Philip Morris Lobbyist

Banned From Connecticut

By Adam Gorlick

Associated Press

HARTFORD – A lobbyist for tobacco giant Philip Morris has been banned from doing business in Connecticut for one year and fined $4,000 for lying about how much money she spent entertaining state lawmakers.

Under the settlement with the state’s Ethics Commission, Sharon Portnoy becomes the first lobbyist ever banned from working in Connecticut.

She has also been fined and barred from lobbying in New York for three years for similar offenses.

The state’s Ethics Commission also slapped Philip Morris with a $20,000 fine for failing to report all of the company’s lobbying efforts in Connecticut.

Portnoy failed to register as a lobbyist in Connecticut, said Alan Plofsky, executive director of the Ethics Commission.

“She came often enough to Connecticut to deal with lawmakers,” Plofsky said. “She should have registered, but she had a disregard for the basic requirement of the law.”

The lawmakers lobbied by Portnoy were not identified in the settlement, but Plofsky said they did not violate state ethics codes because they were being misled.

Under Connecticut law, lobbyists must report each time they spend more than $10 entertaining a lawmaker. After three meals in 1997 and 1998, Portnoy lied about how many people were at the dinners in order to reduce the per person cost of the meals, Plofsky said.

Also in 1997, Portnoy spent more than $186 on a single public official. Under state law at the time, she could only spend up to $150.

Portnoy’s lawyer, Linda Imes, refused to comment on the settlement.

According to the settlement, Philip Morris and Portnoy denied that the violations alleged in the Ethics Commission complaint were intentional.

“We’re taking this very seriously,” said Peggy Roberts, a Philip Morris spokeswoman. “We’ve reminded our lobbyists of what the laws are in the states they work in.”

Philip Morris was fined $75,000 in that case. Portnoy was also fined, banned from lobbying in New York for three years and faces a possible criminal investigation.