PLI TODAY AND TOMORROW. PLI. “Federal and state lobbying, campaign finance and ethics rules are changing, making compliance with those laws more challenging than ever. Congressional ethics rules, the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) and pay-to-play laws place additional responsibilities on companies and their executives and directors. To stay current on the latest developments, be sure to attend this acclaimed program led by high-level officials from the Federal Election Commission, the Department of Justice, Congressional ethics committees, and state ethics agencies, as well as corporate compliance officers and expert private practitioners.” I’m not attending this year, but it looks like a great conference, as always.
FARA ENFORCEMENT WATCH. WT. “FBI agents and federal prosecutors disagree over the intent of a foreign lobbying disclosure law, creating confusion within the Justice Department and complicating enforcement, according to a government watchdog report released Wednesday.”
BIPARTISAN CFR? BM.com. “What Gosar describes as a ‘commonsense bill’ would require federal candidates who accept political donations by credit card to verify the donor’s identity by obtaining the credit card verification code (the three- or four-digit number that most commercial vendors already insist on having with a purchase), as well as the card’s billing address.”
ACCESSING CAMPAIGN FINANCE DATA. TC.com. “Coupled with the increasing interest in who is spending and contributing money and how, the governmental agencies that gather the campaign money information are redesigning their websites to be more accessible to the public.”
TRUMP HISTORY. CNN. “In some cases they’re legal violations and he has been fined by the local entities, largely here in New York City. We can look at a list of some of them, I believe. In 1985, he evaded a limit by 18 subsidiary companies there. In 1990s, he was fined for exceeding limits by nearly $50,000.”
MERCER AND SUPER PAC. USAT. “Rebekah Mercer, whose wealthy family has played an increasingly prominent role in boosting Republican Donald Trump’s candidacy, has taken over management of a super PAC aiding his White House campaign.”
ESTUPENDO PAC. WP. “The super PAC backing Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign is hitting the Spanish-language airwaves on Wednesday, the same day her campaign is launching a similar ad blitz.”
GOLDMAN AND PENCE. Fortune. “Goldman Sachs has enacted a set of rules that bans the firm’s top employees from contributing to certain campaigns, including the Trump-Pence ticket.”
D’S FINE WITH IT. DB. “If hypocrisy is the coin of the realm in politics, then spending by a Democratic dark money group in New Hampshire’s Senate race could be Exhibit A.”
IL: LAW UPHELD. SJR. “Current Illinois law that limits how much political action committees, or PACs, can contribute to candidates, but permits political parties and their legislative leadership to contribute as much as they want, is constitutional and can remain on the books, a federal judge in Chicago ruled Wednesday.”
MT: ALLEGATIONS SETTLED. BG. “A former Montana legislator has agreed to pay $19,599 to the state to settle allegations that he took illegal corporate contributions from a dark-money organization not required to disclose its donors or spending.”
WI: MAYOR CHARGED. NBC. “Green Bay Mayor Jim Schmitt has been charged with violating campaign finance law, according to his attorney.”
TX: SUBPOENA LAWSUIT DROPPED. SA. “The Texas Ethics Commission is backing off a long-running battle to force conservative powerbroker Michael Quinn Sullivan to comply with subpoenas as part of an investigation into his nonprofit’s political activity.”
HAVE A GOOD DAY.