36-11-304. Expenditures over certain amounts prohibited — Exceptions.
(1)
Except as provided in Subsection (2) or (3), a lobbyist, principal, or government officer may not make or offer to make aggregate daily expenditures that exceed:
Terms Used In Utah Code 36-11-304
Aggregate daily expenditures: means :
(a)
for a single lobbyist, principal, or government officer, the total of all expenditures made within a calendar day by the lobbyist, principal, or government officer for the benefit of an individual public official;
(b)
for an expenditure made by a member of a lobbyist group, the total of all expenditures made within a calendar day by every member of the lobbyist group for the benefit of an individual public official; or
(c)
for a multiclient lobbyist, the total of all expenditures made by the multiclient lobbyist within a calendar day for the benefit of an individual public official, regardless of whether the expenditures were attributed to different clients. See Utah Code 36-11-102
Approved activity: means an event, a tour, or a meeting:
(a)
(i)
to which a legislator or another nonexecutive branch public official is invited; and
(ii)
attendance at which is approved by:
(A)
the speaker of the House of Representatives, if the public official is a member of the House of Representatives or another nonexecutive branch public official; or
(B)
the president of the Senate, if the public official is a member of the Senate or another nonexecutive branch public official; or
(b)
(i)
to which a public official who holds a position in the executive branch of state government is invited; and
(ii)
attendance at which is approved by the governor or the lieutenant governor. See Utah Code 36-11-102
an individual appointed to or employed in a position under a board of education, if that individual:
(i)
occupies a policymaking position or makes purchasing or contracting decisions;
(ii)
drafts resolutions or policies or drafts or makes rules;
(iii)
determines rates or fees;
(iv)
makes decisions relating to an education budget or the expenditure of public money; or
(v)
makes adjudicative decisions; or
(c)
an immediate family member of an individual described in Subsection (8)(a) or (b). See Utah Code 36-11-102
Expenditure: means any of the items listed in this Subsection (11)(a) when given to or for the benefit of a public official unless consideration of equal or greater value is received:
(i)
a purchase, payment, or distribution;
(ii)
a loan, gift, or advance;
(iii)
a deposit, subscription, or forbearance;
(iv)
services or goods;
(v)
money;
(vi)
real property;
(vii)
a ticket or admission to an event; or
(viii)
a contract, promise, or agreement, whether or not legally enforceable, to provide any item listed in Subsections (11)(a)(i) through (vii). See Utah Code 36-11-102
Food reimbursement rate: means the total amount set by the director of the Division of Finance, by rule, under Section 63A-3-107, for in-state meal reimbursement, for an employee of the executive branch, for an entire day. See Utah Code 36-11-102
Government officer: means :
(i)
an individual elected to a position in state or local government, when acting in the capacity of the state or local government position;
(ii)
an individual elected to a board of education, when acting in the capacity of a member of a board of education;
(iii)
an individual appointed to fill a vacancy in a position described in Subsection (15)(a)(i) or (ii), when acting in the capacity of the position; or
(iv)
an individual appointed to or employed in a full-time position by state government, local government, or a board of education, when acting in the capacity of the individual's appointment or employment. See Utah Code 36-11-102
Lobbyist: means :
(i)
an individual who is employed by a principal; or
(ii)
an individual who contracts for economic consideration, other than reimbursement for reasonable travel expenses, with a principal to lobby a public official. See Utah Code 36-11-102
an individual appointed to or employed in a position in a local government if that individual:
(i)
occupies a policymaking position or makes purchasing or contracting decisions;
(ii)
drafts ordinances or resolutions or drafts or makes rules;
(iii)
determines rates or fees; or
(iv)
makes adjudicative decisions; or
(c)
an immediate family member of an individual described in Subsection (23)(a) or (b). See Utah Code 36-11-102
Meeting: means a gathering of people to discuss an issue, receive instruction, or make a decision, including a conference, seminar, or summit. See Utah Code 36-11-102
Principal: means a person that employs an individual to perform lobbying, either as an employee or as an independent contractor. See Utah Code 36-11-102
Public official: means :
(a)
(i)
a member of the Legislature;
(ii)
an individual elected to a position in the executive branch of state government; or
(iii)
an individual appointed to or employed in a position in the executive or legislative branch of state government if that individual:
(A)
occupies a policymaking position or makes purchasing or contracting decisions;
(B)
drafts legislation or makes rules;
(C)
determines rates or fees; or
(D)
makes adjudicative decisions;
(b)
an immediate family member of a person described in Subsection (27)(a);
Tour: means visiting a location, for a purpose relating to the duties of a public official, and not primarily for entertainment, including:
(a)
viewing a facility;
(b)
viewing the sight of a natural disaster; or
(c)
assessing a circumstance in relation to which a public official may need to take action within the scope of the public official's duties. See Utah Code 36-11-102
(a)
for food or beverage, the food reimbursement rate; or
(b)
$10 for expenditures other than food or beverage.
(2)
A lobbyist, principal, or government officer may make aggregate daily expenditures that exceed the limits described in Subsection (1):
(a)
for the following items, if the expenditure is reported in accordance with Section 36-11-201:
(i)
food;
(ii)
beverage;
(iii)
travel;
(iv)
lodging; or
(v)
admission to or attendance at a tour or meeting that is not an approved activity; or
(b)
if the expenditure is made for a purpose solely unrelated to the public official‘s position as a public official.
(3)
(a)
As used in this Subsection (3), “same local government type” means:
(i)
for a county government, the same county government or another county government;
(ii)
for a municipal government, the same municipal government or another municipal government;
(iii)
for a board of education, the same board of education;
for a special district, the same special district or another special district or a special service district;
(vi)
for a special service district, the same special service district or another special service district or a special district; or
(vii)
for a participant in an interlocal agreement, another participant in the same interlocal agreement.
(b)
This section does not apply to an expenditure made by a local official or an education official to another local official or education official of the same local government type as the local official or education official making the expenditure.
