I Brownstein Hyatt 

I FarberSchreck 

October 24, 2016 

Christopher O. Murray 

Attorney at Lsiw 

303.223.1183 tel 

303.223.8003 fax 

Gmunray@bhfs.conn 

Via E-mail (to Audit(a>fec.aov1 

Federal Election Commission 

Audit Division 

Ms. Zuzana Pacious 

999 E. Street N.W. 

Washington, D.C. 20463 

RE; Response of the Colorado Republican Committee to DFAR dated October 5, 2016 

Dear Ms. Pacious: 

This firm represents the Colorado Republican Committee (the "Committee"). This letter will serve as the 

Committee's response the Commission's Draft Final Audit Report dated October 5,2016. I address the 

Committee's response to each of the Audit Division's interim Findings and recommendations in turn. 

Finding 1 - "Miss t Of Financiai Activity" 

The Committee agrees with the Audit Division's recommendations regarding Findirig 1(A) arid Finding 1(B). 

The misstatements were inadvertent. As the Draft Final Audit Report notes, the Committee has fiied 

amendments to the reievant 2011 reports to address these recortimendations. The Coinmittee 

inadvertentiy faiied to file amendments for 2012. These amendrtierits wiii be filed on or befbte Octbber 61, 

2016 and wiii complete the Committee's compiiance with the Audit Division's recommendations. 

As to Finding 1(C), the Committee continues to disagree with the Audit Division's recortimendations and 

conclusion that the matter is unresoived. The Committee has previousiy provided documentation—as 

noted in the interim Audit Report and the Draft Final Audit Report—demonstrating that the account in 

question (the "Coiorado RNC Host account") is not centroiied by the Committee and is therefore not an 

unreported federal account. The Committee's position is that it has by its prior correspondence, including 

its response to the interim Audit Report, and cooperation with Commission staff sufficiently demonstrated 

that it does not controi the Coiorado RNC Host account. 

Finding 2 - "Reportinq of Apparent independent Expenditures" 

The Committee partially disagrees with the Audit Division's recommendations as to Finding 2. The 

Committee has—as noted in the interim Audit Report and Draft Final Audit Report—consistently asserted 

that the communications at issue are not reportable as independent.expenditures because they are subject 

to the volunteer material exemption. The Committee has provided documentation substantiating volunteer 

involvement including the volunteer names, the location the work was done, and the date of the volunteer 

involvement. The Committee appreciates the Audit Division's acknowledgment in the Draft Final Audit 

Report that Committee has never before been requested to provide volunteer timesheets and photographs 

and its revision of its recommendation regarding the $93,090.00 in direct mailers td .conclude that these are 

bhfs.com Brownstein Hyatt Rarber'Sch'recl(,.aP. 
Zuzana Pacious 

October 24,2016 

Page 2 

not properly considered Independent expenditures. The Committee believes it has provided enough 

information to substantiate application of the Volunteer material exenfiption as to the remaining $110,905.00 

in expenditures of the same nature. As a result, the Committee Will not make any amendments to disclose 

these disbursenrients as independent expenditures, and continues to believe that no.24/48 hour report was. 

necessary these disbursements. 

This said, the Committee agrees with the Audit Division that the $153,900.00 spent bh radio advertising 

does not qualify for the voiunteer materials exemption. The Committee will file amendments to the relevant 

reports on or before Friday, November 11,2016 in compliance with the Audit Division's recommendations. 

Finding 3 - "Recordkeeping for Communications'' 

The Committee continues to disagree with the Audit Division's recommendations as:tb Finding 3, After 

Audit staff provided the Committee with a schedule of disbursements for which it required further 

documentation, the Committee provided ail documentation in its possession in a series of letters, LiSB 

thumb-drives and online file site links between January 31, 2014 and August 11,2014. The Committee 

continues to work to associate the already prbvided invoices and communications with each other. This is 

a time-consuming task that has not been possibie in advance of the November 8,2016 election. The 

Committee will complete this work and provide the Audit Division with a final record associating ail 

communications with invoices on or before December 31, 2016. 

Finding 4 - •Failure to itemize Debts and Obiioations' 

The Committee maintains that it has done ail that is necessary to comply with the Audit Division's 

recommendations as to Fihding 4. Given the Commission's determination that the amounts owed to the 

Committee's former legal counsel were not privileged from disclosure, the Committee amended its reports 

for the applicable period to refiect these amounts as debt. The Committee has appropriately declined to 

amend its reports to the amounts allegedly owed to its former get-out-the-vote ("GOTV") vendor, as that 

contract was terminated and the amounts disputed by CRC. The amounts were never paid and the statute 

of limitations for any breach of this agreement has run, hence the CRC cannot amend its reports as any 

amounts allegedly owed to this vendor were and are not properly debt. 

Request for Hearing 

The CRC hereby requests a hearing before the Commission to present legal arguments regarding Finding 

1 (the status of the "Colorado RNC Host Account") and Finding 4 (the status of disputed and unpaid 

amounts as reportable '^debt"). 

Thank you for your attention to this response; please do not hesitate to contact me should you have any 

questions regarding it. 

Regards, 

Christopher O. Murray 

cc. Mary Moss, Federal Election Cohnmi'ssion 

Steve House, Colorado Republican Committee 

Marty Neiison, Colorado Republican Committee 

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