Lobbying Disclosure Information Manual - Fair Political Practices ...

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Chapter 2 Where and When to File Reports This chapter reviews where and when lobbying reports must be filed. A review of the electronic and online filing requirements is provided as most filers must file reports electronically. For those filers who are not required to file electronically (see below), paper reports are required. Where to File All reports and statements discussed in this manual are filed with the Secretary of State. Paper statements should be addressed as follows: Secretary of State Political Reform Division 1500 11 th Street, Room 495 Sacramento, CA 95814 Electronic or Online Filing Lobbying reports must be filed electronically once the total amount of any category of reportable payments, expenses, contributions, gifts, or other items is $5,000 or more in a calendar quarter. Each quarter and each category of payments are calculated separately to determine if electronic filing is required. A lobbyist employer is not required to count campaign contributions toward the $5,000 threshold for any quarter in which the employer does not report contributions but instead refers to its sponsored committee’s campaign statement. If a lobbyist employer or lobbying firm is required to file electronically, lobbyists employed by the employer or firm also must file electronically. If a lobbyist employer hires a lobbying firm that files electronically, the employer is not automatically required to file electronically. Until the electronic filing requirements have been triggered, only paper reports are required. However, once a 1-866-ASK-FPPC Chapter 2 — Where and When to File Reports filer is required to file electronically, all future reports, including registration forms, must be filed electronically. Electronic filers must file registration forms on paper as well as electronically, but quarterly reports are not required to be filed on paper. Electronic filers obtain a login identification number and password from the Secretary of State. Only the filer is able to access his or her files using the identification number and password. When filing a report electronically, the filer files under penalty of perjury. The filer may also designate a vendor or other service provider to file on his or her behalf and provide the vendor with the identification number and password. If the filer authorizes another vendor to file and does not file the forms personally, the filings are still presumed to be filed under penalty of perjury. The Secretary of State offers free online filing and there are several software vendors that offer programs. Visit the Secretary of State’s website at www.ss.ca.gov for information or call the Cal-Online Help Desk toll free at (877) 745-3453 or in Sacramento at (916) 653-7283. Examples In the first quarter of the calendar year, a newly registered lobbyist employer paid its in-house employee lobbyists $3,000 for lobbying activity and made $4,000 in reportable contributions. Since this was the first time this company qualified as a lobbyist employer, and it did not expend $5,000 or more in any one category of reportable payments, it was required to file its quarterly report, Form 635, on paper only. In the second calendar quarter, the employer paid its in-house employee lobbyists a total of $6,000 for lobbying activity. The employer and the in- Fair Political Practices Commission 2-1 Lobbying Manual, 7/2005
Chapter 2 — Where and When to File Reports house lobbyists are required to file their Forms 635 and 615 electronically for the second quarter and all subsequent quarters, even if the employer does not expend $5,000 or more in any one category of reportable payments in the future. Paper copies of the quarterly reports are no longer required. However, any future amendments to the lobbyist employer’s registration must be filed electronically as well as on paper. A lobbying firm files its reports electronically. Robert Schneckner, a new part-time lobbyist for the firm, does not receive $5,000 in compensation for lobbying, nor does he have activity expenses totaling $5,000. Although Robert’s activities do not reach $5,000, because his lobbying firm is required to file electronically, his Lobbying Report, Form 615, must also be filed electronically. The lobbying firm also recently added a new lobbyist employer as a client. On its first quarterly disclosure report, the lobbyist employer did not make $5,000 or more in any category of reportable payments. The lobbyist employer may file its Lobbyist Employer Report, Form 635, electronically, but is not required to do so. The report must be filed on paper. Once a lobbying filer is required to file reports electronically, the following statements are not required to be filed on paper: • 615 – Lobbyist Report • 625 – Report of Lobbying Firm • 630 – Attachment Form 630 Payments Made to Lobbying Coalitions • 635 – Report of Lobbyist Employer and Report of Lobbying Coalition • 635-C – Attachment Form 635-C Payments Received by Lobbying Coalition • 640 – Attachment Form 640 – Government Agencies Reporting of “Other Payments to Influence Legislative or Administrative Action” • 645 – Report of Person Spending $5,000 or More to Influence Legislative or Administrative Action • 690 – Amendment to Lobbying Disclosure report Questions and Answers Q. We are a lobbyist employer and have never reached the $5,000 threshold for any calendar quarter. However, between April 1 and June 30 of this year, we contributed $5,000 or more to state candidates we are otherwise required to report. We made the contributions through our sponsored committee and will reference our committee’s report on the Form 635 instead of itemizing the contributions. Must we now file electronically as well as on paper? A. No. As long as the contributions were made from your sponsored committee and you reference your committee’s campaign statement on your Form 635, you are not required to count those contributions toward the $5,000 e-filing reporting threshold. Q. We file our quarterly reports electronically. At the beginning of the next legislative session, we intend to renew our registration. Are we required to file our registration statements electronically as well as on paper? A. Yes. If you filed reports electronically in one legislative session and re-registered for the following session, you must file your registration statements electronically as well as on paper. In addition you must continue filing your quarterly reports electronically. Fair Political Practices Commission 2-2 Lobbying Manual, 7/2005
Page 1 and 2: Lobbying Disclosure Information Man
Page 3 and 4: Introduction California’s Politic
Page 5 and 6: Chapter 1 Who Must File This chapte
Page 7 and 8: Generally, a lobbyist is categorize
Page 9 and 10: -- The individual is a lobbyist com
Page 11 and 12: companies will qualify as a “$5,0
Page 13: Statutory and Regulatory References
Page 17 and 18: Chapter 2 — Where and When to Fil
Page 19 and 20: Chapter 3 Registration and Terminat
Page 21 and 22: Filing Deadlines: New Lobbyist: •
Page 23 and 24: How to Complete Form 601 The Lobbyi
Page 25 and 26: Lobbyist Employer and Lobbying Coal
Page 27 and 28: Lobbyist Employer Deleting a Lobbyi
Page 29 and 30: Chapter 3 — Registration and Term
Page 31 and 32: Chapter 4 Gifts and Other Activity
Page 33 and 34: • Acts as an intermediary in conn
Page 35 and 36: • Designated employees of state a
Page 37 and 38: Personalized Plaques and Trophies V
Page 39 and 40: • If the guest of an official sta
Page 41 and 42: attend a training program. Because
Page 43 and 44: 18946.2 Reporting and Valuation of
Page 45 and 46: Chapter 5 — Quarterly Disclosure
Page 59 and 60: Chapter 6 Recordkeeping A recordkee
Page 61 and 62: • The amount of the contribution;
Page 63 and 64: − Payments to a law firm for draf
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Audits Lobbying firms and lobbyist
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Chapter 7 — Restrictions • Dana
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Chapter 7 — Restrictions professi
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Chapter 7 — Restrictions 85303 85
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Appendix 1 — Definitions inquirie
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Appendix 1 — Definitions Gift (Se
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Appendix 1 — Definitions institut
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Appendix 1 — Definitions lobbyist
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Appendix 1 — Definitions elected
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Appendix 2 About the Political Refo
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Cal-Online Help Desk (Electronic Fi
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