Florida Senate - 2013                       CS for CS for SB 544
       
       
       
       By the Committees on Rules; and Ethics and Elections; and
       Senator Braynon
       
       
       
       595-03972-13                                           2013544c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to legislative lobbying expenditures;
    3         amending s. 11.045, F.S., and reenacting subsections
    4         (4)-(8), relating to lobbying before the Legislature;
    5         revising the term “expenditure” to exclude the use of
    6         a public facility or public property that is made
    7         available by a governmental entity to a legislator for
    8         a public purpose, to exempt such use from legislative
    9         lobbying requirements; providing exceptions when a
   10         member or an employee of the Legislature may accept
   11         certain expenditures made by a lobbyist or a
   12         principal; providing for the future expiration and the
   13         reversion as of a specified date of statutory text;
   14         providing an effective date.
   15  
   16  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   17  
   18         Section 1. Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section
   19  11.045, Florida Statutes, is amended, subsection (4) of that
   20  section is reenacted and amended, and subsections (5) through
   21  (8) of that section are reenacted, to read:
   22         11.045 Lobbying before the Legislature; registration and
   23  reporting; exemptions; penalties.—
   24         (1) As used in this section, unless the context otherwise
   25  requires:
   26         (c) “Expenditure” means a payment, distribution, loan,
   27  advance, reimbursement, deposit, or anything of value made by a
   28  lobbyist or principal for the purpose of lobbying. The term does
   29  not include:
   30         1. Contributions or expenditures reported pursuant to
   31  chapter 106 or federal election law, campaign-related personal
   32  services provided without compensation by individuals
   33  volunteering their time, any other contribution or expenditure
   34  made by or to a political party or affiliated party committee,
   35  or any other contribution or expenditure made by an organization
   36  that is exempt from taxation under 26 U.S.C. s. 527 or s.
   37  501(c)(4).
   38         2. A government-to-government use, which is the use of a
   39  public facility or public property that is made available by a
   40  governmental entity to a legislator for a public purpose,
   41  regardless of whether the governmental entity is required to
   42  register any person as a lobbyist pursuant to this section.
   43         (4)(a) Notwithstanding s. 112.3148, s. 112.3149, or any
   44  other provision of law to the contrary, no lobbyist or principal
   45  may shall make, directly or indirectly, and no member or
   46  employee of the Legislature may shall knowingly accept, directly
   47  or indirectly, any expenditure, except:
   48         1. Floral arrangements or other celebratory items given to
   49  legislators and displayed in chambers the opening day of a
   50  regular session.
   51         2. Individual servings of nonalcoholic beverages provided
   52  by a lobbyist or a principal as a courtesy to the attendees of a
   53  meeting.
   54         3. A member or employee of the Legislature, who attends a
   55  scheduled meeting of an established membership organization
   56  whose membership is not primarily composed of lobbyists, which
   57  is also a principal, as a featured speaker, moderator, or
   58  participant and provides a speech, address, oration, or other
   59  oral presentation, may accept a meal, beverage, or event or
   60  meeting registration fee. Such meal, beverage, and event or
   61  meeting registration fee are expenses related to an honorarium
   62  event under s. 112.3149.
   63         (b) A No person may not shall provide compensation for
   64  lobbying to any individual or business entity that is not a
   65  lobbying firm.
   66         (c) A member or employee of the Legislature who attends a
   67  meeting and accepts a meal, beverage, or event or meeting
   68  registration fee as permitted in subparagraph (a)3., is required
   69  to file a report with the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk
   70  of the House of Representatives no later than 15 days after
   71  attending the meeting. The report must contain, at a minimum,
   72  the date of the event, the name of the organization hosting the
   73  event, the topic or topics about which the member or employee
   74  spoke, and the value of the meal accepted. Each house of the
   75  Legislature shall establish by rule procedures for such
   76  reporting and for the publication of such reports on its
   77  website. Reports required to be filed by this subsection satisfy
   78  the disclosure requirements in s. 112.3149(6).
   79         (5) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule a
   80  procedure by which a person, when in doubt about the
   81  applicability and interpretation of this section in a particular
   82  context, may submit in writing the facts for an advisory opinion
   83  to the committee of either house and may appear in person before
   84  the committee. The rule shall provide a procedure by which:
   85         (a) The committee shall render advisory opinions to any
   86  person who seeks advice as to whether the facts in a particular
   87  case would constitute a violation of this section.
   88         (b) The committee shall make sufficient deletions to
   89  prevent disclosing the identity of persons in the decisions or
   90  opinions.
   91         (c) All advisory opinions of the committee shall be
   92  numbered, dated, and open to public inspection.
   93         (6) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule for
   94  keeping all advisory opinions of the committees relating to
   95  lobbying firms, lobbyists, and lobbying activities. The rule
   96  shall also provide that each house keep a current list of
   97  registered lobbyists along with reports required of lobbying
   98  firms under this section, all of which shall be open for public
   99  inspection.
  100         (7) Each house of the Legislature shall provide by rule
  101  that a committee of either house investigate any person upon
  102  receipt of a sworn complaint alleging a violation of this
  103  section, s. 112.3148, or s. 112.3149 by such person; also, the
  104  rule shall provide that a committee of either house investigate
  105  any lobbying firm upon receipt of audit information indicating a
  106  possible violation other than a late-filed report. Such
  107  proceedings shall be conducted pursuant to the rules of the
  108  respective houses. If the committee finds that there has been a
  109  violation of this section, s. 112.3148, or s. 112.3149, it shall
  110  report its findings to the President of the Senate or the
  111  Speaker of the House of Representatives, as appropriate,
  112  together with a recommended penalty, to include a fine of not
  113  more than $5,000, reprimand, censure, probation, or prohibition
  114  from lobbying for a period of time not to exceed 24 months. Upon
  115  the receipt of such report, the President of the Senate or the
  116  Speaker of the House of Representatives shall cause the
  117  committee report and recommendations to be brought before the
  118  respective house and a final determination shall be made by a
  119  majority of said house.
  120         (8) Any person required to be registered or to provide
  121  information pursuant to this section or pursuant to rules
  122  established in conformity with this section who knowingly fails
  123  to disclose any material fact required by this section or by
  124  rules established in conformity with this section, or who
  125  knowingly provides false information on any report required by
  126  this section or by rules established in conformity with this
  127  section, commits a noncriminal infraction, punishable by a fine
  128  not to exceed $5,000. Such penalty shall be in addition to any
  129  other penalty assessed by a house of the Legislature pursuant to
  130  subsection (7).
  131         Section 2. The amendment to s. 11.045(4), Florida Statutes,
  132  shall expire June 30, 2015, and the text of that subsection
  133  shall revert to that in existence on April 7, 2012, except that
  134  any amendments to such text enacted other than by this act shall
  135  be preserved and continue to operate to the extent that such
  136  amendments are not dependent upon portions of text which expire
  137  pursuant to this section.
  138         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.