FLYING IN: The Ocean Conservancy is bringing a coalition of conservation, maritime and fisheries advocates to Washington this week to implore lawmakers not to shortchange the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as part of upcoming budget and government funding battles. — The coalition is set to meet on Wednesday with members of coastal states like Rep. Chellie Pingree of Maine, Sen. Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire, Sen. Patty Murray of Washington and Reps. Lois Frankel and John Rutherford of Florida, according to the organization, where advocates will share how they’ve benefitted from NOAA’s resources. — They’ll also send a letter to congressional leadership today outlining the agency’s importance to coastal communities and economies and policymakers, describing the “need for information and action from NOAA” at “an all-time high” ahead of the hurricane, tourism and fishing seasons. SKDK LAUNCHES NEW ENGLAND PRACTICE: SKDK is launching a New England practice, which will be led by the new president of SKDK Political Pia Carusone, and Executive Vice President Alex Bloom. — Carusone cut her teeth in the Granite State working on Howard Dean’s presidential campaign as well as for Reps. Chris Pappas (D-N.H.) and Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.). Bloom, who leads public affairs campaigns at the consulting firm, has worked for New England politicians like House Minority Whip Katherine Clark (D-Mass.) and Boston Mayor-turned-Labor Secretary Marty Walsh. — SKDK and its sister firm Sloane & Company already have a sizable portfolio in the region, having worked for companies like Gillette, Panera Bread, Hartford HealthCare and National Grid and campaigns across Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire. HOW BANKS FOUGHT TO ROLL BACK DODD-FRANK RULES: “It seemed like a good idea at the time: Red-state Democrats facing grim reelection prospects would join forces with Republicans to slash bank regulations — demonstrating a willingness to work with President Donald Trump while bucking many in their party.” — “That unlikely coalition voted in 2018 to roll back portions of a far-reaching 2010 law intended to prevent a future financial crisis. But those changes are now being blamed for contributing to the recent collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank that prompted a federal rescue and has stoked anxiety about a broader banking contagion,” The AP’s Brian Slodysko and Ken Sweet report. — “The rollback was leveraged with a lobbying campaign that cost tens of millions of dollars that drew an army of hundreds of lobbyists and it was seeded with ample campaign contributions.” — “The episode offers a fresh reminder of the power that bankers wield in Washington, where the industry spends prodigiously to fight regulation and often hires former members of Congress and their staff to make the case that they are not a source of risk to the economy” — and underscores how steep a climb advocates for restoring those financial guardrails now face. THE NEW BATTLEFRONT FOR TECH POLICY: The tech industry group NetChoice has launched a new initiative to help Silicon Valley coordinate various litigation threats across the country, “signaling a shift in its playbook as battles over Silicon Valley regulation shift from Congress to the courts,” The Washington Post’s Cat Zakrzewski writes. — “The litigation center will act as a central hub for tech industry efforts to coordinate on lawsuits and amicus briefs, focusing on a range of issues including state social media laws and antitrust suits. It will provide programming for lawyers on regulatory issues affecting the tech industry and collect legal analysis with tech-friendly positions.” — “The center will also track lawsuits and local laws — a major hurdle for the industry as it scrambles to respond to the patchwork of legislation creating ad hoc rules for tech companies, after years of inaction in Congress.” — “It is designed to respond to the newest regulatory threat: judges who, in the absence of comprehensive federal laws, are increasingly making decisions about social media and competition in the tech industry.” — NetChoice attorney Chris Marchese will lead the new center alongside Nicole Saad Bembridge, and the trade group, whose members include Google, Amazon, TikTok, Twitter and Meta, and expects to add more lawyers to keep up with the increasing pace of tech litigation. — The new center “is modeled after the litigation arm of the Chamber of Commerce, which brings lawsuits and briefs on behalf of the powerful business lobbying group,” and comes as “the tech industry is increasingly batting back a wave of litigation that could force broad changes to its business practices.” TIKTOK BLANKETS D.C. WITH ADS: “TikTok is intensifying its public-relations blitz days before its chief executive officer testifies on Capitol Hill this week, but congressional aides say there’s little he can say that will convince lawmakers the app can be insulated from Chinese influence,” per Bloomberg’s Anna Edgerton. — “The company bought ads in the Washington Metro system, at Union Station and in the Washington Post, and sponsored Politico’s Playbook newsletter as well as Axios’s tech-focused Login newsletter.” — “A four-page color ad in the New York Times on Monday included a QR code linking to TikTok’s US Data Security website, which features a cartoon video explaining how the company that operates the popular short-video app has invested $1.5 billion in security.” — The onslaught of ads comes days before TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew makes his first public congressional appearance before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Thursday. But Chew heads into that hearing facing deep skepticism from his interrogators: “Committee staff who briefed reporters before the hearing said lawmakers don’t believe the platform’s $1.5 billion investment in data security can protect the app, owned by Beijing-based ByteDance Ltd., from Chinese influence,” per Bloomberg.
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