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RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES
We read the news, cut through
the noise and provide you the notes.
Welcome to Compliance Notes from Nossaman’s Government Relations & Regulation
Group – a periodic digest of the headlines,
statutory and regulatory changes and court cases involving campaign
finance, lobbying compliance, election law and government ethics
issues at the federal, state and local level.
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available to discuss any questions or how specific issues
may impact your business.
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Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance
Washington: To make Spokane’s Fair
Elections Code consistent with state law, the City Council voted to
increase the individual donor limit for political campaigns from
$500 to $1,000. In 2018, the city’s donation limits were
reduced to $500 in order to force politicians to reach out to more
constituents and decrease their reliance on a smaller number of
wealthier donors. However, a massive uptick in independent
expenditures overshadowed the overall increase in donors. The new
limit will take effect on October 26, 2022. (Colin Tiernan, The
Spokesman-Review)
Government Ethics & Transparency
The former CEO of a defense contracting firm has pleaded guilty
to making more than $200,000 in illegal contributions to Senator
Susan Collins’ campaign and political action committee that
supported her 2020 reelection bid. Prosecutors alleged that in 2019
Martin Kao engaged in a conspiracy to funnel money to Senator
Collins’ campaign through family members and a shell company.
The donations were made shortly after Senator Collins helped the
contracting firm secure an $8 million contract with the Navy’s
Office of Naval Research. In February of this year, Mr. Kao was
charged with violating federal laws prohibiting defense contractors
from making such contributions. In light of Mr. Kao’s recent
guilty plea, Collins’ campaign committee emphasized there have
been no allegations of wrongdoing against it. (Colin Woodard, Sun Journal)
New Mexico: In a case evaluating whether New
Mexico’s ethics law was too vague to be used for criminal
prosecutions, the state’s supreme court ruled that an ethical
violation by a public official is not a crime. The court’s
ruling reversed the appeals court, which found the state’s
ethics law created a criminal charge. The decision came in a matter
focused on four high-profile cases against public officials charged
under the ethics law, who argued the law was merely a set of
guidelines for how public officials should behave. The attorney
general’s office argued that the law clearly states that public
employees shall not use their power for personal benefit in order
to protect the public’s confidence in government. In rejecting
the attorney general’s rationale, the court stripped the
attorney general’s office of its power to prosecute public
officials who use their office for personal gain. As a result, the
criminal ethics charges against all four individuals were
dismissed. (Anna Padilla, KRQE)
Elections & Voting
Montana: A judge found three laws that
restricted voting in Montana unconstitutional because there was no
evidence of the widespread voter fraud that the laws ostensibly
targeted. The three laws at issue were passed in 2021 to prevent
election fraud. The laws would have eliminated Election Day
registration, imposed new voter identification requirements and
restricted third-party ballot collections. The judge also found
“significant signs” that the ballot collection law had a
discriminatory purpose and that identification restrictions were
intended to “reduce voting by young people.” Election
officials have declined to say whether they would appeal the ruling
to the state’s supreme court. However, with the election just
over a month away, it’s uncertain if the justices could issue a
decision in time. (Matthew Brown, AP News)
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