From: clarinews@clarinet.com (ROBERT SHEPARD)
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Subject: House passes Democrats campaign reform bill
Keywords: usa federal, government, politics
Date: Thu, 9 Apr 92 11:44:00 PDT
ACategory: washington
Slugword: campaign
Priority: major
Format: regular
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	WASHINGTON (UPI) -- The House passed a Democrat-backed campaign reform
bill Thursday that limits spending and provides public financing for
congressional races, but faces an almost certain veto by President Bush.
	``It's time to limit the money chase,'' said Rep. Sam Gejdenson, D-
Conn., urging approval of the bill. But Rep. Paul Henry, R-Mich.,
charged, ``This is not reform. This is a fraud.''
	The House passed the measure on a 259-165 vote and sent it to the
Senate, which is expected to also pass the bill following the Easter
recess.
	Bush has vowed to veto the bill because of its spending limits,
public funding, and the creation of separate systems for House and
Senate campaigns.
	The bill is a compromise version of differing measures passed earlier
by the House and Senate. Republicans generally opposed the legislation
and the final provisions were dictated by Democrats.
	Supporters of the bill said the voluntary spending limits are at the
heart of the measure. ``It's time to limit spending in campaigns so that
we can go back to a debate about the fundamental beliefs of the two
parties and the two candidates rather than a ... chase for dollars,''
Gejdenson said.
	Rep. Jim Leach, R-Iowa, said he would vote for the bill because it
makes some improvements, but he said Democrats were exaggerating its
benefits.
	``This is not reform. This is what gives reform a bad name,'' Leach
said. ``It's a small step, and don't sell it as anything bigger than a
small step.''
	The bill would limit spending in House campaigns to $600,000 for the
primary and general elections. The limit on Senate races would range
from $950,000 to $5.5 million in the general election, depending on each
state's population.
	For those candidates who accept the spending limits, the bill would
provide partial public funding of their campaigns. The matching fund
system for House members is similar to that provided for presidential
candidates. Senate candidates would be eligible for federally funded
vouchers to buy television advertising.
	But the bill does not provide any means for raising the money that
would be given to the candidates. That system would have to be worked
out in separate legislation.
	The original Senate version of the bill would have banned
contributions from special interest political action committees, but the
House opposed the ban and the negotiators decided to impose different
limits on PAC money for House and Senate candidates.
	Senate candidates would be limited to $2,500 from any one PAC and a
total of no more than 20 percent in PAC contributions in the general
election. House candidates could accept no more than $5,000 and a total
of $200,000.
	House Democratic leader Richard Gephardt, of Missouri, hailed the
bill as ``the strongest and most effective election reform in a
generation ... a cease-fire in the proliferating arms race of campaign
spending.''
	``We limit PAC contributions to campaigns. We encourage contributions
by average citizens. We limit the influence of wealthy donors and we
reduce the costs of communicating with our citizens through television.
In short, these reforms are real reforms, and they offer the country ...
more truly competitive elections,'' Gephardt said.
	House Republican leader Robert Michel scoffed at the plan, calling it
``the ultimate congressional insiders vision of campaign reform.'' He
said the Democrats were pushing the plan at a time when the House ``is
lacerated with self-inflicted wounds, mocked and scorned by the American
people for its insider excesses.''
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