Last updated September 9, 2024
Fair Political Practices Commission News
Federal Election Commission News
The U.S. Court of Appeals has issued an en banc opinion and judgment in National Republican Senatorial Committee, et al. v. FEC, et al. The opinion affirms that the limits on coordinated campaign expenditures of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended, do not violate the First Amendment. The plaintiffs had argued that limiting the expenditures a political party may make in coordination with its nominees unconstitutionally abridges the party’s First Amendment rights.
The Federal Election Commission has issued an advisory opinion (AO 2024-07) stating that a candidate’s principal campaign committee may participate in a joint fundraiser with a Super PAC so long as the committee and other entities affiliated with or acting on behalf of the candidate neither solicit, receive, direct, transfer or spend federally-impermissible funds, nor engage in coordinated communications with the Super PAC.
Based on media reports, the Federal Election Commission has agreed to seek public comment on rules requiring broadcast stations that air political ads to disclose during the advertisement if AI-generated content was used to produce the ad. The Commission then will decide to move forward with formal regulations after then end of such a public comment period.
Los Angeles City Ethics Commission News
Jeffery Daar and Manjusha Kulkarni have been unanimously re-elected as president and vice president of the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission. Daar was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to a five-year term ending June 30, 2025, and Kulkarni was appointed by City Attorney Michael Feuer to a five-year term ending June 30, 2026.
Based on reports filed as of July 31, 2024, City of Los Angeles and Los Angeles Unified School District contributions for the 2024 General Election have exceeded $1 million.
San Francisco Ethics Commission
During the August meeting of the San Francisco Ethics Commission, the Commission passed a set of amendments to the Commission’s campaign consultant regulations. All registered San Francisco campaign consultants then received a notice on September 6, 2024 explaining that consultants will be required to file statements and reports electronically and that the option to file via facsimile will be removed. Electronic filings will be required starting in December 2024 for all registrations and re-registrations, though quarterly reports due in December 2024 still will be able to be filed on paper.
Long Beach Ethics Commission
After receiving significant opposition from the nonprofit sector, the Long Beach Ethics Commission has determined that it likely will not recommend that nonprofit organizations be required to register as lobbyists if they routinely seek to influence City decisions.
San Diego Ethics Commission
The San Diego Ethics Commission has appointed Paul Cooper as the next Chair of the Commission, serving a one-year term. Jimmie Slack has been appointed to serve as the next Vice Chair for the same term.