January1987

FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION

999 E Street NW Washington DC 20463 Volume 13, Number 1

1987 REPORTING SCHEDULE

All Committees: Year-End Report

All political committees must file a year-end

report due January 3], 1987. Committees must

also meet other reporting requirements,

depending on what type of committee they are.

Note that a political committee may not

terminate its registration and reporting obligations

during 1987 until all its debts have been

extinguished.

The accompanying charts list filing dates for

reports required during the 1987 nonelection. year.

Since special elections may occur during a

nonelection year, the reporting schedule also

includes filing requirements for committees

active in these elections.

Congressional Candidate Committees .

All committees authorized by Congressional

candidates must report semiannually: JUly 3],

1987 and January 31, 1988. Semiannual filers , . include the authorized committees of candidates

retiring campaign debts or running in future

elections.

Presidential Candidate Committees

All committees authorized by Presidential

candidates must file on either a monthly or a

quarterly basis during 1987. The FEe's Reports

Analysis Division requests that Presidential

committees which change their reporting schedule

during 1987 notify the Commission of their

intention in writing.

PACs and Party Committees

PACs and party committees are required to

file on either a semiannual or a monthly schedule

in 1987. Any committee that wishes to change its

reporting schedule (for example, from monthly to

semiannual reports) must notify the Commission

of its intention. The committee may notify the

Commission by submitting a letter with the next

report due under its current reporting sebedule.

A committee may not change its filing frequency

more than once a year. 11 CFR 104.5(c)

OKLAHOMA RECORDS OFFICE

CHANGED

The Oklahoma Ethics Commission has

replaced the Oklahoma Secretary of State's

Office as the official records office for

FEC reports. Federal political committees

conducting activity in Oklahoma should

therefore file their reports with:

Ethics Commission

118 State Capitol

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma

73105-4802

Telephone: 405/521-3451

Committees Active in Special Elections

All committees authorized by candidates

running for Congress in special elections held in

1987 must file pre- and post-election reports, as

well as the semiannual reports described above.

PACs and party committees that support

candidates in special elections must also follow

this reporting schedule.* continued on p. 2

*A PAC or party committee does not have to

file a pre-election report if this activity has been

previously disclosed.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

REPORTS

1987 Reporting Schedule

REGULATIONS

3 Contribution Limits: Final

Rules Approved

6 ADVISORY OPINIONS

COURT CASES

8 New Litigation
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COIVlI\l1ISSI01'J \blume 13, Numoo- 1

YEAR-END REPORT 1986

MONTHLY REPORTS 1987

QUARTERLY REPORTS 1987

---------

SEMIANNUAL REPORTS 198'1

First (Mid-Year) III - 6/30

Second (Year-End) 7/1 - 12/31

Report

Year-End

Report

February

March

April

May

June

July

August

September

October

November

December

Year-End 1987

Report

Report

First Q

Second Q

Third Q

Fourth Q

(Year-End)

Period Covered

Il/25**-12/31

Period Covered

1/1 - 1/31

2/1 - 2/28

3/1 - 3/31

4/1 - 4/30

5/1 - 5/31

6/1 - 6/30

7/1 - 7/31

8/1-8/31

9/1 - 9/30

10/1 - 10/31

Il/1 - Il/30

12/1 - 12/31

Period Covered

Period Covered

1/1 - 3/31

4/1 - 6/30

7/1 - 9/30

10/1 - 12/31

Filing

Date*

1/31/87

Filing

Date*

2/20/87

3/20/87

4/20/87

5/20/87

6/20/87

7/20/87

8/20/87

9/20/87

10/20/87

11/20/87

12/20/87

1/31/88

Piling

Date*

7/31/87

1/31/88

Filing

Date*

4/15/87

7/15/87

10/15/87

1/31/88

2

WHERE REPORTS ARE FILED

Committees must file all reports and statements simultaneously with the appropriate federal

and state officials. 11 CFR 108.5.

Filing with the Federal Government

o The principal campaign committees (and any

other authorized committees) of House candidates and committees supporting or opposing

only House candidates file with the Clerk of the

House, Office of Records and Registration,

1036 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515. II CFR 104.4(c)(3) and

105.1.

o The principal campaign committees (and any

other authorized committees) of Senate candidates and committees supporting or opposing

only Senate candidates file with the Secretary

of the Senate, Senate Public Records, Hart

Senate Office Building, Room 232, Washington,

D.C. 20510. 11 CFR 104.4(c)(2) and 105.2.

o All other committees, including the authorized

committees of Presidential candidates, file

with the Federal Election Commission, 999 E

Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20463. II CFR

105.3 and 105.4.

Filing with State Governments

o The authorized committees of Congressional

candidates must file a copy of every report and

statement with the Secretary of State or the

appropriate elections official of the state in

which the candidate seeks federal office. 11

CFR 108.3.

o PACs and party committees making contributions or expenditures in connection with House

and Senate races file in the state in which the

candidate seeks election. The law requires a

copy only of that portion of the report applicable to the eandidatets) being supported.

FORMS AND INFORMATION

During 1987, reporting forms and information

will be sent to all r-egistered committees. Questions and requests for additional forms should be

addressed to the Information Services Division,

999 E Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20463; or

call 202/376-3120 or toll free 800/424-9530.

*The filing date is considered the mailing date

if the report is sent by registered or certified

mail. 11 CFR 104.5(e).

'"*Or from the closing date of the last report, if

that date occurred before 11/25/86.
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COIVlMISSIOI\j \hlume 13, Numt€r1

CONTRIBUTION IJMITS: FINAL RULES

APPROVED BY COMMISSION

On November 20, 1986, the Commission

voted to amend its regulations at 11 CFR 110.1

and llO.2 and send them to Congress in January

1987. Once these amended regulations have been

before Congress for 30 legislative days, the

Commission will announce their effective date.

The revisions to sections IlO.1 and 1l0.2

clarify the scope of the contribution limits and

resolve several issues that have arisen since the

regulations were first prescribed in 1977. Major

amendments are highlighted below.

The amended regulations, together with the

Commission's explanation and justification, will

be published in the Federal Register when they

are transmitted to Congress. A copy of this

material may be obtained by calling 376-3120 or

toll-free 800/424-9530.

Contributions by Persons Other Than

Multieandidate Committees: II CFR 110.1

The revised rules clarify that the contribution limits described in this provision (110.1) apply

only to individuals, partnerships, unincorporated

associations and political committees other than

multicanoidate com mittees.

Designation of Contributions for

Particular Elections: 11 CPR IlO.I(b)(2}

The election law establishes separate limits

for contributions to candidates for primary and

general elections. Under the new regulations, to

determine the election for which a contribution is

intended, the Commission either; 1) relies on the

contributor's written statement designating a

specific election or 2) in the absence of a designation, presumes that the contribution is for the

next election.

Designated Contrjbutions, Although a contributor is not required to indicate in writing the

election for which his/her contribution is intended, the revised rules encourage a contributor to

supply a written designation. Written designations: 1) ensure that the contributor's intent is

clearly conveyed to the recipient candidate committee and 2) promote consistency in reporting by

the recipient committee.

Under the new rules, designations must be

provided by the contributors, not the recipient

committees. If a contributor decides to designate

a contribution, he/she must send a written designation to the recipient committee at the time

the contribution is made. The contributor may

write the designation on the contribution check,

instead of providing a separate statement. If a

candidate committee solicits contributions for a

particular election, the contributor'S written designation could consist of his/her signature on a

form that clearly indicates the designation and is

returned with the contribution.

Undesignated Contributions. Under the cur-

'rent rules, undesignated contributions received

after the primary are presumed to be for the

general election and count against the limits for

that election. To cover a wider variety of situations, the new rules simply state that an undesignated contribution counts against the limits

for the next election, even if the next election is

not in the same election cycle.

Redesignation and/or Reattribution of Contributions: 11 CFR IlO.l(b)(5) and 110.I(k){3)

Two principal changes in the rules specify

how a contributor may redesignate a contribution

for a different election or reattribute a contribution to a different contributor, as part of a

joint contribution. Under the amended rules,

candidate committees may seek a redesignation, a

reattribution or a combination of both in a single

written request to a contributor.

Under the new rules, the recipient committee

may ask a contributor to:

o Redesignate or reattribute a contribution if

the contribution, either by itself or when added

to the donor's other contributions, exceeds the

donor's limits for a particular election;

o Redesignate, or redesignate and reattribute, a

contribution which cannot be accepted because

it was made after the election for which it was

designated and there are no net debts outstanding for that election; or

o Redesignate an undesignated' contribution if

the candidate wishes to count it toward a

previous election for which he/she has debts

remaining. (An undesignated contribution

would normally count toward the donor's limits

for the next election.)

The new rules do not, however, permit redesignation or reattribution of prohibited contributions

(e.g., corporate or labor organization contributions). continued

The Record is published by the Federal Election Commission, 999 E Street, N.W., Washington

D.C. 20463. Commissioners are: Joan D. Aikens, Chairman; John Warren McGarry, Vice Chairman:

Lee Ann Elliott; Thomas J. Josefiak; Danny Lee McDonald; Scott E. Thomas; Jo-Anne L. Coe;

Secretary of the Senate, Ex Officio; Benjamin J. Guthrie, Clerk of the House of Representatives,

Ex Officio. For more information, call 202/376-3120 or toll-free 800/424-9530.

3
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION Volume 13, Number 1

Finally, the new rules make clear that a

committee does not have to obtain a written

redesignation and/or reattribution when a committee accepts a legal contribution for one election, but uses it in another.

Procedures for Making Redesignations and

Reatteibutions, Under the current rules, a candidate committee must deposit or return, within 10

days, contributions that appear to be illegal. Deposited contributions must be refunded "within a

reasonable time," if the committee has not determined them to be legal." Under the new rules,

however, a candidate committee has 60 days

within which to obtain a redesignation and/or

reattribution of a contribution. During this period,

the committee must:

o Determine whether a contribution is excessive

or violates the net debts rule;

o Request a redesignation or reattribution of the

contribution in writing; and

o Receive the written redesignation and/or reattribution statement from the contributorfs).

In the case of joint contributions, each contributor's signature must be included on the written

statement. If the redesignation or reattribution is

not in writing, or is not received within 60 days,

the committee must refund the contribution.

Moreover, the new rules place two restrictions on redesignations and reattributions:

o A contribution may be redesignated for a different election and/or reattributed, as a joint

contribution, to a different contributor only if

this does not cause the contributor to exceed

his/her limits for that election; and

o A contribution may be redesignated for a previous election only to the extent that net debts

outstanding remain for that election.

Finally, the new rules provide guidelines for

reporting redesignated and reattributed contributions and maintaining adequate records of

them. (See Supporting Evidence and Conforming

Amendments below.)

Net Debts Outstanding: II CFR llO.I(b)(3}

The amended regulations maintain the longstanding rule that a contribution designated for a

particular election, but made after the election,

may be accepted by a candidate committee only

to the extent that the com mittee has net debts

outstanding for the election. (The contribution

counts against the donor's limit for that election.)

The revised rules, however, contain new provisions to explain how a candidate committee,

*The Commission noted that the new reaesiqnation rules only apply to committees authorized

by candidates because other political committees

do not receive contributions on a per election

basis. However, the new reattribution rules apply

to all political committees.

4

with no net debts outstanding, should handle contributions that are designated for a particular

election but are made after the election. Within

10 days of receiving the eontrtbutionis), the committee treasurer must either deposit or return the

contributions. If a contribution is deposited, the

committee's treasurer has 60 days in which to: l)

refund" the contribution to the contributor or 2)

obtain a reattribution and/or redesignation of the

contribution. (See procedures above.) The Commission noted that, if a committee received

several contributions on the same date which,

together, exceeded the amount needed to retire

its net debts outstanding, the committee could

either: I) accept a proportionate amount of each

contribution or 2) accept some contributions in

full and return, refund or seek redesignations

and/or reattributions for the others.

The current rules do not define "net debts

outstanding," important for purposes of determining whether a candidate committee may

accept designated contributions after an election.

However, the new rules specify that a candidate

committee's "net debts outstanding" consist of the

committee's total unpaid debts and obligations

incurred with respect to a particular election

minus cash on hand and receivables available to

pay those expenses. The com mittee should calculate its net debts outstanding as of the date of the

election and readjust this initial calculation as it

receives additional funds or makes additional expenditures for the election.

For purposes of calculating its net debts

outstanding, a committee should value its invJst----

ments at fair market value, not cost.

The explanation and justification for the new

rules provide an example of how to calculate net

debts outstanding.

Date a Contribution Is Made: 11 CFR IIO.I(b)(6)

The amended rules make clear that the "date

a contribution is made" is the date the contributor

relinquishes control over the contribution, that is,

the date the contribution is delivered to the

recipient com mittee or, if the contribution is

mailed, the date of the postmark. In-kind contributions are made on the date that the contributor

provides the good or services.

The new rules also provide that, if a committee wishes to rely on a postmark for evidence of

when a contribution was made, the committee

must retain the contribution envelope or a copy of

the envelope.

*The new rules explain that a contribution is

"returned" when the written instrument (e.g., a

check) is sent back to the contributor instead of

being deposited. A contribution is "refunded"

when the committee sends the contributor a

check, drawn on the committee's account, for the

amount of a deposited contribution.
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION Volume 13, Numoo- 1

Contributions to Political Party Committees:

II CPR llO.1(e)

The new rules clarify that, even if a national

party committee acts as the authorized committee of a Presidential nominee in the general

election, the committee may still accept contributions of up to $20,000 per year from donors

other than multicandidate committees. However,

this contribution limit does not apply to the

Presidential nominee.* The national party committee must therefore maintain separate accounts

for its own financial activity and that of the

Presidential candidate.

Contributions by Partnerships: II CFR llO.1(e)

The partnership rules contain the current

requirements for dual attribution to both the

contributing partner and the partnership. The

new rules make clear, however, that: 1) a corporate partner may not make contributions to federal

candidates and 2) a corporate partner's portion of

the partnership profits or losses must not be

affected by the partnership's contributions.

Aggregation of Contributions: 11 CFR 1l0.1(h)

The new rules continue the Commission's

longstanding rule on aggregation, namely, that

contributions to certain kinds of political committees supporting the same candidate share a single

limit. For example, contributions to a candidate's

principal campaign committee and to an unauthorized single candidate committee established

on his/her behalf are SUbject to a single limit. .-_._~----~-

Contributions by Spouses: 11 CFR JlO.Hi)

The amended rules make clear that the contribution limits apply separately to each spouse,

even if only one spouse has income.

Application of the Limits

To Particular Elections: II CFR II0.1(j)

General Election Limits. Consistent with the

current rules for a primary election which is not

held, the revised rules provide that a separate

contribution limit applies to a general election

that is not held because: 1) the candidate is

unopposed or 2) the candidate received a majority

of votes in the primary. For purposes of the

limits, the date the general election would have

been held is considered the date of the election.

Primary Election Limits. The new rules provide that a separate contribution limit does not

apply to a primary that is not held because a

• Presidential nominees in the general election

may accept up to $1,000 from persons. Publicly

funded Presidential nominees may accept private

contributions only to defray legal and accounting

expenses of the campaign.

5

candidate was nominated through a convention or

caucus. ThUS, a candidate's committee must

refund or seek redesignations of primary contributions which, when added to contributions made for

the caucus or convention, cause the contributor to

exceed his/her $1,000 per election limit.

Joint Contributions: II CPR llO.1(k)

FEC rules governing the attribution of joint

contributions have been moved from section

104.8(d) of the current rules to this new section of

the revised rules. The new section contains the

current requirement that joint contributions

(other than partnership contributions) must include the signature of each contributor on the

contribution check or any accompanying statement. Additionally, the new rules provide that, if

the amount attributable to each contributor is not

indicated on the contribution, the recipient committee must attribute the contribution equally to

each contributor. (In a statement submitted to

the committee, the contributors could, however,

indicate an alternative attribution of their contribution.) This provision also sets forth the reattributton procedures previously discussed.

This provision is not limited to joint contributions by spouses.

Supporting Evidence: II CFR 1l0.1(i)

The new rules provide recipient com mittees

with guidelines for documenting designated, redesignated and reattributed contributions. Under

the new rules, a committee must retain written

records of designations, redesignations, and reattributions for at least 3 years. A committee's

failure to maintain these records will invalidate

the original designation or subsequent redesignation or reattribution, thus resulting in the committee's possible acceptance of excessive contributions.

Contributions by Multicandidate

Committees: 11 CFR 110.2

The new rules consolidate in one section

those provisions pertaining to the contribution

limits for multicandidate committees. The new

rules for multicandidate committees follow those

for contributions by other persons (highlighted

above), except for those provisions setting forth

the different contribution limits for rnulticandidate committees. However, the new provisions

concerning reattribution of joint contributions are

not contained in this section because multicandidate committees do not make joint contributions

and do not seek to reattribute their contributions

to other political committees.

Conforming Amendments

To make revisions to 110.1 and 110.2 consistent with other sections of the regulations, the

agency also amended its rules at: 100.7(c),

continued
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION Volume 13, Number 1

ADVISORY OPINION REQUESTS

The following chart lists recent requests for

advisory opinions (AORs). The full text of each

AOR is available to the public in the Commission's Office of Public Records.

ADVISORY OPINIONS: SUMMARIES

An Advisory Opinion CAO) issued by the Commission provides guidance with regard to the

specific situation described in the AOR. Any

qualified person who has requested an AO and

acts in accordance with the opinion will not be

subject to any sanctions under the Act. Other

persons may rely on the opinion if they are

involved in a specific activity which is indistinguishable in all material aspects from the activity

discussed in the AO. Those seeking guidance for

their own activity, however, should consult the

full text of an AO and not rely only on the

sum mary given here.

AO 1986-37: Presidential Candidate

Appearances at Convention

of Nonprofit Corporation

The National Conservative Foundation (the Foundation), a nonprofit corporation with no membership, may not finance a national convention in

mid-1987 which would feature appearances by

1988 Presidential candidates and potential candidates before a public audience. The Poundation's

financing of the convention would constitute prohibited in-kind contributions because the candidate appearances would not qualify as the type of

activity specifically exempted from the Act's

prohibition on corporate contributions. See 2

U.S.C. §44Ib. That is, the candidates' appearances would not qualify as either: 1) partisan or

nonpartisan appearances before the Foundation's

Subject

Affect of corporate reorganization

on PACs' multicandidate status,

contribution limits and affiliation

with each other. (Date made public:

November 26, 1986; Length: 2

pages, plus 58-page supplement)

Services provided on fee basis to

House campaign by consulting corporation owned by candidate and his

family. (Date made publics

December 4, 1986; Length: 1 page,

plus 24-page supplement)

1986-42

AOR

1986-43

100.8(c), 102.9, 103.3 and 104.8(d). For example,

the procedures political committees must follow

when receiving contributions of questionable legality have been revised to reflect the new procedures for redesignating and reattributing contributions. 11 CFR I03.3(b). The amended rules

make clear that the contributor, not the candidate, may designate a contribution. 11 CPR

I02.9(e).

The new rules explain that the treasurer of a

political committee is responsible for: 1) examining all contributions received for any evidence of illegality and 2) aggregating all contributions from the same contributor to determine

whether they exceed his/her contribution limits.

11 CFR 103.3.

The amended rules describe the procedures

that a treasurer must follow in handling contributions that appear to come from prohibited

sources such as corporations or foreign nationals;

contributions that are not found to be illegal until

after their receipt and deposit; excessive contributions; and contributions received for a particular election by a committee with no debts for

that election. The revised regulations prescribe

specific time periods within which the treasurer

must handle such contributions. For example, the

treasurer must refund contributions from prohibited sources within 30 days.

Under the revised rules, a committee

treasurer must maintain a written record noting

why the committee has questioned the legality of

a contribution. The committee's reports must

indicate the questionable nature of the contribution, as well as any refund it makes.

Furthermore, the new rules state that contributions of questionable legality may not be used

for campaign expenditures and that a committee

treasurer must: 1) establish a separate account

for such funds or 2) maintain sufficient permissible funds to cover all potential refunds of illegal

contributions.

Finally, the conforming amendments spell out

procedures for reporting redesignated, reattribut ed, refunded and joint contributions. 11 CPR

104.8.

6
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COrvlMISSION Volume 13, Number 1

restricted class" (11 CPR 114.3 and 114.4) or 2)

nonpartisan candidate debates (11 CFR 110.13 and

114.4(e)). Nor would the candidates' appearances

be considered noncampaign-related events, which

would be beyond the Act's jurisdiction.

Since the Foundation may not sponsor the

convention as proposed, the Commission did not

address the issue of whether the Foundation could

finance the convention with funds from prohibited

sources, such as corporations, government contractors and foreign nationals.

The Foundation's Proposed Convention

The Foundation is a nonprofit corporation

established to sponsor public forums on domestic

and foreign policy issues. The Foundation's proposed national convention (the National Conservative Convention) would be open to the general

public and would adopt policy positions on various

issues. As part of the convention agenda, the

Foundation planned a series of separate addresses

by individuals who, at the time of the convention,

would be Presidential candidates or potential candidates. The convention would not, however, have

any direct relationship to the 1988 Presidential

nomination or election process. During the convention, no contributions would be solicited to the

candidates' campaigns; their candidacies would

not be expressly advocated; and the convention

program would not be structured to promote one

candidate over another. Nor would the Foundation pay honoraria to candidates or expenses

incurred by candidates in connection with the

convention.

Not Qualified as Debate

The Act and FEe Regulations prohibit corporations, including nonprofit corporations, from

making contributions or expenditures in connection with federal elee tions, 2 U.S.C. §441b(a).

Exceptions to this prohibition include the sponsorship of candidate debates by qualified nonprofit,

nonpartisan corporations.*'it The regulations

state that a debate must: 1) include at least two

candidates and 2) be nonpartisan (i.e., a debate

may not promote one candidate over another). 11

CFR 110.l3(a) and (b). As planned, the Foundation's "candidate debates" would not meet the

first of these two requirements; rather than participating in face-to-face debates with other eandi-

, dates, each candidate would address the convention separately. Under the regulations, nonparti-

'"A non.profit corporation's restricted class is

limited to its members and its executive and

administrative personnel and their families.

'"'"Defined by FEe Regula tions as a taxexempt organization which does not endorse,

support or oppose political candidates or parties.

See FEe rules at 11 CFR 110.13(a) and the IRS

code at section 501(c)(3).

7

san debates are the only way a 50l(c)(3) organization may finance campaign-related appearances

by candidates before the general public.

Not Qualified as Noncampaign Event

The Commission also rejected the idea that

the proposed candidate appearances before the

convention would constitute noncampalgn-related

events (which would be outside the Act's jurisdiction). Based on the facts presented in the Foundation's advisory opinion request, the Commission

concluded that the candidates' appearances would

be campaign-related because:

o Individuals would be invited to address the

convention based on their Presidential candidacy (or potential candidacy) in 1988; .

o Participants could address the convention on

any topic and COUld, therefore, advocate their

respective candidacies;

o In asking Whether the participants could be

identified as Presidential candidates in introductory comments and convention literature,

the Foundation implied that their appearances

would be campaign-related.

The Commission noted that its conclusion

was not affected by the Foundation's intention to

prohibit, during the convention, express advocacy

of candidates, floor demonstrations in support of

or in opposition to candidates and contribution

solicitations or payments to candidates (i.e.,

honoraria or reimbursements for expenses

resulting from their appearances). See AO 1984-

13.

The Commission did not express an opinion

with regard to the Foundation'S tax-exempt status

or any other tax issues because they are beyond

the agency's jurisdiction. (Date issued: November 10, 1986; Length: 7 pages)

AO 1986-38: Individual's Financing of

Media Ads to Promote

Conservative Candidates

Payments made exclusively by David Stedman for

tv and radio ads which promoted conservative

candidates in North Carolina's 1986 general elections constituted election-influencing expenditures. 2 U.S.C. §43 I(a)(A)(i); 11 CFR 100.8(a)(1).

Mr. Stedman's payments for having the ads prepared and aired were not, however, SUbject to the

Act's reporting requirements or contribution

limits.

The Commission concluded that, because the

ads urged the general public to "vote on

November 4th" and "send the right people to

Washington," they were designed for the purpose

of influencing federal elections. As such, they

were expenditures. However, since the ads did not

expressly advocate the election of clearly identified candidates, Mr. Stedman's payments for the

continued
January 1987 FEDERAL ELECTION COIVlI\l1ISSI01\J Volume 13, Number 1

ads did not constitute independent expenditures,

subject to the Act's reporting requirements.

Z U.S.C. §§431(I7) and 434(c).

Nor would the ads be considered in-kind contributions to the candidates. If, however, Mr.

Stedman had either consulted a candidate or cosponsored an ad with a candidate, his media

paym ents would have constituted a contribution,

subject to the Act's reporting requirements and

contribution limits. 2 U.S.C. §44Ia(a)(7)(B)(i).

Each ad stated that Mr. Stedman paid for it

and that the ad was not authorized by any candidate. Nevertheless, the Commission concluded

that Mr. Stedman's payments for the ads would

not trigger the Act's registration and reporting

requirements for political committees" because:

1) He did not make the media expenditures on

behalf of any group, 2) He acted on his own, as an

individual, using his own funds and 3) He did not

solicit or receive contributions from others for

the ads. (Date issued: November 21, 1986;

Length: 5 pages)

"The Act defines a political committee as

"cny committee, dub, association or other group

of persons which receives contributions aggregating in excess of $1,000 during a ca~endar year

or which makes expenditures aggregating in excess of $l~OOO during a calendar year." 2 U.S.C.

section 431(4j(A).

FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION

999 E Street,NW

Washington. D.C. 20463

Official Business

NEW LITIGATION

FEC v. Citizens Party

The FEe filed suit against the Citizens

Party, a political party committee, and the

party's acting treasurer, Kirby Edmonds, for respondents' failure to comply with the terms of a

conciliation agreement they had entered into with

the Commission on March 20, 1986. Specifically,

respondents failed to pay the full amount of the

$1 ~500 civil penalty stipulated in the agreement.

The FEe therefore asks the court to:

o Declare that the Citizens Party and its

treasurer violated the terms of the conciliation

agreement;

o Order respondents to comply with the agreement by paying the outstanding balance of the

penalty within 10 days;

o Award the Commission interest on the unpaid

balance of the penalty, beginning with June 18,

1986, the date the final payment on the penalty

was due;

o Assess an additional $5,000 civil penalty against

both the Citizens Party and Mr. Edmonds for

violating the terms of the agreement; and

o Permanently enjoin defendants from further

violations of the agreement.

U.S. District Court for the District of

COlumbia, Civil Action No. 86-3113, November

12, 1986.

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Federal Election Commission

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