| | | | | |  | | By Caitlin Oprysko | | | With help from Daniel Lippman FARA FRIDAY: Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck’s team of lobbyists helping the Saudi Public Investment Fund seal the sovereign wealth fund’s deal to join forces with the PGA Tour now includes two new additions with expertise in key policy areas, according to new Justice Department filings. — Allen Grunes, who spent more than a decade with DOJ’s antitrust division, registered Thursday to work on the account, along with Harold Hancock, a former longtime tax counsel for Republicans on the House Ways and Means Committee. — They join the nine other Brownstein lobbyists working on the $1.3 billion contract, but the policy backgrounds of Grunes and Hancock nod to several thorny issues the Saudi fund and PGA Tour will need to work out as part of the transaction. DOJ had been investigating whether the PGA Tour had engaged in anticompetitive behavior — instigated in part by the Saudi funded LIV Golf — when the rival golf circuits announced their plans to team up. — The department has already put its stamp on the tentative deal, The New York Times reported this week, prompting PGA and PIF to drop a non-solicitation clause from the framework agreement underriding a final deal. — The new venture is also facing scrutiny from lawmakers over a handful of potential tax ramifications. The PGA Tour is one of the few pro sports leagues in the U.S. still hanging on to a key tax exemption; members of Congress have already seized on the LIV Golf deal to revive efforts to strip the Tour of the tax break. — Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) announced last month he would move to revoke a special tax treatment for the Saudi wealth fund as well, targeting an exemption designed to incentivize investments in the U.S. by foreign government and sovereign wealth funds. TGIF and welcome to PI. What will you be watching for in this weekend’s FEC filings? Weigh in: coprysko@politico.com. And be sure to follow me on Twitter: @caitlinoprysko.
| | A message from Air Line Pilots Association, Int'l: Weakening air safety standards should never be up for debate. Yet that is precisely what Congress is poised to do as it considers changing qualifications for pilot certification. Jeopardizing the U.S.’s gold standard for air safety and threatening passenger safety is a colossal mistake. Learn more here. | | | WHAT’S ON TAP: As members of Congress returned this week from their July Fourth recess, lawmakers quickly shifted into gear on a number of looming legislative priorities — House and Senate appropriators are advancing spending bills, while the House passed its version of the annual defense policy authorization bill today. — But that’ll be the easy part, lobbyists told clients this week in a flurry of memos to clients gaming out the legislative outlook for the rest of the year. — “From government funding, to the NDAA, to a host of other big-ticket reauthorizations (some of which expire September 30), even the most functional of congresses would have its work cut out for it, and the 118th Congress can be described as many things, but ‘functional’ isn’t among them,” Democratic lobbyists Ivan Zapien, Tim Bergreen and Ches Garrison of Hogan Lovells warned, pointing to “residual hostility and mistrust from the debt limit negotiations” as a major complicating factor for Congress as it works through its to-do list. — Zapien, Bergreen and Garrison predict “a tough slog” for the NDAA with a short term extension likely, thanks to House Republicans loading the bill up with culture-war amendments on issues from abortion policy to transgender medical care. “We can’t rule out that this may be the first time in over six decades that Congress doesn’t pass the legislation,” they write, even as they ultimately predict it will head to President Joe Biden’s desk. — K Street also seems resolved to the likelihood of stopgaps when it comes to the farm bill and government funding. The last farm bill in 2018 wasn’t signed until “more than ten weeks after the previous one expired,” Greenberg Traurig’s Charles Bass, Rodney Frelinghuysen, Albert Wynn, Robert Mangas, Greg Noll and Emma Powell noted in a memo earlier this week. Even then, they point out, the House Agriculture Committee “finished its work in early May and the Senate Agriculture Committee finished in mid-June. This year neither committee has begun its markup yet.” — Firms have also begun to handicap potential congressional action on artificial intelligence. The Hogan Lovells lobbyists write that “we do sense a sincere desire from lawmakers on both sides to understand AI better and meet the moment before the technology has outpaced Congress’ ability to legislate on it (as seems to have happened with social media),” but predict that too many partisan sandtraps will likely hinder any comprehensive action. — Most likely, they say, are a handful of tailored bills “with a heavy emphasis on agency studies and internal agency policies to better inform Congress going forward.” The Greenberg Traurig memo forecasts “increasing committee activity on this topic into 2024.” — The lobbying firm Thorn Run Partners recently sent clients a memo dedicated entirely to the issue of AI, which was “very well received,” partner Andy Rosenberg told PI. The slidedeck lays out the state of play both on the Hill and off, as well as the possibility of any agreement hitching a ride on one of Congress’ must-pass bills. — Even so, “divided government will ultimately serve as an obstacle to agreement on any proposal,” the firm warns, and “absent sufficient agreement within and between political parties, it will likely prove difficult to ensure that there are enough votes to get any substantial AI bill through both chambers of the divided 118th Congress.” NOT JUST PIF: POLITICO Magazine’s Michael Schaffer writes today about the growing stream of foreign cash — particularly from oil-rich Gulf autocracies — finding its way into the Beltway’s sports franchises. — The phenomenon, which is all too familiar in European sports, is headlined by a reported $200 million investment from the Qatar Investment Authority in the company that owns D.C.’s NBA, NHL and WNBA franchises and the Emirati wealth fund’s recent sponsorship of a marquee tennis tournament in town. — “As with so many Washington sponsorships by defense contractors or others in the influence game,” Michael writes, “what the arrangement lacks in retail relevance, it makes up for in political upside.” — “For a sovereign wealth fund, having a Beltway audience think of you as just another star in a Washington-branding firmament that includes Fedex or Capital One (or Lockheed Martin) brings an extra benefit — a chance to normalize the fund, and by extension the government that owns it.” FLYING IN: The recycled materials industry hit the Hill this week as part of a fly-in hosted by the Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries. Industry executives met with Sens. Tom Carper (D-Del.), John Boozman (R-Ark.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Reps. Bruce Westerman (R-Ark.), Dina Titus (D-Nev.), Haley Stevens (D-Mich.), Randy Weber (R-Texas),Troy Balderson (R-Ohio), Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) and Shri Thanedar (D-Mich.) to push for extending liability protections regarding PFAS, bolstering the battery and EV supply chain, and passing bills aimed at increasing access to recycling and establishing data collection and reporting requirements concerning recycling and composting programs. ICYMI — DEMS SQUEEZE FEC ON DEEPFAKE ADS: “Dozens of Democratic lawmakers are calling on the Federal Election Commission to consider cracking down on the use of artificial intelligence technology in political advertisements, warning that deceptive ads could harm the integrity of next year’s elections,” CNN’s Donie O’Sullivan reports. — “The group of 50 lawmakers, led by California Rep. Adam Schiff, said in a letter due to be sent to the FEC on Thursday that the agency should clarify that existing law against ‘fraudulent misrepresentation’ in political ads also applies to the use of so-called deepfakes — fake videos and images created using AI.” — “Quickly evolving AI technology makes it increasingly difficult for voters to accurately identify fraudulent video and audio material, which is increasingly troubling in the context of campaign advertisements,” the lawmakers wrote. — The pressure from lawmakers builds on a similar request from the watchdog group Public Citizen, which this week filed a new petition calling on the FEC to craft a set of rules and regulations regarding use of AI in political ads. — The group originally asked regulators to issue guidelines on the issue, but the petition failed to move forward after the commission deadlocked along party lines, with Republican commissioners voting to reject the request and Democrats voting to approve it. The watchdog contends that its revised request addresses the concerns flagged by commissioners the first time around, including whether the FEC has the authority to regulate AI in campaign ads.
| | | | SUBSCRIBE TO POWER SWITCH: The energy landscape is profoundly transforming. Power Switch is a daily newsletter that unlocks the most important stories driving the energy sector and the political forces shaping critical decisions about your energy future, from production to storage, distribution to consumption. Don’t miss out on Power Switch, your guide to the politics of energy transformation in America and around the world. SUBSCRIBE TODAY. | | | | | | | | | — Matthew Cornelius is now managing director for federal industries at Workday. He previously was a senior professional staff member on the Senate Homeland Security Committee and is an OMB and GSA alum. — Mirella Manilla is now digital director for the Joint Economic Committee. She previously was at the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute, Georgia Democratic Party and South Carolina Democratic Party.
| | | | A message from Air Line Pilots Association, Int'l:   | | | | | Colorado 2023 Victory Fund (Reps. Yadira Caraveo, Brittany Pettersen, Adam for Colorado)
Democratic Future Leadership Fund (Democratic Future Fund, Reps. Jake Auchincloss, Angie Craig, Sharice Davids, Marie Gluesenkamp Perez, Jeff Jackson, Mary Peltola, Pat Ryan, Abigail Spanberger, Ritchie Torres)
Equality Project 2024 (Reps. Becca Balint, Robert Garcia, Eric Sorensen, Chris Pappas, Davids, Craig, Equality Project PAC, Julie Johnson for Congress, Vogel for Congress, McBride for Delaware Inc)
Sam Brown Victory Committee (Sam Brown for Nevada, Duty First PAC)
| | Democratic Future Fund (PAC)
GenZ Forward (Hybrid PAC)
RightTech PAC (Hybrid PAC)
Save the American West (Hybrid PAC)
SARAH PAC (PAC)
Warriors Warrior PAC (Super PAC)
WK Kellogg Co PAC (PAC)
| | New Lobbying REGISTRATIONS | | Adams And Reese, LLP: Tangipahoa Parish, State Of Louisiana
Agilon Health, Inc.: Agilon Health, Inc.
Best Best & Krieger LLP: California Department Of Water Resources
Black Diamond Strategies LLC: Transcanada Pipelines USa Ltd
Cornerstone Government Affairs, Inc.: Habermatolel Pomo Of Upper Lake Tribe
Covington & Burling LLP: Energy Strategy Coalition (Informal Coalition)
Dennis M. Hertel & Associates: Ser Metro Detroit
Foley Hoag LLP: Jewish Federations Of North America
Invariant LLC: Wonderschool
Jones Walker, LLP: Metal Shark Boats
Jones Walker, LLP: World Floor Covering Association
Liberty Partners Group, LLC: Heart To Heart Hospice
Lot Sixteen LLC: Clean Energy Grid Action
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: City Of Blanchard, Ok
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: City Of Opa-Locka, Fl
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: City Of West Lafayette, In
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: North Arkansas Regional Medical Center
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Starpoint
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Sullivan County, Nh
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: Montana Technologies LLC
Mercury Public Affairs, LLC: National Automated Merchandising Association
Munk Policy & Law: Hawaiian Native Corporation
Strategies 360: Cordova Contracting And Development LLC
The Raben Group: Schusterman Interests, LLC
Thorn Run Partners: Alliance To Save America’s 340B Program (Asap 340B)
Thorn Run Partners: Denver Regional Council Of Governments
Thorn Run Partners: Virtua Health Foundation
| | | | STEP INSIDE THE GOLDEN STATE POLITICAL ARENA: YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST … Add California Playbook to your daily reading to keep up with the latest political news and policy moves from deep inside the power centers at the heart of the world’s fourth largest economy. Authors Lara Korte and Dustin Gardiner take you inside the state Capitol and governor's mansion in Sacramento, the mayor’s office and City Council and Los Angeles, and the most influential rooms in Silicon Valley and deliver buzzy scoops and behind-the-scenes details that you simply will not get anywhere else. Subscribe today and stay ahead of the game! | | | | | | | New Lobbying Terminations | | | Actum I, LLC: Clear Labs
Actum I, LLC: Small Business Construction And Engineering Coalition (Informal Coalition)
Advocate For Action: American Association Of Cardiovascular And Pulmonary Rehabilitation
Allon Advocacy, LLC: Institute For Consumer Money Management
Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz /The Daschle Group: Debevoise & Plimpton LLP (On Behalf Of Gramercy Funds Management)
Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz /The Daschle Group: North American Interpipe, Inc.
Baker Donelson Bearman Caldwell & Berkowitz /The Daschle Group: The Madison Group (On Behalf Of Standard General)
Bramer Group LLC: Vertical Wellness (F K A Medical Investor Holdings LLC)
Cassidy & Associates, Inc.: Adapdix Corporation
Cassidy & Associates, Inc.: Arconic
Cassidy & Associates, Inc.: Control Solutions, LLC
Cassidy & Associates, Inc.: Telos Corporation
Cassidy & Associates, Inc.: Tiffany & Co
Cornerstone Government Affairs, Inc.: The Aluminum Association
Enva Strategy, LLC: Certified American Grown
Exigent Government Relations: Bridge Street Group LLC On Behalf Of Iggy Ventures LLC
Hogan Lovells US LLP: Binance Holdings Limited
Mcguirewoods Consulting (A Subsidiary Of Mcguirewoods LLP): Accessbio
Mcguirewoods Consulting (A Subsidiary Of Mcguirewoods LLP): Forsyth County
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Colby Public Schools
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Hillsdale Hospital
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: Sampson Regional Medical Center
Merchant Mcintyre & Associates, LLC: St. Johns River State College
Munk Policy & Law: Wheels Up Experience, Inc.
Polsinelli Pc: Automated Health Systems, Inc.
Sonoran Policy Group, LLC D/B/A Stryk Global Diplomacy, Formerly Known As Sonoran Policy Group, LLC: Zamzam Consulting LLC On Behalf Of George Nadar
Tiger Hill Partners LLC: Urvin Finance
Truman Keith Jones: Cornerstone Government Affairs Obo Beer Institute
Whitmer & Worrall, LLC: Heritage Construction And Materials
| | A message from Air Line Pilots Association, Int'l: Proposed changes to pilot training threaten more than a decade of exemplary air safety. As Congress considers the FAA reauthorization bill, some industry stakeholders are lobbying to weaken pilot training qualifications. If successful, passengers will fly with less experienced pilots and at an increased risk to their safety. Since standards were increased in 2010, the U.S. has seen a 99.8% reduction in airline fatalities. Weakening the current pilot training standards and qualifications that keep our skies safe is a recipe for disaster — one that risks passenger safety for years to come. Learn more here. | | | | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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