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S.B. 149

             1     

ETHICS AMENDMENTS

             2     
2002 GENERAL SESSION

             3     
STATE OF UTAH

             4     
Sponsor: L. Steven Poulton

             5      This act modifies the Election Code and the Lobbyist Disclosure and Regulation Act to
             6      require certain reports to be made available on the Internet within a specified time. This act
             7      modifies lobbyist financial reporting requirements to govern situations where multiple
             8      lobbyists split expenditures and where a single lobbyist splits expenditures between multiple
             9      clients. This act makes technical corrections.
             10      This act affects sections of Utah Code Annotated 1953 as follows:
             11      AMENDS:
             12          20A-11-1002, as last amended by Chapter 355, Laws of Utah 1997
             13          36-11-106, as last amended by Chapter 338, Laws of Utah 2000
             14          36-11-201, as last amended by Chapter 338, Laws of Utah 2000
             15      Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
             16          Section 1. Section 20A-11-1002 is amended to read:
             17           20A-11-1002. Retention and public inspection of financial statements -- Written
             18      complaint if statement is false or unlawful.
             19          (1) The chief election officer shall:
             20          (a) make each financial statement required by this chapter:
             21          (i) open to public inspection in the office of the chief election officer; and
             22          (ii) available for viewing on the Internet at the lieutenant governor's website within seven
             23      calendar days after the report is received by the chief election officer;
             24          (b) preserve those statements for at least five years; and
             25          (c) provide certified copies of the financial statements in the same manner as for other
             26      public records.
             27          (2) Any candidate or voter may file a written complaint with the chief election officer


             28      alleging that a filed financial statement does not conform to law or to the truth.
             29          Section 2. Section 36-11-106 is amended to read:
             30           36-11-106. Reports are public documents.
             31          (1) Any person may:
             32          [(1)] (a) without charge, inspect a license application or financial report filed with the
             33      lieutenant governor in accordance with this chapter; and
             34          [(2)] (b) make a copy of a report after paying for the actual costs of the copy.
             35          (2) The lieutenant governor shall make financial reports filed in accordance with this
             36      chapter available for viewing on the Internet at the lieutenant governor's website within seven
             37      calendar days after the report is received by the lieutenant governor.
             38          Section 3. Section 36-11-201 is amended to read:
             39           36-11-201. Lobbyist, principal, and government officer financial reporting
             40      requirements -- Prohibition for related person to make expenditures.
             41          (1) (a) (i) Each lobbyist, principal, and government officer shall file an annual financial
             42      report with the lieutenant governor on January 10 of each year or on the next succeeding business
             43      day if January 10 falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday. The report shall be considered
             44      timely filed if postmarked on its due date.
             45          (ii) The report shall disclose expenditures made to benefit public officials or members of
             46      their immediate families as provided in this section.
             47          (iii) If the lobbyist made no expenditures since the last expenditure reported on the last
             48      report filed, the lobbyist shall file a financial report listing the amount of expenditures as "none."
             49          (b) The January 10 report shall contain:
             50          (i) the total amount of expenditures made to benefit public officials during the last calendar
             51      year;
             52          (ii) (A) the total travel expenditures that the lobbyist, principal, or government officer
             53      made to benefit public officials and their immediate families during the last calendar year; and
             54          (B) a travel expenditure statement that:
             55          (I) describes the destination of each trip and its purpose;
             56          (II) identifies the total amount of expenditures made to benefit each public official and
             57      members of the public official's immediate family for each trip;
             58          (III) names all individuals that took each trip;


             59          (IV) provides the name and address of the organization that sponsored each trip; and
             60          (V) identifies specific expenditures for food, lodging, gifts, and sidetrips;
             61          (iii) for aggregate daily expenditures made to benefit public officials or members of their
             62      immediate families that are not reportable under Subsection (1)(b):
             63          (A) when the amount does not exceed $50 per person:
             64          (I) the date of the expenditure;
             65          (II) the purpose of the expenditure; and
             66          (III) the total monetary worth of the benefit conferred on the public officials or members
             67      of their immediate families;
             68          (B) when the amount exceeds $50 per person:
             69          (I) the date, location, and purpose of the event, activity, or expenditure;
             70          (II) the name of the public official or member of the public official's immediate family who
             71      attended the event or activity or received the benefit of the expenditure; and
             72          (III) the total monetary worth of the benefit conferred on the public official or member of
             73      the public official's immediate family;
             74          (iv) a list of each public official who was employed by the lobbyist, principal, or
             75      government officer or who performed work as an independent contractor for the lobbyist,
             76      principal, or government officer during the last year that details the nature of the employment or
             77      contract;
             78          (v) each bill or resolution by number and short title on behalf of which the lobbyist,
             79      principal, or government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is
             80      required by this section, if any;
             81          (vi) a description of each executive action on behalf of which the lobbyist, principal, or
             82      government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is required by this
             83      section, if any; and
             84          (vii) the general purposes, interests, and nature of the organization or organizations that
             85      the lobbyist, principal, or government officer filing the report represents.
             86          (2) (a) As used in this Subsection (2):
             87          (i) "Lobbyist group" means two or more lobbyists, principals, government officers, and
             88      any combination of lobbyists, principals, and officers who each contribute a portion of an
             89      expenditure made to benefit a public employee or member of his immediate family.


             90          (ii) "Multi-client lobbyist" means a single lobbyist, principal, or government officer who
             91      represents two or more clients and divides the aggregate daily expenditure made to benefit a public
             92      employee or member of his immediate family between two or more of those clients.
             93          (b) When a lobbyist group combines to make aggregate daily expenditures to benefit
             94      public officials or members of their immediate families, and the total aggregate daily expenditure
             95      of the lobbyist group exceeds $50 per person, each member of the lobbyist group shall disclose on
             96      the reports required by this section:
             97          (i) the date, location, and purpose of the event, activity, or expenditure;
             98          (ii) the name of the public official or member of the public official's immediate family who
             99      attended the event or activity or received the benefit of the expenditure;
             100          (iii) the total monetary worth of the benefit conferred on the public official or member of
             101      the public official's immediate family by the lobbyist group and the total monetary worth of the
             102      benefit conferred upon the public official or member of the public official's immediate family by
             103      the lobbyist, principal, or government officer filing the report;
             104          (iv) a list of each public official who was employed by the lobbyist, principal, or
             105      government officer or who performed work as an independent contractor for the lobbyist,
             106      principal, or government officer during the last year that details the nature of the employment or
             107      contract;
             108          (v) each bill or resolution by number and short title on behalf of which the lobbyist,
             109      principal, or government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is
             110      required by this section, if any;
             111          (vi) a description of each executive action on behalf of which the lobbyist, principal, or
             112      government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is required by this
             113      section, if any; and
             114          (vii) the general purposes, interests, and nature of the organization or organizations that
             115      the lobbyist, principal, or government officer filing the report represents.
             116          (c) When a multi-client lobbyist makes aggregate daily expenditures to benefit public
             117      officials or members of their immediate families, and the sum of the total aggregate daily
             118      expenditure for all of the lobbyist's clients exceeds $50 for a public official or family member, the
             119      multi-client lobbyist shall, for each client, disclose on the reports required by this section:
             120          (i) the date, location, and purpose of the event, activity, or expenditure;


             121          (ii) the name of the public official or member of the public official's immediate family who
             122      attended the event or activity or received the benefit of the expenditure;
             123          (iii) the total monetary worth of the benefit conferred on the public official or member of
             124      the public official's immediate family by all clients and the total monetary worth of the benefit
             125      conferred on the public official or member of the public official's immediate family by the client
             126      upon whose behalf the report is filed;
             127          (iv) a list of each public official who was employed by the lobbyist, principal, or
             128      government officer or who performed work as an independent contractor for the lobbyist,
             129      principal, or government officer during the last year that details the nature of the employment or
             130      contract;
             131          (v) each bill or resolution by number and short title on behalf of which the lobbyist,
             132      principal, or government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is
             133      required by this section, if any;
             134          (vi) a description of each executive action on behalf of which the lobbyist, principal, or
             135      government officer made an expenditure to a public official for which a report is required by this
             136      section, if any; and
             137          (vii) the general purposes, interests, and nature of the organization or organizations that
             138      the lobbyist, principal, or government officer filing the report represents.
             139          [(2)] (3) A related person may not, while assisting a lobbyist, principal, or government
             140      officer in lobbying, make an expenditure that benefits a public official or member of the public
             141      official's immediate family under circumstances which would otherwise fall within the disclosure
             142      requirements of this chapter if the expenditure was made by the lobbyist, principal, or government
             143      officer.
             144          [(3)] (4) (a) Each lobbyist, principal, and government officer who makes expenditures
             145      totaling $50 or more to benefit public officials or members of their immediate families since the
             146      date of the last financial report filed shall file a financial report with the lieutenant governor on:
             147          (i) the date ten days after the last day of each annual general session;
             148          (ii) the date seven days before a regular general election; and
             149          (iii) the date seven days after the end of a special session or veto override session.
             150          (b) (i) If any date specified in this Subsection [(3)] (4) falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal
             151      holiday, the report is due on the next business day or on the next succeeding business day, if the


             152      due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday.
             153          (ii) The report shall be considered timely filed if it is postmarked on its due date.
             154          (c) Each report shall contain a listing of all expenditures made since the last expenditure
             155      reported on the last report filed in the form specified in Subsection (1)(b) and, when applicable,
             156      Subsection (2).
             157          [(4)] (5) Each financial report filed by a lobbyist shall contain a certification that the
             158      information provided in the report is true, accurate, and complete to the lobbyist's best knowledge
             159      and belief.
             160          [(5)] (6) The lieutenant governor shall:
             161          (a) develop preprinted suggested forms for all statements required by this section; and
             162          (b) make copies of the forms available to each person who requests them.




Legislative Review Note
    as of 1-29-02 11:18 AM


A limited legal review of this legislation raises no obvious constitutional or statutory concerns.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel


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