§ 1–1162.27. Persons required to register.

(a) Except as provided in § 1-1162.28, a person shall register with the Director of Government Ethics pursuant to § 1-1162.29 and pay the required registration fee if the person receives compensation or expends funds in an amount of $250 or more in any 3-consecutive-calendar-month period for lobbying. A person who receives compensation from more than one source shall register under this section if the person receives an aggregate amount of $250 or more in any 3-consecutive-calendar-month period for lobbying. Failure to register as required by this section shall result in a civil penalty.

(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the registration fee for lobbyists shall be $250.

(2) The registration fee for lobbyists who lobby solely for nonprofit organizations shall be $50. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "nonprofit organization" means an organization exempt from taxation under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, approved October 22, 1986 (68A Stat. 163; 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3)).

(c)(1) There is established as a nonlapsing fund the Lobbyist Administration and Enforcement Fund (“Lobbyist Fund”), which shall be administered by the Board. The funds in the Lobbyist Fund shall be used by the Board solely for the purpose of administering and enforcing this subchapter.

(2) All fees collected under subsection (b) of this section by the Board shall be deposited into the Lobbyist Fund. All funds deposited into the Lobbyist Fund, and any interest earned on those funds, shall not revert to the unrestricted fund balance of the General Fund of the District of Columbia at the end of a fiscal year, or at any other time, but shall be continually available for the uses and purposes set forth in paragraph (1) of this subsection without regard to fiscal year limitation, subject to authorization by Congress.