Section 560.220          Registration Requirements

a)         Every person required to register under Section 560.200 shall register each and every year, or before any such service is performed which requires the person to register.  No person shall engage in lobbying or employ any person for the purpose of lobbying who is not registered with the Office of the Secretary of State except on condition that the person register and the person does in fact register within ten (10) working days of an agreement to conduct any lobbying activity (Section 5 and Section 3(b) of the Act).  Every registered entity shall designate a person as an authorized agent (see Sections 560.100 and 560.205) who shall be responsible for reporting under this Part.

b)         The authorized agent shall file an Entity Registration Statement and an  Exclusive Lobbyist Information Statement for all persons who lobby exclusively for the entity even if lobbying is a small percentage of that person's job duties.  The authorized agent shall use official forms or copies thereof for the submission of registration statements (see Section 560.405).

c)         Upon the beginning of each calendar year, entities required to register under Section 560.200 shall register by January 31 for that year if its lobbyist activities are continuing from the previous year.  By December 15 of each year, the Secretary of State Index Department will send to all current authorized agents reminder notices of the January 31 deadline.  Any entity who has not re-registered by January 31 is deemed not to be engaged in lobbying activities for that calendar year, and will not be sent further notices from the Secretary of State Index Department.

d)         Registration statements shall be filed in accordance with the definition of "filing" (see Section 560.100).

e)         All registration statements shall include an annual, non-refundable, non-transferable registration fee, assessed as follows, in the form of a check or money order made payable to the Secretary of State:

1)         An entity's registration shall include a $50 registration fee for the entity.  However, a self-employed independent contract lobbyist who does not lobby under an assumed business name and who has no employees engaged in lobbying activities may submit a single annual fee of $50 and need not pay an entity fee.

2)         An entity's registration shall include a $50 single, annual, non-refundable, non-transferable registration fee for each person registering as a lobbyist on an Exclusive Lobbyist Information Statement.  The entity should submit one check or money order for the total amount owed.  For example, an entity registering 5 lobbyists should submit one check for $300, rather than 6 checks for $50.

f)          The Secretary of State Index Department will send an acknowledgment to each authorized agent indicating the date of receipt for all statements delivered by mail or in person.  Acknowledgment will be sent only if the statement meets the definition of "filed" in Section 560.100.

g)         Persons solely engaged in grass roots lobbying as an employee of a registered entity or a participant in a grass roots lobbying event who make a reportable expenditure are required to register unless the expenditure is reported to the registered entity pursuant to Section 560.326.

(Source:  Amended at 21 Ill. Reg. 405, effective January 1, 1997)