SCOTUS/Judiciary
Washington Times: Supreme Court won’t hear challenge to Fla. political donor law
By Kellan Howell
A Florida political activist is out of luck after the Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear his challenge to a state law that prohibited groups from donating small amounts of money without first forming a political action committee.
Lobbying and Ethics
Huffington Post: ‘Revenge Of The Nerds’: Tech Lobbyists Walk Off Job In Dramatic Shakeup
WASHINGTON — In a move that would make Jerry Maguire proud, a team of four top lobbyists at TechAmerica resigned Monday afternoon, dealing a blow to the struggling tech industry lobbying outfit. The four senior lobbyists, Trey Hodgkins, Erica McCann, Pam Walker and Carol Henton, are all expected to join a rival trade group, the Information Technology Industry Council (ITI), according to sources with knowledge of the deal.
The Hill: Lobby firm brings on Obama aide
By Kevin Bogardus
Monument Policy Group, a prominent lobby shop, has added a senior Obama administration official to its K Street team.
Katharine Lister, formerly deputy chief of staff at the Commerce Department, joined the firm on Tuesday. Lister also has Capitol Hill experience, having served as chief of staff to Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), and spent time on the campaign trail as political director for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s independent expenditure program.
FEC
Roll Call: Hacking Attempts on Federal Election Commisison Website
By Kent Cooper
In an email response to inquiries about FEC website problems, a spokesperson for the Federal Election Commission stated, “As a result of recent hacking attempts on the FEC website, the FEC has taken servers that may have been affected offline and replaced them with less powerful backup servers. As a consequence, users may experience slowness and intermittent availability.”
Free Beacon: Official: Kochs Not Involved in California Campaign Finance Violation
By Elizabeth Harrington
Former Chair of the California Fair Political Practices Commission (CFPPC) Ann Ravel admitted this weekend that the Koch brothers were not involved with campaign finance violations that resulted in a record fine levied by the agency.
Ravel had attempted to link violations by two Arizona-based nonprofit groups to libertarian philanthropists Charles and David Koch, saying the Kochs funneled “dark money” into two 2012 ballot initiatives.
State and Local
Arizona –– AZ Republic: Arizona GOP leaders ask court to allow higher campaign-contribution limits
By Mary Jo Pitzl
Arizona’s GOP legislative leaders are asking the state Supreme Court to allow higher campaign-contribution limits to be reinstated, citing confusion among candidates and donors.
In addition, Senate President Andy Biggs, R-Gilbert and House Speaker Andy Tobin, R-Paulden, are asking the court to review last month’s decision by the Arizona Court of Appeals that a new campaign-contribution law is unconstitutional.
District of Columbia –– DCist: Wells Will Introduce Three Amendments To McDuffie’s Campaign Finance Reform Bill
By Matt Cohen
A couple weeks ago, Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie’s (D-Ward 5) campaign finance reform bill was heard by a D.C. Council panel for the first time, and while it was ultimately supported, many thought it wasn’t strong enough. Among them? Councilmember Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6). Before the bill was heard, Wells was quick to criticize it, saying that McDuffie’s measures to close the LLC loophole, which enables limited liability companies to make campaign contributions well in excess of individual limits. “There is no reason any D.C. mayoral candidate should accept a campaign donation that isn’t from an individual.” Anything less, Wells says, “is to betray the public trust already damaged by the shadow campaigns and scandals that continue to plague the city.”
Minnesota –– AP: Campaign Finance Questions Still Unanswered
An attorney for an undisclosed candidate has asked the state campaign finance board whether the candidate could help raise money for a group that may spend money later to influence the person’s election. The board deferred action Tuesday on an advisory opinion.
