Latest Developments:
- The United States Supreme Court decided Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta, in which the court found that the California Attorney General’s requirement that nonprofit organizations disclose the identities of their major donors violates the First Amendment right to free association. The court effectively enjoined the California Attorney General from collecting copies of “Schedule B” from the organization’s annual tax filings, which historically listed the organization’s donors. No word yet as to whether the Attorney General will propose a more “narrowly tailored” requirement or if the IRS, under the new administration, will change its current requirements with regard to redacting information on Schedule Bs for certain organizations.
- The Louisiana Board of Ethics issued a regulation that increased the limit for food, drink, or refreshments to $65, effective July 1, 2021. State law generally prohibits gifts to public officials and employees, but among the exceptions is a gift of food and drink, including incidental transportation and entertainment, consumed while the personal guest of the giver.
Reminders:
- The California Lt. Governor has officially set the recall election for California’s Governor for September 14, 2021. The setting of the date starts a 24-hour reporting period for certain contributions. Reporting clients will receive more information. The Fair Political Practices Commission will be updating its Filings Schedule.
- The California Legislature is moving forward with significant changes to lobbyist reporting. B. 459 was amended and approved by the Assembly Elections Committee. Amendments this past week removed monthly reporting and expanded administrative lobbying from the bill. However, the measure still would require 24-hour reporting in the 60 days before the session adjourns. Those reports require disclosure of each communication and the client position communicated for each bill within 24 hours of the communication. The reporting provisions would not take effect until one year after the Secretary of State completes its current update to its electronic reporting system.
In Case You Missed It:
- Proxy Wars Heat Up: Roll Call discusses the continuing proxy battles to increase transparency in corporate political spending. The article notes recent passage of campaign spending disclosure shareholder proposals at “Netflix Inc., railway operator Norfolk Southern Corp., and GEO Group Inc., which runs immigration detention facilities… In total, 34 proposals across all [Environmental and Social Governance] topics gained majority support this season, compared to 21 last year, according to Proxy Preview.”
- Foreign Agent Registrations Up: org reports that “China, Qatar and Russia dominated the top 10 ranking of countries spending the most on foreign influence, lobbying and propaganda operations targeting the United States in 2020.” The “three countries quickly rose to the top of the foreign spending rank,” but that rise doesn’t mean more spending as “much of the spike in reported spending can be attributed to new registrations.” The increase in registrations follows a Justice Department effort to crack down on unregistered agents.
- More FARA Inquiries: According to Bloomberg News, “Rudy Giuliani is the subject of a Justice Department inquiry into possible foreign lobbying for Turkish interests separate from a criminal probe of his activities in Ukraine.” The report indicates that this is not a criminal inquiry. The Department of Justice “could issue a determination letter requiring him to register as a lobbyist and also disclose all details of contacts he had with U.S. and Turkish officials.”
- Montana Law Stopped: We recently reported on Montana SB 319, which authorizes the use of joint fundraising committees, regulates public college student political activity, and disqualifies a judge if the judge has accepted more than half the maximum campaign contribution from a lawyer in the case. A state court judge will reportedly issue a preliminary injunction to prevent two provisions of the bill from taking effect. The Helena Independent Record reports that the judge will block the portions of the bill relating to college students and judges.
- FEC Ponders Candidate Compensation: Roll Call reports on the Federal Election Commission’s consideration of a proposal, Regulation 2021-01, which would allow candidate committees to pay salaries to federal candidates and to provide them with health benefits. The article points out that “if the FEC changes the rules, it would be the latest in a string of shifts from the agency making it easier for candidates to tap campaign funds for what, in the past, would have been deemed personal expenses.”