Lobbyist

At Mayor Goode's request, a top lobbying firm has submitted a proposed contract to represent the city in persuading the General Assembly to help bail the city out of its financial crisis, officials of the firm said yesterday. Goode said through his spokeswoman last week that he had no plans to hire a lobbyist. Last night, Goode said he had no comment on the proposed contract. If the contract is signed, the chief lobbyist will be Ernest G. Barefield, who resigned as Goode's top deputy last year to accept a job with the lobbying firm, Wojdak Associates Inc. Some members of the City Council denounced Barefield's involvement, saying that as Goode's deputy, Barefield helped formulate the financial policies that have placed the city on the brink of default and thus is in no position to represent the city.

If the lobbyist can't come to the fund-raiser, bring the fund-raiser to the lobbyist. That could be the credo of Rep. Thomas J. Murphy Jr., who, in the latest wrinkle for raising campaign cash, recently put together a "sampler of treasures" from his home district of Pittsburgh and left it on certain doorsteps. "Instead of the standard fund-raiser for the re-election of Tom Murphy, enjoy this piece of Pittsburgh," said an attached note. "So sit down, get out your checkbook and help us keep Tom Murphy in the legislature.

A Harrisburg lobbying firm yesterday withdrew its proposed contract to represent Philadelphia after the city Law Department determined that one of the firm's employees would be violating state ethics guidelines by lobbying for the city less than a year after leaving the Goode administration. In a letter to Goode, S.R. Wojdak & Associates said that one of their lobbyists, Ernest G. Barefield, who resigned as Goode's top deputy last year, "would not be able to appear before City Council or any of its committees or members in connection with this assignment.

Nearly two years after City Council and Mayor Nutter approved an ordinance requiring lobbyists to register and disclose their expenses, there's still no computer software to make the program work the way it was intended. The city Board of Ethics and the Nutter administration's technology chief, Abel Ebeid, say that Perficient Inc., a St. Louis firm, was unable to deliver on a $227,000 contract to handle lobbyist registration and disclosure statements and put the information on a public city website.

Supreme Court nominee Anthony M. Kennedy provided free legal services to a member of the California Legislature while working as a lobbyist at the state capitol here, according to the legislator. Joseph A. Gonsalves, a Democrat, said that during the time he served in the state Assembly from 1963 to 1974, Kennedy represented him in a legal matter in Southern California, the details of which he declined to discuss. He added that Kennedy lobbied him on several occasions, but he declined to say when the lobbying occurred or what the issues were.

Cherry E. Cooper, 37, a longtime Philadelphia Electric Co. employee who rose from the rank of clerk to become a company lobbyist and public service representative, died Wednesday in Thomas Jefferson University Hospital of adult respiratory stress syndrome. Mrs. Cooper combined an energetic, can-do, no-nonsense determination with a laugh and smile that made her one of the company's best-liked and most effective representatives, according to her co-workers. Her husband, David, described her as "energetic, loving, tender" and fun to be around.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority paid at least $700,000 to a Washington lobbyist, channeling much of the money through the law firm Ballard, Spahr L.L.C., while repeatedly telling federal officials it wasn't engaged in lobbying, records show. The payments - a $10,000-a-month retainer - went to American Continental Group, whose president is David J. Urban, a former chief of staff for then-Sen. Arlen Specter. In an interview, Urban described his job as primarily "telling the story" of PHA and its executive director Carl R. Greene to Congress.

Former Senate Democratic leader Edward P. Zemprelli yesterday registered as a lobbyist with the Pennsylvania Trial Lawyers Association. There was some question Friday as to whether Zemprelli, 64, who retired Nov. 30, 1988, after 25 years in the legislature, would register as a lobbyist although he had started employment with the association. Leonard Sloane, president of the association, said that Zemprelli, because he is a lawyer, did not technically have to register as a lobbyist.

A former Washington lobbyist for the Pennsylvania coal industry was accused yesterday of failing to file federal income tax returns for three years. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Philadelphia said that Michael A. Clark, 49, a former lobbyist for the Anthracite Industry Association, failed to file tax returns for the years 1988 through 1990. During that period, Clark earned more than $459,000, according to information filed by the government. Clark could not be reached for comment yesterday, and the Washington phone for the Anthracite Industry Association had been disconnected.

Crunched between stagnant state aid and voter resentment over property-tax increases, 11 suburban school districts in Burlington and Camden Counties plan to hire a professional lobbyist in an effort to wring more money from the state. Superintendents of the Lenape and Eastern Regional High School Districts and nine kindergarten-eighth-grade districts, most considered middle-income by the state Department of Education, are seeking school board approval to spend $39,600 to gain access to state lawmakers.

Nearly two years after City Council and Mayor Nutter approved an ordinance requiring lobbyists to register and disclose their expenses, there's still no computer software to make the program work the way it was intended. The city Board of Ethics and the Nutter administration's technology chief, Abel Ebeid, say that Perficient Inc., a St. Louis firm, was unable to deliver on a $227,000 contract to handle lobbyist registration and disclosure statements and put the information on a public city website.

So why did the 76ers abruptly leave CBS Radio for 97.5 The Fanatic last Saturday? A breach of contract by CBS Radio, says a source familiar with the deal. This divorce saga all started on April 3, when the Sixers played the Miami Heat in a game that ended up being broadcast on 98.1 WOGL rather than one of the team's usual radio homes — 610 WIP or 94 WIP. The Sixers were notified of the move just one day before the game, though their contract stipulated they be given a longer notice, we're told.

  WASHINGTON - Once a year, the people who run New Jersey take a walk to the nation's capital to hear the governor speak at a special congressional dinner. Or do they? At the annual New Jersey Chamber of Commerce dinner in Washington, reality isn't always what it seems. Held Thursday and Friday for the 75th time, the annual event is the Garden State's version of the Pennsylvania Society gala in New York City, as politicians, lobbyists, business executives, union leaders, ntonprofit heads, and journalists schmooze, booze, deal, and wheel.

In the final weeks of 2007, the Philadelphia Housing Authority's executive director, Carl R. Greene, was at war with the federal housing agency. The Department of Housing and Urban Development was threatening to take away PHA's flexibility to spend federal money. If that happened, PHA would lose millions, and Greene would have trouble finishing all the projects on the drawing boards. He needed help from his guy in Washington, David Urban. Urban, 47, the president of American Continental Group, had been working for PHA since 2003 - first as a consultant, later as a registered lobbyist.

The Philadelphia Housing Authority paid at least $700,000 to a Washington lobbyist, channeling much of the money through the law firm Ballard, Spahr L.L.C., while repeatedly telling federal officials it wasn't engaged in lobbying, records show. The payments - a $10,000-a-month retainer - went to American Continental Group, whose president is David J. Urban, a former chief of staff for then-Sen. Arlen Specter. In an interview, Urban described his job as primarily "telling the story" of PHA and its executive director Carl R. Greene to Congress.

Nothing becomes law in New Jersey without Stephen Sweeney's OK. As president of the state Senate - reelected unanimously to that position for a second two-year term - the Democrat decides which bills advance or die, determining the fate of Gov. Christie's bold agenda. And helping Sweeney with his agenda is a tight circle of friends and advisers, several from his home turf of Gloucester County. Some are lawyers, others current or former lobbyists. One is a pastor. They have advised him on issues such as picking judges, overhauling worker benefits, and rethinking education.

The city Board of Ethics is delaying the start of a new lobbyist registration and disclosure program until early next year, the result of snags in developing computer software. Under the new deadlines, people who spend significant time or money trying to influence City Council actions or administrative policy will have to register sometime after Jan. 3 - technically, within 10 days after they spend 20 hours or $2,500 trying to lobby city officials. The first spending reports from lobbyists will be due in April, covering the first quarter of 2012.

LONDON - Britain's defense minister Liam Fox quit his post Friday after days of allegations about the influence-peddling of a close personal friend who joined key visits overseas and posed as an unofficial aide. Fox acknowledged he had blurred the lines of his professional and private lives in allowing Adam Werritty, who had previously worked as a defense lobbyist, to organize meetings and join him during 18 trips overseas. A government inquiry into the case will continue to investigate whether Werritty used his access and friendship with Fox for personal gain, or on behalf of others seeking to win favor or contracts with Britain.

HARRISBURG - Ah, the sounds of the state Capitol during the busy fall legislative session. The lawmakers backslapping, the chorus of schoolchildren on class trips, and the click, click, yeeooow ! of women's heels slip-sliding across historic tile floors. Meet Public Enemy No. 1 for women in the Capitol, particularly lobbyists in stiletto heels: the polished Moravian tiles that blanket 16,000 square feet of the great rotunda and the main halls of the 106-year-old building.