Here are today’s political law links, 3/11/13

ETHICS ADVICE AND SEQUESTER. Roll Call. “The House Ethics Committee reminded lawmakers Friday they’re forbidden to use campaign funds to pay staff salaries or other office expenses that are being cut as a result of the sequester.” The memo is here.

OFA CHANGE. The Post. “Reversing course after weeks of public pressure, the head of the new nonprofit organization formed to take over President Obama’s campaign operation announced Thursday that the group will not take donations from corporations as originally planned and will provide more transparency about its funding.”

OFA CRITICISM. The Hill. “Organizing for Action has given up corporate cash, but watchdog groups won’t be satisfied until the pro-Obama nonprofit is shut down for good.”

CA: BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEES IN THE NEWS. Story here. “A Bee review found that some of the more than $2.7 million lawmakers collected through these committees in the last two years paid for items with tenuous connection to such measures, including thank-you gifts to donors, a lawmaker’s tuition and contributions to nonprofits. In some cases, they also spent heavily on extravagant, out-of-state fundraisers.”

FL: STATUS OF EXEMPTION. Story here. “A provision in the version of S.B. 2 that went to the floor would have left lawmakers currently in office exempt from that regulation until the end of their ongoing term.”

MD: FINE AND COMMUNITY SERVICE FOR ILLEGAL VOTING. The Post. “A former Maryland congressional candidate was fined $5,000 and ordered to perform 500 hours of community service after she admitted to illegally voting in two states during the same general election, a state prosecutor announced Friday.”

MN: HIGHER LIMITS BILL PASSED. Story here. “A Minnesota House committee today approved a bill that would allow higher contributions to political candidates running for state office.”

MS: LAW IGNORED. Story here. “City clerks are not penalized for failing to collect candidates’ finance reports, but there are provisions in the law that could potentially be used to punish elected officials who fail to file.”

NY: CFR CHANCES. Story here. “In a 23-minute speech on Friday at the Midtown Manhattan offices of the law firm Covington & Burling, Mr. Cuomo said the good news, for advocates of campaign finance changes, was that the presidential election had raised public awareness of the flood of money in politics. He said New York State could set an example for the rest of the country in moving to combat it.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

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