Essential Ethics

Latest Developments: The California Fair Political Practices Commission published a proposed opinion regarding a recently enacted bill (SB 1439), which prohibits local officials from taking part in a proceeding involving a license, permit, or other entitlement if certain campaign…

Latest Developments: The Federal Election Commission adopted a final rule governing Internet Communications. ( 2011-02; [Version B.]) But Axios reports that, after proposing a “major digital ad transparency measure,” the Federal Election Commission removed the proposal from its agenda at a previous…

Latest Developments: The California Fair Political Practices Commission formally adopted revised contribution limits and increased gift limits. For 2023-2024, the gift limit increases from $520 to $590.  Contribution limits for gubernatorial elections increase to $36,400 per person per election and legislative…

Latest Developments:  Voters in Arizona Approved Proposition 211, which requires disclosure of total campaign media spending or acceptance of in-kind contributions, in an election cycle if $50,000 or more is spent in statewide campaigns, or more…

Latest Developments: The District of Columbia’s Pay-to-Play Law Takes Effect November 9, 2022. The law was supposed to take effect November 2020, but it was paused for lack of funding.  The District’s Fiscal Year 2022 Budget (at page 207)…

Latest Developments:  A US Federal District Court in Illinois blocked two campaign finance reforms recently enacted in that state. The laws affected judicial elections, with one “prohibiting a judicial candidate from receiving contributions from any ‘out-of-state person’…[while…

Latest Developments: The Center for Political Accountability announced that its noted “CPA-Zicklin Index of Corporate Political Disclosure and Accountability” would be expanded from “rating S&P 500 companies to evaluating the entire Russell 1000.” In effect, the expansion means…

Latest Developments: A US District Court Judge this week dismissed a Department of Justice suit accusing casino magnate Steve Wynn of being “an agent of the People’s Republic of China…[and] seek[ing] an injunction forcing him to register as…

Latest Developments: The Governor of California signed a suite of bills related to the state Political Reform Act.One of those bills, AB 1798, requiring certain disclosures on electronic advertisements, is inoperative. That bill defers to SB 1360, which “[r]evises…

Latest Developments: The Governor of California signed AB 1783, which, among other things, amends the Political Reform Act of 1974 to expand the definition of lobbyist “administrative action.” According to the legislative summary, while “[e]xisting law requires the…