Inside the Federal Election Commission: Keeping the Mission Alive with Just Two Commissioners
Sittenfeld v. United States – Campaign Contributions as Crimes?
No Quorum, No Problem? Navigating the FEC Freeze
A New Era at the Federal Election Commission?
Early Returns Podcast: FEC Commissioner Trey Trainor – Understanding and Respecting the Federal Election Commission
Video: Artificial Intelligence Use in Political Campaigns
Election Year Compliance Tips for Nonprofit Organizations
Early Returns Law and Politics with Jan Baran: Bradley Smith – Deregulating Political Speech Through Campaign Finance
[Podcast] New Year, New PAC: Have a Successful PAC Audit in 2023
Primary Elections and Campaign Finance: Ten Things to Know
H.R. 1 – The Impact on the FEC
H.R. 1 – How will the Lobbying Disclosure Act be Affected?
H.R. 1: Digital Ad Regulation and Foreign National Prohibitions: What Political Advertisers and Ad Platforms Need to Know
H.R. 1 – Disclosures, Disclaimers, and FEC Certifications: What Corporations, Non-Profits, and Trade Associations Need to Know
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - Colorado: A federal judge upheld Colorado’s individual campaign contribution limits as constitutional on March 26, 2026, ruling...more
Campaigns for the 2026 midterms are in full swing, and organizations – including corporations, incorporated trade associations, and their executives and employees – often have questions about how to get involved, whether by...more
The Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC or Commission) Media Bureau (Bureau) is weighing in on the question of what political ads are entitled to lowest unit charge (LUC). In a March 30, 2025, Public Notice, the Bureau...more
The Oregon Legislature passed House Bill 4018 on March 5, 2026 modifying a 2024 campaign finance law by delaying certain disclosure requirements and penalties before the law takes full effect....more
The Supreme Court of the United States’ upcoming decision in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission (NRSC v. FEC) will shape the engagement strategies of candidates, parties, and donors during...more
While New York State’s public campaign finance program was first in effect for the 2024 election, only candidates for State Senate and Assembly were able to participate in the program that year. New York’s statewide offices...more
TRAIN Act – Career and Technical Education Partnerships On Thursday, the Talent Readiness and Industry Needs (TRAIN) Act, sponsored by Representative James Lomax, passed the House after being amended. The legislation seeks...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - New Mexico: Former Las Cruces Mayor Ken Miyagishima’s gubernatorial campaign exceeded New Mexico’s contribution limits by more than...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance Georgia: Georgia Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson filed a federal lawsuit challenging a 2021 state campaign...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - Hawaii: A federal judge in Hawaii permanently blocked enforcement of a new state law regulating AI-generated and digitally altered...more
Predator Death Penalty Act - This week, the House passed the Child Predator Death Penalty Act, sponsored by Matt Simpson. This legislation would make the first‑degree rape, sodomy, or sexual torture of a child under 12 a...more
With an election year upon us, federal political action committees (PACs)—including both separate segregated funds and non‑connected PACs—that elect to file on a quarterly schedule must ensure they follow the Federal Election...more
In this Early Returns episode, host Jan Baran speaks with the entire current Federal Election Commission, Chair Shana Broussard and Commissioner Dara Lindenbaum, the only two commissioners remaining after four departures left...more
State legislatures and ethics agencies often use the beginning of a new year to institute changes to lobbying/ethics reporting thresholds and other requirements. And in some cases – such as Ohio this year – a new year means a...more
With a new year comes new legislative sessions. Between back-to-back meetings in state capitols and a steady stream of fundraisers to attend as primary season grows closer, government affairs professionals have a lot on their...more
Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - Connecticut: Connecticut’s State Elections Enforcement Commission (SEEC) is weighing its first interpretation of a 2024 law banning foreign nationals from making political...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - The Supreme Court heard arguments on whether federal limits on coordinated spending between political parties and their...more
On December 5, 2025, New York State Governor Kathy Hohul signed into law a bill that expands the requirement that most political and campaign materials identify the political committee paying for the materials. Specifically,...more
As New York approaches the 2026 election cycle, Independent Expenditure (IE) committees are poised to play an outsized role in shaping statewide and legislative races. For political consultants, this dramatically increases...more
As 2026 approaches, many campaigns for state legislature or statewide office are weighing whether to opt in to New York State’s public campaign finance program. The program’s generous matching formula can dramatically reshape...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - The United States Supreme Court will decide whether states can count mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day, a ruling...more
On Nov. 4, 2025, Pennsylvania voters faced a high-stakes statewide ballot: a simple yes/no vote on whether three incumbent justices of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court would be retained for another 10-year term. The justices up...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance - Kansas: Kansas Secretary of State Scott Schwab’s office proposed that candidates, lobbyists and political committees file...more
Federal political action committees (PACs) must review whether they have accepted contributions from green card holders before making contributions in Ohio following a recent federal court decision. Last year, Ohio enacted a...more
RECENT LOBBYING, ETHICS & CAMPAIGN FINANCE UPDATES - Campaign Finance & Lobbying Compliance California: Gov. Gavin Newsom signed AB 1167, a bill prohibiting California utilities from charging customers for lobbying and...more