Inside Political Law

Updates on developments in campaign finance, lobbying & government ethics law

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Covington annually publishes a detailed survey of state campaign finance, lobbying, and gift rules.  Now, for the first time, Covington is releasing an updated survey that details federal campaign finance, lobbying, and gift rules, in addition to those of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Corporations, trade associations, non-profits, other organizations, and individuals face…

What happens in Arkansas does not stay in Arkansas.  Or at least not when federal prosecutors from the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section get involved.

A recent sentencing from Arkansas highlights the many options in DOJ’s toolkit to pursue “state-level” misconduct involving public officials.  In the case of former state senator Jeremy Hutchinson, DOJ…

Political committees, advertisers, and advertising platforms have operated under a cloud of uncertainty regarding which disclaimers, if any, must appear on internet-based advertisements. Existing Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) regulations and guidance left many unanswered questions about the disclaimers required for these increasingly important internet ads. The FEC has finally offered some clarity in this area,…

For over a decade, Covington has published a detailed survey of the “pay-to-play” laws of all 50 states.  Now, for the first time, Covington is updating the survey with a new section covering federal pay-to-play rules, in addition to those of the 50 states and many cities and counties.  This new section details the federal…

The Federal Election Commission has announced contribution limits for 2023-2024.  The new “per election” limits are effective for the 2023-2024 election cycle (November 9, 2022 – November 5, 2024), and the calendar year limits are effective January 1, 2023. The new limits represent the largest election cycle increase since the limits started being indexed…

In 2018, Covington published the original version of its widely read primer on the Foreign Agents Registration Act, “FARA: A Guide for the Perplexed.” We have updated this primer periodically. Today, the firm released the latest edition of the primer, featuring new analysis of recent Department of Justice guidance regarding the scope of agency…

The House of Representatives formally established the new “Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party,” with a bipartisan vote of 365-65. The Select Committee, to be chaired by Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI), a former military intelligence officer who also serves on the House Intelligence Committee, has been…

There is near universal agreement among policymakers, lawyers, and lobbyists that the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”) is deeply in need of legislative reforms to update the statute and bring it in line with modern practices. Agreeing on specific amendments, however, has been challenging, and several prior efforts ended with no new enactments, as we…

Congressional investigations thrive in divided government.  With a constrained ability to advance policy through legislation, Members are more likely to turn to investigations as a means of making headlines and affecting private sector practices. 

The Democratic Senate majority and the Republican House majority give the respective majorities the ability to control the agenda of each…

The Department of Justice (“DOJ” or “The Department”) recently released a letter, sent to Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and a bipartisan group of Senators a few weeks ago, in which DOJ expressed support for eliminating the Lobbying Disclosure Act (“LDA”) registration exemption to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (“FARA”). This is a striking and…