…stinguish their “election communications” from their “issue advocacy” and “lobbying” ones * Most groups could transfer their 527 activities to 501(c) advocacy organizations, if necessary, although at a potential cost since political activities conducted by a 501(c) organization are subject to taxation. * The overwhelming majority of large individual donors to the groups’ 527s contributed large amounts of money directly to candidates, parties and P…

…The New York Times has this report on local government entities’ increasing use of private lobbying firms to secure federal funding….

…involved in the political process, gerrymandering, the Voting Rights Act, lobbying, increased sidestepping of the legislative process, and an international perspective on any or all of the above. Submissions are not restricted to these topics; if you feel you have a pertinent paper about a topic not listed here, please do not hold back as we are open to other perspectives. We will be especially interested in topics that call attention to issues t…

…ate Democrats said they are still considering what, if anything, they should do. Each option carries advantages, but they all share the same risk: that Republicans will be able to label them obstructionists who stopped an ethics overhaul in its tracks to protect a political priority.” In other lobbying reform news, The Hill offers this report, which begins: “New rules aimed at curbing the growth of earmarks are among the most widely touted element…

…ons that the Internal Revenue Code places on political activity, including lobbying and campaign intervention, by tax-exempt organizations. It focuses on the above organizations, but also discusses the restrictions on the other types of tax-exempt organizations. The report ends with a summary of the information that tax-exempt organizations must report to the Internal Revenue Service about their political activities and whether the information mus…

…ffers Lobby Bill Poised for Passage, which begins: “House lawmakers today are expected to approve the first overhaul of Congressional ethics rules in a decade, despite vigorous opposition from Democrats and outside watchdog groups who assail the measure as too weak.” It also offers Lobbying Firm Broke PAC Rules, which begins: “Former top aides to Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Pa.) who are working at a lobbying firm with close ties to the lawmaker appear t…

…The Hill offers Opponents see GOP win, which begins: “Opponents of the House GOP leadership’s upcoming lobbying and ethics reform bill were pessimistic yesterday that they could defeat it, noting that increased support among Democrats would likely offset any erosion of enthusiasm in the Republican ranks.”…

…ed; and (4) establish the collateral consequences through litigation or by lobbying executive officials who are responsible for implementing the measure. The Article claims that structural flaws in the initiative process facilitate this technique and otherwise increase the risk that successful ballot measures will have collateral consequences that were not approved by the voters. The Article evaluates the ability to alleviate these problems throug…

…continued efforts of “watchdog” groups to add grassroots provisions to the lobbying reform bill in the House, proposed legislation to regulate the grassroots might be the most indiscriminate, far-reaching effort to regulate political and faith-based speech and publication ever. Contrary to proponents of regulating the grassroots, the Senate-passed provisions do not target paid professional and “Astroturf” grassroots communications. The registratio…

…USA Today offers this report, which begins: “WASHINGTON — House Republican leaders have quietly scaled back their plan to limit the political influence of lobbyists, dropping proposed requirements that lobbyists disclose which lawmakers and aides they have contacted and how they have raised money for politicians.” See also Dreier admits reform bill weaker than his proposals….

…t: “Language to bring 527 groups under federal limits remains in a broader lobbying reform package that House Members are expected to wrap work on in the next few weeks. If that provision is not stripped from the bill–in the Rules Committee, on the House floor or in conference, assuming it passes–Senate Democrats could be forced to vote against broader lobbying reform to protect 527 groups’ unfettered fundraising.” Meanwhile, Bob Bauer is skeptica…

…sor, University of Toronto Law School 11:45-1:00 Lunch 1:00-2:30 Panel II: Lobbying and Campaign Finance Reform Chair: Daniel Lowenstein Ray LaRaja, Assistant Professor, Political Science Department, University of Massachusetts, Trevor Potter , Attorney, Caplin and Drysdale Rick Hasen, Professor, Loyola School of Law Michael Malbin, Executive Director, Campaign Finance Institute, George Washington University 2:45-4:15 Panel III: Interest Groups, C…

…The NY Times offers this front-page report. See also coverage in USA Today, the Washington Post, and the LA Times….

…of ways: By the name of a lobbying client, or the entity that paid for the lobbying; By lobbying firm or individual lobbyist, including those employed in-house by a corporation or other organization; By industry or type of interest group, selecting from a list of more than 100—rom abortion-related causes to the wine, beer and liquor industry; By the issues the lobbying was intended to influence, from a list comprising nearly 80 categories; By the…

…he newspaper ran House GOP Leader Well Traveled; Privately Paid Trips Total Half a Year, that begins: “House Majority Leader John A. Boehner (Ohio), who rose to power in the wake of a congressional lobbying scandal, spent the equivalent of nearly six months on privately funded trips over the past six years, according to a new study by a nonpartisan research group.”…

…s this report, which begins: “House Republican leaders proposed changes in lobbying laws yesterday that would include a crackdown on independent, big-money committees that heavily aided Democrats in the 2004 elections. The proposed ethics package would increase the amount of information that lobbyists must disclose and would, at least temporarily, cut off privately financed travel for lawmakers. The bill would also force lawmakers to disclose the…

…The New York Times offers this report. See also this report in The Hill. Both reports indicate that House Republicans are considering packaging 527 reform with the lobbying bill. I’ll have more to say about this soon….

…hich begins: “IN the eyes of one conservative group, a lesser-known Senate lobbying proposal would have forced Revolutionary patriots to reveal their leafleting routes to King George. A fanciful leap, for sure, but what the provision would do is require the disclosure of money spent on the kind of grassroots campaigns that involve paying lobbyists to recruit large numbers of people to call or write or e-mail their lawmakers and press their views o…

…: “The partisan clash in the Senate over port security threw prospects for lobbying reform legislation further into doubt Thursday, after lawmakers failed to muster a two-thirds majority vote to end debate on the bill. The 47-51 vote against invoking cloture takes lobbying reform in the chamber off the table for now. Already facing a crowded schedule of votes on the budget and an increase in the debt ceiling next week, it is unclear whether lawmak…

…sts. But the bill is stalled: The Hill offers Fireworks as Schumer offers kill bill, which begins: Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) triggered partisan fireworks yesterday as he offered an amendment that would ban Dubai Ports World from operating American ports to a lobbying-reform bill. Senate Republicans vowed to file for cloture in an effort to derail Schumer’s amendment as a senior aide to Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) denounced the senator…

…ect the integrity of our legislative process and promote moral and ethical behavior. I commend the bipartisan efforts of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and Rules committees, as well as members of our leadership, for their hard work in developing comprehensive lobbying reform legislation. While developing the lobbying reform package, some Members, individuals and groups have supported the creation of an Office of Public Integrity to…

The Washington Post offers this report. See also Lobbyist Turns Senator But Twists Same Arms in the NY Times, which begins: “It might be said that Senator John Thune went through the revolving door — backward. As a lobbyist in 2003 and 2004, Mr. Thune earned $220,000 from the Dakota, Minnesota & Eastern Railroad, a small but ambitious company in South Dakota. The railroad hopes to rebuild and rehabilitate 1,300 miles of track, the nation’s larges…

…Roll Call offers this report (paid subscription required), which begins: “Organizers of the independent political groups known as 527s are quietly fanning out across Capitol Hill, trying to convince lawmakers to exclude from any lobbying reform package new rules to severely limit their activities.”…

…ovisions that restrict corporate electioneering should apply to grassroots lobbying on issues. In a case out of Vermont, the Court will consider whether states may place caps on spending and restrict the independent expenditures of other groups and individuals. Our panel will discuss to what degree the First Amendment remains an impediment to campaign finance restrictions and a protector of political speech, and how much deference Congress and leg…