Tues. 3-24 political law links

CHARTING THE LIMITS.  WP.  The Federal Election Commission released its 2015-2016 contribution chart and Cillizza has the rest of the story.

CAMPAIGN CORROSION. Columbia Tribune.  “A recent article in The New York Times indicated these super PAC donors, the seven-digit donors, intend to consolidate their buying power and select one Republican candidate to try to avoid a bloody primary where donors compete against each other.”

GO WEST.   WP.  “Former Florida governor Jeb Bush is swinging through California next week as part of a nonstop fundraising tour raking in millions for a super PAC set up to back his expected presidential bid.”

W FLEX.   Hill.  “Former President George W. Bush will appear at a fundraiser for his brother, 2016 hopeful Jeb Bush, in Dallas on Wednesday, making his fundraising debut in the 2016 cycle.”

EO URGED.   Omaha.com (L. Gilbert).  “If the president were to issue an executive order, citizens would be able to see which officeholders are the greatest beneficiaries of government contractor political giving.”

MENENDEZ AND STEVENS.   NYT.  “Charges are expected against Mr. Menendez in the next few weeks, and comparisons to the Stevens case are sure to follow. But officials and others close to the investigation say Mr. Menendez’s case diverges in crucial ways from the one brought against Mr. Stevens, which was dismissed after prosecutors were found to have withheld evidence.”

SCHOCK MILEAGE.  CST.   “A Chicago Sun-Times analysis of auto mileage reimbursements for scandalized Rep. Aaron Schock, R-Ill., reveals he may have been inflating claims on not just one but two vehicles, starting in 2008, when he was first running for Congress.”

IN:  PANEL MOVE.   Indy Star.   “The Senate Rules & Legislative Procedure Committee discussed an amendment to a sweeping ethics reform package with a provision that would ban state officials from quitting and immediately becoming independent contractors for firms with which they did state business.”

MT:   DISCLOSURE LAW DEBATE.   BG.  “Senate Bill 289, which aims to neutralize dark money in Montana elections, is really simple — if you give a campaign donation, you have to disclose it.”

TN:  DISCLOSURE PUSH.   JC Press.  “The deficiency in the Tennessee law comes as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision in 2010. That ruling has led to practically unlimited spending by individuals, corporations and unions in federal races.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

Mon. 3-23 political law links

FUNDRAISING AWAITS.  WP.  “The team of fundraisers tasked with raising more than $1 billion for Hillary Rodham Clinton’s expected presidential bid will start with two major assets: a national grass-roots operation two years in the making and a network of wealthy Democratic donors much broader than the one that backed her first White House run.”

SUPER PAC TAP.  USAT.  “A veteran South Carolina political strategist reportedly will help lead a super PAC to boost the Florida senator’s likely presidential bid.”

AD TANGLE.  TIME.  “As a legal matter, Bush’s lawyers had plenty of reasons to be cautious. His effort to reach the White House can only be carried out legally in its current incarnation if he denies that any of it is being done as part of a dedicated effort to win the White House.”

NEW WORLD FOR FEINGOLD.  The Hill.  “Former Sen. Russ Feingold is going to have to navigate a campaign finance world vastly different from the one he’d hoped to create if he decides to seek a Senate comeback.”

SUPER PAC TRAVEL.  WESH.  “Jeb Bush will travel to Washington, D.C. at the end of April to help raise money for his super PAC, according to an invitation obtained by CNN.”

SUPER PAC SHUTDOWN.  Inewsource.org.  “The Fund, a super PAC run by former San Diego city councilman and unsuccessful mayoral and congressional candidate Carl DeMaio, is shutting down according to a document filed Friday with the Federal Election Commission.”

DASCHLE REGISTERS.  The Hill.  “Onetime Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) has registered as a lobbyist for the first time since leaving the Senate a decade ago, marking an informal milestone for a powerbroker who has long insisted that his work on behalf of K Street clients does not legally constitute lobbying.”

CA:  FINE PAID.  East Bay Express.  “Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney has paid a large fine to the city of Oakland for her failure to file campaign finance statements on time.”

IL:  NO DARK MONEY HERE.  Chicago Sun Times (Letter to the Editor from Illinoisans for Growth and Opportunity).  “As for Mr. Brown’s ‘dark money’ allegations, 510(c)4 structures, under which donors are not publicly disclosed, is the very same design used by hundreds of chambers of commerce and trade and labor groups across the country.  Is the Sun-Times asserting that local chambers of commerce or AARP or the Sierra Club need to disclose the details of their members’ dues every time the group takes a position on a piece of legislation? Further, direct contributions to independent expenditure campaigns are always disclosed, and transfers from 510(c)4 are allowed.”

NM:  BILL DIES.  NM in Depth.  “Lost in the drama of Saturday was the death of legislation that would have exposed so-called ‘dark money’ groups to more public scrutiny.”

NM:  BILL PASSES.  NM in Depth.   “The House voted Friday afternoon to send legislation that would require the creation of a searchable online database of lobbyists to the desk of Republican Gov. Susana Martinez.”

NY:  KILLING CAMPAIGN FINANCE.  NYDN.  “Let Mayor de Blasio admit this fact: His bear hug of the Fund for One New York, the not-at-all-independent nonprofit advocacy group he created, is hastening the demise of the city’s public campaign finance system.”

OR:  WHAT OR NEEDS.  Go Local.  “Oregon is one of only six states that has no contribution limits whatsoever for candidate campaigns.”

VT:  NEW RULES.  Sevendaysvt.com.  “The Vermont Senate approved new rules Friday requiring lobbyists to quickly report how much they spend on advertising campaigns and to more regularly report their activities within the Statehouse.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

3.19 political law links

TESTING, TESTING.  HuffPo.  “Federal campaign finance law has specific rules for people exploring a presidential campaign.”

LIBRARY DISCLOSURE.  KC.com.  “Since 1999, Congress has debated multiple versions of a Presidential Library Donation Reform Act. The constraints on fundraising would be similar to those in place for campaign contributions. In 2007, lawmakers finally scored a partial victory –— registered lobbyists are now required to report donations of $200 or more.”

LOBBYIST BAN PASSED.  NOLA.com.  “Wednesday’s bill requires the EPA to reveal scientific data used by the agency to justify regulations, while a bill passed Tuesday would bar the agency from appointing registered lobbyists to the agency’s Science Advisory Board.”

CA:  WARNING LETTER.  LAT.  “State Sen. Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) violated state disclosure requirements when he “significantly underreported” the money he received in a bailout of his temporary home in Sacramento, the state ethics agency concluded Monday.”

CT:  ILLEGAL MONEY INVESTIGATION.  FoxCT.  “Investigators are subpoenaing Connecticut’s Democratic Party in an effort to determine if illegal money was spent to fund Gov. Dan Malloy’s re-election campaign.”

IN:  CLERK ON ERRORS.  SB Tribune.  “Some campaign finance forms filed by local politicians may be inaccurate — and some local corporations may have donated to local candidates beyond the $2,000 limit, said St. Joseph County Clerk Terri Rethlake at Wednesday’s Election Board meeting.”

IN:  MAYOR FOCUS.  Tribune.  “Election Board officials will investigate the campaign finance reports of Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson in the wake of a complaint filed by one of her challengers for the mayor’s office.”

MI:  BILLS INTRODUCED.  WOODTV.com.  “State Democrats from the House and Senate are promoting bills they say would help improve government transparency in Michigan.”

MT:  TESTY HEARING.  Bozeman Daily Chron.  “Montana lawmakers are poised to pass a law that its sponsor says will increase transparency in elections by requiring more frequent and detailed expenditure reports from candidates and committees.”

NC:  CONFLICT DEVELOPMENTS.  Newsobserver.com.  “House Bill 252 would require legislators and other government officials to recuse themselves if they’re in a “current dating relationship or current sexual relationship” with a lobbyist who stands to benefit from the issue at hand.”

NY:  ETHICS DEAL.  CAP.  “The Democratic agreement on ethics law changes, touted Wednesday morning by Governor Andrew Cuomo and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, would still allow state lawmakers to use campaign funds for dinners out and criminal defense attorneys.”

OH:  A LITTLE LATE.  Cincinnati.com.  “P.G. Sittenfeld failed to file a required campaign finance disclosure until six months after it was due, The Enquirer discovered in a review of City Council-related records.”

TX:  LOBBYIST DISCLOSURE.  TX Tribune.  “State law requires disclosure, but with loopholes that almost always protect officeholders and their employees from accountability and transparency.”

VT:  LOBBYIST GRUMBLE.  SD VT.  “This happens just about any time a campaign finance or lobbying bill reaches the Senate or House floor: When legislation hits lawmakers close to home, nearly every one of them has thoughts, questions and criticisms about what it will or will not do.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.