Bill Text: HI SB647 | 2015 | Regular Session | Introduced

Hawaii Senate Bill 647 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Lobbyists; Gifts; Rewards; Public Official

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 3-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-01-26 - Referred to JDL. [SB647 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2015-SB647-Introduced.html

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	647
TWENTY-EIGHTH LEGISLATURE, 2015
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating to lobbyists.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. To preserve public confidence in public servants and ensure the highest standards of ethical conduct, the state constitution mandates that elected officers and public employees subscribe to a strict code of ethics. In promoting high standards of ethical conduct, the state code of ethics prohibits legislators and public employees from receiving gifts that can be reasonably inferred to be intended to influence a legislator's or public employee's performance of duties or intended as a reward for any official action on the legislator's or employee's part.

Although legislators and public employees are prohibited from receiving gifts that may appear to influence their actions, lobbyists are not likewise prohibited from giving gifts to legislators and public employees that are intended to influence legislators' and public employees' official actions.

The purpose of this Act is to prohibit lobbyists from giving gifts to officials in the legislative or executive branch that may be inferred to influence the officials' actions or that are intended as a reward for any official action and to allow the state ethics commission to assess an administrative fine for any such violations.

SECTION 2. Section 97-5, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"[[]§97-5[]] Restricted activities. (a) No lobbyist shall accept or agree to accept any payment in any way contingent upon the defeat, enactment, or outcome of any proposed legislative or administrative action.

(b) No lobbyist shall give, convey, or subsidize, directly or indirectly, any gift to an elected official in the legislature or an employee in the executive branch, whether in the form of money, service, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, thing, or promise, or in any other form, under circumstances in which it can reasonably be inferred that the gift is intended to influence the legislator or employee in the performance of the legislator's or employee's official duties or intended as a reward for any official action on the legislator's or employee's part. The state ethics commission may assess an administrative fine of no more than $ for a violation of this subsection."

SECTION 3. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.

SECTION 4. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 5. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:	_____________________________

Report Title:

Lobbyists; Gifts; Rewards; Public Official

Description:

Prohibits lobbyists from giving gifts to officials in the legislative or executive branch that may be inferred to be intended to influence an official's actions in the performance of the official's duties or intended as a reward for an official's actions in the performance of the official's duties.

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.