Latest Developments:
- The Chair of the New York Joint Public Ethics Commission resigned. She was appointed by the Governor to the position in February. The Albany Times-Union reports that she told the Governor in June that she intended to resign as she never expected to serve more than six months as chair. JCOPE, which has responsibility for overseeing lobbying and ethics in the state, recently updated its policy concerning release of information about investigations.
- The North Carolina Utilities Commission issued its final rules [Attachment A] regarding “public utility expenditures on lobbying, advertising, political contributions, and other matters.” The rules essentially prohibit public utilities from recovering from its ratepayers “any direct or indirect expenditure” in connection with those items and require a certification to that effect from the utilities in every application for a change in rates. NC Policy Watch explains the evolution of the rules, which are a result of a 2018 petition.
In Case You Missed It:
- Alaska Won’t Appeal: The Associated Press reports that a spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Law indicated that the state will not appeal the recent 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that struck down certain Alaska campaign contribution limits. “‘The resources and risks to pursue a rehearing of the Ninth Circuit en banc, or a further appeal, are too great,’ she wrote. ‘We encourage the legislature to address this issue…’”
- Foreign Agents Contribute: OpenSecrets.org discloses that registered foreign agents and lobbyists for companies with foreign parents made $33.5 million in political contributions during the 2020 election cycle. The article points out that “Foreign nationals are prohibited by federal law from making contributions to political groups or campaigns to influence U.S. elections.” The $33.5 million contributed includes “contributions to federal-level campaigns as well as outside groups like political action committees and super PACs that are registered with the FEC. PACs affiliated with firms of registered foreign agents contributed even more.”
- Ethics Collections: The Columbia Post and Courier reports that the South Carolina Ethics Commission is owed fines totaling “(n)early $2.9 million racked up by 370 politicians, local officials and various deadbeats who refuse to pay up.” The commission has been desperately trying to get officials “to file campaign reports and ethics disclosures that state law requires of public officials.” The commission is not alone; the “state House and Senate ethics committees, which initially handle ethics complaints against legislators, have scores of debtors.”
- Punishing Personal Use: Leadership of the California Fair Political Practices Commission, in an opinion piece in the East Bay Times, urges that penalties for personal use of campaign funds be revised to be proportionate to the offense. According to the article, current law provides that “the candidate who misspends campaign funds on themselves faces the same maximum fines as the candidate who accidentally makes a campaign reporting mistake. The fine for both is $5,000 per violation.” A bill before the legislature would increase penalties when campaign funds are spent for an “egregious personal benefit.”
- No Prison for Personal Use: A North Carolina legislator, who used $365,000 of his campaign funds for personal use, must “pay a $1,000 fine and avoid getting in trouble again for the next two years. The Charlotte News & Observer reports that “he took the money in order to prop up his struggling farm.” As part of the plea agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, he must also repay the $365,000 that he took.
- Ethics in Focus: The San Gabriel Valley Tribune reveals that the City of El Monte, California removed a city council member “from her position as mayor pro tem and revoked her membership in outside commissions this week in response to allegations that she accepted thousands of dollars in gifts form a lobbyist.” The council will consider new measures to regulate ethics, “including lobbyist registration, gift limits and a revolving door policy — at its first meeting in September.”