Pennsylvania Lobbyist Bill Signed
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- Governor Tom Wolf has signed a bill intended to improve lobbyist disclosure in Pennsylvania.
The bill signed into law, introduced by Lancaster County House Republican Bryan Cutler, increases the penalties for missing quarterly filing deadlines, and also will soon require all lobbying disclosure reports to be filed electronically, to speed processing of those reports.
"And most importantly, it also assists the lobbyists because they now will get an electronic receipt when they file," Cutler said. "Much like we track packages that we order from Amazon, where we file other reports online or make payments online, it will close the loop so that we'll have a definitive proof of when things were filed. I think it's important to increase the accountability on both sides."
About 20-percent of lobbying disclosure reports are still filed by paper.
The bill also requires the Department of State to post reports online within seven days although electronic reports are typically posted within minutes.