1. Who must register and when?

Lobbying firms and organizations employing in-house lobbyists must register when they meet income/expense minimums, have an employee who meets the definition of a lobbyist, and when they make more than one lobbying contact. Detailed information regarding this subject can be found in the Lobbying Disclosure Act Guidance, Section 4 – Lobbying Registration.

2. How do I register?

You will need to electronically file a LD-1 form for each client with the Senate and the House of Representatives. You will need a Senate password in order to file electronically.

3. How do I request a Senate password to file electronically?

Go to our Web site at www.disclosure.senate.gov/, and click the link that reads, “Get a User ID and Password.” Each registrant has only one password to file electronically.

4. What is my Senate User and Client ID?

Your Senate ID number is made up of two numbers separated by a hyphen. The number before the hyphen is called your User ID/Registrant ID and is the same for all of your clients. The User ID is followed by a hyphen and your Client ID. Your Client ID is specific to each client. It is very important that you use the correct ID number in its entirety.

5. How do I find my User and Client ID?

You may obtain your ID number(s) by going to our Web site at www.disclosure.senate.gov/. Click on the link that reads, “Find your User/Client IDs.” ID numbers are listed alphabetically by registrant name.

6. My firm needs to register a new client. What is the new client’s ID number?

If you are registering a new client, you will use only your User ID; you will be assigned a Client ID after you submit your registration.

7. Who or what entity do I name as the registrant?

The registrant name is either the name of your lobbying firm or it is the name of the organization employing in-house lobbyists. The registrant name is NOT an individual’s name unless that individual is a self-employed consultant. Additionally, a lobbying firm should send in one registration per client and not send in multiple registrations for each lobbyist for the same client.

8. My firm’s name/address changed. How do I notify you?

Please make those updates using the LD-2 form. If the name of your firm or client changes, type the new name of the firm/client and then type what the former name was, e.g., ABC Lobbying Firm (Formerly XYZ Lobbying Firm).

9. My firm has added a new lobbyist. How do I register him/her?

To add a lobbyist, you do not need to submit a registration amendment. Simply add that person’s name to the next quarterly lobbying report (LD-2) on line 18 of the issues on which the person is working.

10. A lobbyist has left our firm. How do I remove him/her from our registration?

To remove a lobbyist, complete line 23 of the LD-2 form.

11. Our firm/organization had no activity this quarter. Do we still need to file a report?

Yes. You are required to file a report for the quarterly period you registered and for each quarterly period thereafter even if there is no activity until you submit a termination report. Please note that even if you check line 11 for “No Activity” of the LD-2 quarterly report, you MUST disclose income on line 12 (lobbying firms) or expenses on line 13 (organizations), even if there is none. Do not leave blank. “No Activity” reports however should contain only the first page of the LD-2 form. The Lobbying Activity pages should not be filed.

12. On line 16, the LD-2 quarterly report asks for “specific lobbying issues.” What do I need to disclose?

For each general lobbying area, list the specifics which were actually lobbied during the quarterly period. Include, for example, specific bills before Congress or specific executive branch actions. BE SPECIFIC. Bill numbers alone do not satisfy the requirements for reporting on this line and restatement of the general issue code is insufficient. Use the following format to describe legislation: BILL NO., BILL TITLE, AND DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC SECTION(S) OF INTEREST.

i.e., “H.R. 3610, Department of Defense Appropriations Act of 1996, Title 2, all provisions relating to environmental restoration.”

For specific issues other than legislation, provide detailed descriptions of lobbying efforts.