The secretary of state was wrong to deny former House Speaker Sal DiMasi’s registration as a lobbyist in 2019 because Massachusetts law only disqualifies that action for a decade following specific state convictions, not federal convictions like DiMasi received, the Supreme Judicial Court ruled Thursday.
Judges sided with DiMasi, a Democrat who led the House for more than four years before he was indicted and then found guilty on federal corruption and extortion charges, and affirmed a lower court’s ruling in his favor.
In a decision penned by Justice Serge Georges Jr., the court said Secretary of State William Galvin, who oversees the state lobbying division, incorrectly deemed DiMasi ineligible to register as a state-level lobbyist. The law Galvin cited does not extend to federal convictions, even if the offenses in question might violate Massachusetts statute in a way that triggers an automatic lobbying ban, justices said.
“We conclude that the language of the disqualification provision is unambiguous, and that the Secretary’s interpretation contravenes the plain statutory language and the Legislature’s intent in enacting the provision,” Georges wrote in the opinion. “(The law) does not afford the Secretary discretion to consider what other offenses might require automatic disqualification even if the underlying conduct that resulted in a conviction could support a felony conviction pursuant to G. L. c. 3, 55, or 268A. Rather, the disqualification provision limits automatic disqualification to individuals who have been convicted of a felony set forth in G. L. c. 3, 55, or 268A.”
The case had already been rendered moot by the calendar, since more than 10 years has elapsed since DiMasi’s federal conviction, but justices said when they took on the matter they saw significant public interest in issuing a ruling.
Public records on Galvin’s website indicate DiMasi has been working as a registered lobbyist since mid-2020.