[Political Activity Law]

REPORT OF COMPLAINT.  PAT.  “Debbie Lesko, who just won a resounding victory in the Republican primary to replace former Rep. Trent Frank in Congress, now faces a second complaint with the Federal Election Commission.”

CAMPAIGN FINANCE PROVISIONS.   WP.  “A handful of provisions tucked into a pair of must-pass bills under consideration in Congress this month could reshape the financing of political campaigns and give further cover to donors who want to keep their contributions private.”

CAMPAIGN PAYS.  NW.  “Senator Bernie Sanders’ campaign agreed to pay a $14,500 fine to the Federal Election Commission last month after the agency ruled the independent’s 2016 presidential campaign had accepted an illegal contribution from the Australian Labor Party.”

CA:  OBSCURE COMMITTEE.   OCR.  “Irvine Councilwoman Melissa Fox is the latest Orange County politician to exploit a rarely used fundraising account to shelter large campaign donations – in her case a $10,000 contribution from a liberal political action committee.”

CA:  GIFT TRENDS.   LAT.  “New filings show lawmakers also were given bottles of champagne and whiskey, cigars, flowers, neckties and makeup in 2017, continuing a trend of gift-giving with few limits that has not slowed after the bribery scandals that sent former Sens. Leland Yee and Ron Calderon to prison.”

CA:  STRICT CALL RULES.   LAT.  “A federal district court judge ruled the other day that it’s constitutional for Montana to ban political robocalls, even though political consultants who had sued the state claimed their right to free speech had been violated.”

CT:  FINANCING EXPENSE.  COU.  “The crowded field for governor means it could be the costliest year yet for Connecticut’s public campaign finance program, intensifying criticism from Republicans who say taxpayer dollars shouldn’t be used to fund political campaigns.”

PA:  GUILTY VERDICT.   MCC.  “A jury found Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski guilty Thursday on nearly all charges in his federal pay-to-play trial, meaning he will have to relinquish office after he is sentenced — a crushing end to a 12-year career at the helm of a long-distressed city in the midst of revival.”

TX:  IN-KIND IN THE NEWS.   DN.  “According to her last campaign finance report, Garza received $36,500 in monetary donations and $51,000 in in-kind donations, which are usually in the form of campaign advertising, polls or food and venue space for events.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.  

DEFENSE FUND LAUNCH.   WP.  “A new legal defense fund designed to help defray the costs faced by aides to President Trump drawn into the various Russia investigations has yet to answer key questions regarding how it will vet donors and provide transparency about the contributors who finance the effort.”

CA:  REFORM SET FOR VOTE.   SFE.  “Supervisor Aaron Peskin introduced a motion Tuesday for the Board of Supervisors and the Ethics Commission to hold a joint meeting to vote in April on adopting sweeping campaign finance reforms.”

IL:  REQUEST TO VOID LAW.   CT.  “On Wednesday, Berrios’ lawyers asked Circuit Court Judge Sanjay Tailor to void county ethics rules that place limits on campaign contributions to elected officials and candidates from those who seek ‘official action’ from the county. Berrios’ team argued the county rules violate the state constitution because only the Illinois legislature has authority to set campaign contribution limits.”

MT:  CASE CONTINUES.   KTVH.  “Forcing certain groups to reveal their donors and spending harms their members’ rights of association, because it could unduly subject them to political pressure and retaliation, Bopp said.”

SD:  BILL REJECTED.   KSFY.  “A House panel has voted down a bill aimed at requiring ballot measure campaigns to disclose their donors while supporters gather signatures to qualify for the ballot.”

UT:  ROLE OF CONTRIBUTIONS EXAMINED.   SLT.  “EnergySolutions is one of the Legislature’s biggest campaign contributors, so The Salt Lake Tribune decided to crunch the numbers. It found a huge disparity in donations to those who voted yes and the relatively few who voted no.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.

TREASURY PAID.   NPR.  “The Trump Organization sent the U.S. Treasury an undisclosed sum last week, in the first of what it says are annual payments to compensate for hotel profits from foreign officials.”

RETIRING MEMBER$.   OS.  “In all, the 42 members of Congress plan to retire or have already resigned ahead of November’s midterm election, and their campaign committee war chests boast a combined $50 million.”

DIGITAL RISING.   FN.  “Trump’s media digital media platform played a major role in helping him secure the White House and will likely give him an advantage in 2020.”

HATCH ACT IN THE NEWS.   MW.  “The Hatch Act prohibits executive branch employees from using their ‘official authority or influence for the purpose of interfering with an election or affecting the result thereof.'”

CAMPAIGN FINANCE HARM.  BH.  “Issues of free speech aside, evidence shows even if further restrictions were imposed on campaign finance, they would simply not meet their intent.”

AL:  DEFENSE FUND OK.   AL.  “Just one of the many notable changes the bill proposes would change how public officials accused of wrongdoing can pay legal fees.”

CA:  PAY TO PLAY REPEAL.   RO.  “The political choice Orange County lawmakers face on Thursday is whether to reopen the spigot of campaign contributions to the county executive from companies that hope to win or renew county contracts.”

RI:  COMPLAINT DISMISSED.   RPR.  “The Rhode Island Ethics Commission voted Tuesday to dismiss an ethics complaint filed against Gov. Gina Raimondo by state Republican Chairman Brandon Bell.”

TX:  SOROS IN.   SAN.  “Liberal billionaire George Soros earlier this month poured nearly $900,000 into the campaign of Joe Gonzales, a Democrat running to unseat Bexar County District Attorney Nicholas ‘Nico’ LaHood, according to reports filed Monday.”

HAVE A GOOD DAY.