HCS HB 2300 -- CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND LOBBYING, ETHICS, AND
CAMPAIGN FINANCE

SPONSOR:  Wilson (130)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Special Committee on
Government Accountability and Ethics Reform by a vote of 12 to 0.
Relieved from Rules Committee pursuant to House Rule 34.

This substitute changes the laws regarding conflicts of interest
and lobbying, ethics, and campaign finance.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST AND LOBBYING

The substitute:

(1)  Prohibits the solicitation of expenditures and fund-raising
activities and events supporting or opposing any candidate,
ballot measure, political party, or political party committee on
any property or in any building owned or leased by the state or
any political subdivision unless the property or building is
routinely used by and made available for rent or for a fee to all
members of the public (Section 8.925, RSMo);

(2)  Prohibits members of the General Assembly from receiving
compensation of any kind as a paid political consultant as
defined in the substitute for another member of the General
Assembly, a statewide office holder, or any committee defined in
Chapter 130.  The spouse, any dependent children, and the parents
of a member also are prohibited from receiving compensation of
any kind on behalf of a member who acts as a paid political
consultant (Sections 105.450 and 105.456.3);

(3)  Prohibits a member of the General Assembly from acting,
serving, or registering as a legislative lobbyist until after the
first regular session of the general assembly following the
conclusion of the general assembly in which the member last
served and prohibits members from soliciting clients to represent
as a legislative lobbyist.  Individuals and business entities are
prohibited from soliciting a legislator to become employed by
that individual or entity as a lobbyist or paid political
consultant while the legislator is holding office (Sections
105.456.4 and 105.456.5);

(4)  Specifies that the crime of bribery of a public servant
includes when the Governor or an agent of the Governor exchanges,
offers, or promises to confer various specified appointed
positions for an official vote on a public matter by a member of
the General Assembly and specifies that the crime of acceding to
corruption by a public servant includes when a member of the
General Assembly exchanges an official vote on a public matter
for an appointment to certain specified positions (Sections
105.456.6 and 105.456.7);

(5)  Specifies that any person who intentionally offers or
accepts anything of value from an elected or appointed official
or employee of the state or any political subdivision in direct
exchange for voting for or against or engaging in any action
designed to benefit, delay, or hinder the passage or failure of
any specific state legislation, rule or regulation, or any local
legislation or ordinance will be guilty of a class D felony
(Section 105.465);

(6)  Allows a lobbyist to report the total expenditures for an
occasion provided to all members of the House of Representatives
or Senate and their staff and employees, all members of a joint
committee of the General Assembly and their staff, a standing
committee of the House of Representatives or the Senate and their
staff, the majority or minority caucus of the House of
Representatives or the Senate, and all statewide officials and
their staff and employees when they are invited in writing
(Section 105.473.3);

(7)  Requires a lobbyist or a lobbyist principal to maintain
accurate records relating to receipts and expenditures for
elected officials for at least three years and to make those
records available to the Missouri Ethics Commission for
inspection upon an investigation by the commission (Section
105.473.6);

(8)  Specifies that any person who engages in lobbyist activities
as defined in Section 105.470 and knowingly fails to register as
a lobbyist will be guilty of a class B misdemeanor for the first
violation and a class D felony for any subsequent violation
(Section 105.478);

(9)  Prohibits a member of the General Assembly or the member's
staff, employees, spouse, or dependent child from accepting or
receiving cumulative expenditures, as defined in Section 105.470,
from lobbyists in excess of $1,000 per calendar year per member,
including expenditures to the member's staff, employees, spouse,
or dependent child.  If the report provided to a member by the
commission indicates that the member has exceeded this limit, the
member has 60 days from the first day of the next calendar month
after receipt of the report to reimburse the lobbyist for the
excess amount.  The commission must enforce this provision and
impose a penalty upon receiving a complaint or conducting an
investigation (Section 105.479); and

(10)  Changes the reporting period for required personal
financial disclosure statements by candidates and certain
appointed officials and employees from for the 12 months prior to
the closing date for filing to for the previous calendar year
ending the immediately preceding December 31 to be consistent
with the required time period for public officers.  Certain
reports will be considered timely filed if they are postmarked on
the day due for filing rather than the day before that date
(Sections 105.487 and 130.046).

ETHICS

The substitute:

(1)  Authorizes the term of a member of the Missouri Ethics
Commission to be extended one time for up to 120 days if there
are vacancies on the commission and allows the executive director
of the commission, who serves at the pleasure of the commission,
to serve for up to eight years instead of up to six years
(Sections 105.955.3 and 105.955.11);

(2)  Authorizes the commission to conduct investigations and
clarifies the commission's authority to issue subpoenas (Sections
105.955.14 and 105.955.15);

(3)  Requires a complaint to be signed and notarized and include
the facts that are within the commission's jurisdiction before
being accepted by the commission.  The provision is repealed that
requires a separate and distinct standard inapplicable to the
frivolous complaint procedure (Section 105.957);

(4)  Authorizes the executive director of the commission to
conduct an independent investigation without the receipt of a
complaint if there are reasonable grounds to believe a violation
has occurred and four members of the commission vote to proceed.
All investigations by the executive director must be strictly
confidential with the exception of notification of the commission
and the complainant or the person under investigation (Section
105.959);

(5)  Clarifies complaint investigation procedures, investigation
time frames, and the appeal process (Sections 105.961 and
105.966);

(6)  Sets the late fees that may be assessed for delinquent
reports to the commission at consistent rates for all report
types with a maximum of $3,000 per report (Section 105.963);

(7)  Authorizes the commission, after receiving a judgment for
unpaid late filing fees, to collect the judgment in any manner
authorized by law including garnishment of and execution against
the committee's official depository account after a 30-day
delinquency (Section 105.963.5);

(8)  Requires a candidate, in the required written declaration of
candidacy, to affirm that he or she is not a sham or feigned
candidate in order to conceal the candidacy of another or to
divide the opposition (Section 115.349.3); and

(9)  Creates a class three election offense for giving, lending,
agreeing to give or lend, offering, promising, or endeavoring to
procure money or anything of value with the intent to induce a
person to run for any office in this state if the person has the
same or a similar name as another candidate for that office and
would not otherwise run for the office but for the inducement.
Legally made campaign contributions will not be construed as an
inducement to run for elective office under the provisions of the
substitute (Section 115.635(12)).

CAMPAIGN FINANCE

The substitute:

(1)  Moves the definitions regarding committee formation and
termination to the proper section (Sections 130.011 and 130.021);

(2)  Revises the definition of "political party committee" to
include only a state, Congressional district, or county
continuing committee of a political party (Section 130.011(25));

(3)  Prohibits a candidate from forming a new committee or
serving as a treasurer or deputy treasurer for a committee until
the person or the treasurer of any previously formed committee by
the person or who served as treasurer or deputy treasurer has
filed all required campaign disclosure reports or statements of
limited authority have been filed for all prior elections and
paid any outstanding fees.  No candidate is allowed to form,
control, or direct a continuing committee as defined in Section
130.011 (Section 130.021.3);

(4)  Prohibits a committee from transferring any funds received
by the committee to any other committee.  Any person who violates
this provision will be notified by the commission within five
days of determining that the transfer is prohibited and the
person must notify the committee to which the funds were
transferred that they must be returned within 10 days.  For a
second violation, the person transferring the funds will be
subject to a civil penalty of $1,000.  For a third and any
subsequent violation, the person transferring the funds will be
subject to a civil penalty of $5,000, will be removed as
treasurer for all committees served, and will be forever barred
from acting as a treasurer for any committee.  The prohibition
will not apply to any transfer of funds from any committee to a
campaign or candidate committee, including any transfer of funds
from a candidate committee to a candidate committee, or from a
candidate committee to a continuing committee unless the funds
were transferred with the intent to conceal the identity of the
actual source of the funds (Section 130.031.13);

(5)  Limits campaign contributions from any one person other than
the candidate in any one election to candidates for statewide
office, state senator or representative, and all other offices at
$5,000 and requires contributions from a child younger than 14
years of age to be counted equally toward each parent's
contribution limits or, in the case of a single parent, counted
fully against that parent's contribution limit (Section 130.032);

(6)  Specifies that disclosure reports must be available for
inspection by the commission instead of the Campaign Finance
Review Board which no longer exists (Section 130.036);

(7)  Decreases the amount of a single contribution from $5,000 to
$2,000 that must be disclosed electronically to the commission
within 48 hours of receipt.  Individuals and committees required
to file disclosure reports who receive a single contribution of
$2,000 or more that must be reported under Section 130.044 must
include that contribution on the current and all subsequent
disclosure reports or statements of limited activity required in
that election cycle or calendar year.  The contribution
reportable under Section 130.044 and required to be included on
subsequent statements of limited activity under Section 130.041
will not be counted in the maximum aggregate limits for a
statement of limited activity filed under Section 130.046
(Sections 130.041, 130.044, and 130.046);

(8)  Requires all required campaign finance reports to be filed
electronically with the commission (Section 130.057); and

(9)  Prohibits a successful candidate from taking office until
all delinquent reports are filed and assessed fees have been paid
by the candidate or the treasurer of the candidate's committee or
the successful candidate who also has served as a treasurer or
deputy treasurer of any committee defined in Section 130.011
(Section 130.071).

The substitute becomes effective January 1, 2011.

FISCAL NOTE:  Estimated Cost on General Revenue Fund of $119,470
in FY 2011, $57,443 in FY 2012, and $59,165 in FY 2013.  No
impact on Other State Funds in FY 2011, FY 2012, and FY 2013.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the bill attempts to address
areas where there is the greatest appearance of impropriety and
where the legislature is least credible in the public's opinion.
The bill authorizes needed investigatory, subpoena, and
enforcement powers to the commission.

Testifying for the bill was Representative Wilson (130).

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

OTHERS:  Others testifying on the bill say that it clarifies
several provisions regarding the commission, and the additional
powers will allow the commission to improve its investigation of
potential violations and enforcement of any imposed penalties.

Testifying on the bill was Missouri Ethics Commission.

Missouri House of Representatives
95th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated September 14, 2010 at 3:13 pm