Confusion over what constitutes “lobbying” — and whether that includes “meet and greet” events — contributed to Hawaii’s poor scores in the State Integrity Investigation for its record keeping on lobbyists.

The state got a D- or 63 percent score for lobbying disclosure, tying it for 30th place with Maryland. North Carolina was first, North Dakota last.

Hawaii got dinged because disclosures often aren’t filed on time and lack detail.

Overall, the State Integrity Investigation ranked Hawaii 10th after Civil Beat reporters researched 330 “Corruption Risk Indicators” across 14 categories of government. (Click here to learn more about the methodology used for the project.)

Bottom line: Hawaii law on what constitutes lobbying is unclear, sometimes leading to poor reporting. There’s room for the lobbyist registration and disclosure law to be be strengthened.

Here’s the basis of the D- grade. Each day we’ll print a different question and the criteria used to come up with a score for each question. It’s your turn to evaluate whether Civil Beat got it right and to share what you think should be done to improve the situation. Share your comments at the bottom of this story.

Here’s the second of six questions the State Integrity Investigation asked about lobbying disclosure.

Are lobbyists required to register with the state?

Overall score: 31%

Here are the criteria Civil Beat used to answer that question and what we found.

1. In law, lobbyists are required to file a registration form.

Notes: Under state law, lobbyists are required to file a registration form. Lobbyists also have to renew their registration biennially.

Sources: Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 97 Lobbyists, §97-2 Registration of lobbyists, requirements. Visit http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol02_Ch0046-0115/HRS0097/HRS_0097-0002.htm for details. Also §97-3 Contributions and expenditures; statement. Visit http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol02_Ch0046-0115/HRS0097/HRS_0097-0003.htm for details.

Score: 100%

Scoring criteria: These are the scoring criteria for this question.
Yes: A YES score if lobbyists must fill out a registration form that is filed with the state government.
No: A NO score is earned if no such registration form is required.

2. In practice, registrations are filed within a reasonable time period of initial lobbying activity.

Notes: Lobbyists are required to register once they spend more than 5 hours in any month lobbying. According to Honolulu Civil Beat, there were 280 registered lobbyists in July 2010. However, there has been confusion to the definition of “lobbying,” and whether that includes meet-and-greets. There is a loophole in the state’s lobbyist registration law, according to political blogger Ian Lind. However, there is no clear guidance in how time spent lobbying should be calculated, according to Lind.

Sources:

• Honolulu Civil Beat, Robert Brown, 2/1/11, “Lobbyist Violations in Hawaii? Who Knows”

• iLind.net, Ian Lind, 7/6/11, “A loophole in the state’s lobbyist registration/disclosure law?”

Score: 0%

Scoring criteria: These are the scoring criteria for this question.
Very Strong: Lobbyists must fill out registration before lobbying takes place, or within one to five days of initial lobbying.
Fair: Lobbyists must register within six to 10 days of initial lobbying.
Very Weak: Lobbyists can register after a 10 day period of initial lobbying.

3. In practice, lobbyists’ registration information is comprehensive and of high quality.

Notes: Hawaii’s lobbyist registration and disclosure law can be strengthened, according to political blogger Ian Lind. The state can improve its lobbyist registration and disclosure law by moving to electronic filing of lobbying reports, according to Lind. The information is currently available as a pdf format and most often handwritten. Registrations include general subject area being lobbied and the name of the organization lobbying for. However, lobbyists aren’t required to say who or what they are spending money on, according to Honolulu Civil Beat.

Sources:

• iLind.net, Ian Lind, 7/2/11, “Strengthening Hawaii’s lobbyist registration and disclosure law”

• Honolulu Civil Beat, Robert Brown, 6/12/11, “Organizations Spent More Than $1 Million to Lobby in First Two Months of 2011”

Score: 25%

Scoring criteria: These are the scoring criteria for this question.
Very Strong: Registrations are complete and detailed, including the bill number(s) or general subject area being lobbied and names of employers.
Fair: Registrations are available but are often lacking important details or are overly general or otherwise incomplete.
Very Weak: Registrations, when available, are so incomplete or overly general as to render them useless.

4. In law, lobbyists are required to file registrations annually.

Notes: Lobbyists are required to renew their registrations biennially or every two years. During an odd-numbered year of the legislative session’s opening, lobbyists’ registration expires within ten days.

Sources: Hawaii Revised Statutes, Chapter 97 Lobbyists, §97-2.5 Renewal of registration. Visit http://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/hrscurrent/Vol02_Ch0046-0115/HRS0097/HRS_0097-0002_0005.htm for details.

Score: 0%

Scoring criteria: These are the scoring criteria for this question.
Yes: A YES score if lobbyists must file registrations at least once a year.
No: A NO score if lobbyists do not need to file registrations annually.

Discussion: