The New York State Senate

                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                 6585--A

                       2015-2016 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                             March 27, 2015
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. GALEF -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Governmental Operations -- recommitted to the Committee on  Govern-
  mental  Operations  in  accordance  with  Assembly  Rule  3, sec. 2 --
  committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
  recommitted to said committee

AN  ACT  to amend the legislative law, in relation to prohibiting lobby-
  ists from engaging in political consulting of candidates for and hold-
  ers of state office and prohibiting certain political consultants from
  engaging in compensated lobbying and lobbying activities; and to amend
  the election law, in  relation  to  requiring  the  reporting  of  the
  provision of political consulting services

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Section 1-c of the legislative law is amended by  adding  a
new subdivision (x) to read as follows:
  (X)  THE  TERM  "POLITICAL  CONSULTING"  SHALL  MEAN  AND  INCLUDE THE
PROVISION, FOR COMPENSATION, TO ANY STATE PUBLIC OFFICIAL, CANDIDATE  OR
PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATE FOR AN ELECTED STATE OFFICE OF ADVICE, SERVICES OR
ASSISTANCE IN SECURING SUCH PUBLIC OFFICE INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
CAMPAIGN  MANAGEMENT,  FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES, PUBLIC RELATIONS OR MEDIA
SERVICES, BUT SHALL EXCLUDE BONA FIDE LEGAL  WORK  DIRECTLY  RELATED  TO
LITIGATION  OR  LEGAL  ADVICE  WITH  REGARD  TO  SECURING A PLACE ON THE
BALLOT, THE PETITIONING PROCESS, THE CONDUCT OF  AN  ELECTION  OR  WHICH
INVOLVES THE ELECTION LAW.
  S 2. Section 1-m of the legislative law, as added by chapter 14 of the
laws of 2007, is amended to read as follows:
  S 1-m. Prohibition of gifts AND POLITICAL CONSULTING.  (A) No individ-
ual  or  entity  required  to  be  listed on a statement of registration
pursuant to this article shall offer or give a gift to any public  offi-
cial  as  defined within this article, unless under the circumstances it
is not reasonable to infer that the gift was intended to influence  such

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD00224-06-6

A. 6585--A                          2

public  official.  No  individual  or  entity required to be listed on a
statement of registration pursuant to this article shall offer or give a
gift to the spouse or unemancipated child  of  any  public  official  as
defined  within  this article under circumstances where it is reasonable
to infer that the gift was intended to influence such  public  official.
No  spouse or unemancipated child of an individual required to be listed
on a statement of registration pursuant to this article shall  offer  or
give a gift to a public official under circumstances where it is reason-
able  to infer that the gift was intended to influence such public offi-
cial. This section shall not apply to  gifts  to  officers,  members  or
directors of boards, commissions, councils, public authorities or public
benefit corporations who receive no compensation or are compensated on a
per  diem  basis, unless the person listed on the statement of registra-
tion appears or has matters pending  before  the  board,  commission  or
council on which the recipient sits.
  (B)  NO  PERSON  OR  ORGANIZATION  THAT  HAS BEEN RETAINED OR RECEIVED
COMPENSATION FOR POLITICAL CONSULTING,  IS  AN  INDIVIDUAL  WHO  HAS  AN
OWNERSHIP  INTEREST  IN  A  POLITICAL  CONSULTING ORGANIZATION, OR IS AN
EMPLOYEE OF THE POLITICAL CONSULTANT SHALL ENGAGE IN COMPENSATED  LOBBY-
ING OR LOBBYING ACTIVITIES WITH ANY STATE PUBLIC OFFICIAL, CANDIDATE, OR
PROSPECTIVE  CANDIDATE  FOR  ELECTED  OFFICE  WHO IS A CURRENT OR FORMER
CLIENT OF THE POLITICAL CONSULTANT; PROVIDED, HOWEVER THAT A  PERSON  OR
ORGANIZATION  THAT  IS  ENGAGED  SOLELY  IN  THE LOBBYING OF OR LOBBYING
ACTIVITIES RELATED TO MUNICIPAL AGENCIES, LOCAL LEGISLATIVE  BODIES  AND
MUNICIPAL  PUBLIC  OFFICERS,  AND  DOES NOT ENGAGE IN THE LOBBYING OF OR
LOBBYING ACTIVITIES RELATED TO STATE AGENCIES  AND  STATE  PUBLIC  OFFI-
CIALS,  MAY  ENGAGE  IN  SUCH  POLITICAL CONSULTING FOR MUNICIPAL PUBLIC
OFFICIALS.
  (C) NO PERSON OR ORGANIZATION THAT IS ENGAGED IN COMPENSATED POLITICAL
CONSULTING FOR ANY  STATE  PUBLIC  OFFICIAL,  CANDIDATE  OR  PROSPECTIVE
CANDIDATE  FOR  AN  ELECTED STATE OFFICE SHALL BE EMPLOYED BY, BE AFFIL-
IATED WITH OR BE UNDER COMMON OWNERSHIP WITH ANY PERSON OR  ORGANIZATION
ENGAGED IN COMPENSATED LOBBYING OR LOBBYING ACTIVITIES, EXCEPT AS OTHER-
WISE AUTHORIZED BY SUBDIVISION (B) OF THIS SECTION.
  (D) (1) THIS PROHIBITION SHALL NOT APPLY TO:
  (A)  AN  EMPLOYEE  OF  THE  POLITICAL CONSULTANT WHOSE SOLE DUTIES ARE
CLERICAL; OR
  (B) AN EMPLOYEE OF THE POLITICAL CONSULTANT  WHO  DID  NOT  PERSONALLY
PROVIDE  POLITICAL  CONSULTING  SERVICES  TO  THE STATE PUBLIC OFFICIAL,
CANDIDATE OR PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATE FOR A STATE ELECTED OFFICE WITH  WHOM
THE EMPLOYEE SEEKS TO COMMUNICATE FOR LOBBYING OR LOBBYING ACTIVITIES.
  (2)  THE  EXCEPTIONS  IN  PARAGRAPH  ONE OF THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL NOT
APPLY TO ANY PERSON WHO  COMMUNICATES  WITH  A  STATE  PUBLIC  OFFICIAL,
CANDIDATE, OR PROSPECTIVE CANDIDATE FOR A STATE ELECTED OFFICE IN HIS OR
HER CAPACITY AS AN EMPLOYEE OF THE POLITICAL CONSULTANT WHO IS PROHIBIT-
ED BY PARAGRAPHS (B) AND (C) OF THIS SUBDIVISION FROM ENGAGING IN LOBBY-
ING AND LOBBYING ACTIVITIES.
  S  3.  Subdivision (h) of section 1-c of the legislative law, as added
by chapter 2 of the laws of 1999, is amended to read as follows:
  (h) The term "compensation" shall mean any salary, fee, gift, payment,
benefit, loan, advance or any other thing of value paid, owed, given  or
promised  to  the  lobbyist  OR  POLITICAL  CONSULTANT by the client for
lobbying OR POLITICAL CONSULTING but  shall  not  include  contributions
reportable pursuant to article fourteen of the election law.
  S  4.  Section 14-100 of the election law is amended by adding two new
subdivisions 15 and 16 to read as follows:

A. 6585--A                          3

  15. "POLITICAL  CONSULTING"  MEANS  AND  INCLUDES  THE  PROVISION  FOR
COMPENSATION,  TO  ANY  POLITICAL  COMMITTEE  OR  CANDIDATE  OF  ADVICE,
SERVICES OR ASSISTANCE IN SECURING STATE PUBLIC  OFFICE  INCLUDING,  BUT
NOT  LIMITED  TO,  CAMPAIGN  MANAGEMENT,  FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES, PUBLIC
RELATIONS  OR  MEDIA  SERVICES,  BUT  SHALL  EXCLUDE LEGAL WORK DIRECTLY
RELATED TO LITIGATION OR LEGAL ADVICE WITH REGARD TO SECURING A PLACE ON
THE BALLOT, THE PETITIONING PROCESS, THE CONDUCT OF AN ELECTION OR WHICH
INVOLVES THIS CHAPTER.
  16. "COMPENSATION" MEANS ANY  SALARY,  FEE,  GIFT,  PAYMENT,  BENEFIT,
LOAN, ADVANCE OR ANY OTHER THING OF VALUE PAID, OWED, GIVEN OR PROMISED,
BUT SHALL NOT INCLUDE CONTRIBUTIONS REPORTABLE PURSUANT TO THIS ARTICLE.
  S  5.  Subdivision 1 of section 14-102 of the election law, as amended
by chapter 8 of the laws of 1978 and as redesignated by chapter 9 of the
laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:
  1. The treasurer of every political committee which, or  any  officer,
member  or  agent  of  any  such  committee  who, in connection with any
election, receives or expends any  money  or  other  valuable  thing  or
incurs  any  liability  to pay money or its equivalent shall file state-
ments sworn, or subscribed and bearing a form notice that  false  state-
ments  made  therein are punishable as a class A misdemeanor pursuant to
section 210.45 of the penal law, at the times prescribed by this article
setting forth all the receipts, contributions to and the expenditures by
and liabilities of the committee,  and  of  its  officers,  members  and
agents in its behalf. Such statements shall include the dollar amount of
any  receipt,  contribution or transfer, or the fair market value of any
receipt, contribution or transfer, which is other  than  of  money,  the
name  and  address  of  the  transferor, contributor or person from whom
received, and if the transferor, contributor or person  is  a  political
committee; the name of and the political unit represented by the commit-
tee,  the  date  of its receipt, the dollar amount of every expenditure,
the name and address of the person to whom it was made or  the  name  of
and the political unit represented by the committee to which it was made
and  the  date  thereof,  and  shall  state  clearly the purpose of such
expenditure.  FURTHERMORE, SUCH STATEMENTS SHALL INCLUDE A LIST  OF  ALL
PERSONS  AND ORGANIZATIONS WHICH PROVIDED POLITICAL CONSULTING SERVICES,
AND THE FAIR MARKET VALUE OF AND THE ACTUAL AMOUNT  PAID  TO  EACH  SUCH
PERSON  AND  ORGANIZATION  FOR  THE  PROVISION  OF  POLITICAL CONSULTING
SERVICES. Any statement reporting a loan shall have  attached  to  it  a
copy  of  the evidence of indebtedness. Expenditures in sums under fifty
dollars need not be specifically accounted for by separate items in said
statements, and receipts and contributions  aggregating  not  more  than
ninety-nine  dollars,  from any one contributor need not be specifically
accounted for by separate items in said  statements,  provided  however,
that  such  expenditures, receipts and contributions shall be subject to
the other provisions of section 14-118 of this article.
  S 6. Subdivision 1 of section 14-104 of the election law,  as  amended
by chapter 430 of the laws of 1997, is amended to read as follows:
  1.  Any candidate for election to public office, or for nomination for
public office at a contested primary  election  or  convention,  or  for
election  to  a  party position at a primary election, shall file state-
ments sworn, or subscribed and bearing a form notice that  false  state-
ments  made  therein are punishable as a class A misdemeanor pursuant to
section 210.45 of the penal law, at the times prescribed by this article
setting forth the particulars specified by section 14-102 of this  arti-
cle, as to all moneys or other valuable things, paid, given, expended or
promised  by him OR HER to aid his OR HER own nomination or election, or

A. 6585--A                          4

to promote the success or defeat of a political  party,  or  to  aid  or
influence  the  nomination or election or the defeat of any other candi-
date to be voted for at the election or primary election or at a conven-
tion, including contributions to political committees, officers, members
or  agents  thereof, and transfers, receipts and contributions to him to
be used for any of the purposes above specified, or in lieu thereof, any
such candidate may file such a sworn statement at the first filing peri-
od, on a form prescribed by the  state  board  of  elections  that  such
candidate  has made no such expenditures and does not intend to make any
such expenditures, except through a political  committee  authorized  by
such  candidate  pursuant to this article.  FURTHERMORE, SUCH STATEMENTS
SHALL INCLUDE A LIST OF ALL PERSONS  AND  ORGANIZATIONS  WHICH  PROVIDED
POLITICAL  CONSULTING  SERVICES,  AND  THE  FAIR MARKET VALUE OF AND THE
ACTUAL AMOUNT  PAID  TO  EACH  SUCH  PERSON  AND  ORGANIZATION  FOR  THE
PROVISION  OF  POLITICAL  CONSULTING SERVICES. A committee authorized by
such a candidate may fulfill all of the filing requirements of this  act
on behalf of such candidate.
  S  7.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
have become a law.