Fair season is once again upon us and it is important to keep in mind where your fair passes are coming from. A pass to a county or to the Ohio State Fair is a thing of value. While an individual pass from a lobbying source might not exceed $25, attending multiple days or accepting multiple passes from a single source might, and therefore trigger disclosure requirements.
The value of a fair pass provided to a legislator/staff’s spouse or family member is attributable to the legislator/staff, if the spouse or family member is receiving the ticket because he or she is the spouse or family member of the legislator/staff. In this circumstance, the amount of the ticket for the spouse or family member must be added to the amount, if any, of the ticket provided to the legislator/staff.
Any fair pass received from a lobbyist or employer of a lobbyist, exceeding $25 in value, will appear on either the May-Aug 2015 or Sept-Dec 2015 Activity and Expenditure Report, depending on the date of the event. If you file a Financial Disclosure Statement these tickets may be reportable on your 2015 filing. Legislators/staff members are prohibited from accepting more than $75 in gifts, aggregated per calendar year, from a lobbyist.
Safe travels and enjoy the Maple Bacon Ice Cream & Deep-fried Gummy Bears!
