October 28, 2009, Introduced by Senator BARCIA and referred to the Committee on Agriculture and Bioeconomy.
A bill to amend 1978 PA 472, entitled
"An act to regulate political activity; to regulate lobbyists,
lobbyist agents, and lobbying activities; to require registration
of lobbyists and lobbyist agents; to require the filing of reports;
to prescribe the powers and duties of the department of state; to
prescribe penalties; and to repeal certain acts and parts of acts,"
by amending section 5 (MCL 4.415), as amended by 1986 PA 83.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN ENACT:
Sec. 5. (1) "Legislative action" means introduction,
sponsorship, support, opposition, consideration, debate, vote,
passage, defeat, approval, veto, delay, or an official action by an
official in the executive branch or an official in the legislative
branch on a bill, resolution, amendment, nomination, appointment,
report, or any matter pending or proposed in a legislative
committee or either house of the legislature. Legislative action
does not include the representation of a person who has been
subpoenaed to appear before the legislature or an agency of the
legislature.
(2) "Lobbying" means communicating directly with an official
in
the executive branch of state government or an official in the
legislative
branch of state government for the purpose of
influencing legislative or administrative action. Lobbying does not
include
the providing of technical information by a person other
than
a person as defined in subsection (5) unless the person
providing the information is a lobbyist agent or an employee of a
person
as defined in subsection (5) when lobbyist
agent appearing
before an officially convened legislative committee or executive
department hearing panel. As used in this subsection, "technical
information" means empirically verifiable data provided by a person
recognized as an expert in the subject area to which the
information provided is related.
(3) "Influencing" means promoting, supporting, affecting,
modifying, opposing or delaying by any means, including the
providing
of provision or use of information, statistics, studies,
or analysis.
(4) "Lobbyist" means any of the following:
(a)
A Subject to subsection
(12), a person whose expenditures
for lobbying are more than $1,000.00 in value in any 12-month
period.
(b)
A subject to subsection
(12), a person whose expenditures
for lobbying are more than $250.00 in value in any 12-month period,
if the amount is expended on lobbying a single public official.
(c)
For the purpose of subdivisions (a) and (b), groups of 25
or
more people shall not have their personal expenditures for food,
travel,
and beverage included, providing those expenditures are not
reimbursed
by a lobbyist or lobbyist agent.
(c) (d)
The state or a political
subdivision which that
contracts for a lobbyist agent.
(5) "Lobbyist agent" means a person who receives compensation
or reimbursement of actual expenses, or both, in a combined amount
in
excess of $250.00 or more in
any 12-month period for lobbying.
(6) "Representative of the lobbyist" means any of the
following:
(a) An employee of the lobbyist or lobbyist agent.
(b) For purposes of section 8(1)(b)(i) and 9(1)(b), a member
of
the lobbyist or employee of a member of the lobbyist, when if
the
lobbyist is a membership organization or association, and when
if the lobbyist agent or an employee of the lobbyist or lobbyist
agent is present during any part of the period during which the
purchased food or beverage is consumed.
(c) A person who is reimbursed by the lobbyist or lobbyist
agent for an expenditure, other than an expenditure for food or
beverage,
which that was incurred for the purpose of lobbying.
(7) Lobbyist or lobbyist agent does not include:
(a) A publisher, owner, or working member of the press, radio,
or television while disseminating news or editorial comment to the
general public in the ordinary course of business.
(b)
All An elected or appointed public officials official of
state
or local government who are is
acting in the course or scope
of the office for no compensation, other than that provided by law
for the office.
(c)
For the purposes of this act, However,
an elected or
appointed
public official under this subdivision (b)
shall does not
include any of the following:
(i) Employees An employee of a public
or private colleges
college, community colleges college, junior colleges college or
universities university.
(ii) Employees An employee of townships,
villages, cities,
counties
or school boards a township,
village, city, county, or
school board.
(iii) Employees An employee of a state
executive departments
department.
(iv) Employees An employee of the judicial
branch of
government.
(c) (d)
A member of a lobbyist, if the
lobbyist is a
membership organization or association, and if the member of a
lobbyist does not separately qualify as a lobbyist under subsection
(4).
(8)
"Mass mailing" means not less than 1,000 pieces or more of
substantially similar material mailed within a 7-day period.
(9) "Official in the executive branch" means the governor,
lieutenant
governor, secretary of state, attorney general; or an
individual who is in the executive branch of state government and
not under civil service; or a classified director, chief deputy
director,
or deputy director of a state department. This Official
in the executive branch includes an individual who is elected or
appointed and has not yet taken, or an individual who is nominated
for appointment to, any of the offices or agencies enumerated in
this
subsection. An official Official
in the executive branch does
not include a person serving in a clerical, nonpolicy-making, or
nonadministrative
capacity. In addition to all of the foregoing, an
official
Official in the executive branch also includes
all of the
following:
(a) In the executive office of the governor, the chief and
deputy chief of staff, press secretary, director of job training,
and director of personnel.
(b)
In the department of agriculture, the racing commissioner
and
a member of the agriculture commission of agriculture.
(c) In the department of civil rights, a member of the civil
rights commission.
(d)
In the department of civil service, a member of the civil
service
commission history, arts, and
libraries, a member of the
Michigan council for arts and cultural affairs.
(e)
In the department of commerce, energy,
labor, and economic
growth,
the commissioner of financial institutions
and insurance
regulation, the executive director of the housing development
authority, and a member of the liquor control commission, strategic
fund board, state housing development authority, travel commission,
or public service commission.
(f) In the department of education, a member of the state
board
of education , higher education facilities commission, higher
education
facilities authority, higher education assistance
authority,
higher education student loan authority, or state tenure
commission.
(g) In the department of energy, labor, and economic growth,
the director of the bureau of workers' disability compensation, the
director of the employment security commission, and a member of the
construction code commission, employment relations commission,
employment security board of review, employment security
commission,
or wage deviation board,
or occupational standards
commission.
(h)
In the department of licensing and regulation, the state
insurance
commissioner.
(h) (i)
In the department of management and
budget, the
lottery
commissioner, the director of the office of services to the
aging,
the director of the office of state
employer, the
chairperson
of the crime victims compensation board, and a member
of
the council for the arts, state administrative board, state
building
authority, toxic substance control commission, or utility
consumer participation board, or civil service commission.
(i) (j)
In the department of natural
resources, the supervisor
of
wells and a member of the air
pollution control commission,
natural resources commission, or water resources commission.
(j) (k)
In the department of public community health, a member
of
the occupational health standards commission the director of the
office of services to the aging or the chairperson of the crime
victims services commission.
(k) (l) In the
department of transportation, a member of the
aeronautics commission and a state transportation commissioner.
(l) (m)
In the department of treasury, the lottery commissioner
or a member of the hospital finance authority, investment advisory
committee,
or state tax commission,
state higher education
facilities commission, higher education facilities authority,
higher education assistance authority, or higher education student
loan authority.
(10) "Official in the legislative branch" means a member of
the legislature, the auditor general, the deputy auditor general,
an
employee of the consumer's council, the
director of the
legislative retirement system, or any other employee of the
legislature
other than an individual employed by the this state in
a clerical or nonpolicy-making capacity.
(11) "Governmental body" means any state legislative or
governing body, including a board, commission, committee,
subcommittee,
authority, or council, which that
is empowered by
state constitution, statute, or rule to exercise governmental or
proprietary authority or perform a governmental or proprietary
function,
or a lessee thereof of an
entity described in this
subsection performing an essential public purpose and function
under the lease agreement.
(12) Expenditures for lobbying under subsection (4)(a) and (b)
do not include personal expenditures for food, travel, and beverage
for a group of 25 or more people if the expenditures are not
reimbursed by a lobbyist or lobbyist agent.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act does not take effect
unless Senate Bill No. 955
of the 95th Legislature is enacted into law.