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LOBBYING REPORT |
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (Section 5) - All Filers Are Required to Complete This Page
2. Address
Address1 | 325 7th Street NW, Suite 550 |
Address2 |
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City | WASHINGTON |
State | DC |
Zip Code | 20004 |
Country | USA |
3. Principal place of business (if different than line 2)
City | Minneapolis |
State | MN |
Zip Code | 55102 |
Country | USA |
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5. Senate ID# 65715-12
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6. House ID# 357270000
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TYPE OF REPORT | 8. Year | 2015 |
Q1 (1/1 - 3/31) | Q2 (4/1 - 6/30) | Q3 (7/1 - 9/30) | Q4 (10/1 - 12/31) |
9. Check if this filing amends a previously filed version of this report
10. Check if this is a Termination Report | Termination Date |
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11. No Lobbying Issue Activity |
INCOME OR EXPENSES - YOU MUST complete either Line 12 or Line 13 | |||||||||
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12. Lobbying | 13. Organizations | ||||||||
INCOME relating to lobbying activities for this reporting period was: | EXPENSE relating to lobbying activities for this reporting period were: | ||||||||
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Provide a good faith estimate, rounded to the nearest $10,000, of all lobbying related income for the client (including all payments to the registrant by any other entity for lobbying activities on behalf of the client). | 14. REPORTING Check box to indicate expense accounting method. See instructions for description of options. | ||||||||
Method A.
Reporting amounts using LDA definitions only
Method B. Reporting amounts under section 6033(b)(8) of the Internal Revenue Code Method C. Reporting amounts under section 162(e) of the Internal Revenue Code |
Signature | Digitally Signed By: Stephen L. Plevniak |
Date | 4/20/2015 6:46:17 PM |
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code BUD
16. Specific lobbying issues
Advocated for appropriations for Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP); Advocated to maintain full funding for LIHEAP in the CR. This issue arose in:
H.R.83 - Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015;
Advocated for appropriations for research and development to improve natural gas technologies and natural gas vehicles.
FY 2016 Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues related to Waters of the U.S., 316(b) Cooling Water Intake Structures rule, CCR regulation, and GHG NSPS);
FY 2016 Energy and Water Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues related to DOE industry coordination on cyber and physical security, DOE/industry partnership on storm response and restoration, and grid resilience);
FY 2016 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues TBD;
FY 2016 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, and Related Agencies Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues related to Low Income Home Energy Assistance funding);
FY 2016 Commerce/Justice/Science Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues TBD);
FY 2016 Financial Services Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues TBD);
FY 2016 Defense Appropriations, (potential appropriations issues TBD);
H. Con. Res. 27, FY 2016 Budget Resolution, (budget issues generally);
S. Con. Res. 11, FY 2016 Budget Resolution, (budget issues generally);
S. Con. Res. 11 - Barrasso Amendment #347, to keep water pollution regulations focused on water quality, support for setting parameters on final "Waters of the U.S." rule;
Discussion drafts relating to a bill to appropriately determine the budgetary effects of energy savings performance contracts and utility energy service contracts;
H.J.Res. 35, Making further continuing appropriations for fiscal year 2015, and for other purposes.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Energy - Dept of, White House Office, Executive Office of the President (EOP)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Stephen |
Plevniak |
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Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code ENG
16. Specific lobbying issues
Natural gas supply and related issues; Transmission siting, permitting, management issues generally and associated return on equity;
Extension of Presidential memorandum on implementation of energy savings projects and performance-based contracting for energy savings;
Promote & protect the interests of natural gas utilities in any legislation considered by the House Energy & Commerce Committee and the Senate Energy & Natural Resources Committee regarding energy and climate legislation affecting natural gas utilities, including efficiency mandates;
Draft legislation on energy efficiency and codes and standards
H.R. 161, the Natural Gas Pipeline Permitting Reform Act, to facilitate permitting of natural gas pipeline infrastructure;
H.R. 1558, Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2015;
S. 1, the Keystone XL Pipeline Approval Act, climate, renewables, and energy efficiency-related amendments;
S. 535, the Energy Efficiency Improvement Act of 2015, relating to water heaters;
S. 601, Advanced Clean Coal Technology Investment in our Nation Act of 2015;
S. 848, Resolving Environmental and Grid Reliability Conflicts Act of 2015;
General discussion hydro licensing reform;
General discussion transmission permitting and siting issues.
S. 691, A bill to require the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to obtain the consent of affected State and local governments before authorizing the construction of a nuclear waste repository.
S. 854, A bill to establish a new organization to manage nuclear waste, provide a consensual process for siting nuclear waste facilities, ensure adequate funding for managing nuclear waste, and for other purposes;
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Energy - Dept of, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), White House Office, Interior - Dept of (DOI)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code ENV
16. Specific lobbying issues
Clean Water Act jurisdictional Issues, generally; Power-Sector Only Climate, generally; Effluent Limitation Guidelines rule-making; Coal Ash issues generally; Sue and settle issues generally.
Draft legislation pertaining to the proposed draft rule to revise the definition of Waters of the U.S. in the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Clean Waters Act definition.
Draft legislation related to emissions
Draft legislation related to reforming the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA)
H.R. 1327, Ozone Regulatory Delay and Extension of Assessment Length Act;
H.R. 1388, Clean Air, Strong Economies Act regarding EPA ozone NAAQS;
Discussion draft of Ratepayer Protection Act, regarding EPA proposed GHG emissions rule;
Advocacy relating to "Waters of the U.S." Issue and related to proposed rule;
S. 640, Ozone Regulatory Delay and Extension of Assessment Length Act.
Discussion draft of the Improving Coal Combustion Residuals Regulation Act of 2015, to provide for implementation of minimum federal CCR requirements through a state-based permit program;
General discussion of Toxic Substances Control Act reform;
S. 697, the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, to modernize the Toxic Substances Control Act;
S. 2768 (113th Congress), the Emergency Fuel Reduction Act of 2014, to facilitate fuel loading reductions to assist in the prevention of forest fires;
General discussion regarding right-of-way vegetation management issues on federal land.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Energy - Dept of, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code HOM
16. Specific lobbying issues
Chemical Security Issues, generally; Security of Energy Grid & Production Facilities;
Support pro-industry Cybersecurity bills that have a public-private partnership (no top-down regulatory process); public-private information sharing; liability protections for information sharing; federal R&D support; and appropriate criminal penalties for bad actors. These issues arose in:
H.R.234: Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act
HR. 1731: National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act
HR 1560: Protecting Cyber Networks Act
S. 754 Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act
H.R. 26, Terrorism Risk Insurance Program Reauthorization Act of 2015;
H.R. 653, FOIA Oversight and Implementation Act of 2015;
H.R. 1073, Critical Infrastructure Protection Act;
Discussion draft of National Cybersecurity Protection Advancement Act of 2015;
Discussion draft of Data Breach and Breach Notification Act;
S. 337, FOIA Improvement Act of 2015;
S. 456, Cyber Threat Sharing Act of 2015;
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Transportation - Dept of (DOT), Homeland Security - Dept of (DHS)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code TAX
16. Specific lobbying issues
Support lower rates on taxation of dividends; CFTC Procedural Reform; Dodd-Frank end-user record keeping reform.
Support incentives for high efficiency natural gas furnaces, boilers and water heaters (25C tax credits); Tax Reform, generally; Tax
Extenders; support incentives to produce biogas; Support incentives for energy efficiency buildings (179D);
Promote the development of the natural gas vehicle market by supporting various incentives. This issue arose in HR 905: LNG Excise Tax Equalization Act of 2015;
Support incentives to produce biogas.
Support incentives for high efficiency natural gas furnaces, boilers and water heaters (25C tax credits).
Support incentives for energy efficiency buildings (179D).
Discussion draft to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify and make permanent bonus depreciation;
Discussion draft of the American Business Competitiveness Act relating to interest expense, depreciation;
Discussion draft of repatriation proposals;
Discussion draft to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the energy credit for certain property under construction;
S. 386, Mobile Workforce State Income Tax Simplification Act of 2015;
S. 413, Government Settlement Transparency and Reform Act.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Energy - Dept of, White House Office, Executive Office of the President (EOP)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code TRA
16. Specific lobbying issues
Support incentives for expansion of natural-gas as transportation fuel and fueling stations; Support incentives for natural gas vehicles;
Advocate for research and development of natural gas vehicle technologies;
S. 808, the Surface Transportation Board Reauthorization Act;
S. 853, the Rail Shipper Fairness Act.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. SENATE, U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Transportation - Dept of (DOT), Surface Transportation Board (STB)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
LOBBYING ACTIVITY. Select as many codes as necessary to reflect the general issue areas in which the registrant engaged in lobbying on behalf of the client during the reporting period. Using a separate page for each code, provide information as requested. Add additional page(s) as needed.
15. General issue area code UTI
16. Specific lobbying issues
Transmission sitting and permitting, generally; Support of USWAG regarding HR 2218 and meetings with EPA regarding ongoing ELG and CCR rulemaking; CFTC Procedural Reform, generally;
Dodd-Frank end-users recordkeeping reform.
HR 1262: Consumer Right to Financial Privacy Act
Promote & protect the interests of natural gas utilities regarding pipeline safety legislation and any regulatory regime affecting natural gas utilities. Promote the development of the natural gas vehicle market by supporting various incentives.
Protect the Utility Service Vehicle exemption in SAFETEA-LU;
Discussion draft of reauthorization of the Commodity Exchange Act relating to derivative end-user protections.
Support incentives for expansion of natural-gas as transportation fuel and fueling stations.
Support incentives for natural gas vehicles.
Advocate for research and development of natural gas vehicle technologies.
Oppose the sale of natural gas by the Kilogram.
Advocate to eliminate a variety of energy tax credits, including those that benefit fuel cell, electric drive and alternative fuel (including natural gas).
H.R. 1629, the Energy Savings Through Public-Private Partnerships Act of 2015, to promote energy savings performance contracts and utility energy service contracts;
H.R. 1630, the Utility Energy Service Contracts Improvement Act of 2015, to fix utility energy service contract term lengths;
S. 720, the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2015, to promote energy savings performance contracts and utility energy service contracts;
S. 723, the Utility Energy Service Contracts Improvement Act of 2015, to fix utility energy service contract term lengths;
S. 858, the Energy Savings Through Public-Private Partnerships Act of 2015, to promote energy savings performance contracts and utility energy service contracts.
17. House(s) of Congress and Federal agencies Check if None
U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, U.S. SENATE, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Energy - Dept of, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
18. Name of each individual who acted as a lobbyist in this issue area
First Name | Last Name | Suffix | Covered Official Position (if applicable) | New |
Summer |
Bravo |
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Senior Legislative Assistant, Legislative Correspondent/ Office Finance Manager, Staff Assistant/ Office Manager for Rep. Bachus; Intern, Rep. Mike Rogers |
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Stephen |
Plevniak |
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19. Interest of each foreign entity in the specific issues listed on line 16 above Check if None
Information Update Page - Complete ONLY where registration information has changed.
20. Client new address
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21. Client new principal place of business (if different than line 20)
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22. New General description of client’s business or activities
LOBBYIST UPDATE
23. Name of each previously reported individual who is no longer expected to act as a lobbyist for the client
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ISSUE UPDATE
24. General lobbying issue that no longer pertains
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AFFILIATED ORGANIZATIONS
25. Add the following affiliated organization(s)
Internet Address:
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Principal Place of Business (city and state or country) |
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26. Name of each previously reported organization that is no longer affiliated with the registrant or client
1 | 2 | 3 |
FOREIGN ENTITIES
27. Add the following foreign entities:
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Amount of contribution for lobbying activities | Ownership percentage in client | ||||||||||
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28. Name of each previously reported foreign entity that no longer owns, or controls, or is affiliated with the registrant, client or affiliated organization
1 | 3 | 5 |
2 | 4 | 6 |