Lobbying Scandals and the Reforms of 2007

Lobbying Scandals and the Reforms of 2007

The Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 is a law of the United States federal government that amended parts of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995. It strengthens public disclosure requirements concerning lobbying activity and funding, places more restrictions on gifts for members of Congress and their staff, and provides for mandatory disclosure of earmarks in expenditure bills. The bill was signed into law by President George W. Bush on September 15, 2007.

Details of the bill include closing the revolving door , prohibiting senators from gaining undue lobbying access by increasing the "cooling off" period before they can lobby Congress from one to two years, prohibiting cabinet secretaries and other senior executive personnel from lobbying the department or agency in which they worked for two years after they leave their position, and prohibiting senior Senate staff and officers from lobbying contacts with the entire Senate for one year, instead of just their former employing office. The bill also includes numerous other prohibitions and requirements including:

Closing the Revolving Door

As the former Under Secretary of Agriculture for Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services and lobbyist for the Podesta Group in 2009, Ellen Haas represents the revolving door phenomenon that the 2007 lobbying reforms sought to address.

• Prohibits senior House staff from lobbying their former office or committee for one year after they leave House employment.
• Requires that executive and legislative branch employees who leave government positions and seek to lobby on behalf of Native American tribes face the same revolving door provisions as others.
• Exempts those who serve as elected or appointed officials of Native American tribes.
• Prohibits members of Congress and their staff from influencing hiring decisions of private organizations on the sole basis of partisan political gain.
• Subjects those who violate this provision to a fine and imprisonment for up to 15 years.
• Prohibits gifts by lobbyists.
• Prohibits lobbyists from providing gifts or travel to members of Congress with knowledge that the gift or travel is in violation of House or Senate rules.
• Full public disclosure of lobbying activity.
• Requires lobbyist disclosure filings to be filed twice as often, by decreasing the time between filing from semi-annual to quarterly.
• Requires lobbyist disclosures in both the Senate and House to be filed electronically and requires creation of a public searchable Internet database of such information.Increases civil penalty for knowing and willful violations of the Lobby Disclosure Act from 200,000 and imposes a criminal penalty of up to five years for knowing and corrupt failure to comply with the Act.
• Requires the Government Accountability Office to audit annually lobbyist compliance with disclosure rules.
• Requires lobbyists to certify they have not given gifts or travel that would violate Senate or House rules.
• Requires the disclosure of businesses or organizations that contribute more than 15,000 semiannually in campaign contributions for any federal elected official, candidate (including Senate, House and Presidential), or leadership PAC.
• Requires lobbyists to disclose to the Secretary of the Senate and the House Clerk their campaign contributions and payments to Presidential libraries, Inaugural Committees or entities controlled by, named for or honoring members of Congress.
• Includes congressional pension accountability.

Unlike previous lobbying regulations, the 2007 reforms also made an attempt to amend House ethics rules in the following ways:

• Requires disclosure of employment negotiations by members and staff.
• Prohibits members from engaging in any agreements or negotiations about future employment until a successor has been selected unless the member files a statement with the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct; and requires that members recuse themselves from any matter in which there is a conflict of interest or appearance of a conflict.
• Requires senior staff to notify the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct within three days if they engage in negotiations or agreements for future employment or compensation.
• Requires that members prohibit their staff from having any lobbying contact with the Member's spouse if such individual is a registered lobbyist or is employed or retained by a registered lobbyist to influence legislation.
• Requires that travel by members financed by outside groups be posted on a searchable, sortable and downloadable website by August 1, 2008. Requires that members' financial disclosure forms be posted on a searchable, sortable and downloadable website by August 1, 2008.
• Prohibits members from attending parties held in their honor at national party conventions if they have been sponsored by lobbyists, unless the member is the party's presidential or vice presidential nominee.