Here are 12 consultants subject to Gavin Newsom’s new lobbying ban — and one that isn’t
Jason Kinney, a longtime associate of Gov. Gavin Newsom, can continue to lobby the governor on behalf of his clients under a new policy Newsom rolled out last week because he is not currently paid by either the California Democratic Party or Newsom’s campaigns.
Newsom announced the lobbying ban several weeks after news broke that he attended a dinner celebrating Kinney’s birthday at the French Laundry. The announcement also came on the heels of news that Newsom was hiring another lobbyist, Jim DeBoo, to serve in a senior administration role.
DeBoo is among a dozen consultants who are employed by the governor’s campaign or the California Democratic Party who will be barred from lobbying Newsom under the policy, according to the governor’s office. According to a list provided by the governor’s office, for the month of December, those consultants are:
- Steve Barkan
- Bill Wong
- Evan McLaughlin
- Kathy Bowler
- Dan Newman
- Brian Brokaw
- Jeff Gozzo
- Michael Wagaman
- Ace Smith
- Sean Clegg
- Juan Rodriguez
- Jim DeBoo
Chief of Staff Ann O’Leary announced the new policy last week, informing staff in an email that Newsom is barring registered lobbyists from serving as his paid campaign or political consultants. The new policy also prohibits paid consultants from directly communicating on behalf of a client with the governor, members of his staff, or the agencies under his control for the purpose of influencing legislative or administrative action.
“To protect the public’s trust, it is important that those who are not officially part of the Governor’s team, but whom the Governor consults for campaign or political advice, also meet a high ethic bar,” O’Leary wrote. “The Governor has determined that this Administration will exceed the already strong California legal requirements in this regard.”
In its latest spending report, the California Democratic Party reported paying Kinney as a consultant, but that report covers a period through October before Newsom created the new policy.
The governor’s office says Kinney is not currently paid as a consultant by either the party or Newsom’s campaign. He works as a lobbyist for Axiom Advisors, which counts marijuana firms, Facebook and Netflix among its clients. Kinney does not have to report which clients he specifically represents, and Axiom spokeswoman Molly Weedn declined to provide a list.
“Jason and all Axiom lobbyists are in full compliance with the Governor’s new policy and will obviously comply with it going forward, as they do all rules and disclosure requirements governing lobbying,” Weedn wrote in a statement.
DeBoo has de-registered as a lobbyist and is compliant with the new policy, Newsom’s office said. His firm, DeBoo Communications, previously reported lobbying on behalf of groups including the California Medical Association, which represents doctors, the California Apartment Association, which represents landlords, and health insurer Kaiser Permanente.
DeBoo has been a close political adviser to Newsom. During California’s March primary elections, DeBoo led an unsuccessful ballot measure campaign spearheaded by the Democratic governor that would have provided bond funding to update school buildings.
Other than DeBoo, none of the other consultants on the list were registered as lobbyists, according to the state’s lobbying database.
This story was originally published December 18, 2020 at 3:39 PM.