L.L. 2007/023

Enactment date: 5/1/2007

Int. No. 502-B

By Council Member Felder, the Speaker (Council Member Quinn), Gentile, Koppell, Nelson, Palma, Weprin, White Jr., Sears and The Public Advocate (Ms. Gotbaum) (in conjunction with the Mayor)

A Local Law to amend the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to the contents of a lobbyist's statement of registration, and to repeal subdivision (g) of section 3-213 of the administrative code of the city of New York, relating to the mailing of forms by the city clerk.

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Statement of Legislative Findings and Intent. The Council hereby Finds and Declares that this law would make necessary improvements in the implementation of the City's Lobbying Law as recently amended by Local Law 15 of 2006, which is designed to increase the disclosure of lobbyist activities, including political consulting and fundraising.

First, the lobbyist should not be required to include the name and home address of his or her unemancipated child in his or her annual statement of registration, unless and until a campaign contribution is made in the unemancipated child's name. If such a contribution is made by the unemancipated child of a lobbyist, it is necessary for the lobbyist to report this information in his or her annual statement of registration, in order to assist the Campaign Finance Board (the "CFB") in identifying non-matchable campaign contributions under Local Law 17 of 2006. Second, the lobbyist's registration statement should contain his or her business and home addresses and business telephone number, and the home and business addresses of his or her spouse or domestic partner, as well as the name and home address of his or her unemancipated child if a campaign contribution is made in the unemancipated child's name, again to assist the CFB in identifying non-matchable campaign contributions. Third, there is good reason to keep confidential the home address of the lobbyist, the home addresses of officers and employees in the organization's division that engages in any lobbying activities ("lobbying division"), and the names and home and business addresses of their spouses or domestic partners and unemancipated children, especially in the case of lobbyists who, for example, represent family planning clinics or battered women's shelters, and who could reasonably expect that they, or officers or employees in the lobbying division, or their spouses or domestic partners and unemancipated children could be placed at risk if their home addresses, or the names and addresses of their spouses or domestic partners and unemancipated children, were made public. Fourth, there is good reason to protect the privacy of spouses, domestic partners and unemancipated children of lobbyists and officers or employees in the lobbying division by prohibiting the campaign finance board from disclosing that any particular campaign contributor is the spouse, domestic partner or unemancipated child of a lobbyist. Fifth, since the New York Temporary State Commission on Lobbying ("Temporary Commission") would be phased out of existence if the Public Employees Ethics Reform Act of 2007 is enacted, the Lobbying Law's references to the Temporary Commission now include references to its possible successor organization.

Accordingly, this law would amend the City's Lobbying Law to: (i) require the lobbyist to disclose the name and home address of his or her unemancipated child within 48 hours after a campaign contribution is made in the unemancipated child's name; (ii) require the lobbyist to disclose his or her home and business addresses and business telephone number, and the home and business addresses of his or her spouse or domestic partner; (iii) require the Clerk to keep all home addresses and the business address of the lobbyist's spouse or domestic partner confidential and not subject to public inspection; (iv) prohibit the campaign finance board from disclosing that any particular campaign contributor is the spouse, domestic partner or unemancipated child of a lobbyist or of an officer or employee in the lobbying division; and (v) include appropriate references to the possible successor to the Temporary Commission.

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[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

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§ 11. This local law shall take effect immediately and shall be retroactive to, and deemed to have been in full force and effect on and after, December 10, 2006, except that section seven of this local law shall take effect on June 13, 2007.