ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 31 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In response to the
 House and Senate agreement on the "Honest Leadership and Open Government
 Act of 2007" (S. 1) which would amend the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA),
 the Board of Directors of the American League of Lobbyists (ALL) has
 reaffirmed its set of principles regarding LDA changes, and noted
 discrepancies in the proposed law. ALL supports the concept of sunshine in
 government, but questions whether the current proposal addresses the real
 issues, including the enforcement of the LDA.
     "Lobbying is a fundamental right guaranteed by our Constitution, and
 professional lobbyists such as League members perform a vital role in our
 democracy. They help citizens communicate factual information and advocate
 their interests and concerns to public officials," stated Brian Pallasch,
 President, American League of Lobbyists.
     "The current compromise legislation still has quite a few flaws,"
 stated Pallasch. "The most glaring is the constant failure to acknowledge
 that not everyone who lobbies has to register as a lobbyist, and it does
 not close this obvious loophole. Additionally, ALL has strong concerns
 about significant administrative and compliance problems that will be
 caused by the new reporting deadlines."
     The League supports...
     -- S. 1 would require the electronic filing of lobbying reports, which ALL
        has supported for some time. ALL supports this provision and urges
        Congress to adopt the current Senate electronic filing procedures which
        do not include the current cumbersome House certification process. The
        current House requirements are time consuming and incompatible with the
        new filing requirements.
     -- ALL supports the provision that would require an open and accessible
        public database of lobbying disclosure information. Further, ALL
        supports full funding of the database. Additional discussions should be
        held on the best ways to update and notify the public of this database.
     -- ALL is pleased to see that the provisions on bundling of contributions
        will now be addressed through the Federal Election Commission, rather
        than the Lobbying Disclosure Act. Additionally, Congress acknowledged
        that the bundling of contributions is not done only by lobbyists.
 
     The League opposes...
     -- S. 1 unfortunately still does not meet the first principle supported by
        ALL -- that the Lobbying Disclosure Act should apply to everyone who
        lobbies. The current loopholes for state and local governments,
        universities and others remain in law, and it also extends to gifts and
        trips. ALL calls on Congress to ensure that the LDA require everyone
        who lobbies at the federal level to register as a lobbyist and report
        their activities. That will add to the sunshine on our public policy
        process.
     -- The new requirement in S. 1 of filing quarterly lobbying reports 20
        days after the quarterly period will not allow most lobbying
        organizations to have complete financial statements available necessary
        to allow for proper disclosure of lobbying amounts. The legislation
        requires that more information be reported; as such it should not allow
        less time to prepare the reports. In the current system, it is not easy
        to get the reports done within 45 days. When you factor in the
        increased civil and criminal penalties now associated with mis-
        reporting, there is no margin for error and no extensions are available
        in the event of needing additional time or information to do it
        correctly.
 
     The League questions...
     -- ALL has strong concerns regarding Section 203 "Semiannual Reports on
        Certain Contributions." This provision appears to demand data already
        available at the Federal Election Commission's website. Additionally,
        this provision appears to be poorly worded and defined leaving many
        unclear of exactly what activities are subject to Section 204.
     -- ALL has concerns about the provision to increase the fines for failing
        to comply with the LDA. Increasing penalties solves nothing -- not a
        single Member or lobbyist who has been prosecuted was charged with
        violating the Lobbying Disclosure Act or a congressional rule. So
        before raising penalties, ALL urges Congress to gain experience with
        diligent enforcement of existing rules and sanctions before doubling
        the fines and adding criminal penalties.
     ALL's leadership believes that S. 1 continues to miss the mark on LDA
 reform, and that Congress should review the legislation and its practical
 implications.
     The American League of Lobbyists remains committed to promoting good
 government and strengthening public trust in the legislative process. We
 are prepared to work with Congress as needed on fixing S. 1. We support
 full and complete compliance with the LDA requirements as currently written
 or as may be re-written in the future.
     ABOUT THE AMERICAN LEAGUE OF LOBBYISTS: For the past 25 years, the
 mission of
     the American League of Lobbyists has been to enhance the development of
     professionalism, competence and high ethical standards for advocates in
 the
     public policy arena; collectively address challenges which affect the
 first
     amendment right to "petition the government for redress of grievances,"
 and promote ethical lobbying through the ALL Lobbying Code of Ethics.
 Membership,
     which currently stands at over 900, is available to governmental
 affairs
     professionals working at the federal, state, or local level.
 
 

SOURCE American League of Lobbyists