Federal Election CommissionFederal Election CommissionFEC_4b89ffcf-3345-4f85-9f0c-7ea74860fe01Administering and enforcing the federal campaign finance law. The FEC has jurisdiction over the financing of campaigns for the U.S. House, the U.S. Senate, the Presidency and the Vice Presidency._e3cc9ac9-e970-459d-891e-0de7e1bd97a6Disclosure of ContributionsPublic disclosure of funds raised and spent to influence federal elections_e36a423e-0c26-4289-a971-c7444ffbfa3e1The FECA requires candidate committees, party committees and PACs to file periodic reports disclosing the money they raise and spend. Candidates must identify, for example, all PACs and party committees that give them contributions, and they must identify individuals who give them more than $200 in an election cycle. Additionally, they must disclose expenditures exceeding $200 per election cycle to any individual or vendor.Funding RestrictionsRestrict contributions and expenditures made to influence federal elections_f32a3fb3-01eb-4563-a58b-6081c1ae9f162Contribution Limits:The FECA places limits on contributions by individuals and groups to candidates, party committees and PACs.Prohibited Contributions and Expenditures: The FECA places prohibitions on contributions and expenditures by certain individuals and organizations. The following are prohibited from making contributions or expenditures to influence federal elections: Corporations; Labor organizations; Federal government contractors; and Foreign nationals. Furthermore, with respect to federal elections: No one may make a contribution in another person's name. No one may make a contribution in cash of more than $100. In addition to the above prohibitions on contributions and expenditures in federal election campaigns, the FECA also prohibits foreign nationals, national banks and other federally chartered corporations from making contributions or expenditures in connection with state and local elections.Independent Expenditures: Under federal election law, an individual or group (such as a PAC) may make unlimited "independent expenditures" in connection with federal elections.An independent expenditure is an expenditure for a communication which expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate and which is made independently from the candidate's campaign. To be considered independent, the communication may not be made with the cooperation, consultation or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, any candidate or his/her authorized committees or a political party, or any of their agents. While there is no limit on how much anyone may spend on an independent expenditure, the law does require persons making independent expenditures to report them and to disclose the sources of the funds they used. The public can review these reports at the FEC's Public Records Office. Corporate and Union Activity:Although corporations and labor organizations may not make contributions or expenditures in connection with federal elections, they may establish PACs. Corporate and labor PACs raise voluntary contributions from a restricted class of individuals and use those funds to support federal candidates and political committees.Apart from supporting PACs, corporations and labor organizations may conduct other activities related to federal elections, within certain guidelines. For more information, call the FEC or consult 11 CFR Part 114.Political Party Activity:Political parties are active in federal elections at the local, state and national levels. Most party committees organized at the state and national levels as well as some committees organized at the local level are required to register with the FEC and file reports disclosing their federal campaign activities.Party committees may contribute funds directly to federal candidates, subject to the contribution limits. National and state party committees may make additional "coordinated expenditures," subject to limits, to help their nominees in general elections. Party committees may also make unlimited "independent expenditures" to support or oppose federal candidates, as described in the section above. National party committees, however, may not solicit, receive, direct, transfer, or spend nonfederal funds. Finally, while state and local party committees may spend unlimited amounts on certain grassroots activities specified in the law without affecting their other contribution and expenditure limits (for example, voter drives by volunteers in support of the party's Presidential nominees and the production of campaign materials for volunteer distribution), they must use only federal funds or "Levin funds" when they finance certain "Federal election activity."Party committees must register and file disclosure reports with the FEC once their federal election activities exceed certain dollar thresholds specified in the law. Presidential CampaignsPublic financing of Presidential campaigns_663f8522-9943-407e-b4d3-d0521fd982473The Presidential Election Campaign Fund Act: Under the Internal Revenue Code, qualified Presidential candidates receive money from the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, which is an account on the books of the U.S. Treasury.The Fund is financed exclusively by a voluntary tax checkoff. By checking a box on their income tax returns, individual taxpayers may direct $3 of their tax to the Fund (up to $6 for joint filers). Checking the box does not increase the amount a taxpayer owes or reduce his or her refund; it merely directs that three (or six) dollars from the U.S. Treasury be used in Presidential elections. Checkoff funds may not be spent for other federal programs.The funds are distributed under three programs:Primary Matching Payments -Eligible candidates in the Presidential primaries may receive public funds to match the private contributions they raise. While a candidate may raise money from many different sources, only contributions from individuals are matchable; contributions from PACs and party committees are not. Furthermore, while an individual may give up to $2,300 to a primary candidate, only the first $250 of that contribution is matchable.To participate in the matching fund program, a candidate must demonstrate broad-based support by raising more than $5,000 in matchable contributions in each of 20 different states. Candidates must agree to use public funds only for campaign expenses, and they must comply with spending limits. Beginning with a $10 million base figure, the overall primary spending limit is adjusted each Presidential election year to reflect inflation. In 2004, the limit was $37.31 million.General Election Grants - The Republican and Democratic candidates who win their parties' nominations for President are each eligible to receive a grant to cover all the expenses of their general election campaigns. The basic $20 million grant is adjusted for inflation each Presidential election year. In 2004, the grant was $74.62 million.Nominees who accept the funds must agree not to raise private contributions (from individuals, PACs or party committees) and to limit their campaign expenditures to the amount of public funds they receive. They may use the funds only for campaign expenses.A third party Presidential candidate may qualify for some public funds after the general election if he or she receives at least five percent of the popular vote.Party Convention Grants - Each major political party may receive public funds to pay for its national Presidential nominating convention. The statute sets the base amount of the grant at $4 million for each party, and that amount is adjusted for inflation each Presidential election year. In 2004, the major parties each received $14.592 million.Other parties may also be eligible for partial public financing of their nominating conventions, provided that their nominees received at least five percent of the vote in the previous Presidential election. 2010-02-08http://www.fec.gov/pages/brochures/fecfeca.shtmlArthurColman (www.drybridge.com)colman@drybridge.com