In the News
Washington Examiner: Campaign finance rules miss the forest for the trees
By Luke WachobDiscussions of campaign finance regulation usually bring to mind images of smoke-filled rooms and wealthy donors — the Koch brothers and Sheldon Adelson on the Right, and Michael Bloomberg, Tom Steyer, and George Soros on the Left. They never seem to include people like Diana Hsieh.Hsieh is a Colorado resident with a Ph.D. She organized the nonprofit Coalition for Secular Government with her friend Ari Armstrong and plans to raise and spend no more than $3,500 to update and disseminate a paper they authored criticizing “personhood” ballot measures, including one in Colorado, that restrict a woman’s right to abortion.Most people would praise Hsieh for getting involved in an issue that matters to her. Regardless of your views on personhood, joining together with like-minded citizens to discuss issues of public concern is exactly the kind of political participation that we should encourage in a democracy. Unfortunately, Colorado makes it nearly impossible for most citizens to exercise their basic First Amendment rights.That’s because Colorado forces groups such as CSG to comply with burdensome “issue committee” regulations designed to hook much bigger fish.
CCP
Media Watch: Last Week’s Must Read Articles from the Wall Street Journal
By Joe TrotterIn the first article, “Online Political Opinions Don’t Need Regulating,” FEC Commissioner Lee Goodman opines on the dangers of having the agency regulate YouTube videos (you can find an interview with Commissioner Goodman about this topic at this link).The second piece is a letter from former FEC Commissioner Robert Lenhard (Raise Thresholds, Help Democracy) about raising the monetary threshold for which groups are required to register as a political committee. Mr. Lenhard’s letter is a response to an editorial by the Journal, “Campaign-Finance Bondage,” detailing how a few members of a local community in Arizona planned on making signs protesting a bond measure but were told by the town’s election officials that they could not do this without registering as a political committee and filing regular reports.
Independent Groups
Politico: Blue billionaires on top
By Kenneth P. VogelDemocrats spent much of the 2014 campaign castigating Republican big money, but, it turns out, their side actually finished ahead among the biggest donors of 2014 – at least among those whose contributions were disclosed.The 100 biggest donors of 2014 gave nearly $174 million to Democrats, compared to more than $140 million to Republicans, according to a POLITICO analysis of reports filed with the Federal Election Commission and Internal Revenue Service.Donors who gave mostly or exclusively to Democrats held down 52 of the top 100 spots, including that of the biggest by far – retired San Francisco hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer, who spent $74 million helping Democratic candidates and groups.
SCOTUS/Judiciary
Wall Street Journal: Can Government Play Speech Favorites?
EditorialMost legal fireworks these days surround the limits of political speech, but what happens when local governments put their heel on other kinds of public speech? That’s the First Amendment question Monday when the Supreme Court hears oral argument on whether governments can play favorites when regulating speech.
IRS
Washington Post: Shrinking IRS struggles to keep up with growing number of tax-exempt charities
By Josh HicksThe Government Accountability Office said in its report that the IRS audited 0.7 percent of charities in 2013, down from 0.81 percent in 2011. By comparison, the agency audited individuals and corporations at rates of 1 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively, in 2013.Meanwhile, the IRS’s budget decreased by $900 billion after 2010, and its workforce lost 10,000 full-time employees over the same period, according to the review. The staff reductions included 47 positions within the IRS’s exempt-organizations division, which examines charities, nonprofit advocacy groups and other entities that qualify for tax-free status.“The number of employees performing exams has declined while the number of returns filed has increased,” GAO said.
Candidates, Politicians, Campaigns, and Parties
Politico: More House Dems want to limit time at the top
By Lauren French and Anna PalmerA members-only meeting Wednesday among Democrats on the Ways and Means Committee turned “contentious” after Reps. Ron Kind of Wisconsin and Mike Thompson of California made pointed comments that the panel’s most senior members have led the panel for years, stymieing the advance of younger members, according to multiple sources familiar with the gathering.Democrats further down the ranks also complained that senior members often don’t make their annual Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee dues and fundraising goals, despite their lofty positions on so-called A committees.
FEC
Washington Times: The FEC’s Internet gag rule
By Jenny Beth Martin and Matt KibbeIn the time leading up to the Battles of Lexington and Concord, American patriots had, for almost a decade, gathered near the Boston Common in the shade of a majestic elm tree to share their grievances about the king’s government.
Those patriots eventually took for themselves the name “Sons of Liberty” and their gathering place became known as the Liberty Tree until 1775. Then, with Boston under siege by the British, a party of crown loyalists (reportedly led by a man named Job Williams) cut down the Liberty Tree and turned it into firewood so the patriots could gather there no more.It might not be too far off the mark to suggest that Williams‘ spirit of removing a public gathering place for citizen dissent is alive and well in Washingtontoday in the person of Ann Ravel, the new chairman of the Federal Election Commission. Just as Williams felled the Liberty Tree to frustrate debate, Ms. Ravel wants to bring the political discourse of freedom-loving Americans under her agency’s heavy-lidded purview with an eye to cutting it off.
RNLA: Tide turns in FEC battle for regulation-free internet
By Paul JosseyPeople with otherwise ordinary lives and commonplace jobs can exert enormous influence in the political marketplace. Online superstars gain hundreds of thousands of Twitter followers. Political groups on shoestring budgets get millions of views with clever You Tube videos. The marketplace chooses winners and losers without regard to advertising budgets or institutional power. For the first time in modern history, people obtain information unfiltered by the lens of the state, the editorial judgments of news editors, or the biases of television producers.But not everyone is happy. Last fall, disclosure doyenne and current FEC Chairwoman Ann Ravel made overtures toward regulating online political speech, stating, “a reexamination of the Commission’s approach to the Internet is long overdue.” She further opined the current hands-off approach “as a matter of policy . . . does not make sense.”Critics of Ravel’s approach disagree. In fact, internet regulation would chill the vibrant political debate continuously happening in cyberspace. For starters, the FEC would have to monitor online happenings, with subversive-speech sleuths probing You Tube for noncompliant “Obama Girl” videos.
State and Local
Maryland –– Venable: New Maryland Law Shines Light on Political Contributions by Government Contractors and their Principals, Also Hikes Contribution Limits and Regulates Nonprofits
The Maryland legislature overhauled the state’s campaign finance law almost two years ago, but many of the key provisions did not take effect until January 1, 2015. These changes significantly affect state government contractors by introducing a new electronic registration system overseen by the State Board of Elections, and requiring electronic reporting of contributions made by the contractor, as well as by its PAC and subsidiaries, and its officers, directors, and partners.The new law also increases the limits on contributions by individuals and business entities, and compels politically active nonprofits to register and disclose their donors. Stiff penalties may be imposed on nonprofits that knowingly and willfully fail to file registration notices or reports. Also, the State Board of Elections now has the power to issue civil citations for strict liability offenses, such as failing to keep accurate books and records.
Texas –– Houston Chronicle: Judge blocks city campaign fundraising rule
By Theodore SchleiferA federal judge issued a temporary injunction Friday, knocking out Houston’s fundraising blackout rule which prevents city candidates from raising money before Feb. 1 of an election year.The ruling appears to allow the dozen or so candidates mulling a race for mayor to begin raising money immediately and could fundamentally change future city elections should the injunction be made permanent.The case brought by City Council candidate Trebor Gordon argued that he had a First Amendment right to political expression, which he said could only be upheld if he was able to raise money for his campaigns whenever his contributors wished to donate. U.S. District Judge Sim Lake said Gordon was likely to succeed on the merits in the upcoming case.
