Updates on Developments in Campaign Finance, Lobbying & Government Ethics Law
Covington is pleased to announce that it has revised and updated its comprehensive 50-state survey of pay-to-play laws for 2025.
Companies doing business with the federal government or state and local governments and companies operating in regulated industries are subject to a dizzying array of “pay-to-play” rules. These rules effectively…
Continue Reading Covington Announces Pay-to-Play Survey (2025 Edition)Last year, an asset manager with offices in New York, Texas, and Vermont was publicly censured by the Securities and Exchange Commission and ordered to pay a substantial fine. Its offense? The asset manager hired an individual who had previously made a personal political donation to the campaign of a…
Continue Reading Three Political Law Landmines for Hedge Funds, Private Equity Funds, and Investment FirmsThe 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 RestrictionsThe 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 RuleThe 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
While the din over a possible government shutdown dominated the headlines, political law played a supporting role in the recently enacted Consolidated Appropriations Act (Pub. L. No. 115-141). The content and omissions of the so-called “Omnibus” spending bill will be of interest to political actors in all sectors,…
Continue Reading Political Law Potpourri—The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018
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…
Continue Reading MSRB Pay-to-Play Challenge Stymied by Sixth Circuit over Standing
Covington today released an updated version of its manual for Chiefs of Staff to Members of Congress concerning best practices for responding to government investigations of Members and their staff. Titled “A How-To Guide for Chiefs of Staff,” the manual describes how government investigations unfold and the steps that Chiefs…
Continue Reading Covington Updates Investigations Manual for House and Senate Chiefs of Staff
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…
Continue Reading Enforcement, Clarity Delayed for FINRA Pay-to-Play and Third Party Solicitation Rules
