[Political Activity Law]

EX-COMMISSIONER LANDS.   WE.  “The former chairwoman of the Federal Election Commission, who famously eyed regulating the politics of conservative outlets like the Drudge Report, has joined an advocacy group funded by George Soros and run by his son.”

AD EDIT.   AJC.  “When San Francisco officials demanded that a GOP group remove images of cable cars from an ad attacking Democrat Jon Ossoff, the super PAC turned to another reliable symbol of the California city: The Golden Gate Bridge.”

WAIVER UPDATE.   NYT.   “The Trump administration, in a significant escalation of its clash with the government’s top ethics watchdog, has moved to block an effort to disclose the names of former lobbyists who have been granted waivers to work in the White House or federal agencies.”

ETHICS AND MUELLER.  WP.  “Newly appointed special counsel Robert S. Mueller III will undergo a Justice Department ethics review that will examine possible conflicts of interest regarding his former law firm, which represents several figures who could be caught up in the probe into Russian efforts to influence the 2016 election.”

TESTER REFORM BILLS.  MTS.  “Tester’s latest efforts include the SUN (Sunlight for Unaccountable Non-Profits) Act, which would require Dark Money groups to disclose the identity of their mega-donors; the Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act which would require Senate candidates to file campaign finance reports electronically, thus saving taxpayers’ money and increasing transparency to the public; and a constitutional amendment that strikes at the heart of Big Money by declaring that corporations are not people…”

AZ:  LOSS OF SEAT POTENTIAL.   AZ.  “State Rep. Jesus Rubalcava, D-Gila Bend, is on the hot seat over his use of public campaign-finance money, and it could cost him his chair in the House of Representatives.”

FL:  NEW PAC UPDATE.   OS.  “Ahead of a likely 2018 run for U.S. Senate, Gov. Rick Scott has set up a political action committee designed to appeal to younger and Hispanic voters.”

MT:  BILL VETOED.   MLN.  “Montana Gov. Steve Bullock has vetoed a bill that would have raised the amount of money that could be contributed to political campaigns and changed operations within the office of the state’s campaign finance watchdog.”

NM:  LAW AMBIGUOUS.   NMP.  “New Mexico lobbyists and their employers reported spending more than $690,000 during the first four months of the year, but whether that’s everything they spent is anyone’s guess.”

SC:  ETHICS (F)LAW.  HO.   “Now, a new ethics law is in effect, aiming to restore the public’s faith that corrupt politicians will be held accountable.”

TX:  NO COLLABORATION.   LT.  “State law prohibits political subdivisions, such as LISD, from producing or contributing to political advertisements they are connected to. However, both the Vote Yes Lewisville ISD PAC in their campaign to get the bond passed and LISD with their informational website on the bond left everything up to their contracted media groups, which worked together.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

WORKER WINS.   NRW.  “West Virginia worker Jeffrey Richmond finally has closure on a four-year legal battle in West Virginia that began with being forced to contribute to a union boss Political Action Committee and ended with being fired as retaliation.”

NEW PAC.   TIC.  “Amid a tumultuous week in Washington, D.C., Vice President Mike Pence quietly filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday to form a new political action committee of his own.”

RULE G-37 Q&A.   BankInvestmentConsultant.com.  “During last year’s election, one of the reps at my firm would hold campaign events in our office for a particular local candidate. Phone calls about the events came in through our main branch telephone and the rep directed staff to answer these calls. The compliance department found out and the rep was terminated. Can you clarify the rules addressing political activity in the office?”

CA:  MYSTERY LETTER.   LAT.  “Offended, harassed, violated. Those are some of the words voters used to describe their reactions to a letter they received this week from a group calling itself the California Voter Awareness Project.”

CA:  FINE FOR MAILER.    RN.  “A local businessman faces a proposed $2,500 fine for violating state political finance rules during Lathrop’s mayoral campaign in 2014.”

CO:  NONPROFIT FINED.   CI.  “A state judge in Colorado has fined a nonprofit $23,000 for coordinating with local campaigns and not registering as a political committee.”

CT:  PUBLIC FINANCING DENIED.   HC.  “A state elections panel issued a draft ruling Wednesday that said the felony corruption convictions that sent Bridgeport Mayor Joe Ganim to federal prison for seven years bar him from getting any state public campaign financing to run for governor.”

NJ:  COMPLIANCE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER.   L360.  This analysis discusses New Jersey’s “stringent, far-reaching and complex ‘pay to play’ laws.”

WY:  REFORM ON BALLOT?   Trib.  “Wyoming Promise members want an amendment to the U.S. Constitution that would repeal a number of U.S. Supreme Court decisions that have loosened limits on how much people and groups spend in races.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

GOOD MORNING.   Here are today’s Political Law Links, nonpartisan items of political law interest from online news and opinion sites.  Have a link I missed?  DM me @ericsbrown on Twitter.  Want to subscribe and don’t already?  Sign-up using Google’s Feedburner service here and you’ll receive a confirmation.  Your email address won’t be sold, rented, or used for any other purpose.

ELECTION LAW NEWS.   Wiley.   The May 2017 edition of Election Law News is available.

CEOS AND ETHICS.   WP.  “If it seems like more CEOs are getting cast aside amid ethical blunders or corporate scandals, they are.”

HIDDEN DONORS.   DC.  “Hillary Clinton, whose failed presidential campaign was hampered by pay-for-play allegations, launched a ‘dark money’ political organization on Monday that is exactly the kind of operation she promised to oppose as president.”

NO FEDERAL FUNDS FOR LOBBYING.   CP.  “What’s Upstream deliberately avoided advocating for specific legislation while lobbying for mandatory 100-foot buffers between farms and water in Washington, in keeping with legal counsel from the Environmental Protection Agency, according to newly available EPA records.”

OCE AND COLLINS.   Politico.  “Rep. Chris Collins (R-N.Y.) is under scrutiny by ethics investigators for his role in soliciting investors for an Australian biotech company, according to a news report.”

NC:  SENTENCE IN MISUSE CASE.   CO.  “A former North Carolina lawmaker accused of misusing more than $200,000 in campaign funds on vacations, speeding tickets, haircuts and other items was sentenced Tuesday to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to three charges in the case.”

WA:  STATUS OF LEGAL FUND.  KUOW.  “Seattle’s Ethics and Elections Commission has ruled that a proposed legal-defense fund for Mayor Ed Murray would not comply with the city’s ethics code.”

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UK:  FUNDS ISSUES.   GUA.  “Political donations there remain hidden from view. Funders wishing to disguise their identities can use Northern Ireland as a back channel into UK politics.”

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HAVE A GOOD DAY.