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SF Ethics Commission
Quarterly Report on Lobbyist Activity
Third Quarter 1996
| Virginia C. Gee, Chairperson
Jane E. Rubin, Executive Director |
Report prepared by: Cheryl J. Bernstein, Special Assistant
Date Issued: October 30, 1996 |
LOBBYIST FILING THIRD QUARTER 1996
The staff of the San Francisco Ethics Commission has compiled the information filed by lobbyists for the third quarter (July 1 through September 30). Fifty-one lobbyists filed reports with the City and County of San Francisco in the third quarter. Analysis of the information is provided in the following tables and documents:
- Lobbyist Filing of 10/15/96: All Reported Activity
- Table I: Payments Received From Clients
- Table III: Political Contributions
- Table IV: Payments Made to Influence Leg/Admin Action
Lobbyist Filing of 10/15/96 All Reported Activity
This table summarizes all reported activity for the third quarter. The lobbyists are listed in alphabetical order. Lobbyists will hereinafter be referred to as filers.
Table I: Payments Received From Clients
Filers must report the total payments received from clients during the reporting period. This reporting requirement only applies to Section 16.520(a) contract lobbyists. These are firms and individuals hired to lobby for other parties. For example, ABC Lobbying Firm, a contract lobbyist, is hired by A-1 Building Company to lobby for changes in the building code. ABC Lobbying Firm is required to report the amount A-1 Building Company has paid for its lobbying services. Table I shows the payments filers reporting having received from clients listed in descending order of amount. The total payments reported by filers from clients during the third quarter was $492,200.37
Filers must report the activity expenses that were made during the third quarter. An example of a filer activity expense is when Lobbyist John Smith takes Supervisor Jane Thompson to breakfast. Lobbyist John Smith must report the following: date the meal took place, the name of the restaurant, the name and position of the city official, the amount spent on the city official’s meal, a description of the activity (i.e. breakfast), and the total amount the breakfast cost. Table II displays the activity expenses reported by filers in descending order of amount. The total of reported activity expenses during the third quarter was $82,846.22
Table III: Political Contributions
Filers must report all political contributions of $100 or more made during the third quarter. Lobbyist John Smith must report if he donates $400 to Supervisor Jane Thompson’s campaign. Table III indicates the political contributions reported by filers in descending order of amount. The total of reported political contributions given by filers during the third quarter was $288,074.
Table IV: Payments Made to Influence Leg/Admin Action
Filers must report payments made to influence local legislative or administrative action. Filers must report payments for or in connection with support or assistance of other lobbyists. For example, The Mighty Giant Corporation, a business and organization lobbyist, makes a $10,000 donation to Green With Envy, an environmental lobbying organization to fund Green with Envy’s fight against the Mayor’s proposed environmental legislation because the Mighty Giant supports the general goals of Green With Envy. The $10,000 donation is not used for clerical services or regular overhead. The Mighty Giant must report the $10,000 donation because it was a payment made for the support or assistance of other lobbyists.
Filers must report payments for or in connection with direct communications with a City and County officer for the primary purpose of influencing local legislative or administrative action. For example, The San Francisco Fog Corporation, a business and organization lobbyist, pays employee Maria Garcia to meet with City officers. During one reporting period, Maria Garcia’s duties are evenly divided between lobbying City officers and unrelated duties. Under these circumstances, the San Francisco Fog Corporation must report half of Garcia’s salary for the reporting period because it was a payment made for or in connection with direct communications with City officers for the primary purpose of influencing local legislative or administrative action.
Filers must report payments for or in connection with soliciting or urging persons other than the filer or the filer’s employees to enter into communications with a City and County officer for the primary purpose of influencing local legislative or administrative action. For example, One Big Corporation, a business and organization lobbyist, obtains the assistance of We Be Lobbyists, a contract lobbyist, to help One Big Corporation organize its mailing lists so that One Big Corporation may send a mailer urging citizens to contact the Board of Supervisors about a local legislative action. One Big Corporation pays $10,000.00 to We Be Lobbyists for its assistance. One Big Corporation also places an ad in the newspaper urging members of the public to contact City officers about an upcoming vote on campaign finance reform. One Big Corporation must report the amount of the payment made to We Be Lobbyists and the payment made to the newspaper for advertising space because these payments were made for or in connection with soliciting or urging persons other than the
filer or the filer’s employees to enter into communications with a City officer for the primary purpose of influencing local legislative or administrative action.
Table IV contains the reported amount of payments made to influence local legislative or administrative action in descending order of amount. The total reported payments made during the third quarter was $194,910.91
Lobbyist Contributions to City-Wide Candidates
The table lists each candidate who received a political contribution from a filer during the third quarter. The table also lists other entities, such as ballot measure committees, that received contributions during the third quarter. The table includes the name of the filer and the amount given.
Filers must report the full name, business address and telephone number of each client. This requirement applies only to Section 16.520 (a) contract lobbyists. This document notes the identity of the clients reported by each filer and the total payments reported received from clients during the reporting period.
Local Legislative or Administrative Actions
Filers must report a description of the specific local legislative or administrative action which the lobbyist communicated with a City officer on behalf of a client [contract lobbyists], herself [business lobbyists], or in connection with soliciting or urging others [grassroots lobbyists]. This document lists the name of the filer and a corresponding description of the reported local legislative or administrative actions communicated to a City officer.
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