Updates on Developments in Campaign Finance, Lobbying & Government Ethics Law
Important changes to California’s pay-to-play law took effect January 1, 2025, and now the state’s regulations have caught up to the law.
The state’s Fair Political Practices Commission adopted the new regulations late last month, following statutory revisions to California’s complex pay-to-play law found at California Government Code § 84308…
Continue Reading California Updates Pay-to-Play Law Regulations to Reflect Recent Law ChangesThe Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this week issued a cease-and-desist order that demonstrates the SEC pay-to-play rule’s expansiveness and the SEC’s readiness to enforce it to the letter, even when it is virtually impossible that a political contribution could have influenced a government entity’s investment decision.
In this alert…
Continue Reading SEC Enforcement Order Highlights Far Reach of Pay-to-Play RestrictionsWith Election Day fast approaching, corporations face increasing pressure from both internal and external forces to make legal decisions about political activities. This can be a fraught area of law, with little understood, highly technical regulatory issues that vary significantly across jurisdictions. Corporate counsel should be mindful of common—and sometimes…
Continue Reading Avoiding Pitfalls on the Path to Election Day: Common Political Law Risks for Corporations in Election SeasonCalifornia recently passed a series of new regulations affecting its “pay-to-play” laws that limit political contributions by state and local government contractors and others involved in proceedings on contracts, licenses, permits, and other “entitlements for use” in the state. These regulations implement changes to the law that took effect this…
Continue Reading California Passes New Pay-to-Play Regulations for Contributions by Government Contractors and OthersFor over a decade, Covington has published a detailed survey of the “pay-to-play” laws of all 50 states. Now, for the first time, Covington is updating the survey with a new section covering federal pay-to-play rules, in addition to those of the 50 states and many cities and counties. This…
Continue Reading Updated and Expanded: Covington Announces 2023 Edition of Pay-to-Play Rule SurveyThe District of Columbia’s new pay-to-play law will take effect on November 9, 2022. As we blogged about here, the Campaign Finance Reform Amendment Act of 2018 prohibits certain campaign contributions by contractors doing or seeking to do business with the D.C. government. This prohibition applies to entities holding…
Continue Reading New Pay-to-Play Contribution Law for D.C. Contractors Takes Effect Next MonthThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) last week announced settlements with four investment advisory firms regarding alleged violations of the SEC’s pay-to-play rule, illustrating that federal regulators continue to aggressively pursue such cases. The rule at issue, Rule 206(4)-5 (“the Rule”), prohibits investment advisers from, among other things, receiving…
Continue Reading SEC Commissioner Says It’s “Past Time” To Reform Overly “Blunt” Pay-to-Play RuleCompanies doing business with state and local governments or operating in regulated industries are subject to a dizzying array of “pay-to-play” rules. These rules effectively prohibit company executives and employees (and in some cases, their family members) from making certain personal political contributions. Even inadvertent violations can be dangerous: a…
Continue Reading Covington Releases 400-Page, 50-State Survey of Pay-to-Play Rules (2022 Edition)
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit yesterday issued a long-awaited opinion upholding, on the merits, a recent update to the SEC’s pay-to-play rule. While the case involved only a narrow piece of the rule, the decision’s logic is worded more broadly and could apply to the SEC…
Continue Reading In Major Blow To Its Opponents, SEC Pay-to-Play Rule Survives D.C. Circuit Challenge
In December, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) fined an investment adviser $100,000 for violating the SEC’s pay-to-play rule. The SEC’s rule effectively prohibits investment adviser executives and other “covered associates” of an investment adviser from making political contributions in excess of de minimis amounts ($350 per election if the…
Continue Reading Investment Adviser Hit With $100K SEC Fine, a Reminder that Public Universities are Covered by Pay-to-Play Rule
