricting
“In quirk, some California residents have two state senators, others none” by Patrick McGreevy in the Los Angeles Times.
“Va. Republicans’ redistricting maneuver draws criticism” by Laura Vozzella and Errin Haines in the Washington Post.
From the State Legislatures
“Top 10 legislative issues facing lawmakers in 2013” by Mark Wolfe from NCSL.
“In Michigan and Wisconsin, Some Lawmakers Want to Go Part-Time” by Jim Malewitz in Stateline.
December 10, 2012 •
Monday News Roundup
Let’s start off the week with these lobbying, campaign finance, and ethics news articles:
Campaign Finance
“2012 presidential election nearing all-time record, final campaign finance reports show” by The Associated Press in The Washington Post.
Arkansas: “3 GOP lawmakers fined by Ark. ethics commission” in the San Francisco Chronicle.
District of Columbia: “Reneging on campaign finance reform” column by Jonetta Rose Barras in the Examiner.
Texas: “Contributions Blackout Serves Many Functions” by Ross Ramsey in The New York Times.
“Bad News for Campaign Finance” editorial by David Firestone in The New York Times.
Lobbying
“Think Tanks or Partisan Advocates? Distinction Is Getting Harder to See” by Janie Lorber in Roll Call.
Florida: “Former lobbyist Allison Tant joins race to lead Florida Democratic Party” by Adam C. Smith in the Tampa Bay Times.
Texas: “Ex-Arlington lawmaker forms lobbying firm” by Maria Recio, Anna M. Tinsley and Scott Nishimura in the Star-Telegram.
Wyoming: “Groups challenge Wyoming lawmakers’ lack of transparency with ALEC” by Joan Barron in the Star-Tribune.
Ethics
District of Columbia: “DC lottery contract is subject of federal probe” by Ben Nuckols in Bloomberg BusinessWeek.
West Virginia: “W.Va. Ethics Commission director gets exemption” by The Associated Press in the Herald-Dispatch.
Redistricting
“Redrawn districts complicate inquiries to incoming representatives” by Brad Shannon in The Olympian.
“Redistricting fight puts Doggett in awkward situation” by Tim Eaton in the Austin American-Statesman.
Government Social Media
“North Carolina Archives Social Media” by Colin Wood in Government Technology.
November 28, 2012 •
Wednesday Government Relations News Roundup
Here are the latest articles about campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics:
Campaign Finance
“Column: Campaign-finance tweaks can fix big problems” editorial by Peter Schweizer in USA Today.
Missouri: “Missouri House Democrats propose new campaign finance restrictions, stiffer ethics rules” by Chris Blank (Associated Press) in The Republic.
Lobbying
“Lobbying group’s next president expected to fight White House rules” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
“Marlowe to Step Down as Head of American League of Lobbyists” by Andrew Ramonas in The Blog of Legal Times.
“Lobbying World” in The Hill.
“Lobbying, America’s One Truly Unstoppable Growth Industry” by Jim Geraghty in the National Review.
“When ‘Super PACs’ Become Lobbyists” editorial in The New York Times.
“VIDEO: Rep. Shuler Said He Wouldn’t Become A Lobbyist; Now He Will” by David Halperin in The Huffington Post.
Florida: “Slow revolving door to lobbying in Fla. Capitol” editorial in the Orlando Sentinel.
Florida: “Dorworth has a new career – as a lobbyist” by Jason Garcia in the Orlando Sentinel.
Ethics
New York: “Ethics panel investigating New York Republican” by The Associated Press in CBS News.
Pennsylvania: “Ethics board fines Philadelphia official for Facebook posts” by Dave Davies in Newsworks.
Redistricting
Montana: “Redistricting panel works on Montana Senate boundaries” by The Associated Press in the Billings Gazette.
Ohio: “Ohio Supreme Court upholds legislative maps” by Jim Siegel in the Columbus Dispatch.
November 14, 2012 •
Wednesday Government Relations News Roundup
Here are the latest articles about campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics:
Campaign Finance
“Campaign Finance Reformers Get Back To Work After Record Election Spending” by Paul Blumenthal in the Huffington Post.
“Abramoff, Occupy Wall Street join forces on campaign finance reform” by Megan M. Wilson in The Hill.
“U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown calls for campaign finance reform” by Stephanie Warsmith in the Akron Beacon Journal.
Lobbying
“Lobbyists Woo New Lawmakers in D.C. Mating Dance” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“Incoming freshman lawmakers already have bundlers on K St.” by Kevin Bogardus in The Hill.
“Tax fight sneaks up on K Street” by Bernie Becker and Peter Schroeder in The Hill.
“Rove Super PAC will try lobbying” by Rachel Weiner in The Washington Post.
Florida: “Cretul, Cannon are lobbyists; former speakers start new firm” by Bill Thompson in the Gainesville Sun.
Ethics
“Secretary of state accused of moving too slow on PAC ethics complaint” by Steve Terrell in the Santa Fe New Mexican.
“Montreal Hackathon Aims to Combat Government Corruption” by Elisabeth Fraser in TechPresident.
Redistricting
“Ohio State Bar Association urges commission to take up redistricting reform” by Kate Irby in the Plain Dealer.
September 14, 2012 •
Friday News Roundup
Let’s close out the week with these government relations articles:
Campaign Finance
“House Dems push new campaign finance reform” by T.W. Farnam in the Washington Post.
“FEC move on wireless campaign contributions could aid Democrats” by Adam Mazmanian in Nextgov.
“Groups Ask Appeals Court to Keep Issue-Ad Donors Secret” by Tom Schoenberg in Bloomberg News.
“US election system criticised over finance rules and voting restrictions” by Karen McVeigh in The Guardian.
Minnesota: “Campaign Finance Board stands by ‘John Doe decision’” by Tom Scheck in MPR News.
“’Citizens United’ on the Corporate Court” by Jamie Raskin in The Nation.
Lobbying
“Lansing lobbyists’ spending on record pace” by Rich Robinson in the Michigan Campaign Finance Network.
Ethics
“Gov. Christie to stop showing GOP-produced video before town hall meetings” by Jenna Portnoy in the Star-Ledger.
Social Media
“New Tool Verifies Authenticity of Gov’t Social Media Sites” by John K. Higgins in E-Commerce Times.
Redistricting
“Serious problems still exist’ with redistricting maps, attorney tells Pennsylvania Supreme Court” by Nick Malawskey in the Patriot-News.
September 13, 2012 •
Thursday News Roundup
Keep up with the latest lobbying, campaign finance, government ethics, redistricting, and social media news with these articles:
Lobbying
“Lobbyists Keep Busy Despite Legislative Lull” by Kate Ackley in Roll Call.
“How Many Lobbyists Are Really Breaking the Law?” by Elahe Izadi in the National Journal.
Campaign Finance
Montana: “Republicans ask court to axe Montana’s campaign contribution laws” by Matt Gouras (Associated Press) in The Republic.
New Jersey: “Political action committees gave $18M to N.J. campaigns last year, analysis shows” by Matt Friedman in the Trenton Times.
Redistricting
Ohio: “Ohio Supreme Court says ballot summary for redistricting issue is inaccurate” by Joe Guillen in the Plain Dealer.
Pennsylvania: “Supreme Court to hear redistricting arguments today” in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Ethics
“HHS chief violated law restricting political activity, OSC finds” by Eric Katz in Government Executive.
“Scandals are making uphill battles even steeper for some lawmakers” by Alexandra Jaffe in The Hill.
Alaska: “APOC says Senate candidate failed to disclose clients” by Richard Mauer in the Anchorage Daily News.
Social Media and tech
“You Gotta Have Friends: New Study Shows Facebook Can Get Out the Vote” by Micah L. Sifry in TechPresident.
“Study: Facebook drove turnout in 2010” by Steve Friess in Politico.
“Facebook to Cities: Change Page Names, or Else” by Noelle Knell in Governing.
“Web pioneer providing voter database for free” by Gregory Korte in USA Today.
August 29, 2012 •
Wednesday Lobbying and Campaign Finance News
Also government ethics, redistricting, and social media
Lobbying
“The Art of Going Corporate at Political Conventions” by Diane Brady in Bloomberg Business Week.
“K Street preps for Hurricane Isaac” by Dave Levinthal in Politico.
“Lobbyists, businesses pamper New Jersey delegates with food, parties” by Melissa Hayes in The Record.
District of Columbia: “New D.C. Campaign Finance Reform Would Ban Lobbyist Bundling” in the Blog of the Legal Times.
New York: “Lawmaker-lobby guidelines emerge” by Rick Karlin in the Albany Times Union.
Ottawa, Canada: “New lobby registry looks easy as pie” by Joanne Chianello in the Ottawa Citizen.
Campaign Finance
California: “Unleashing the Campaign Contributions of Corporations” by Eduardo Porter in The New York Times.
Pennsylvania: “With money to burn, Fitzpatrick won’t limit spending” by Gary Weckselblatt in The Intelligencer.
Washington: “Churches can’t be intermediary for gay-marriage law donations, watchdog says” by Rachel La Corte (Associated Press) in The Olympian.
Ethics
Illinois: “Emanuel appointees propose more oversight on ethics” by Hal Dardick in the Chicago Tribune.
New York: “NY ethics board hires another Cuomo aide” by The Associated Press in the Utica Observer Dispatch.
New York: “Silver’s Sexual-Harassment Payout May Get New York Ethics Review” by Freeman Klopott in Bloomberg Business Week.
New York: “New York Can’t Escape Corruption as Senator Huntley Indicted” by Freeman Klopott and David McLaughlin (Bloomberg) in the San Francisco Chronicle.
North Carolina: “Dalton rolls out ethics package, term limits” by Travis Fain in the Greensboro News and Record.
Utah: “Utah cities, counties, guv preparing for new ethics commission law” by Cathy McKitrick in the Salt Lake Tribune.
Redistricting
Arizona: “Ariz. GOP: Redistricting commission’s existence illegal” by Howard Fischer in East Valley Tribune.
Texas: “Texas redistricting plan ruled illegal” by Gary Martin and Gary Scharrer in the San Antonio Express-News.
Social Media
“Ann Romney Was Most-Searched, Most-Tweeted Tuesday Night Speaker” by Alex Fitzpatrick in Mashable.
August 22, 2012 •
Wednesday News Roundup
Today, we have lobbying, campaign finance, ethics, and redistricting news from around the country:
Lobbying
California: “Bill raises fees on lobbyists to fund disclosure” by The Associated Press in the Mercury News.
North Carolina: “Despite laws, NC legislators still ask lobbyists for money” by Laura Leslie in WRAL.com.
South Carolina: “SC: Top-paid State House lobbyist earns $673K” by Eric K. Ward in Watchdog.org.
Campaign Finance
Arizona: “State Sen. Gould: No improper campaign spending” by Rebekah L. Sanders in the Arizona Republic.
Ethics
Kansas: “Kansas lawmakers unwittingly broke open meetings law” by Brad Cooper in the Kansas City Star.
North Dakota: “Legislators to create code of conduct after North Dakota named ‘most corrupt state’” by Wendy Reuer in InForum.
South Carolina: “Haley, Wilson unveiling ethics reform package” by The Associated Press in the Greenville News.
Redistricting
“2012 Pre-election Turnover is Typical for a Redistricting Year” by Karl Kurtz in NCSL’s The Thicket blog.
Montana: “Commission wraps up proposal for new Montana House districts” by Mike Dennison in the Missoulian.
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