Revision: Jan. 13, 2009, midnight
HB 292 – AS INTRODUCED
2009 SESSION
03/01
HOUSE BILL 292
AN ACT relative to financial disclosures, lobbyist registrations and statements, prohibited gifts, executive branch volunteers, reports of political advertising, and permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions.
SPONSORS: Rep. Splaine, Rock 16; Rep. McEachern, Rock 16
This bill:
I. Modifies financial disclosure requirements for legislators.
II. Modifies the applicability of lobbyist regulation statutes and reporting requirements for lobbyists.
III. Exempts certain executive branch volunteers from the financial disclosure requirements.
IV. Modifies exemptions from the definition of “gift” for purposes of prohibitions on certain gifts to public officials.
V. Requires all persons engaging in political advertising to file reports of receipts and expenditures.
VI. Permits business organizations and labor unions to establish political committees for the purpose of making campaign contributions.
VII. Requires executive branch entities to submit lists of volunteers to the secretary of state.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
09-0216
03/01
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Nine
AN ACT relative to financial disclosures, lobbyist registrations and statements, prohibited gifts, executive branch volunteers, reports of political advertising, and permissible campaign contributions by business organizations and labor unions.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 New Paragraph; Legislative Ethic Committee; Duties; Financial Disclosure Forms. Amend RSA 14-B:3 by inserting after paragraph III the following new paragraph:
IV. The legislative ethics committee shall review all financial disclosure forms required by ethics guidelines and shall place the completed forms on file in the office of the secretary of state for purposes of the requirements of RSA 15-A, in accordance with the filing deadline established under RSA 15-A.
2 Lobbyists; Registration. Amend RSA 15:1, IV to read as follows:
IV. All registrations required under this section shall expire on December [1] 31.
V. The following communications are excluded from the regulation imposed by this chapter and shall not be considered in a determination of whether a person is required to register and report as a lobbyist:
(a) Public testimony before a legislative committee or subcommittee.
(b) Public testimony before any entity subject to RSA 91-A, the right-to-know law.
(c) A written document filed in the course of a public proceeding or any other communication that is made on the record in a public proceeding.
(d) Communication made by a public official acting in the public official’s official capacity.
(e) Communication made by a representative of a media organization if the purpose of the communication is gathering or disseminating news and information to the public.
(f) Communication made in a speech, article, publication, or other material that is distributed and made available to the public, or through radio, television, cable television, the Internet, or other medium of mass communication.
(g) Communication made in writing which becomes a public record subject to the provisions of RSA 91-A, the right-to-know law, provided in response to a written request by a legislative or executive branch official.
(h) Attendance or participation in executive and legislative branch task forces, work groups, and other similar meetings which are not subject to RSA 91-A, provided that, prior to or concurrent with the convening of any such group or meeting, the convening authority files with the secretary of state a statement listing the subject matter, participants, and anticipated duration of the group or meeting and provides a copy to the participants. The secretary of state shall make available a form to effectuate the purpose of this filing requirement.
3 Lobbyist Statements. Amend RSA 15:6, II to read as follows:
II. Lobbyists shall file statements no later than the [second Friday] last Wednesday of each [month] January, April, July, and October covering all fees received and expenditures, contributions, honorariums, or expense reimbursements made [during the previous month] since the last required filing, from fees received at any time from a lobbying client or employer or from funds otherwise provided by the lobbyist, partnership, firm, or corporation, or from the client or employer.
4 Lobbyist Statements. Amend RSA 15:6, V(h) to read as follows:
(h) The following statement followed by a line for each person filing the form to sign and date the form: “I have read RSA 15, RSA 15-B, and RSA 664 and hereby swear or affirm that the foregoing information is true and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.” [This statement shall be made under oath before a notary public or justice of the peace.]
5 Purpose RSA 15-A; Financial Disclosure. The general court finds that many public spirited citizens perform volunteer service for the state each year under circumstances where their service does not create any appreciable opportunity to influence the setting of public policy, the expenditure of state funds, or the selection of vendors for the state. Recognizing that the purpose of financial disclosure is to ensure the public has access to information about the financial interests of those who act on the public’s behalf when setting public policy, spending state funds, or choosing vendors to do work for the state, requiring volunteers who do not perform such actions to file statements of financial interests does not advance the purpose of the statute and may chill volunteerism. The general court intends to exempt from financial disclosure requirements those individuals who serve the state solely in a volunteer capacity and whose service does not afford any appreciable opportunity to influence public policy or spending, including but not limited to individuals who assist with search and rescue, teach hunter safety, work on recreational trails, stock fish, or assist with the annual Easter egg hunt.
6 Financial Disclosure; Persons Required to File. Amend RSA 15-A:3 to read as follows:
15-A:3 Persons Required to File.
I. The following persons shall file a statement of financial interests as required by this chapter:
[I.] (a) All candidates who file for state or county office.
[II.] (b) All persons filing an acceptance of nomination form for state or county office.
[III.] (c) Every person appointed by the governor, governor and council, president of the senate, or [the] speaker of the house of representatives to any board, commission, committee, board of directors, authority, or equivalent state entity whether regulatory, advisory, or administrative in nature.
[IV.] (d) All agency heads.
[V.] (e) Any public official designated, due to the responsibilities of the position, by the agency head.
[VI.] (f) The secretary of state and the treasurer, and any of their subordinates designated, due to the responsibilities of the position, by the secretary of state or treasurer.
[VII.] (g) All persons elected to state or county office, and all persons appointed to such elective office to fill a vacancy[; and].
[VIII.] (h) Any person, not employed by or working under contract for the state, who is acting on behalf of the governor or an agency while engaged in state business.
II.(a) Any person who is otherwise subject to the filing requirements of subparagraph I(h) shall be exempt from filing a statement of financial interests provided the head of the executive branch entity for whom the individual is volunteering certifies in a public register of volunteers, to be maintained by the secretary of state, that the volunteer’s work for the state:
(1) Does not directly or indirectly influence the setting of public policy;
(2) Does not directly or indirectly influence decisions on how state funds will be expended; and
(3) Does not directly or indirectly influence the selection of vendors for the state.
(b) The secretary of state shall establish a public register of volunteers for the state that shall include the name and town or city of residence of each volunteer and the executive branch entity for whom the volunteer work is done. The name and residence shall not be listed for exempt volunteers who provide service occurring at a single event that does not exceed one day in duration, provided the head of the executive branch entity accepting the volunteer service submits a brief description of the event and an estimate of the number of volunteers to the secretary of state for inclusion in the register.
(c) The head of any executive branch entity that accepts volunteer work shall cause a list of volunteers who qualify for an exemption to be certified to the secretary of state. An annual certification shall be submitted not later than the last Wednesday in January listing all exempt volunteers who are expected to volunteer during that calendar year. A certification shall be submitted no later than the last Wednesday of each month certifying all new exempt volunteers who started service with that entity during the previous month.
III. The filing of a financial disclosure form by an elected member of the house of representatives or senate pursuant to the guidelines enforced by the legislative ethics committee under RSA 14-B, shall satisfy the requirement for filing a statement of financial interest pursuant to this chapter.
7 Definition of “Gift”; Exclusions. Amend RSA 15-B:2, V(b)(5)-(6) to read as follows:
(5) Objects or services which primarily serve an informational purpose provided in the ordinary course of business, such as reports, books, maps, or charts.
(6) Money in any form, an object, or [any tangible or] an intangible thing or service of economic value, where the donor’s act of giving is purely private and personal in nature and the money, object, or intangible thing or service of economic value would have been given and received even if the person were not an elected official, public official, public employee, constitutional official, or legislative employee.
8 Definitions; Political Committee. Amend RSA 664:2, III to read as follows:
III. “Political committee’’ means any organization of 2 or more persons to influence elections or measures, including the political committee of a political party as defined in paragraph V, or any other organization of 2 or more persons that engages in political advertising as defined in paragraph VI.
9 Registration of Political Committees. Amend RSA 664:3, I to read as follows:
I. Any political committee, except the political committee of a political party, shall register with the secretary of state as provided in this section. The committee shall register with the secretary of state not later than 24 hours after receiving any contribution [in excess of $500] or before making any expenditure [in excess of $500], but in no event later than 14 days after the formation of the committee. The registration shall be accompanied by a fee of $50, which shall be deposited by the secretary of state into the election fund established pursuant to RSA 5:6-d; provided, however, that the political committee of a candidate which registers under this section shall not be required to pay the $50 fee. Each political committee shall designate a treasurer or agent who is a citizen of this state and who is authorized to receive all process and other legal documents on behalf of the political committee, and through whom may be obtained access to all books and records of the political committee. The political committee shall file with the secretary of state a statement of the purpose of the committee and shall indicate whether the committee will be making independent expenditures in support of or in opposition to any candidate including a statement of the name, address, occupation, and principal place of business of its chairperson and treasurer or agent, and the names and addresses of other officers. The committee shall file an amendment to its registration within 14 days of any change in the officers or purpose of the committee.
10 Political Expenditures and Contributions; Prohibited Political Contributions; Business Organizations. RSA 664:4, I is repealed and reenacted to read as follows:
I. By any business organization, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, partner, or employee acting in behalf of such business organization. This shall not prohibit the establishment by a business organization of a political committee that operates as a separate entity from the business organization, provided that the committee’s expenditures and contributions are made through a separate, segregated account consisting only of voluntary contributions solicited from individuals. The provisions of this section shall not apply to sole proprietorships.
11 Political Expenditures and Contributions; Prohibited Political Contributions; Labor Unions; Segregated Account Exception. Amend RSA 664:4, III to read as follows:
III. By any labor union or group of labor unions, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, or employee acting in behalf of such union or group of unions; or by any organization representing or affiliated with any such union or group of unions, or by any officer, director, executive, agent, or employee acting in behalf of such organization. This shall not prohibit the establishment by a labor union or group of labor unions of a political committee that operates as a separate entity from the labor union or group of labor unions, provided that the committee’s expenditures and contributions are made through a separate, segregated account consisting only of voluntary contributions solicited from individuals.
12 Reporting by Political Committee. Amend RSA 664:6, I to read as follows:
I. Any political committee [whose receipts or expenditures in support of a candidate, measure, or political party exceed $500 except, for the purposes of this paragraph only], the political committee of a political party, or the political committee of a candidate, shall file with the secretary of state an itemized statement, signed by its chairman and treasurer showing each of its receipts exceeding $25 with the full name and home post office address of the contributor in alphabetical order and the amount of the contribution, the date it was received, and the aggregate total for each election for each contributor of over $100. The statement shall be filed not later than the Wednesday 12 weeks immediately preceding a primary election, before 5 o’clock in the afternoon, and shall cover the period from the day of the committee registration up to and including the Monday before the statement is due. All receipts of $25 or under shall appear on the statements as unitemized receipts. Any listing which exceeds an individual’s aggregate total of $100 for each election shall be accompanied by the contributor’s occupation including official job title, the name of the contributor’s employer, and the city or town of the contributor’s principal place of business, if any. The statement shall also show each committee expenditure with the full name and city or town of persons, corporations, committees, or to whomever paid or to be paid, the date paid, and the election for which the expenditure was made, with the specific nature and amount of each expenditure since the date of the registration.
13 New Section; Reporting by Individuals. Amend RSA 664 by inserting after section 7-b the following new section:
664:7-c Reporting by Individuals. Any individual who is not a candidate and who engages in political advertising as defined in RSA 664:2, VI shall file statements before and after an election in like manner and detail as prescribed in RSA 664:6, II, II-a, III, IV, and V.
14 Facsimile Filings. Amend RSA 664:9-a to read as follows:
664:9-a Itemized Statements Filed by Facsimile Transmission. The sworn itemized statements required to be filed by a political committee or an individual or a candidate or on the candidate’s behalf as required by RSA 664:6, 664:7, [and] 664:7-b, and 664:7-c may be filed by means of a facsimile transmission; provided, however, that a statement which is transmitted electronically or telephonically by a facsimile device shall also be filed by a political committee or an individual or a candidate or on the candidate’s behalf not later than the last day of each filing period under RSA 664:6, 664:7, [and] 664:7-b, and 664:7-c if a facsimile transmission is used.
15 Repeal. RSA 664:4, II, relative to prohibited political contributions by partnerships, is repealed.
16 Executive Branch Volunteer List. Each head of an executive branch entity that accepts volunteer work shall cause a list of volunteers providing service to the state on the effective date of this act who qualify for the exemption established in RSA 15-A:3, II to be submitted to the secretary of state within 60 days of the effective date of this section.
17 Effective Date. This act shall take effect 60 days after its passage.