The latest Texas Ethics Commission news from The Texas Tribune.
Former Empower Texans leader Michael Quinn Sullivan has challenged a $10,000 fine from the Texas Ethics Commission for failure to register as a lobbyist for more than 10 years at nearly every level of the state court system. Full Story
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Lawmakers filed dozens of bills that would increase transparency around spending in elections and strengthen penalties for campaign and lobbying violations. None are poised to pass. Full Story
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ProPublica and The Texas Tribune found nearly three dozen school districts were missing required campaign finance reports online. Now lawmakers are pushing to impose steep penalties on local governments that fail to abide by the law. Full Story
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The bill would cap out-of-state political donations to a candidate or lawmaker to $5,000 for a statewide election, $2,500 for a district office and $1,000 for a county office. Full Story
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The bill faced fierce opposition from hardline conservatives who say it is policing speech and could allow the state to jail people over silly political memes. Full Story
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Rep. Cody Harris had accused Abraham George of improperly threatening to send mailers and censure lawmakers who backed Rep. Dustin Burrows as House speaker. Full Story
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The Court of Criminal Appeals will rehear a case it threw out last year. Three of the judges became targets of Attorney General Ken Paxton over another ruling and lost reelection. Full Story
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The number of fines for breaking state campaign ethics laws has exploded in recent years as Ken Paxton’s office rarely pursues stricter enforcement. Full Story
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The action comes after The Texas Tribune reported that influencers were being paid to defend impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton. Full Story
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The Texas Tribune and ProPublica analyzed 35 Texas school districts that held trustee elections last fall and found none that posted all of the required campaign finance records. Full Story
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The Tribune reported last year that a company called Influenceable LLC was paid to recruit influencers to defend Attorney General Ken Paxton over his impeachment. Full Story
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The Texas attorney general said he’s “back to work” after his recent acquittal, but his office has repeatedly declined to fulfill one of its key duties: representing state agencies who are being sued. Full Story
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A 2019 law says a former lawmaker cannot register to lobby until two years after they last used campaign funds to donate to another politician. Paddie, R-Marshall, sought to get around that earlier this year by reimbursing his campaign account with personal money. Full Story
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Starr County, one of the four counties that make up the Rio Grande Valley, has not been able to produce campaign finance reports that it is required to maintain, according to a GOP group targeting the area. Full Story
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After the Texas Ethics Commission received a sworn complaint about the omissions, Bush told The Texas Tribune last week that he took immediate steps to correct his disclosure forms. Full Story
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Gov. Greg Abbott is a fundraising juggernaut, and Republicans still dominate campaign finance in the state. Full Story
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Judge William McLeod declared his run for the Texas Supreme Court. But as he later discovered, doing so invoked a provision in the state's constitution that may force him to leave his post. Full Story
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The fine comes nearly four years after Miller, a champion calf roper, used taxpayer money for a trip to the National Dixie Rodeo in Jackson, Mississippi. Full Story
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State Reps. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, and Sarah Davis, R-West University Place, want the Texas Ethics Commission to keep track of which lobbyists have disclosed ties to foreign governments. Full Story
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Giving Texas governors the power to edit proposed regulations under a veil of secrecy — as Gov. Greg Abbott is vying to do — could provide new opportunities for campaign finance shenanigans. Full Story
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