Governmental Affairs

Orrick's Governmental Affairs practice consists of lobbyists, attorneys, and research staff headquartered in Orrick’s Sacramento office, and covers nearly all aspects of state legislative, administrative, and regulatory law. Services provided by this group include state contract procurement, intervention to create opportunities or to solve problems, the management of legislative and administrative activities - ranging from monitoring, research, and consultation - to direct and indirect lobbying to affect either enactment, amendment, or defeat of proposals. The firm has advised and appeared before, or provided services to, the Governor and his administration, every constitutional officer, the state legislature, many of its committees, and virtually all California state agencies, including the following entities:

• The Attorney General
• State Franchise Tax Board
• Board of Equalization
• Public Utilities Commission
• Department of Corporations
• Fair Political Practices Commission
• California Student Aid Commission
• Department of Food and Agriculture
• Department of Health Services
• Department of Industrial Relations
• Department of Consumer Affairs
• California Coastal Commission
• State Air Resources Board
• State Water Resources Control Board
• State Lands Commission
• State Office of Emergency Services
• Department of Fair Employment and Housing
• Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control
• State Labor Commissioner
• State Insurance Commissioner

A primary focus of the Governmental Affairs practice is intervention in matters with the state government, and particular expertise in finance: banking, securities, municipal finance, tax-exempt bonds, insurance, international finance, and commercial finance. The firm is the principal outside counsel for state government matters for the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and numerous securities firms on broker-dealer and investment banking matters.

Often working in tandem with Orrick’s Public Finance Department, the Governmental Affairs Department has undertaken a number of public finance legislative matters:

• Passing of taxable bond legislation, legislation governing usury and legislation governing the creation of pledges and security interests in connection with municipal debt;
• Substantial broadening of investment authority for California municipal governments;
• Authorizing the State of California and its municipalities to enter into contracts for interest rate and currency swaps and other hedge devices in conjunction with borrowing or investments, as well as provision for stripped California municipal bonds;
• Issuance of bonds in foreign currencies;
• Authorization of negotiated sales for a variety of bonds heretofore required to be sold competitively (such as tax allocation bonds and certain revenue bonds);
• Enabling local governments to issue refunding bonds with greater ease;
• General obligation bond provisions for local governments;
• Provisions for the issuance of tax and revenue anticipation notes for investment or reinvestment purposes; and
• Exemptions from sales and property taxes.

Governmental affairs activities have included engagements for the following organizations: JP Morgan, Chemical Bank, Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Transamerica, Securities Industry Association, Goldman Sachs, First Boston, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, Dean Witter, Discover & Co., PaineWebber, Piper Jaffray, US Bank, First Interstate Bank of California, Bank of America, the Investment Company Institute, Smith Barney, Stanford University, Houghton Mifflin Company, the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc. (NASD), the City and County of San Francisco, the County of San Mateo, Yolo County, the City of Commerce and the Commerce Redevelopment Agency, The City of Pittsburg, The Newhall County Water District, the Mojave Water Agency, the California Association for Local Economic Development, and a number of other municipalities in California.

Members of our Governmental Affairs practice group also represent clients on matters pending before Congress, including those before the Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance (responsible for tax legislation). During the development of the Tax Reform Act of 1986, Orrick successfully undertook matters that resulted in legislation being adopted, including the adoption of nearly $2 billion in transition rules for projects dealing with solid waste-to-energy, redevelopment, power, and wastewater treatment.

Contact Us

Orrick provides innovative and practical legal advice to help our clients meet their business objectives. For more information about our firm, our governmental affairs attorneys, and our practice, please contact Department Chair Jim Bruner by phone at 916–329–7901, by e-mail at jwbruner@orrick.com.