The House Ethics Committee concluded 2024 by releasing a memorandum updating its guidance for Members’ personal use of political campaign funds (“updated guidance”). While the Federal Election Campaign Act (“FECA”) and Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) regulations prohibit the personal use of campaign funds, House Rule 26.6(b) imposes additional restrictions on the “personal use” of campaign
Inside Political Law
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Department of Justice Proposes Major Changes to FARA Regulations, Including Sweeping Changes Affecting Multinational Companies
On January 2, 2025, the Department of Justice published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking(“NPRM”) soliciting public comments on potential amendments to the Department’s regulationsregarding the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”). The regulatory amendments proposedby the Department are significant, and they would take the statute in a substantially differentdirection. The proposed changes would completely overhaul…
New Law Appears to Restrict Defense Contractors from Retaining Consultants Who Lobby for Chinese Military Companies
Under a newly enacted law, beginning June 30, 2026, defense contractors risk losing all future contracts with the Defense Department if they engage outside consultants that lobby for certain Chinese companies. On December 23, 2024, President Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) for Fiscal Year (“FY”) 2025, which sets annual spending and…
FEC Year in Review 2024
With a game-changing advisory opinion (AO 2024-01), 2024 started out with a bang at the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”). Other consequential opinions, enforcement actions, and regulations continued in the following months, challenging the notion that the divided Commission cannot find consensus.
In this alert, we highlight the FEC’s major developments in 2024 across three…
An Empty Chair and a Not-so-Empty Threat: Senate HELP Committee to Vote on Rare Civil and Criminal Subpoena Enforcement Actions Against Steward Health Care CEO
Update: On September 19, 2024, the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) voted unanimously to adopt resolutions for civil and criminal enforcement of the Committee’s subpoena to Steward Health Care CEO Dr. Ralph de la Torre. On September 25, 2024, the full Senate voted unanimously to refer this matter to the U.S. Attorney…
SEC Enforcement Order Highlights Far Reach of Pay-to-Play Restrictions
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) this week issued a cease-and-desist order that demonstrates the SEC pay-to-play rule’s expansiveness and the SEC’s readiness to enforce it to the letter, even when it is virtually impossible that a political contribution could have influenced a government entity’s investment decision.
In this alert, we summarize the SEC…
Avoiding Pitfalls on the Path to Election Day: Common Political Law Risks for Corporations in Election Season
With Election Day fast approaching, corporations face increasing pressure from both internal and external forces to make legal decisions about political activities. This can be a fraught area of law, with little understood, highly technical regulatory issues that vary significantly across jurisdictions. Corporate counsel should be mindful of common—and sometimes complicated—political law traps. In this…
Headed to Milwaukee or Chicago this Summer? Political and Governmental Ethics Rules at the 2024 National Party Conventions
The Democratic and Republican National Party Conventions are a premiere forum for businesses and trade groups to elevate their priorities to candidates, elected officials, and staff. However, thanks to a complex regulatory regime, participation in convention events can invite scrutiny and legal trouble. The Republican Convention is scheduled to take place in Milwaukee from July…
Georgia Governor Vetoes “Baby” FARA Bill
Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has vetoed Georgia Senate Bill 368, which would have created a requirement in state law for certain “agents of foreign principals” to register and report certain lobbying and political activities in Georgia. This is the first of the wave of recently proposed baby FARA bills at the state level, designed to…
States Introduce More “Baby” FARA Bills
Over the past several weeks, legislatures in Arizona, California, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Tennessee have introduced bills that mirror the federal Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”). There has been a trend in the states to enact so-called “baby FARA” laws that apply to foreign influenced political activity in the states, although until…