Relates to communications with professional journalists and newscasters; requires reporting of five thousand dollars or more for reportable compensation and expenses for lobbying by lobbyists; requires disclosure of the names of each source of funding over one thousand dollars from a single source that were used to fund the lobbying activities reported and the amounts received from each identified source of funding.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
9473
IN ASSEMBLY
March 9, 2016
___________
Introduced by M. of A. TITONE, MORELLE, FARRELL, SCHIMEL -- Multi-Spon-
sored by -- M. of A. ABINANTI, AUBRY, BICHOTTE, BLAKE, BRENNAN, BRIN-
DISI, CAHILL, CERETTO, COOK, CRESPO, DILAN, ENGLEBRIGHT, FAHY, GJONAJ,
GLICK, GOTTFRIED, HEVESI, HOOPER, JAFFEE, JEAN-PIERRE, JOYNER, KEARNS,
LAVINE, LIFTON, LINARES, LUPARDO, MAGNARELLI, MARKEY, McDONALD, MOYA,
PAULIN, PEOPLES-STOKES, PRETLOW, RICHARDSON, RUSSELL, RYAN, SEAWRIGHT,
SIMANOWITZ, SOLAGES, STECK, STIRPE, THIELE, WEINSTEIN, WOERNER,
ZEBROWSKI -- read once and referred to the Committee on Governmental
Operations
AN ACT to amend the legislative law, in relation to communications with
professional journalists and newscasters; and in relation to reporting
of certain funding by lobbyists
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The second undesignated paragraph of subdivision (c) of
2 section 1-c of the legislative law is amended by adding a new subpara-
3 graph (R) to read as follows:
4 (R) Communications with a professional journalist or newscaster relat-
5 ing to news, as these terms are defined in section seventy-nine-h of the
6 civil rights law, and communications relating to confidential and non-
7 confidential news as described in subdivisions (b) and (c) of section
8 seventy-nine-h of the civil rights law respectively.
9 § 2. Paragraph 4 of subdivision (c) of section 1-h of the legislative
10 law, as added by section 1 of part B of chapter 399 of the laws of 2011,
11 is amended to read as follows:
12 (4) Any lobbyist registered pursuant to section one-e of this article
13 whose lobbying activity is performed on its own behalf and not pursuant
14 to retention by a client[:
15 (i)] that has spent over [fifty] five thousand dollars for reportable
16 compensation and expenses for lobbying either during the calendar year,
17 or during the twelve-month period, prior to the date of this bi-monthly
18 report[, and
19 (ii) at least three percent of whose total expenditures during the
20 same period were devoted to lobbying in New York]
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD14440-01-6
A. 9473 2
1 shall report to the commission the names of each source of funding over
2 [five] one thousand dollars from a single source that were used to fund
3 the lobbying activities reported and the amounts received from each
4 identified source of funding.
5 This disclosure shall not require disclosure of the sources of funding
6 whose disclosure, in the determination of the commission based upon a
7 review of the relevant facts presented by the reporting lobbyist, may
8 cause harm, threats, harassment, or reprisals to the source or to indi-
9 viduals or property affiliated with the source. The reporting lobbyist
10 may appeal the commission's determination and such appeal shall be heard
11 by a judicial hearing officer who is independent and not affiliated with
12 or employed by the commission, pursuant to regulations promulgated by
13 the commission. The reporting lobbyist shall not be required to disclose
14 the sources of funding that are the subject of such appeal pending final
15 judgment on appeal.
16 The disclosure shall not apply to:
17 (i) any corporation registered pursuant to article seven-A of the
18 executive law that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United
19 States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. § 501(c)(3);
20 (ii) any corporation registered pursuant to article seven-A of the
21 executive law that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United
22 States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. § 501(c)(4) and whose
23 primary activities concern any area of public concern determined by the
24 commission to create a substantial likelihood that application of this
25 disclosure requirement would lead to harm, threats, harassment, or
26 reprisals to a source of funding or to individuals or property affil-
27 iated with such source, including but not limited to the area of civil
28 rights and civil liberties and any other area of public concern deter-
29 mined pursuant to regulations promulgated by the commission to form a
30 proper basis for exemption on this basis from this disclosure require-
31 ment; or
32 (iii) any governmental entity.
33 The joint commission on public ethics shall promulgate regulations to
34 implement these requirements.
35 § 3. Paragraph 4 of subdivision (c) of section 1-j of the legislative
36 law, as added by section 2 of part B of chapter 399 of the laws of 2011,
37 is amended to read as follows:
38 (4) Any client of a lobbyist that is required to file a semi-annual
39 report and[:
40 (i) that] has spent over [fifty] five thousand dollars for reportable
41 compensation and expenses for lobbying either during the calendar year,
42 or during the twelve-month period, prior to the date of this semi-annual
43 report[, and
44 (ii) at least three percent of whose total expenditures during the
45 same period were devoted to lobbying in New York]
46 shall report to the commission the names of each source of funding over
47 [five] one thousand dollars from a single source that were used to fund
48 the lobbying activities reported and the amounts received from each
49 identified source of funding.
50 This disclosure shall not require disclosure of the sources of funding
51 whose disclosure, in the determination of the commission based upon a
52 review of the relevant facts presented by the reporting client or lobby-
53 ist, may cause harm, threats, harassment, or reprisals to the source or
54 to individuals or property affiliated with the source. The reporting
55 lobbyist may appeal the commission's determination and such appeal shall
56 be heard by a judicial hearing officer who is independent and not affil-
A. 9473 3
1 iated with or employed by the commission, pursuant to regulations
2 promulgated by the commission. The reporting lobbyist shall not be
3 required to disclose the sources of funding that are the subject of such
4 appeal pending final judgment on appeal.
5 The disclosure shall not apply to:
6 (i) any corporation registered pursuant to article seven-A of the
7 executive law that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United
8 States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. § 501(c)(3);
9 (ii) any corporation registered pursuant to article seven-A of the
10 executive law that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United
11 States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. § 501(c)(4) and whose
12 primary activities concern any area of public concern determined by the
13 commission to create a substantial likelihood that application of this
14 disclosure requirement would lead to harm, threats, harassment, or
15 reprisals to a source of funding or to individuals or property affil-
16 iated with such source, including but not limited to the area of civil
17 rights and civil liberties and any other area of public concern deter-
18 mined pursuant to regulations promulgated by the commission to form a
19 proper basis for exemption on this basis from this disclosure require-
20 ment; or
21 (iii) any governmental entity.
22 The joint commission on public ethics shall promulgate regulations to
23 implement these requirements.
24 § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
