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Ronald M. Jacobs

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A federal judge this week struck down on First Amendment grounds two provisions of New York’s lobbying law that would have required nonprofits to disclose their donors.

In 2016, New York state legislators passed legislation changing the state’s lobbying and campaign finance laws. Two important provisions dramatically expanded donor disclosure requirements for 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) organizations engaged in issue advocacy and lobbying in New York:

501(c)(4) Rules: The law required 501(c)(4) organizations to disclose all of their donors in public filings with the state when they spend over $10,000 in a calendar year on communications to at least 500 members of the public concerning the position of any elected official on potential or pending legislation.

501(c)(3) Rules: The law also required 501(c)(3) charitable organizations to disclose donors of $2,500 or more if the charitable organization made an in-kind donation of more than $2,500 to a Section 501(c)(4) organization engaged in lobbying in New York.…

Continue Reading New York Nonprofit Donor Disclosure Rules Struck Down

Companies that do business with state and local governments are subject to a wide array of laws restricting their political contributions, as well as the personal political contributions of their owners, officers, and some employees. These laws are known as pay-to-play laws because they are aimed at severing the relationship — or the appearance of a relationship — between a contribution (the “pay”) and the award of a government contract (the “play”).

Violations of pay-to-play laws — even a single, inadvertent political contribution — can result in costly bid disqualifications, voided contracts, and damaging publicity.

In approaching compliance, government contractors should do a risk assessment that takes into account where the company does business with government agencies, whether its contracts are covered by relevant laws, and where its employees live. For many companies, pre-clearing contributions and political fundraising (which some laws also cover) and training affected personnel are essential elements of an effective compliance plan. Also, companies should adopt protocols for registration and reporting to state election boards, as there are some pay-to-play laws that impose such requirements instead of, or on top of, contribution restrictions.

Pay-to-play laws vary across jurisdictions; we have outlined the broad requirements and highlighted certain relevant updates but encourage consultation with our political law attorneys to customize a compliance plan for your particular needs.…

Continue Reading Pay-to-Play Laws Remain in the Spotlight: Government Contract Eligibility Hinges on Awareness and Compliance

The District of Columbia has adopted a “pay-to-play” law that bans political contributions from city contractors, as well as personal political contributions from their senior officers. Violators may forfeit contracts, face disqualification on bidding for up to four years, and pay civil penalties. The law takes effect on November 4, 2020.

Other major municipalities, such as Chicago, New York City, and Philadelphia have similar laws that either restrict political contributions from contractors and their principals, require the contractor to file reports with the relevant election board, or both. A number of states also have pay-to-play laws, including Maryland, New Jersey, and Illinois.…

Continue Reading New DC “Pay-to-Play” Law Bans Contributions by Government Contractors and their Officers

Every two years, after an election, the FEC indexes certain contribution limits to inflation. After returning from the shutdown, the FEC issued the revised limits for this year, a few days later than usual. As has been the case the past few cycles, the individual limit has gone up by $100. For candidates up for election in 2020, individuals may now give $2,800 per election or $5,600 per candidate per election cycle (with the primary and general considered separate elections). This means that individual contributors who had previously maxed out to candidates for 2020 primary and general elections at $2,700 per election can now give those candidates another $100 per election.

The FEC also raised the limits on individual contributions to party committees and non-multicandidate PACs:…

Continue Reading Federal Election Commission Announces New Contribution Limits for 2019-2020 Cycle

The Federal Election Commission recently held a public hearing to discuss its March 2018 proposed rule aimed at providing voters with more information about who pays for or sponsors online political advertisements. The private sector has adopted a solution to the issue.

On May 22, 2018, the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) took the first step to alter the status quo by unveiling a new, industry-wide PoliticalAds transparency initiative designed to bring greater transparency and accountability to the realm of political advertising.

Similar to the DAA’s YourAdChoice program, which provides consumers with easily accessible information via the familiar blue triangle that accompanies interest-based ads, the PoliticalAds initiative will require certain political advertisements to supply information and a comparable purple icon.…

Continue Reading Transparency Coming to a Campaign Ad Near You!

A little-noticed provision tucked away in the recently enacted Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TJCA) will have an effect on businesses that lobby at the local level. Under the TJCA, expenses incurred in connection with attempting to influence legislation at the local or municipal level (including Indian tribal governments) will no longer be deductible.

In…

The Federal Election Commission has fined a federal contractor for making $200,000 in contributions to a Super PAC that supported a candidate in the 2016 presidential election. This is the first time the FEC has fined a government contractor for contributing to a Super PAC.

Federal contractors are prohibited from making contributions to federal candidates…

But, there are a lot of ways to improve PAC fundraising.

A Florida-based trade association voluntarily came forward to the FEC to disclose that it had reimbursed travel expenses for PAC contributors and was fined $9,000. The FEC found that the group developed a schedule for reimbursing travel expenses based on the amount given or pledged to the PAC. Under that system, the association reimbursed approximately $55,000 in travel expenses over the course of four years. Because of those travel reimbursements, the FEC concluded that the association had, in effect, reimbursed the PAC contributions. As such, it made impermissible corporate contributions and contributions in the name of another.

The reimbursement formula depended on the amount given or pledged to the PAC. Those who gave $1,000 per year, would get $750 in travel for each of two meetings, or a total of $1,500 per year. $100 contributors got $150 per meeting, or $300 total. If the association had reimbursed all directors for travel regardless of PAC contributions, that would have been fine. The problem was that the reimbursements were tied to the PAC contributions.

The FEC has said that the method for reimbursement does not matter. Bonuses, expense reimbursement, etc. are all impermissible. There are, however, permissible ways to incentivize PAC giving:…

Continue Reading Don’t Reimburse Contributions. Period.

register nowLast month the Chicago Board of Ethics made headlines when it fined former Obama administration official David Plouffe $90,000 for failing to register as a lobbyist after communicating with city officials by email.

But the story did not end there. According to the Chicago Tribune, the city’s ethics board is now looking into potential lobbying registration violations by dozens of individuals and companies. As with the Plouffe matter, these potential violations trace back to messages sent to Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s personal email accounts, which were released in response to a pair of open records lawsuits.

These developments in Chicago serve as a potent reminder of the penalties and reputational risks from ignoring state and local lobbying registration laws.…

Continue Reading Chicago Crackdown on Unregistered Lobbying May Expand to Dozens of Individuals, Companies

Overview

Pay-to-play laws restrict or prohibit businesses, as well as their owners, officers, and in some cases, their employees, from making political contributions (the “pay”) if they have been awarded or are trying to obtain government contracts (the “play”). These laws, which are found at the federal, state and local levels, are an outgrowth of government contracting scandals and can strike at a company’s bottom line by disqualifying bids and voiding contracts. Violations also can result in fines, damaging publicity, and even jail.

Government contractors should have a pay-to-play compliance plan that takes into account the jurisdictions where covered owners, officers, and employees are located, and where the company does or seeks to obtain business with government agencies. In addition, contractors should have a process for training covered employees, a mechanism for pre-clearing contributions, and protocols for meeting registration and ongoing reporting requirements.

Here are a few questions to help determine whether pay-to-play laws pose a risk to your business:

  • Do pay-to-play laws apply to my business activities?
  • If so, which affiliated individuals and entities are subject to the law?
  • What are the consequences for covered individuals and entities (prohibitions, reduced contributions limits, reporting, other)?
  • What are the penalties for violating applicable pay-to-play laws?

…
Continue Reading Pay-to-Play Law Update: Political Activity Can Put Government Contracts at Risk