Over the next nine weeks, the Trump Presidential Transition team will formulate policy and staffing recommendations for the new administration. This alert gives a broad overview of the Transition and the laws that regulate interactions with Transition team members on issues related to appointments and policy recommendations. Persons interested in this topic may also wish
The Senate’s District Court Win in the Backpage Subpoena Fight Could Have Significant Implications for Congressional Investigations
Last week, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations in a rare case that has the potential to contribute significantly to the case law concerning congressional investigations. It is uncommon for a federal court to have an opportunity to rule on a congressional
House Clerk’s Office Apparently Sends Out Late Lobbyist Report Notices In Error
Earlier this afternoon, the House Clerk’s Office sent out emails to a number of registered federal lobbyists and lobbyist organizations alerting them to a missing 2016 Mid-Year LD-203 contribution report (due on August 1, 2016). It appears that this email was sent in error to a batch of registrants who properly filed their reports on
Forming and Operating Super PACs: A Practical Guide for Political Consultants in 2016
Covington recently released a high-level primer that provides political consultants with a practical resource for creating and running a federal Super PAC in a legally compliant manner. The primer, which is available here, explains the history and basic rules that apply to federal Super PACs. The primer then discusses the following key topics:
- checklist
California Approves Strict Rules on Super PAC Coordination
California has existing regulations that define when expenditures by outside groups, including super PACs, are coordinated with candidates and become illegal contributions to those campaigns. These rules create a presumption of coordination under certain circumstances. Yesterday, the Fair Political Practices Commission (“FPPC”) approved revisions to its rules on independent expenditures and coordination that expand the
National Party 2.0: FECA Amendments in Omnibus Spending Bill Increase Fundraising Power of National Parties
If you skipped to the final pages of the omnibus spending bill unveiled last night to see how it ends, you would find a rather dramatic change in campaign finance law related to party committee contribution limits. Page 1599 (of 1603) of the spending package contains amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) that
Surprise! FECA Will Be Moving Across Town to Title 52 on September 1
The Office of the Law Revision Counsel, the keepers of the official U.S. Code, recently announced that voting and election provisions currently located in titles 2 and 42 (including FECA) will soon be transferred to a new title 52. The official conversion table can be found here. The Office has this to say
Another Lobbying Firm Hit With LDA Civil Complaint
On March 14, 2014, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia filed a civil complaint in a Lobbying Disclosure Act (“LDA”) enforcement action against an Alexandria, Virginia based lobbying firm. (Hat tip to Legal Times.) This is only the second such complaint to be filed. We reported on the first case, brought
Seventh Circuit Upholds Indiana Statute Regulating Interstate Political Robocalls
The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that the application of Indiana’s telemarking statute to interstate political calls was not preempted by federal law. You can read more details on the case, Patriotic Veterans v. Indiana, on Covington’s Inside Privacy blog. One important takeaway from the case is that it is always important
Non-Profit Donor Disclosure Rules in New York Are Now In Effect
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced today that he has adopted regulations requiring non-profits engaging in certain electioneering activity in New York, including 501(c)(4) organizations, to disclose their donors. We previously wrote on the proposed rules, which after a series of public hearings, have been slightly modified and adopted by the Attorney General. The