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Civic groups call for amendments to Lobbying Act

As the Lobbying Act (遊說法) took effect yesterday, a Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) legislator and representatives of several civic groups urged the legislature to amend certain stipulations in the Act that could leave civic groups severely debilitated.

Speaking at a media conference yesterday, DPP Legislator Huang Sue-ying (黃淑英) and Lin Lu-hong (林綠紅), a board member of the Taiwan Women’s Link, criticized a stipulation in the Act that limits civic groups to lobbying only for bills or causes considered to be directly related to a particular group’s area of authority.

“This regulation could prevent proposals from women’s groups being approved when they try to push issues related to tax reform,” Lin said.

“We should put the Lobbying Act under thorough scrutiny,” Judicial Reform Foundation executive director Lin Feng-cheng (林峰正) said at the same conference.

Lin said that although the Lobbying Act required all lobby groups to register their plans in advance, it would not have any influence on rich and powerful lobbyists that have established tacit understandings with certain lawmakers, and consequently did not have to make their lobbying efforts public.

The groups urged the legislature to cancel the regulation that any lobbying plan should be screened by government agencies lobbyable officials are affiliated with.

They also called on the legislature to redefine lobbyable public officials to include legislative aides.

The Legislative Yuan passed the Act in July last year, making Taiwan the third country after the US and Canada to enact such legislation.

The law defines lobbying as any direct contact with lobbyable public officials, by verbal or written means, with the goal of influencing the official’s or his or her agency’s attitude toward the formation, enactment, passage, alteration or annulment of legislation, policies or initiatives.

Lobbyists can be individuals, legal entities or civic groups soliciting help on their own behalf or individuals or corporations that lobby on behalf of others. Lobbyable officials are elected or appointed public officials at national or local levels, including the president, vice president, elected representatives, heads of local governments and political appointees, but excluding legislative aides.

The legislation prohibits lobbying on matters related to national defense, foreign affairs, China policy, national security, civil servants’ duties or the activities of foreign governments or international nongovernmental organizations in Taiwan.

According to the legislation, agencies that are potential targets of lobbyists must designate a special unit or official to accept the lobbyists’ registration. In the Legislative Yuan’s case, its Organic Laws and Statutes Bureau is responsible for the registration.

Within seven days of being approached, the officials should register with the designated unit or official to record the date, venue, method and content of the activity.

Lobbyists must also report lobbying expenditures to the concerned agencies by May 31 every year, and the concerned agencies should publicize financial reports quarterly.

The Poultry Association registered at the legislature’s Organic Laws and Statutes Bureau yesterday morning with a plan to lobby a proposed amendment to the Husbandry Law (畜牧法) that would require chicken farmers to renew their license every five years.

The association was the first lobby group to register its plan after the Lobbying Act took effect.

When asked for comment, Lu Yun-tien (盧雲添), a section chief of the association, lauded the new legislation, saying that all lobbying efforts could now be made public.
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