Compliance Notes - Vol. 5, Issue 27
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES
We read the news, cut through the noise and provide you the notes.
Welcome to Compliance Notes from Nossaman’s Government Relations & Regulation Group – a periodic digest of the headlines, statutory and regulatory changes and court cases involving campaign finance, lobbying compliance, election law and government ethics issues at the federal, state and local level.
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Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance
Former President Donald Trump’s campaign has filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) alleging that, following President Biden announcing he would no longer seek reelection, Vice President Harris’s use of Biden for President campaign funds may violate federal law. A similar complaint was also filed by the nonprofit organization Citizens United and 16 state Republican Party committees.
Even before those complaints were filed, members of the FEC publicly addressed the issue. Commissioner Sean Cooksey, the chair of the FEC, suggested Monday that Vice President Harris may be unable to access the millions of dollars remaining from President Biden’s campaign, which many campaign finance lawyers say is rightfully hers. Within hours of President Biden’s decision to drop out of the 2024 presidential race, the campaign filed paperwork to change its name from “Biden for President” to “Harris for President.” Cooksey said Harris’s ability to access the funds is “complicated” and suggested it would be challenged by the FEC and in the courts. However, Democrat Commissioner Dara Lindenbaum pushed back on the suggestion that Harris would not be able to access those funds. If Harris is not the nominee or is unable to receive the funds, then they may be transferred to the Democratic National Committee or a super PAC supporting the nominee. (Taylor Giorno, The Hill & Kaelan Deese, Washington Examiner)
A former top official at the National Security Council overseeing Korea policy and widely known foreign policy expert has been charged with acting as an unregistered agent for South Korea after leaving the U.S. government. In an unsealed indictment, prosecutors allege Sue Mi Terry accepted gifts like luxury handbags from South Korean officials while sharing non-public U.S. government information with such officials, advocating for their policy positions and arranging contacts for them with U.S. officials. The indictment is silent about Terry’s relationship with South Korea during the time she worked in top official positions in Washington but contends she acted as a mouthpiece for that country after leaving the government without making the disclosures required by the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). Terry faces two felony charges: conspiracy to violate FARA and failure to register under FARA. The indictment also alleges explicitly that Terry repeatedly failed to disclose her ties to the South Korean government when she testified before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs as an expert witness and completed a “Truth in Testimony” disclosure form. (Josh Gerstein, Miles J. Herszenhorn & Caitlin Oprysko, POLITICO & Indictment)
Georgia: Georgia Democrats initiated a lawsuit to overturn the ability of Republican Gov. Brian Kemp and others to raise unlimited political contributions and spend them on behalf of any political cause. The Democrat Party of Georgia filed suit against the governor in federal court in Atlanta and requested the judge declare a 2021 law that created leadership committees unconstitutional because it unfairly gives unlimited fundraising powers to some people but not others. The party is seeking a preliminary injunction to freeze fundraising and spending under the law while the suit moves toward trial, which could limit the ability of Kemp and others to raise and spend money on legislative races this fall. (Jeff Amy, AP News)
Government Ethics & Transparency
Nevada: A federal grand jury has indicted a former Las Vegas city councilwoman on four counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud after she allegedly defrauded donors of more than $70,000 for personal gain. A press release announcing the indictment alleged that Michele Fiore, current Nye County justice of the peace, had solicited donations during her time as a city councilwoman to honor police officers killed in duty, promising that “100 percent of the contributions” would be used to fund the creation of a statue memorializing the officers. However, the funds never paid for a statue and were allegedly used by Fiore to pay her political fundraising bills, rent and her daughter’s wedding, among other purposes. If Fiore is convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for each count. (Tabitha Mueller, The Indy)
Ballot Measures & Elections
Alaska: An initiative aimed at repealing Alaska’s ranked-choice voting system still has sufficient signatures to qualify for the November ballot, attorneys for the state said in court filings on July 23, 2024 days after a judge disqualified some of the booklets used to gather signatures. Superior Court Judge Christina Rankin, in a July 19, 2024 ruling, found instances in which the signature-gathering process was not properly carried out and disqualified those booklets. The judge ordered elections officials to remove the disqualified signatures and booklets and to determine if the measure still had sufficient signatures. In court documents submitted Tuesday, Alaska Department of Law attorneys said the Division of Elections had completed that work and found the measure “remains qualified” for the ballot. This comes as part of a lawsuit brought by three voters challenging the repeal measure. (Becky Bohrer, AP News)
