Lobbyist Miscellany

Lobbyist Extortion
According to an article yesterday on Columbus, Ohio's NBC 4 website, a lobbyist for a red-light camera company pleaded guilty to charges that he solicited campaign contributions for elected city officials from his client by creating the impression that the money was needed to bribe the city officials. The lobbyist had helped the company win the city contract in 2005 and had assisted the company with contract renewals. Federal court documents say that he collected tens of thousands of dollars from his client and then made contributions in his own name to the local and state party committees. The funds were then transferred to the campaigns of city officials.

"Expenditure Lobbyists" and Ballot Questions
According to an article in today's San Francisco Examiner, a 2010 decision by San Francisco's legislative body to no longer require "expenditure lobbyists" to disclose their lobbying activities is to go before the public for a vote. Expenditure lobbyists, also known as "grassroot lobbyists," foster (and often pay for) the communication of others with government officials, through various forms of promotion, including petition drives, phone calls, mailers, websites, and "Astroturf" organizations that they set up. The issue was put on the ballot by a unanimous vote of the city's ethics commission, which has been given the power to do this without approval by the legislative body. This is a power that should be sought by all ECs in jurisdictions that allow ballot questions.

Billing for Lobbying
According to an article this week on the Politico website, a Pentagon inspector general's report showed that 6 of 24 defense contractors audited between 2010-2012 billed their lobbying costs to the government. How many jurisdictions expressly prohibit this? (The Pentagon does, but it isn't clear from the report that the investigation was taken any further.)

Robert Wechsler
Director of Research-Retired, City Ethics