The State Ethics Commission issued two special advisories this week regarding ethics issues for legislators and lobbyists.

In the first case, the commission advised legislators not to accept free tickets to events from a pair of nonprofit organizations that have funding requests pending in the current session.

Dan Mollway, commission executive director and general counsel, said taking advantage of the free tickets could violate gift provisions of the state ethics law.

A letter from Mollway, hand delivered to legislative leaders on Thursday afternoon, said the commission received a complaint regarding an invitation sent to all legislators to attend a private reception, including cocktails and pupus, on opening night of Diamond Head Theatre’s production of “Dirty Rotten Scoundrels”. Legislators were had also been invited to bring a guest as well.

“The complaint we received says that legislators are invited similarly to eery play opened by Diamond Head Theatre,” commission executive director and general counsel, Dan Mollway, wrote.

The letter also cited an invitation extended to all legislators to attend a fundraiser sponsored by the Children’s Alliance of Hawaii. Single tickets for the event were valued at $175, and legislators were each offered two tickets.

Mollway wrote:

First, the gifts section of the State Ethics Code prohibits receipt of a gift if it can be “reasonably inferred” that the gift is given to influence or reward official action….It would seem that the board of the Children’s Alliance of Hawaii and Diamond Head Theatre would be in a position to ask for legislative assistance or appropriations.

Even if these organizations are not subject to official action by legislators, another section of the State Ethics Code, HRS Section 84-13(2), prohibits legislators from accepting in essence anything of value beyond their state salaries in regard to their state duties.

House Speaker Calvin Say responded promptly by recommending that House members “not use the gifts to attend the events free of charge.”

Presumably members are also free to support the organizations by buying their own tickets to attend the events.

Mollway also sent a memo reminding lobbyists, their employers, and legislators of two issues regarding the required reporting of lobbying expenses.

First, Mollway said Hawaii law requires lobbying expenditures “accrued or incurred during a lobbying period” to be reported for that same period, regardless of when billings are received or payments made.

The fact of the matter is that lobbying has been performed, and thus the amount of moeny for that lobbying must be reported on the expenditures report for that period, and not on a later expenditures report when a bill or invoice for services may be received.

Mollway also noted that company employees or officers “who perform lobbying duties while being paid to do so for their company must have these expenditures included in the employer’s lobbying expenditure report for the relevant lobbying period,” even if they not spend enough time to require registration as lobbyists.

This memo to lobbyists is available on the Ethics Commission web site.