Title 3, Title 3

1. Registration. No later than 10 calendar days after lobbying more than 8 hours in a calendar month on behalf of an employer, a lobbyist shall submit a joint registration to the commission for the employer, the lobbyist and any lobbyist associates and pay a registration fee of $…

Within 15 business days of the convening of a regular legislative session, a department or agency shall register with the commission those state employees or state agency employees who will serve as the department's or agency's legislative designees for the session by submitting …

Each joint registration filed pursuant to this chapter automatically expires on the last day of the year during which the person was registered to lobby, unless as otherwise provided. [PL 1993, c. 446, Pt. A, §11 (AMD); PL 1993, c. 446, Pt. A, §20 (AFF).] A joint registration exp…

1. Registration. The commission shall prepare and maintain a docket for the registration of lobbyists and employers of lobbyists required to register pursuant to this chapter. The registration docket and all supplementary files of information and materials filed pursuant to this …

The commission shall prepare and make available registration forms for the registration of lobbyists and employers required to register pursuant to section 313. These forms must include the following information: [PL 1993, c. 691, §16 (RPR).] 1. Names. The name of the lobbyist, a…

A registered lobbyist shall file a report for each month that the Legislature is in session on forms prescribed or approved by the commission, even if no lobbying has been performed or compensation or reimbursement for expenses received for the month. [PL 2019, c. 587, §12 (RPR);…

Except for a lobbyist filing a monthly report under section 317, subsection 1, paragraph E‑1, a person who makes or incurs expenditures in excess of $2,000 during a calendar month for purposes of grassroots lobbying shall file with the commission a report no later than 11:59 p.m.…

1. Contingent compensation. No person shall accept employment as a lobbyist on a basis which makes that person's compensation contingent in any manner upon the outcome of any legislative action. 2. Instigation of legislative action. No person shall instigate the introduction or c…

1. Definitions. As used in this section, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following terms have the following meanings. A. "Classified service" has the same meaning as in Title 5, section 7032, subsection 3. [PL 2023, c. 337, §2 (NEW).] B. "Compensated lobbying" means l…

1. Failure to file registration or report. Any person who fails to file a registration or report as required by this chapter is subject to a civil penalty, payable to the commission, of $100 for every month the person fails to register or is delinquent in filing a report pursuant…

1. Disclosure of compensation. A lobbyist or lobbyist associate who testifies before a joint select or joint standing committee of the Legislature shall disclose to the committee as part of the testimony the name of the person or organization that the lobbyist or lobbyist associa…

Fees collected pursuant to this chapter must be deposited into a special revenue account of the commission to be used for the purposes of administering and enforcing the provisions of this chapter, including the costs of obtaining, maintaining and upgrading technology to facilita…

In order to carry out the purposes of this chapter, the commission shall have the following powers and duties. [PL 1993, c. 446, Pt. B, §15 (AMD).] 1. Furnishing of forms. The commission shall furnish forms to persons required to register or file reports. 2. Availability of copyi…

1. Filing of a complaint. Any person may file a complaint with the commission specifying any alleged violation of this chapter. The commission staff shall notify the party against whom the complaint has been filed and then may undertake the investigation of the alleged violation …

Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize the giving or receiving of a pecuniary benefit where otherwise prohibited by law.

A person who is required to register as a lobbyist or a lobbyist associate in accordance with this chapter shall wear a clearly visible name tag whenever the lobbyist or lobbyist associate is engaged in the act of lobbying. The name tag must clearly display the lobbyist's name an…

Representatives of the press, who shall be actually engaged in sending daily reports of the doings of the Legislature to daily newspapers, shall have the privilege of the floor of the Senate and House of Representatives, and shall be subject to such rules as may from time to time…

There shall be maintained and reserved during each legislative session for the use of such representatives of the press as have the privilege of the floor of the Senate and the House of Representatives under section 341, such facilities as may meet their requirements with reasona…

This Act may be called "Rules for Legislative Investigations."

As used in this chapter, unless the context otherwise indicates, the following words shall have the following meanings. [PL 1975, c. 593, §3 (NEW).] 1. Chair. The "chair" is the presiding officer of the investigating committee. The chair may be the permanent chair or another memb…

Whenever the Legislature delegates to a committee the power to administer oaths, issue subpoenas and take depositions in connection with any study or investigation, such committee shall automatically become an investigating committee for the purpose of such study or investigation…

The authorization creating an investigating committee shall clearly state, and thereby limit, the subject matter and scope of the study or investigation. No investigating committee shall exceed the limits set forth in such authorization.

No investigating committee shall consist of fewer than 3 members.

The Legislative Council shall provide oversight of expenditures for legislative investigating committees in the same manner as it provides oversight of joint select committees pursuant to chapter 7.

Any investigating committee action shall require the affirmative votes of a majority of the committee members.

The decision as to the order of procedure in making a study or an investigation shall be an investigating committee action.

The decision to issue a subpoena shall be an investigating committee action.

A reasonable time before they are to testify, all prospective witnesses shall be notified of the subject matter of the investigation and shall be provided with a copy of this chapter. When a subpoena is served, the information required by this section shall be presented at the ti…

Notice of the date and time of any meeting of the committee and of any hearing to be held by the committee shall be given to all members of the investigating committee at least 3 days in advance.

All testimony of subpoenaed witnesses shall be under oath. A voluntary witness may be required to testify under oath by legislative committee action. Oaths shall be administered by the chairman.

Taking of testimony must be by the investigating committee's counsel, or other staff personnel or the members of the committee. A quorum must be present. Unless otherwise decided by investigating committee action, all testimony must be taken in open session. However, if any witne…

A complete record shall be kept of all investigating committee action, including a transcript of all testimony taken.

1. Release. The decision to release testimony and the decision as to the form and manner in which testimony may be released is an investigating committee action. However, no testimony may be released without first affording the witness who gave such testimony, or the witness's co…

The decision to apply to the Superior Court to compel obedience to a subpoena issued by the committee shall be by investigating committee action.

The witness may have counsel present to advise the witness at all times. The witness or the witness's counsel may, during the time the witness is giving testimony, object to any investigating committee action detrimental to the witness's interests and is entitled to have a ruling…

The witness or the witness's counsel may question adverse witnesses whose testimony is being taken in open session. However, the chair of the investigating committee may reasonably limit the right to so question. The chair's ruling is final, unless otherwise decided by investigat…

The witness or the witness's counsel may challenge any request for the witness's testimony as not pertinent to the subject matter and scope of the investigation, in which case the relation believed to exist between the request and the subject matter and scope of the investigation…

The committee chair may direct compliance with any request for testimony to which objection has been made. However, the chair's direction may be overruled by investigating committee action.

Any decision to televise, film or broadcast testimony is investigating committee action. If the witness or the witness's counsel objects to a decision to televise, film or broadcast the witness's testimony, the witness's testimony may not be televised, filmed or broadcast.

The witness or the witness's counsel may insert in the record sworn, written statements of reasonable length relevant to the subject matter and scope of the investigation. In giving testimony, the witness may explain the witness's answers briefly.

The witness must be given the benefit of any privilege which the witness could have claimed in court as a party to a civil action, provided that the committee chair may direct compliance with any request for testimony to which claim of privilege has been made. However, the chair'…

Any interested party may request an opportunity to appear before the investigating committee. The decision on this request shall be investigating committee action. If such request is granted, the interested party shall appear before the committee as a witness.

The Legislature has primary responsibility for insuring adherence to these rules.

Testimony compelled to be given over a proper claim of privilege, or testimony released in violation of section 429, or any evidence obtained as a result of such improper procedure is not admissible in any subsequent criminal proceeding.

A witness may not be punished for contempt of an investigating committee unless the court finds: [PL 2019, c. 475, §29 (AMD).] 1. Conduct. That the conduct of the witness amounted to contempt; 2. Certain requirements. That the requirements of sections 424, 430, 453 and 454 have b…

A decision by a witness to make use of any protection or remedy afforded by any provision of these rules does not constitute a waiver by the witness of the right to make use of any other protection or remedy.