Latest Developments:
- The President of the United States announced his intention to nominate Allen Dickerson to the Federal Election Commission. The Wall Street Journal has background information about Mr. Dickerson.
- The United States Department of Justice issued a release detailing the arrest of “four Toledo City Council members and a local attorney [who] have been engaged in a pay-to-play scheme involving bribes for Council votes.” The group is alleged to have extorted money, including campaign contributions, from citizens seeking permits and other Council approvals. The Toledo Blade quotes one legal scholar who opines that “(t)he line between legal financial contributions and criminal activity can be blurry.”
- The San Francisco Controller issued a Public Integrity Report in response to the indictment of the former Director of Public Works. The report covers potential problems with the procurement process, including instances when competitive bidding is not required, gift restrictions and exceptions, and enforcement of ethics provisions.
Reminder:
COVID-19 Update: Government officials, agencies, and courts continue to respond to the COVID-19 emergency. There are no major developments this week. For more information about filing deadlines, contact our Political Reporting Unit.
In Case You Missed It:
- Elections Official Fined: The New York City Conflict of Interests Board fined the Executive Director of the New York City Board of Elections in connection with his service as an unpaid advisory member of a vendor that sells software to his board. Gothamist reports that the Executive Director received reimbursement for travel for which there was no city purpose.
- Conflicts Waived for Congress: The Washington Post reveals that Members of Congress and their families benefited from a “brief and barely noticed ‘blanket approval’ issued by the Trump administration [that] allows lawmakers, Small Business Administration staff, other federal officials and their families to bypass long-standing rules on conflicts of interest to seek funds for themselves” from the Paycheck Protection Program.
- Timing is Everything: The Salt Lake Tribune reports that a lawmaker and a lobbyist formed a PAC “one day after deadlines that would have required disclosing its donors and expenses before Tuesday’s primary election.” According to the lobbyist, the “timing was purely coincidental and was in reaction to a late attack ad.”