California Fair Political Practices Commission Adopts Contribution Limits for Ballot Measure Committees Controlled By Candidates and Officeholders

I just received the following press release from the Center for Governmental Studies:

Campaign Finance eBulletin

California Adopts Pioneering Campaign Finance Reform at Urging of CGS, Others

CA Becomes First State in U.S. to Limit Contributions to Ballot Measure Committees Controlled By Candidates and Officeholders

California’s Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) adopted a regulation today, at the urging of the Center for Governmental Studies and others, to close the legal loophole which Governor Schwarzenegger and other officeholders have used to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars in excess of state contribution limits. The new regulation applies the state’s candidate contribution limits to ballot measure committees controlled by candidates and officeholders. Prior to today’s FPPC action, candidates and officeholders were allowed to raise funds in excess of state limits, so long as these contributions were deposited into a ballot measure committee.

Since voters approved Proposition 34 in 2000, California law has limited contributions to candidates for governor to $21,200 per election. Nevertheless, Governor Schwarzenegger has received more than 150 contributions in excess of $21,200 (including several $250,000 contributions) since taking office, depositing these contributions into ballot measure committees he controls. These contributions had been deemed legal by the FPPC because the FPPC had interpreted the state’s $21,200 limit to apply only to money raised and spent for candidate elections—not ballot measure elections. On Friday, the FPPC closed this loophole and became the first state in the nation to limit contributions to ballot measure committees controlled by candidates. The Governor’s fundraising in excess of state contribution limits has now been terminated!

CGS Political Reform Project Director Paul S. Ryan authored a letter to the FPPC in April urging the adoption of this regulation and setting forth the supporting legal argument. Ryan’s letter was cited by Commissioner Downey at the April meeting for its “impressive, simple proposition that the threat of real or apparent corruption depended entirely on the candidate’s receipt of unlimited contributions, not on a candidate’s use of such contributions.” Ryan authored a second letter to the FPPC prior to Friday’s meeting and also testified at the meeting. CGS is pleased to have played a role in enacting this far reaching campaign finance reform in California and will continue advocating the adoption of this reform by local and state governments across the nation.

For more information, contact Paul Ryan, pryan@cgs.org or (310) 470-6590, ext. 115.

Posted by Rick Hasen at June 25, 2004 02:39 PM