II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5331 

To reform the Federal Election Commission’s enforcement processes and 

related provisions under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 21, 2022 

Ms. KLOBUCHAR introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration 

A BILL 

To reform the Federal Election Commission’s enforcement 

processes and related provisions under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Campaign Finance 

5 Transparency Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REVISION TO ENFORCEMENT PROCESS. 

7 (a) STANDARD FOR INITIATING INVESTIGATIONS AND

8 DETERMINING WHETHER VIOLATIONS HAVE OC9 CURRED.— 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
2 

•S 5331 IS

1 (1) REVISION OF STANDARDS.—Section 309(a) 

2 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

3 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is amended by striking paragraphs 

4 (2) and (3) and inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘(2)(A) The general counsel, upon receiving a com6 plaint filed with the Commission under paragraph (1) or 

7 upon the basis of information ascertained by the Commis8 sion in the normal course of carrying out its supervisory 

9 responsibilities, shall make a determination as to whether 

10 or not there is reason to believe that a person has com11 mitted, or is about to commit, a violation of this Act or 

12 chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 

13 of 1986, and as to whether or not the Commission should 

14 either initiate an investigation of the matter or that the 

15 complaint should be dismissed. The general counsel shall 

16 promptly provide notification to the Commission of such 

17 determination and the reasons therefore, together with 

18 any written response submitted under paragraph (1) by 

19 the person alleged to have committed the violation. Upon 

20 the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on the 

21 date the general counsel provides such notification, the 

22 general counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless 

23 during such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a 

24 majority of the members of the Commission who are serv25 ing at the time, overrules the general counsel’s determinaVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:14 Jan 06, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5331.IS S5331

pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
3 

•S 5331 IS

1 tion. If the determination by the general counsel that the 

2 Commission should investigate the matter takes effect, or 

3 if the determination by the general counsel that the com4 plaint should be dismissed is overruled as provided under 

5 the previous sentence, the general counsel shall initiate an 

6 investigation of the matter on behalf of the Commission. 

7 ‘‘(B) If the Commission initiates an investigation 

8 pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Commission, through 

9 the Chair, shall notify the subject of the investigation of 

10 the alleged violation. Such notification shall set forth the 

11 factual basis for such alleged violation. The Commission 

12 shall make an investigation of such alleged violation, which 

13 may include a field investigation or audit, in accordance 

14 with the provisions of this section. The general counsel 

15 shall provide notification to the Commission of any intent 

16 to issue a subpoena or conduct any other form of discovery 

17 pursuant to the investigation. Upon the expiration of the 

18 15-day period which begins on the date the general counsel 

19 provides such notification, the general counsel may issue 

20 the subpoena or conduct the discovery, unless during such 

21 15-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority of 

22 the members of the Commission who are serving at the 

23 time, prohibits the general counsel from issuing the sub24 poena or conducting the discovery. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
4 

•S 5331 IS

1 ‘‘(3)(A) Upon completion of an investigation under 

2 paragraph (2), the general counsel shall make a deter3 mination as to whether or not there is probable cause to 

4 believe that a person has committed, or is about to com5 mit, a violation of this Act or chapter 95 or chapter 96 

6 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and shall promptly 

7 submit such determination to the Commission, and shall 

8 include with the determination a brief stating the position 

9 of the general counsel on the legal and factual issues of 

10 the case. 

11 ‘‘(B) At the time the general counsel submits to the 

12 Commission the determination under subparagraph (A), 

13 the general counsel shall simultaneously notify the re14 spondent of such determination and the reasons therefore, 

15 shall provide the respondent with an opportunity to submit 

16 a brief within 30 days stating the position of the respond17 ent on the legal and factual issues of the case and replying 

18 to the brief of the general counsel. The general counsel 

19 shall promptly submit such brief to the Commission upon 

20 receipt. 

21 ‘‘(C) Upon the expiration of the 30-day period which 

22 begins on the date the general counsel submits the deter23 mination to the Commission under subparagraph (A) (or, 

24 if the respondent submits a brief under subparagraph (B), 

25 upon the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
5 

•S 5331 IS

1 the date the general counsel submits the respondent’s brief 

2 to the Commission under such subparagraph), the general 

3 counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless during 

4 such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority 

5 of the members of the Commission who are serving at the 

6 time, overrules the general counsel’s determination. If the 

7 determination by the general counsel that there is prob8 able cause to believe that a person has committed, or is 

9 about to commit, a violation of this Act or chapter 95 or 

10 chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or if 

11 the determination by the general counsel that there is not 

12 probable cause that a person has committed or is about 

13 to commit such a violation is overruled as provided under 

14 the previous sentence, for purposes of this subsection, the 

15 Commission shall be deemed to have determined that there 

16 is probable cause that the person has committed or is 

17 about to commit such a violation.’’. 

18 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

19 INITIAL RESPONSE TO FILING OF COMPLAINT.—Sec20 tion 309(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(1)) 

21 is amended— 

22 (A) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘the 

23 Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘the general coun24 sel’’; and 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
6 

•S 5331 IS

1 (B) by amending the fourth sentence to 

2 read as follows: ‘‘Not later than 15 days after 

3 receiving notice from the general counsel under 

4 the previous sentence, the person may provide 

5 the general counsel with a written response that 

6 no action should be taken against such person 

7 on the basis of the complaint.’’. 

8 (b) REVISION OF STANDARD FOR REVIEW OF DIS9 MISSAL OF COMPLAINTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 309(a)(8) of such 

11 Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(8)) is amended to read as 

12 follows: 

13 ‘‘(8)(A)(i) Any party aggrieved by an order of the 

14 Commission dismissing a complaint filed by such party 

15 may file a petition with the United States District Court 

16 for the District of Columbia. Any petition under this sub17 paragraph shall be filed within 60 days after the date on 

18 which the party received notice of the dismissal of the 

19 complaint. 

20 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

21 court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen22 cy’s dismissal of the complaint is contrary to law. In any 

23 matter in which the penalty for the alleged violation is 

24 greater than $50,000, the court should disregard any 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
7 

•S 5331 IS

1 claim or defense by the Commission of prosecutorial dis2 cretion as a basis for dismissing the complaint. 

3 ‘‘(B)(i) Any party who has filed a complaint with the 

4 Commission and who is aggrieved by a failure of the Com5 mission, within one year after the filing of the complaint, 

6 to act on such complaint, may file a petition with the 

7 United States District Court for the District of Columbia. 

8 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

9 court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen10 cy’s failure to act on the complaint is contrary to law. 

11 ‘‘(C) In any proceeding under this paragraph the 

12 court may declare that the dismissal of the complaint or 

13 the failure to act is contrary to law, and may direct the 

14 Commission to conform with such declaration within 30 

15 days, failing which the complainant may bring, in the 

16 name of such complainant, a civil action to remedy the 

17 violation involved in the original complaint.’’. 

18 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

19 by paragraph (1) shall apply— 

20 (A) in the case of complaints which are 

21 dismissed by the Federal Election Commission, 

22 with respect to complaints which are dismissed 

23 on or after the date of the enactment of this 

24 Act; and 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
8 

•S 5331 IS

1 (B) in the case of complaints upon which 

2 the Federal Election Commission failed to act, 

3 with respect to complaints which were filed on 

4 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

5 (c) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

7 Commission shall promulgate new regulations on the en8 forcement process under section 309 of the Federal Elec9 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109) to take 

10 into account the amendments made by this section. 

11 SEC. 3. OFFICIAL EXERCISING THE RESPONSIBILITIES OF 

12 THE GENERAL COUNSEL. 

13 Section 306(f)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 

14 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(f)(1)) is amended by add15 ing at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘In the event 

16 of a vacancy in the position of the general counsel, the 

17 most senior attorney employed within the Office of the 

18 General Counsel at the time the vacancy arises shall exer19 cise all the responsibilities of the general counsel until the 

20 vacancy is filled.’’. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
9 

•S 5331 IS

1 SEC. 4. PERMITTING APPEARANCE AT HEARINGS ON RE2 QUESTS FOR ADVISORY OPINIONS BY PER3 SONS OPPOSING THE REQUESTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 308 of such Act (52 

5 U.S.C. 30108) is amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(e) To the extent that the Commission provides an 

8 opportunity for a person requesting an advisory opinion 

9 under this section (or counsel for such person) to appear 

10 before the Commission to present testimony in support of 

11 the request, and the person (or counsel) accepts such op12 portunity, the Commission shall provide a reasonable op13 portunity for an interested party who submitted written 

14 comments under subsection (d) in response to the request 

15 (or counsel for such interested party) to appear before the 

16 Commission to present testimony in response to the re17 quest.’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

19 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to requests for advi20 sory opinions under section 308 of the Federal Election 

21 Campaign Act of 1971 which are made on or after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act. 

23 SEC. 5. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF ADMINISTRATIVE PEN24 ALTY AUTHORITY. 

25 Section 309(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Federal Election Cam26 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(4)(C)(v)) is 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
10 

•S 5331 IS

1 amended by striking ‘‘, and that end on or before Decem2 ber 31, 2023’’. 

3 SEC. 6. RESTRICTIONS ON EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS. 

4 Section 306(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

5 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(e)) is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘(e) The Commission’’ and in7 serting ‘‘(e)(1) The Commission’’; and 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

9 paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(2) Members and employees of the Commission shall 

11 be subject to limitations on ex parte communications, as 

12 provided in the regulations promulgated by the Commis13 sion regarding such communications which are in effect 

14 on the date of the enactment of this paragraph.’’. 

15 SEC. 7. CLARIFYING AUTHORITY OF FEC ATTORNEYS TO 

16 REPRESENT FEC IN SUPREME COURT. 

17 (a) CLARIFYING AUTHORITY.—Section 306(f)(4) of 

18 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

19 30106(f)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘any action instituted 

20 under this Act, either (A) by attorneys’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘any action instituted under this Act, including an action 

22 before the Supreme Court of the United States, either (A) 

23 by the general counsel of the Commission and other attor24 neys’’. 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
11 

•S 5331 IS

1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

2 paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to actions insti3 tuted before, on, or after the date of the enactment of 

4 this Act. 

5 SEC. 8. REQUIRING FORMS TO PERMIT USE OF ACCENT 

6 MARKS. 

7 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Section 311(a)(1) of the Fed8 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

9 30111(a)(1)) is amended by striking the semicolon at the 

10 end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and shall ensure that 

11 all such forms (including forms in an electronic format) 

12 permit the person using the form to include an accent 

13 mark as part of the person’s identification;’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

15 subsection (a) shall take effect upon the expiration of the 

16 90-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 

17 of this Act. 

18 SEC. 9. EXTENSION OF THE STATUTES OF LIMITATIONS 

19 FOR OFFENSES UNDER THE FEDERAL ELEC20 TION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971. 

21 (a) CIVIL OFFENSES.—Section 309(a) of the Federal 

22 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is 

23 amended by inserting after paragraph (9) the following 

24 new paragraph: 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
12 

•S 5331 IS

1 ‘‘(10) No person shall be subject to a civil penalty 

2 under this subsection with respect to a violation of this 

3 Act unless a complaint is filed with the Commission with 

4 respect to the violation under paragraph (1), or the Com5 mission responds to information with respect to the viola6 tion which is ascertained in the normal course of carrying 

7 out its supervisory responsibilities under paragraph (2), 

8 not later than 10 years after the date on which the viola9 tion occurred.’’. 

10 (b) CRIMINAL OFFENSES.—Section 406(a) of such 

11 Act (52 U.S.C. 30145(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘5 

12 years’’ and inserting ‘‘10 years’’. 

13 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

14 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

15 on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 

16 SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, this 

18 Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take ef19 fect and apply on the date of the enactment of this Act, 

20 without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 

21 Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out this 

22 Act and the amendments made by this Act. 

23 (b) TRANSITION.— 

24 (1) NO EFFECT ON EXISTING CASES OR PRO25 CEEDINGS.—Nothing in this Act or in any amendVerDate Sep 11 2014 16:14 Jan 06, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5331.IS S5331

pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS
13 

•S 5331 IS

1 ment made by this Act shall affect any of the powers 

2 exercised by the Federal Election Commission prior 

3 to the date of the enactment of this Act, including 

4 any investigation initiated by the Commission prior 

5 to such date or any proceeding (including any en6 forcement action) pending as of such date. 

7 (2) TREATMENT OF CERTAIN COMPLAINTS.—If, 

8 as of the date of the enactment of this Act, the gen9 eral counsel of the Federal Election Commission has 

10 not made any recommendation to the Commission 

11 under section 309(a) of the Federal Election Cam12 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109) with respect 

13 to a complaint filed prior to the date of the enact14 ment of this Act, this Act and the amendments 

15 made by this Act shall apply with respect to the 

16 complaint in the same manner as this Act and the 

17 amendments made by this Act apply with respect to 

18 a complaint filed on or after the date of the enact19 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS