Elizabeth Z. Bartz
President and CEO

  
You Should Know ...
Executive Branch Orders Limiting
Executive Branch Lobbying

by: Christine Wheeler, Esq., Research Associate

Setting the tone of greater accountability within their administrations, both President Obama and Delaware Governor Jack Markell have recently issued executive orders limiting executive branch lobbying.

Effective January 20, 2009,  President Obama prohibited all federal executive agency appointees from accepting gifts, including those gifts accepted indirectly or solicited, from registered lobbyists or lobbying organizations.  Gifts which are accepted indirectly include gifts given with the employee’s knowledge and acquiescence to a parent, sibling, spouse, child, or other dependent relative because of the relationship to the employee.  Gifts that are solicited include those given to any other person, including charitable organizations on the basis of a recommendation, designation, or other specification by the employee.  Executive agency employees may only accept:

• Gifts based on a personal or family relationship;

• Discounts such as reduced fees for participation in organization activities offered to all government employees;

• Meals, lodging, transportation, and other benefits resulting from the business or employment of the appointee’s spouse when it is clear that such benefits have not been offered or enhanced because of the appointee’s official position;

• Benefits customarily provided by a prospective employer in connection with bona fide employment discussions;

• Gifts to the President or Vice President or their family members provided they are not given in return for being influenced in the performance of an official act; or

• Items specifically authorized by statute.

Governor Markell’s executive order, effective January 30, 2009, prohibits all cabinet level officials, division directors, and professional staff members of the governor’s office from accepting gifts from lobbyists or vendors who have contracts or are seeking to enter into contracts with any Delaware state agency for materials, services, or public works. The ban also includes gifts provided by representatives of such vendors.

Permissible gifts under the order include:

• Unsolicited items freely available to the public;

• Informational materials, cards, t-shirts, honorary degrees, or awards;

• Drinks, snacks, or meals with a value of $39 or less consumed on the premises;

• Tickets to regularly scheduled functions of non-profit organizations, civic or government groups, business associations, or trade groups; and

• Any item for which the Delaware state public integrity commission has granted a waiver.

Because executive orders are often issued by leaders to put into effect policy changes quickly, State and Federal Communications continues to monitor this emerging trend.

Employee Highlight - Ken Kelewae

Summary of Changes UPDATE 

1. President Obama signed an executive order, Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel, requiring all executive branch appointees to sign an ethics pledge prohibiting acceptance of gifts from registered lobbyists or lobbying organizations. The pledge also contains revolving door provisions, banning appointed officials from participating in matters involving parties substantially related to the official's former employment and also banning covered appointees leaving the government from lobbying executive branch officials for the remainder of the administration.

2. Federal contribution limits and lobbyist registration thresholds have both been adjusted for inflation.  Individual donors can now contribute up to $2,400 per election ($4,800 for both a primary and general election), up from $2,300 per election. Individual donors are limited to $115,500 per two year cycle, including $45,600 to candidates.  The financial threshold for registration for the quarterly lobbyist reporting periods has increased to $3,000 in lobbying income for a lobbying firm and $11,500 in lobbying expenses for organizations employing in-house lobbyists.

3. The FEC approved the final lobbyist bundling rules on February 3, 2009.  Reporting committees must file bundling disclosure reports on FEC Form 3L if two or more bundled contributions, exceeding the threshold amount of $16,000 in the aggregate, are received. Reporting committees will not be required to file until three months after the rules are published, but they will cover bundled contributions received before that date. Also, lobbyist/registrant PACs will be required to identify themselves as such on their statement of organization, effective 30 days after the new lobbyist bundling rules are published. If the statement of organization has been filed, it must be amended within 40 days after the final rules are published. The new rules do not require the disclosure of individuals who bundle contributions if they are not registered as lobbyists at the time.

4. Delaware Governor Markell signed his first executive order January 30, 2009 banning gifts from lobbyists and vendors to executive branch officials.  Covered vendors include those who have contracts or are seeking to enter into contracts with any state agency for materials, services, or public works. The ban also includes gifts provided by representatives of such vendors.  Executive branch officials include all cabinet level officials, division directors, and professional staff members of the Governor’s office.

5. In Colorado, Amendment 54, approved by voters in the November election, is being challenged by several groups, including unions representing teachers and firefighters, and by the boards of nonprofits and businesses.  The lawsuits argue the amendment is overbroad and unconstitutional.  Amendment 54 enacted pay-to-play provisions prohibiting sole source government contractors with contracts over $100,000 from directly or indirectly making political contributions during the term of the contract and for two years thereafter.

Landmark Series – Presidential Libraries

This article is one of an ongoing series that focuses on historical and/or significant landmarks. 
The information below was gleaned from www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu and www.whitehouse.gov.

Franklin Delano Roosevelt   [1882-1945] 32^nd President of the United States

The Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum is the first of the presidential libraries.  President Roosevelt envisioned a separate place to house the vast amounts of historical books, papers, and memorabilia he had gathered through public service and private collecting.  In 1939, construction began on 16 acres of land in Hyde Park, New York, donated by the President and his mother, Sara Delano Roosevelt.  Before Roosevelt’s Presidency, the nation did not have a practice in place to preserve Presidential documents.   Robert D.W. Conner, the Archivist of the United States at the time, said of the President, “Franklin D. Roosevelt is the nation’s answer to the historian’s prayer.” 

President Roosevelt was the only president to work from his library during his term in office.  President Roosevelt had a study built in the library to assist scholars and archivists with the organization of his papers.  During WWII, his study became a working office when he visited the library, from which he aired several of his “Fireside Chat” radio addresses.

Today the Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum offers researchers and visitors a wealth of historical information including:

• Two wings of the library dedicated to Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt’s papers and records from her time as First Lady and her service to the United Nations. 

• Permanent galleries containing records and artifacts from President and Mrs. Roosevelt’s early history and public service roles including President Roosevelt’s study, his Presidential desk from the Oval Office, and his 1936 Ford Phaeton.

• The Pare Lorentz Film Center dedicated to preserving the images of Roosevelt’s Presidency and offering a free lending library to educators to seeking to use audio-visual techniques to teach the history this era.

Adjacent to the Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum is the Henry A. Wallace Visitors and Education Center, which includes several landmark buildings including:

• The Roosevelt Home

• Mrs. Roosevelt’s Cottage

• FDR’s Retirement Retreat

• Top Cottage

• Vanderbilt Mansion                 

Roosevelt attended Harvard University, graduating with a Bachelors of Arts degree in history in three years.  He went on to study law at Columbia University.  After passing the bar examination, Roosevelt joined a prominent law practice in New York City.   While at Columbia University, Roosevelt married his fifth cousin, Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, with whom he raised five children over the ensuing years.

In 1910, Roosevelt decided to follow the example of his distant cousin, Theodore Roosevelt, and enter public service through politics.  He served as New York State Senator [1910-1913], Assistant Secretary of the Navy [1913-1920], and Governor of New York [1929-1932], before his election to the Presidency in 1932.

Taking office during the height of the Great Depression, Roosevelt worked to rejuvenate the hope and spirit of the American people and the economy through innovative programs.  Not everyone was in favor of Roosevelt’s New Deal policies.  During the years of 1935 through 1938, both the Supreme Court and detractors within his own party took issue with the changes he proposed.

After winning an unprecedented third term in office in 1938, Roosevelt began to focus more of his attention on the international affairs unfolding in Europe.  In September 1939, after Hitler attacked Poland, Roosevelt sought to maintain American neutrality while providing aid to our allies.  After the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, Roosevelt actively and tirelessly worked to guide American forces to victory as Commander-in-Chief.  After four years of intense stress from the war effort, Roosevelt’s physical strength began to fail.  In 1944, physicians placed him on a strict regime of diet and exercise; however, a massive stroke took his life on April 12, 1945 while on vacation at Warm Springs, GA.

Let Us Help You with Canadian Compliance for US Companies

Canadian Compliance for US Companies^TM focuses on Canadian legislation, both at the federal level and in the 10 provinces and three territories. This service is intended for U.S.- based businesses, organizations, and associations and not for Canadian-based companies.  There is a need to understand and deal with changing Canadian regulations, so we have taken the lead in presenting this new service to you.  State and Federal Communications, Inc. encourages you to take advantage of the free trial!  Simply log-in to your account and sign up for one free month of service!