Latest Developments:
- The Governor of Montana signed SB 1, which revises the definition of “lobbying.” The bill deleted references to “public officials” as the object of lobby efforts and instead uses the term “legislator” to clarify that lobbying pertains to influencing actions by legislators or the legislature. The measure also reduces the time the Commissioner of Political Practices is required to keep lobby reports from 10 years to four years.
- The Office of Congressional Ethics issued a report finding that a Member of Congress “reported campaign disbursements that may not be legitimate and verifiable campaign expenditures attributable to bona fide campaign or political purposes.” It also found that “there is substantial reason to believe that Rep. Palazzo converted funds to personal use to pay expenses that were not legitimate…” The Hill Reports that the main allegations involve paying rent for a house the congressman owned that was allegedly used for campaign purposes.
- The United States House of Representatives passed R. 1, a comprehensive measure that “addresses voter access, election integrity and security, campaign finance, and ethics” by, among other things, “expanding the prohibition on campaign spending by foreign nationals, requiring additional disclosure of campaign-related fundraising and spending, requiring additional disclaimers regarding certain political advertising, and establishing an alternative campaign funding system for certain federal offices.” The measure goes to the Senate for consideration.
- The Washington State Attorney General filed a lawsuit against Google alleging that the company “failed to maintain documents and books of account with statutorily required information open for public inspection for each political advertisement or electioneering communication that Google accepted or provided for Washington State or local election campaigns since June 4, 2018.” The complaint also alleges that Google failed to file required reports. According to the Attorney General’s press release, despite Google’s announced moratorium on accepting political advertising in the state, “Washington political ads continued to appear on the platform.”
In Case You Missed It:
- Corporate Political Activity Under Scrutiny: The Washington Post reports that corporations that paused their contribution activity after January 6 are nevertheless under pressure by some shareholders who seek corporate disclosure of political activity. It also points out that “A Democratic-led SEC looks primed to deliver a long-sought victory for corporate political disclosure … to make such disclosure a blanket requirement for public companies.” According to Politico, the nominee to head the SEC has acknowledged in Senate confirmation hearings that “the agency would raise pressure on corporations to disclose their political spending activities, a long-running tension between SEC officials, big business and Democrats.”
- Contractors Penalized for Corruption: The San Francisco Chronicle reveals that five city contractors implicated in the City Hall corruption scandal have been barred from receiving future city contracts. The San Francisco Chronicle also reports about a settlement with the city’s garbage collection contractor under which residents will receive nearly $100 million in rebates. According to the City Attorney’s press release, the agreement will also prohibit the contractor “from making any gift to any City employee or any contribution to a nonprofit at the behest of a City employee.”
- The Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance has a new Executive Director, William Campbell, who currently serves as the Woburn (suburban Boston) City Clerk. com noted that Campbell has previously run for state representative and Secretary of State. The current Secretary of State, who beat Campbell in the 2010 General Election, was on the search committee; he made the motion “to offer the job to Campbell and there was no dissent.”
- Remote Lobbyist Entertainment: The Albuquerque Journal reports that despite the New Mexico Capitol being closed to the public, including lobbyists, lobbyists are still “picking up the tab” for food for legislators. “Lobbyists are trying to do their job under difficult conditions… A free lunch – or dinner – is built into the culture of the Roundhouse… One lobbyist told the Journal he just spent almost $490 on a recent lunch for a legislative committee – food delivered to the Roundhouse, without the lobbyist entering the building.”