1. REGISTER ONLY IF YOU HAVE A CLIENT
2. IDENTIFY THE CORRECT 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.
3. EVERY LINE OF THE LD-1 REGISTRATION FORM MUST BE COMPLETED
Take care to avoid leaving lines blank on the LD-1 form. The most common error on registrations is leaving the effective date (line 1) blank. The effective date is the date the registrant is retained or first makes a lobbying contact, whichever is earliest. Lines 13 and 14, dealing with Affiliated Organizations and Foreign Entities, are also commonly left blank.
4. NAME OR ADDRESS CHANGES SHOULD BE INDICATED ON THE LD-2 REPORT FORM
Notify us in writing on the lobbying report LD-2 form if the name or address of your firm or client changes.
5. ALL UPDATES, INCLUDING ADDITION OF A LOBBYIST, CAN BE NOTED BY COMPLETION OF THE LD-2 FORM
To add a lobbyist, you do not need to submit a registration amendment. Simply add that person’s name to the next semi-annual lobbying report (LD-2) on line 18 of the issues on which the person is working.
6. TO REMOVE A LOBBYIST, COMPLETE LINE 23 OF THE LD-2 FORM
7. ACCESS YOUR ID NUMBER BY GOING TO OUR WEBSITE
You will not receive a postcard with your Senate ID number(s) on it from the Senate. You may obtain your id number by going to our website at www.senate.gov/lobby. Under the heading “Registration and Filing,” the fourth bullet is a link to ID numbers. ID numbers are listed alphabetically by registrant name.
8. FILE A SEMI-ANNUAL REPORT EVEN IF THERE WAS NO ACTIVITY
You are required to file a report for the semi annual period you registered and for each semi annual period thereafter even if there is no activity until you submit a termination report.
9. “NO ACTIVITY” REPORTS MUST INCLUDE LOBBYING INCOME OR EXPENSES
Even if you check line 11 for “No Activity” of the LD-2 semi annual 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.
10. ONLY INCLUDE ACTIVITY PAGES OF THE LD-2 FORM FOR ISSUE AREAS IN WHICH YOU HAVE ACTIVITY TO REPORT
If you do not have activity to report in an issue area (even if you anticipated activity in that issue area when you registered or if you have had activity in that issue area in the past), omit the Lobbying Activity page (lines 15-19) for that issue area.
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