House Study Bill 14 - Introduced HOUSE FILE _____ BY (PROPOSED COMMITTEE ON ETHICS BILL BY CHAIRPERSON KOESTER) A BILL FOR An Act relating to the filing of lobbyist registrations and 1 lobbyist’s client reports with the general assembly. 2 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 3 TLSB 1669YC (3) 84 tm/rj

H.F. _____ Section 1. Section 68B.36, Code 2011, is amended to read as 1 follows: 2 68B.36 Applicability —— lobbyist registration required. 3 1. All lobbyists shall, on or before the day their lobbying 4 activity begins, register by electronically filing a lobbyist’s 5 registration statement at times and in the manner provided in 6 this section . In addition to any other information required by 7 the general assembly and the board , a lobbyist shall identify 8 in the registration statement all clients of the lobbyist 9 and whether the lobbyist will also be lobbying the executive 10 branch . Lobbyists engaged in lobbying activities before 11 the general assembly and before the office of the governor 12 or any state agency shall file the statement with the chief 13 clerk of the house of representatives or the secretary of the 14 senate. Lobbyists engaged in lobbying activities before the 15 office of the governor or any state agency shall file the 16 statement with the board. The chief clerk of the house and the 17 secretary of the senate shall provide appropriate registration 18 forms to lobbyists before the general assembly. The board 19 shall prescribe appropriate registration forms for lobbyists 20 before the office of the governor and state agencies establish 21 an internet site for the electronic filing of lobbyist 22 registrations . 23 2. Registration shall be valid from the date of registration 24 until the expiration of the registration period for the type 25 of lobbying in which the person will be engaging the end of the 26 calendar year . Any change in or addition to the information 27 shall be registered within ten days after the change or 28 addition is known to the lobbyist. Changes or additions for 29 executive branch lobbyists shall be filed with the board. 30 Changes or additions for registrations of lobbyists of the 31 general assembly shall be filed with either the chief clerk of 32 the house or the secretary of the senate. 33 3. For persons registered to lobby before the general 34 assembly, registration expires upon the commencement of the 35 -1- LSB 1669YC (3) 84 tm/rj 1/ 4

H.F. _____ next regular session of the general assembly, except that the 1 chief clerk of the house and the secretary of the senate may 2 adopt and implement a reasonable preregistration procedure 3 in advance of each regular session during which persons 4 may register for that session and the following legislative 5 interim. For persons registered to lobby before the office of 6 the governor or a state agency, registration expires upon the 7 commencement of a new calendar year. The board may adopt and 8 implement a reasonable preregistration procedure in advance of 9 each new calendar year during which persons may register for 10 that year. Beginning December 1 of each year, a person may 11 preregister to lobby for the following calendar year. 12 4. If a lobbyist’s service on behalf of all clients, 13 employers, or causes is concluded prior to the end of the 14 calendar year, the lobbyist may cancel the registration on 15 appropriate forms supplied by the board, the chief clerk of the 16 house, or the secretary of the senate. The cancellation forms 17 shall be filed by the lobbyist in the place where the lobbyist 18 filed the original registration by electronically filing a 19 notice of cancellation with the chief clerk of the house or the 20 secretary of the senate . Upon cancellation of registration, a 21 lobbyist is prohibited from engaging in any lobbying activity 22 on behalf of any employer, client, or cause until reregistering 23 and complying with the rules of the board or the general 24 assembly . 25 5. Federal, state, and local officials who wish to lobby 26 in opposition to the official position of their departments, 27 commissions, boards, or agencies must indicate this on their 28 lobbyist registration statements. 29 6. The chief clerk of the house or the secretary of the 30 senate shall post all lobbyist registrations in a searchable 31 database on an internet site. The board shall establish a link 32 on the internet site of the board to the lobbyist registration 33 information on the general assembly’s internet site. 34 Sec. 2. Section 68B.38, Code 2011, is amended to read as 35 -2- LSB 1669YC (3) 84 tm/rj 2/ 4

H.F. _____ follows: 1 68B.38 Lobbyist’s client reporting. 2 1. On or before July 31 of each year, a lobbyist’s client 3 shall electronically file with the general assembly and board 4 a report that contains information on all salaries, fees, 5 retainers, and reimbursement of expenses paid by the lobbyist’s 6 client to the lobbyist for lobbying purposes during the 7 preceding twelve calendar months, concluding on June 30 of each 8 year. The amount reported to the general assembly and the 9 board shall include the total amount of all salaries, fees, 10 retainers, and reimbursement of expenses paid to a lobbyist for 11 lobbying both the legislative and executive branches. 12 2. Reports by a lobbyist’s clients shall be filed with 13 the same entity with which the lobbyist filed the lobbyist’s 14 registration. The chief clerk of the house and the secretary 15 of the senate shall establish an internet site for the filing 16 of lobbyist’s client reports in an electronic format. 17 3. The secretary of the senate, chief clerk of the house, 18 and the board shall develop forms to implement this section . 19 The chief clerk of the house and the secretary of the senate 20 shall post all lobbyist’s client reports filed pursuant to this 21 section in a searchable database on an internet site. The 22 board shall establish a link on the internet site of the board 23 to the lobbyist’s client report information on the general 24 assembly’s internet site. 25 EXPLANATION 26 This bill relates to the filing of lobbyist registrations 27 and lobbyist’s client reports with the general assembly. 28 Currently, a person engaged in lobbying activities before 29 the general assembly files a lobbyist registration with the 30 general assembly and a person engaged in lobbying activities 31 before the office of the governor or any state agency files 32 a lobbyist registration with the ethics and campaign finance 33 disclosure board. The bill eliminates the requirements 34 related to filing with the board and provides that regardless 35 -3- LSB 1669YC (3) 84 tm/rj 3/ 4

H.F. _____ of where the lobbying activities take place all lobbyist 1 registrations are filed with the general assembly. The bill 2 requires all lobbyist registrations to be filed electronically 3 and the general assembly is required to post all lobbyist 4 registrations in a searchable database on an internet site. 5 The bill requires the board to establish a link on the internet 6 site of the board to the lobbyist registration information on 7 the general assembly’s internet site. The bill unifies the 8 legislative branch and executive branch lobbyist registration 9 periods by making all registrations valid from the date of the 10 registration to the end of the calendar year. The bill allows 11 for preregistration for the following calendar year beginning 12 on December 1 of each year. 13 Currently, a lobbyist’s client is required to file an annual 14 report with both the general assembly and the board based 15 on the entity with which the lobbyist filed the lobbyist’s 16 registration. The bill requires all lobbyist’s client 17 reports to be filed with the general assembly and that the 18 general assembly shall post all lobbyist’s client reports in 19 a searchable database on an internet site. The bill requires 20 the board to establish a link on the internet site of the board 21 to the lobbyist’s client report information on the general 22 assembly’s internet site. 23 -4- LSB 1669YC (3) 84 tm/rj 4/ 4