Latest Developments:
- The Internal Revenue Service held a hearing on Proposed Regulation 102508-16. That regulation clarifies that 501(c)(4) organizations are not required to report information about their donors of more than $5,000. According to the IRS analysis, “The proposed regulations would amend the final regulations to clarify that the need to provide the names and addresses of substantial contributors will generally apply only to tax-exempt organizations described in section 501(c)(3).” The regulation replaces Revenue Procedure 2018-38, which was nullified by a court in Montana in Bullock v. IRS for failing to follow the federal Administrative Procedure Act in adopting the rule. Bloomberg Tax reports that the hearing was dominated by groups in support of the new regulation. Federal regulations generally take effect 30 days after publication in the Federal Register, but may take effect sooner.
- The Federal Election Commission announced that the lobbyist bundling disclosure threshold for 2020 is $19,000, an increase from $18,700 last year. The Commission also announced adjusted coordinated party expenditure limits for 2020.
- The Oklahoma Ethics Commission published a new campaign contribution chart to reflect the 2020 increase in contribution limits. The limits increased from $2,700 per election to $2,800 per election for contributions from individuals to state candidates and from state candidate committees to other state candidate committees.
- The Canadian Federal Court of Appeals dismissed a challenge to the appointment of an Ethics Commissioner by the Governor-in-Council. A group challenged the appointment because the commissioner is tasked with an on-going investigation of the ruling government. In Democracy Watch v. Canada, the court was not “persuaded that the Governor in Council’s view is unreasonable.” Democracy Watch plans to appeal to the Supreme Court.
Reminder:
2020 Legislation: Nielsen Merksamer tracks lobby and campaign bills around the country. Forty-four state legislatures are now in session, with two more states scheduled to commence legislative sessions this spring. Nielsen Merksamer is tracking more than 600 campaign finance and lobbyist-related bills in current legislative sessions nationwide. We track bills from the time they are introduced until final disposition in the session. When a bill becomes law, Nielsen Merksamer updates its summary for campaign or lobby law for that state; summaries are available to subscribers.
In Case You Missed It:
- APPrehensive about Muddled Disclosure: Forbes reports that a new App, called Goods Unite Us, is designed to disclose “what companies and their parent corporations spend on political influence and who receives that money.” But the report indicates that “some companies are striking back with legal threats if they’re not removed from the app or if their data isn’t amended.” Companies object to inclusion of personal contributions made by senior employees whose activity may not represent the company’s values. Some “companies send cease and desist letters.” The app allows users to search a product brand name and find contribution activity of the company, related companies, officers and employees, and related PACs. It also lists competitors as alternatives, allowing consumers to seek out their choice of Democratic- or Republic-leaning companies for similar products.
- Muddier Disclosures: Colorado’s Secretary of State is being criticized for failing to meet the requirements of a new law that mandates disclosure of lobby activity. The Colorado Springs Gazette reports that “basic problems with the system persist, preventing the ability to look up electronic registrations and lobbying activity records for at least some of those required to file the disclosures.”
- Snared by Transparency: Common Cause, a fierce advocate for transparency, was fined for filing its Pennsylvania lobby disclosure report more than 3 months late. Spotlight PA reports that group has been late with four reports in the past two years. The group said it “would fight the penalty in court” and blamed the Department of State for the late filing. According to the article, the “state Ethics Commission imposed a $19,900 fine on Common Cause Pennsylvania” for the lapse.
- Evading Transparency in Texas: A new law that requires local governments that employ lobbyists to disclose what they lobbied and how much they spent is meeting “resistance.” The Texas Monitor describes how “several cities denied having employed lobbyists, despite public records showing they have.” The author of the law, which took effect in September, stated that it “‘doesn’t require anyone [to] stop lobbying. … It just asks that, if they are going to use taxpayer money to lobby, they disclose it.’”
- Avoiding the Crossfire: The Hill reports that business groups and their lobbyists “are facing a new challenge as they look to advance their agendas in an increasingly polarized Washington and ahead of a contentious presidential election.” While recent events have resulted in some anxiety, one lobbyist opined that “‘(t)he panic should be short-lived,” … both Leader McConnell and Speaker Pelosi said all hope is not lost for legislating this year.’”