Lobbying Reform - A Lot at Stake in the House

There is plenty of activity on Capitol Hill and the focal point for the ACLJ once again is the issue of lobbying reform - and efforts underway in the House to reclassify organizations that speak out on the critical issues of the day - putting them under government regulation.

Specifically on the grassroots lobbying front,  Congressman Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) introduced two versions of his "Stealth Lobbyist Disclosure Act of 2005" (H.R. 1302), a proposed amendment of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA), and H.R. 1304, which modifies the Internal Revenue Code to treat lobbying coalitions as political organizations under Section 527 of the tax code and require more disclosure of their lobbying activities.

ACLJ's Director of Government Affairs, Drew Ryun, reports that the Democrats in the House are likely to attempt to break out portions of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's HR 4682, introduced in the House last year, and attempt to slip grassroots lobbying language and other amendments through piece by piece.  We believe that Doggett's bills are the first real attempt to move anything of this nature. While by themselves neither bill presents a real threat to grassroots lobbying, if the language of these bills is combined with the Section 220 language (which we defeated in the Senate), then there will be a real constitutional threat for people to petition their government.

Our team in Washington continues to work on this issue.  We'll keep you posted on efforts as they unfold on this very important issue.

In the Senate, we're expecting to see a bill soon in support of  federal funding for embryonic stem research - that is likely to occur in mid-March. This is another very important legislative effort that will begin to generate interest and attention.

There is much at stake in the legislative arena.  At the American Center for Law and Justice, we remain dedicated to working to protect your constitutional and religious freedoms.  And, we will keep you up to date on our efforts through our postings here on our website and on our daily radio broadcast, Jay Sekulow Live!