Good morning, here are Monday’s political law links

CRUZ ETHICS ISSUES.  Here.    “Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz potentially violated ethics rules by failing to publicly disclose his financial relationship with a Caribbean-based holding company during the 2012 campaign, a review of financial disclosure and company documents by TIME shows.”

AL:  NEW AGENCY PLANS.  Here.  “That’s why the committee is considering the creation of a non-partisan board similar to the Federal Elections Commission. It could review candidate’s filings, check them for any problems, receive complaints about candidate’s reports, and give advice to candidates about how to comply with the law.”

AZ:  COORDINATION ISSUES.  Here.  “Now, two county attorneys have concluded that Horne violated campaign finance law by coordinating activities with an independent expenditure committee.”

FL:  BONDI AND TRUMP ISSUE.  Here.  “Now comes criticism of a $25,000 contribution made by one of Donald Trump’s foundations to a political committee associated with Bondi. The donation came three days after an Attorney General’s Office spokeswoman said Bondi was reviewing allegations in a lawsuit filed by the New York attorney general against get-rich-quick seminars associated with Trump.”

GA:  LOBBYIST SPENDING DOWN.  Here.  “The decline continues a trend of lower spending begun in February 2012 when advocates began pushing hard for reforms.”

MI:  ALLEGATIONS INVALID.  Here.  “Allegations that the Farmington Public Schools and its Board of Education President Howard Wallach recently violated the Michigan Campaign Finance Act are invalid, the Michigan Department of State has determined.”

MT:  LIMIT VIOLATION ALLEGED.  Here.  “Montana’s campaign and election regulator has found that Governor Steve Bullock violated state campaign finance laws during last year’s election by accepting contributions above the legal limit.”

NY:  DE BLASIO ON REFORM.  Here.  “So today, while common folk and businesses looking to exercise their First Amendment rights must abide by the limit, unions can keep the cash flowing to their favorite candidates.”

EU LOBBYING. The Times.  “As the European Union has emerged as a regulatory superpower affecting 28 countries that collectively form the world’s largest economy, its policies have become ever more important to corporations operating across borders.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.

Fri. political law links, 10-18-13

FUNDRAISING SURPRISES.. Roll Call. “House campaigns reported their fundraising totals for July through September this week, revealing some surprising hauls from more than a handful of members and candidates.”

THE POST-MCCUTCHEON WORLD. Here. “Lawyers will then be asked by clients—likely to be donors or past aides of those candidates who are suddenly interested in forming an array of innocuous-sounding organizations—how much distance they must maintain from a particular campaign. The implicit goal would be to create a network of PACs, ‘independently’ run by unaffiliated volunteers but who can reliably be counted upon to support a particular candidate. The effect, defenders of the aggregate caps worry, will be that donors circumvent the base contribution limits by exponentially making PACs contributions in a way not previously possible.”

SUN CENTER UPDATE. WT. “A group of 10 states, led by California, has come together to form a new nonpartisan organization to pool resources to tackle campaign-finance abuses across the country. Organizers say the new States’ Unified Network Center could become a powerful pressure group for stricter enforcement of campaign-finance laws.”

AZ: NOT GUILTY PLEA. Story here. “An ex-Phoenix lobbyist whose former clients included the Fiesta Bowl has pleaded not guilty to conspiracy and illegal campaign contribution charges.”

CO: IN KIND WORTHY OF CHEECH AND CHONG. Story here. “An organization that gave away free marijuana cigarettes as a way to protest possible taxes in Colorado has filed an unusual campaign finance report, after a watchdog group said the pot qualified as a campaign contribution.”

FL: PLEA LIKELY. Here. “Suspended Sweetwater Mayor Manuel Maroño and lobbyist Jorge Forte appear to be laying the groundwork to plead guilty to a corruption conspiracy stemming from their pocketing thousands of dollars in kickbacks while seeking federal grants in an FBI sting operation.”

PA: PROPOSED LIMITS. News here. “If a proposed list of regulations is approved by the Philadelphia Board of Ethics, a City Council member would be allowed to accept Eagles tickets and dinner from a lobbyist as long as the total value didn’t exceed $200.”

VA: COMPLAINT FILED. Story here. “The Republican Party of Virginia has filed a complaint with the Virginia State Board of Elections accusing an out-of-state Democratic organization of violating campaign finance disclosure laws in a way that the GOP says conceals the identity of contributors to Sen. Mark R. Herring, the Democratic candidate for attorney general.”

VA: CUT CREDIT? News here. “Virginia Attorney General Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II said Thursday that a tax credit the state should look at cutting is one people can claim for donating to political candidates.”

UK: FREE SPEECH FEARS. Story here. “Lobbying reforms will curb fundamental rights to free speech while failing to restore public confidence in the political system, a parliamentary report has warned.”

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND.

Thursday’s political law links, 10/17/13

TORTILLA COAST PROFIT.  Roll Call.  “In each of the last three election cycles, House and national party campaign committees have paid bills totaling more than $200,000 at the restaurant.”

UBER LOBBYING.  Here.  “Car-for-hire service Uber has hired its first Washington lobbying firm, according to public disclosure forms.”

BACHMANN REFUNDS.  Here.  “GOP Rep. Michele Bachmann has turned about $14,000 in past campaign contributions over to a bankruptcy trustee for a Florida businessman who was linked to a big federal fraud case in Minnesota.”

PONZI CASH.  HuffPo.  “President Barack Obama received $4,600 in campaign contributions from R. Allen Stanford less than a year before the Texan was arrested in 2009 for running one of the biggest Ponzi schemes in U.S. history.”

NY:  SUPER PAC REQUEST.  Story here.  “Today, America Rising, a Republican super PAC, will file a Freedom of Information Law request for records related to the Cuomo administration’s role in the commission’s subpoena process.”

VA: EMAIL FIGHT. The Post. “A federal appeals court on Wednesday rejected a request by attorneys for Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) to shield two e-mails written by a senior policy adviser to the governor from a grand jury subpoena in a criminal investigation.”

WA: GROCERY GROUP SUED. Story here. “Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson filed a lawsuit today against the Grocery Manufacturers Association, alleging the group illegally collected and spent more than $7 million to oppose Initiative 522, the measure requiring labeling of genetically modified foods.”

WI:  EMBOLDENED BY MCCUTCHEON.  Here.  “If McCutcheon wins, a Wisconsin case is waiting in federal court that could end Wisconsin’s aggregate limits.”

HAVE A GREAT DAY.