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Over the past few years, a few state political party committees have relentlessly sought to block or overturn pay-to-play laws overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Yesterday, the Sixth Circuit delivered another defeat to an ongoing effort to challenge federal pay-to-play laws.

Last year, we noted that the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB)…

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced Tuesday that it will allow further comment on a pay-to-play rule proposed by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

As we discussed previously, if the SEC approves FINRA’s pay-to-play rule, it would clarify that investment advisers are allowed to hire third party solicitors if they are subject to…

On Wednesday, the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) announced that its expanded pay-to-play rules will cover municipal advisors, including third-party solicitors, as of August 17, 2016.

As we noted previously and discussed during Covington’s Corporate Political Activity & Government Affairs Compliance Conference earlier this month, the MSRB has been drafting an expansion to its pay-to-play…

For two decades, municipal securities dealers have been subject to Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (“MSRB”) rule G-37 which bars them from receiving state and local business for two years after certain political contributions are made by the dealers and individuals affiliated with them.  Earlier this week, the MSRB advanced amendments to rule G-37 that would…

These days, it is not enough for companies with dealings with government officials to adopt election and political law compliance policies.  They need to adopt the right policies.

A $200,000 settlement the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority recently obtained against L.J. Hart & Co. (“Hart”), a Missouri municipal-bond underwriter, is a case in point.  The case…

In an unusual development, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations has issued a “National Examination Risk Alert” summarizing its findings after pay-to-play compliance examinations conducted by the SEC staff.  The examinations focused on municipal securities dealers that are subject to the Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board’s pay-to-play rule, which is…

While Super PACs and million dollar contributions have dominated the campaign finance headlines this election year, as with every election, there are trends developing just below the surface that the media have yet to focus on clearly.  This year, one of those emerging trends is the increasing bite of so-called “pay to play” laws.  These…

Many state and local jurisdictions allow voters to decide whether the jurisdiction should issue bonds to fund municipal projects.  The Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board (MSRB) is concerned that municipal securities dealers are using political contributions to these bond ballot campaigns to secure business by the issuer of the bonds on the ballot.  Yesterday, the MSRB…