N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 19, § 943.9 – Reportable lobbying activity.

(1) The Lobbying Act requires public disclosure of the identities, activities and expenditures of lobbyists and clients. To constitute reportable lobbying, there must be:
1. (i) an attempt to influence an activity listed in section 1-c(c) of the Lobbying Act; and
2. (ii) the cumulative compensation and expenses received, expended or incurred for any such activities must exceed $5,000 in any calendar year during a biennial period.
(2) Lobbying activity is either direct or grassroots lobbying.
(3) Lobbying activity that includes only grassroots lobbying does not require the identification or disclosure of any individual lobbyists except as set forth in section 943.7(e) and (f) of this Part.
(4) Once a person or entity has triggered the requirement to register and file reports as a lobbyist, both direct and grassroots lobbying activities are reportable, even if expenditures were only incurred for one type of lobbying.
(5) An organization lobbying on its own behalf has designated itself as its own lobbyist and, if it meets the requirements in paragraph (1) of this subdivision, must register and file applicable lobbying reports.
(6) A person lobbying on their own behalf has designated themself as their own lobbyist and, if they meet the requirements in paragraph (1) of this subdivision, must register and file applicable lobbying reports.
(b) Obligations of the responsible party.
(1) All statements or reports required under the lobbying act or set forth in the commission’s regulations must be signed by the responsible party for the lobbyist or client, as applicable, or another who has been designated to sign and file such required statement or report. Such a designation must be signed by the responsible party and designee, completed and submitted to the commission before the due date of such statements or reports.
(c) Cumulative threshold.
For purposes of calculating total compensation and expenses received, expended or incurred by a lobbyist or client, the $5,000 annual threshold shall be computed cumulatively for all lobbying activities undertaken by the lobbyist or client (whether as a beneficial client or contractual client).
(d) Accounting methods.
(1) All compensation and expenses associated with lobbying activity should be accounted for using accrual basis accounting, i.e., costs are reported in the period in which they are incurred.
(2) A lobbyist or client has a duty to amend a bi-monthly or client semi-annual report after a previously reported payment is written down, written off, or otherwise modified for bookkeeping purposes.
(e) Expenses.
(1) Definition. An expense is any cost of lobbying activity that is not lobbyist compensation.
1. (i) An expense can only be incurred in connection with a lobbying activity.
(2) Types.
1. (i) Non-lobbying staff salaries. Non-lobbying staff salaries include compensation paid to those professional and clerical employees who do not engage in direct or grassroots lobbying activity.
  1. (a) Salaries of non-lobbying staff should be reported in the aggregate.
  2. (b) Lobbyist filer should have a good faith methodology that demonstrates how the allocation of non-lobbying staff time was reached.
2. (ii) Aggregated. Expenses of $75 or less may be reported as a single aggregate total.
3. (iii) Itemized. Expenses valued at more than $75 must be itemized – reporting the payee, the nature of the expense, and the value.
  1. (a) Client filer should indicate if the expense was a reimbursement to the lobbyist.
  2. (b) Lobbyist filer should indicate whether the expense was reimbursed by the client.
4. (iv) Reimbursed. Lobbyist should report the aggregate value of all expenses (regardless of value of the individual expenses) that were reimbursed by the client.
(3) Exclusions. The following are not reportable expenses:
1. (i) State or local lobbying filing fees;
2. (ii) printing or postage that does not exceed $500 in the aggregate;
3. (iii) travel, lodging, or meals for a lobbyist;
4. (iv) any expense that is incurred in the ordinary course of business, regardless of the nature of business - for example, rent, utilities, telephones, computers; and
5. (v) any amount reportable as a contribution under article 14 of the Election Law.
  (f) Compensation.
  Compensation means all direct or indirect payments of salaries or other things of value provided to a lobbyist in exchange for lobbying or services that are otherwise in furtherance of lobbying activity, including year-end or other bonuses but not fringe benefits.
  (g) Recordkeeping.
(1) All expenditures of $50 or more related to lobbying activity must be paid by check or supported by receipt.
(2) Such checks or receipts must be maintained for three years from the date the expense was required to be reported.
(h) Filing requirements for multi-party lobbying relationships and coalitions.
Some lobbyist/client relationships include multiple lobbyists, multiple clients, or multiple entities comprising a single client, and all of these entities must be disclosed in lobbying reports filed with the commission.
(1) Requirements relating to contractual vs. beneficial clients.
1. (i) All reports requiring disclosure of the client must include both the contractual and beneficial client(s).
2. (ii) The contractual client is responsible for filing client semi-annual reports, except for the source of funding disclosure section of such report, as set forth in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph and Part 938 of this Title.
3. (iii) The beneficial client is responsible for the source of funding disclosure section of the client semi-annual report, as set forth in Part 938 of this Title.
4. (iv) Contractual clients and beneficial clients are each responsible for disclosing reportable business relationships, as set forth in section 943.14 of this Part.
(2) Multiple lobbyists. All reports must disclose all lobbyists performing services, whether on a single contract or through a subcontracting relationship.
1. (i) Subcontracting.
  1. (a) A lobbyist who, after entering into a lobbying agreement with a contractual client, retains the services of another to perform a portion of the services within the scope of the agreement, is a prime lobbyist.
  2. (b) A lobbyist who is engaged to perform services by a prime lobbyist, as part of an agreement between the prime lobbyist and the contractual client, is a sub-lobbyist.
  3. (c) A prime lobbyist and sub-lobbyist are both subject to the reporting requirements of the Lobbying Act, to be filed on forms provided by the commission, but are only required to disclose the lobbying activity and compensation and expenses related to the services they each provided, respectively.
  4. (d) On any bi-monthly report or statement of registration, the prime lobbyist must identify the client, itself and all sub-lobbyists engaged on behalf of the client.
  5. (e) On any bi-monthly report or statement of registration, the sub-lobbyist need only identify itself, the prime lobbyist and the beneficial client.
2. (ii) Co-lobbyist. All lobbyists who are retained by a client on the same single retainer agreement or contract are co-lobbyists, and must file individual lobbying reports with the commission. Co-lobbyists must identify other co-lobbyists but need disclose only their own lobbying activity and compensation and expenses.
(3) Coalitions.
1. (i) Policy. This paragraph sets forth the filing requirements for groups that qualify as a coalition. Depending on the nature of a coalition, as set forth in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph, a coalition (that spends more than $5,000 on lobbying) must file its own lobbying reports or its members (who spend more than $5,000 on lobbying) must disclose their coalition contributions in their own lobbying reports.
2. (ii) Definition.
  1. (a) Coalition means a group of otherwise-unaffiliated entities or members that pool funds or resources for the primary purpose of engaging in lobbying activities on behalf of the members of the coalition and have not incorporated or otherwise created a legal entity.
    1. (1) Member of a coalition includes any person or entity that makes a contribution, as defined in clause (c) of this subparagraph, to the coalition.
  2. (b) Affiliated has the meaning described in section 943.3 of this Title.
  3. (c) Contribution to a coalition means the provision of funds or resources to the coalition, including, but not limited to, the donation of services, and the incurrence of expenses on behalf of the coalition.
    (iii)
  4. (a) A coalition that designates an individual to serve as its president, treasurer, or in such capacity, is considered a structured coalition and must file its own lobbying reports, as set forth in subparagraph (iv) of this paragraph. One such designated individual(s) shall serve as the responsible party for the coalition’s filings.
  5. (b) A coalition that has not designated such an individual to serve as its president, treasurer, or in such capacity, is considered an unstructured coalition and shall not file its own lobbying reports; instead, its members shall disclose their contributions to the coalition in their own lobbying reports as set forth in subparagraph (v) of this paragraph.
3. (iv) A structured coalition shall comply with the following:
  1. (a) The structured coalition shall file a lobbying report with the commission identifying itself as a lobbyist and/or a client and report all of the structured coalition’s lobbying activity.
  2. (b) The structured coalition must adhere to the reporting requirements set forth in this part, including disclosing compensation and expenses related to the structured coalition.
    1. (1) In addition to all expenses incurred by the structured coalition on its own behalf, the structured coalition must disclose any expenses incurred by a member on behalf of the structured coalition.
  3. (c) Any associated filings involving the structured coalition (including filings by lobbyists retained by the structured coalition and/or filings by the structured coalition itself) shall list the structured coalition as the contractual client and beneficial client.
  4. (d) Members of a structured coalition are not required to be listed as beneficial clients.
  5. (e) A structured coalition member’s contribution(s) is not considered a lobbying expenditure for purposes of the member determining whether it has met the $5,000 threshold triggering reportable lobbying.
  6. (f) Members of a structured coalition shall not report any contributions to the coalition on their own filings.
4. (v) A member of an unstructured coalition shall disclose their coalition contribution(s) in their own lobbying reports and comply with the following:
  1. (a) A member’s contribution(s) is considered a lobbying expenditure for purposes of the member determining whether it has met the $5,000 threshold triggering reportable lobbying.
  2. (b) Each member who meets the $5,000 threshold (either through their contribution(s) to such unstructured coalition(s) and/or other lobbying activity engaged in by the member) and who is thereby required to file a lobbying report, must disclose in such report any unstructured coalition contributions.
  3. (c) If a member currently files a lobbying report, it shall disclose its unstructured coalition contributions in that report. if a member does not currently file a lobbying report and its contribution to such an unstructured coalition triggers reportable lobbying, it must register as its own lobbyist and file bi-monthly and lobbying reports that disclose the member’s unstructured coalition contributions in accordance with this subparagraph, and identify itself as the contractual client and beneficial client.
  4. (d) Members shall disclose the following in the expense section of their lobbying reports:
    1. (1) the name of the unstructured coalition;
    2. (2) all contributions made by the member to the unstructured coalition; and
    3. (3) any expenses incurred by the member on behalf of the unstructured coalition, which can be from the member’s own direct contributions and/or from the unstructured coalition’s pool of funds. Members must include the following information related to such incurred expense:
      1. (i) the purpose of the incurred expense; and
      2. (ii) whether it was incurred using 100 percent of such member’s own funds (also considered a direct contribution) or whether it was incurred using part of such member’s funds (such portion also considered a direct contribution) and part of the unstructured coalition’s pooled funds.
  5. (e) Lobbyists retained by a member of an unstructured coalition to lobby on behalf of a coalition pursuant to this subparagraph shall disclose such member as the contractual client and the beneficial client.
  6. (f) Each member’s contribution to an unstructured coalition is considered a lobbying expenditure for purposes of determining whether the member is subject to the source of funding disclosure requirements set forth in Part 938 of this Title.
(i) Except as otherwise provided in this Part, all references to lobbyists and clients include public corporations.
(j) Industrial development agencies representing populations exceeding 5,000.
1. (1) Real property purchase, sale, or lease agreements, including purchase-leaseback, lease-leaseback, and other hybrid agreements by industrial development agencies representing populations exceeding 5,000 are procurement contracts, and as a result, attempts to influence a determination by a public official regarding such a procurement contract constitute reportable lobbying. This includes the inclusion of or terms to an agreement for payments in lieu of taxes.
2. (2) Resolutions of an industrial development agency (representing a population of more than 5,000) are covered activities under section 1-c(c) of the Lobbying Act, and as a result, attempts to influence such a resolution can constitute reportable lobbying. This includes the inclusion of, or terms to an agreement for payments in lieu of taxes.

(a) General reporting obligations.