Lobbyist Contribution and Solicitation Ban State Elections Enforcement Commission

Lobbyist Contribution and Solicitation Ban

State Elections Enforcement Commission

Public Act 2005-05 October 25 Special

Session


•Public Campaign Financing Program for Statewide and General Assembly Candidates

•State Contractor Contribution and Solicitation Ban

•Lobbyist Contribution and Solicitation Ban

•Filing Repository moved to SEEC from SOTS

Commission Staff• Senior Executive Operations

• Information Technology Services

• Public Financing Unit

• Legal and Enforcement Unit

• Campaign Disclosure and Audit Unit

• Fiscal, Administrative and Grant Payments Unit



Lobbyist Contribution BanNo communicator lobbyist may make a contribution to:

• Candidates for statewide office or general assembly or exploratory committees for those offices

(including qualifying contributions to candidates participating in the Citizens’ Election Program)

• Political committees established or controlled by those candidates

• Legislative leadership and legislative caucus committees

• Party committees


Who’s Who - Definitions

• Client Lobbyist – expends or agrees to expend $2,000 in a calendar year

• Communicator Lobbyist – receives or agrees to receive $2,000 in a calendar year

Individual Member of a business organization In-house (regular employee of client lobbyist)


Definitions Continued$2,000 for what?

• Administrative Lobbying; and/or

• Legislative Lobbying; and or

• Activities in Furtherance of Lobbying

Lobbyist Contribution Ban

• Also applies to political committees (known as PACs) established or controlled by a communicator lobbyist

• Lobbyist political committees may not make contributions to covered candidates or committees, or solicit for them


Lobbyist Solicitation BanLobbyists, immediate family members, agents orpolitical committees cannot solicit contributions for:

• Candidates for Statewide Office and General Assembly

• Political committees established or controlled by such candidates

• Legislative leadership or legislative caucus committees or

• Party committees (including state central and town committees)


Lobbyist Solicitation Ban

Lobbyists, immediate family members, agents ortheir political committees cannot solicit a contribution or an ad book purchase for a town committee



• Spouse and dependent children of a lobbyist

are also subject to the contribution and solicitation bans

• Includes partners to a civil union

Immediate Family


• Requesting that a contribution be made;

• Participating in any fundraising activities, including, but not limited to:

forwarding tickets receiving contributions bundling contributions attending a fundraiser

• Serving as chairperson, campaign treasurer or deputy treasurer of a covered committee

“Solicit” Means


• Informing any person of a position taken by a candidate for public office or a public official

• Notifying the person of any activities of, or contact information for, any candidate for public office

“Solicit” Does NOT Mean:


• Volunteer for a political campaign

• Put a sign on his/her lawn

• Drive the candidate around campaigning

• Tell people candidate X is great…or awful

• Make get out to vote calls

A Lobbyist May Still:


• Contribute to and solicit for candidates for Judge of Probate, local candidates and referenda

• Make independent expenditures in support of candidates

Lobbyists May Still:


• Express support for a candidate or their views

• Communicate their evaluations of a legislator or candidate to their clients

• Contribute to a political committee that is not a legislative leadership committee, legislative caucus committee or a political committee established or controlled by one of the covered candidates (but no earmarking)

Lobbyists May Still:


• It is illegal to make, receive or solicit a prohibited contribution 9-622(10)

• Since lobbyist contributions are prohibited, they cannot legally be solicited

• Same definition of “solicit” applies

Legislators May Not Solicit Lobbyists


• Law since 1990

• Used to apply to both client and communicator lobbyists and their political committees

• Contributions/Solicitations banned during the legislative session

• Still necessary for Client Lobbyists

• And non-contributions don’t apply for client and communicator lobbyists during session

Sessional Lobbyist Contribution Ban


• B-2 Certification of Eligibility to Receive Lobbyist Contributions During Session

• B-3 Certification of a Committee Established by of on Behalf of a Lobbyist

• Lists published and distributed during session

• Reminders of sessional ban in Bulletin

Prohibited Donor and Recipient Lists for Sessional Lobbyist Ban


• PA 06-137 Removed the annual lobbyist campaign finance filing

• Effective October 1, 2007

Annual Filing Requirement Abolished


• Law requires us to compile a database of those subject to the

ban

• Over 10,000 vendors

• Posted on our website: www.ct.gov\seec

State Contractors Ban


• Principals of contractors with the executive and legislative branches

• Valued at $50,000, or $100,000 in the aggregate

• CANNOT contribute to or solicit for candidates in the branch of government they have a contract with, political committees authorized to contribute to said candidates or party committees

• CANNOT make qualifying contributions to candidates participating in the Citizens’ Election Program

Contractor Ban

Certification

• ALL contributors making contributions to covered candidate committees, political committees or party committees of $50 dollars or more must certify that they are not communicator lobbyists, immediate family members of communicator lobbyists, or principals of state contractors or prospective state contractors

New Electronic Filing System• New system being

developed

• Searchable database

• Redesigned forms

• User friendly

• All SOTS campaign finance filings with SEEC beginning in 2007


Purpose of Presentation

• The purpose of this presentation is to provide you with general information about the various rules and requirements of the Program. This presentation however, is not a substitute for the law, which can be found on the Commission’s web site.

State Elections Enforcement CommissionContact Information

• Address:20 Trinity Street, Hartford, CT 06106

• E-mail:[email protected]

• Telephone:(860) 256-2940Toll free (in-state only) 1-(866) 733-2463

1-(866) SEEC-INFO

• Fax:(860) 256-2983

• Website:www.ct.gov/seec

http://www.ct.gov/seec

Documents

Lobbyist Contribution and Solicitation Ban State Elections Enforcement Commission