I 

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113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 268 

To reform the financing of Congressional elections by encouraging grassroots 

participation in the funding of campaigns, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 15, 2013 

Mr. SARBANES (for himself, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. 

CAPUANO, Mr. CICILLINE, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. COURTNEY, 

Ms. DELAURO, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. DINGELL, Ms. EDWARDS, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 

HIMES, Mr. HOLT, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Ms. LEE of California, 

Mr. MAFFEI, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. NOLAN, Ms. NORTON, Mr. 

O’ROURKE, Ms. PINGREE of Maine, Mr. POLIS, Mr. PRICE of North 

Carolina, Mr. RUSH, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. SIRES, Mr. TONKO, Mr. 

VAN HOLLEN, and Mr. YARMUTH) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition 

to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Energy and Commerce, for 

a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 

consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To reform the financing of Congressional elections by encouraging grassroots participation in the funding of campaigns, and for other purposes. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Grassroots Democracy Act of 2013’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—GRASSROOTS PARTICIPATION IN FUNDING OF 

ELECTIONS 

Subtitle A—Grassroots Democracy Dollars 

Sec. 101. Refundable credit for grassroots contributions to Federal congressional candidates. 

Subtitle B—Grassroots Democracy Coupon Pilot Program 

Sec. 111. Establishment of pilot program. 

Sec. 112. Reports to Congress. 

TITLE II—GRASSROOTS FINANCING OF CONGRESSIONAL 

ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

Sec. 201. Benefits and eligibility requirements for candidates. 

‘‘TITLE V—GRASSROOTS FINANCING OF CONGRESSIONAL 

ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

‘‘Subtitle A—Benefits 

‘‘Sec. 501. Benefits for participating candidates. 

‘‘Sec. 502. Procedures for making payments. 

‘‘Sec. 503. Use of funds. 

‘‘Sec. 504. Qualified grassroots contributions described. 

‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and Certification 

‘‘Sec. 511. Eligibility. 

‘‘Sec. 512. Qualifying requirements. 

‘‘Sec. 513. Certification. 

‘‘Subtitle C—Requirements for Candidates Certified as Participating 

Candidates 

‘‘Sec. 521. Contribution and expenditure requirements. 

‘‘Sec. 522. Administration of campaign. 

‘‘Sec. 523. Preventing unnecessary spending of public funds. 

‘‘Sec. 524. Remitting unspent funds after election. 

‘‘Subtitle D—Supplemental Grassroots Democracy People’s Fund Payments 

‘‘Sec. 531. Eligibility of participating candidates for payments. 

‘‘Sec. 532. Amount of payment; use of funds. 


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‘‘Sec. 533. Severability. 

‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative Provisions 

‘‘Sec. 541. Grassroots Democracy Fund. 

‘‘Sec. 542. Grassroots Democracy Advisory Commission. 

‘‘Sec. 543. Administration by Commission. 

‘‘Sec. 544. Violations and penalties. 

‘‘Sec. 545. Election cycle defined. 

Sec. 202. Prohibiting use of contributions by participating candidates for purposes other than campaign for election. 

TITLE III—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 

Sec. 301. Expanding requirement to disclose bundlers who are registered lobbyists to all bundlers. 

Sec. 302. Expansion of period for treatment of communications as electioneering communications. 

Sec. 303. User fees for committees and bundlers. 

Sec. 304. Petition for certiorari. 

Sec. 305. Filing by all candidates with Commission. 

Sec. 306. Electronic filing of FEC reports. 

Sec. 307. Effective date. 

TITLE IV—OFFSETS 

Sec. 401. Reform of tax rules related to political organizations. 

Sec. 402. Voluntary contributions to the Grassroots Democracy Fund. 

TITLE V—EXPANDING CANDIDATE ACCESS TO ADVERTISING 

Sec. 501. Broadcasts by or on behalf of candidates. 

1 TITLE I—GRASSROOTS PARTICI2 PATION IN FUNDING OF 

3 ELECTIONS 

4 Subtitle A—Grassroots Democracy 

5 Dollars 

6 SEC. 101. REFUNDABLE CREDIT FOR GRASSROOTS CON7 TRIBUTIONS TO FEDERAL CONGRESSIONAL 

8 CANDIDATES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart C of part IV of sub10 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 


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1 1986 (relating to refundable credits) is amended by insert2 ing after section 36B the following new section: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 36C. CREDIT FOR GRASSROOTS CONTRIBUTIONS TO 

4 FEDERAL CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an individual, 

6 there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed 

7 by this subtitle an amount equal to the qualified grass8 roots Federal congressional campaign contributions paid 

9 or incurred by the taxpayer during the taxable year. 

10 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(1) DOLLAR LIMITATION.—The credit allowed 

12 under subsection (a) to any taxpayer with respect to 

13 any taxable year shall not exceed $25 (twice such 

14 amount in the case of a joint return). 

15 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON CONTRIBUTIONS TO FED16 ERAL CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES.—No credit 

17 shall be allowed under this section to any taxpayer 

18 for any taxable year if such taxpayer made aggre19 gate contributions in excess of $200 (twice such 

20 amount in the case of a joint return) during the tax21 able year to— 

22 ‘‘(A) any single Federal congressional can23 didate, or 

24 ‘‘(B) any political committee established 

25 and maintained by a national political party. 


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1 ‘‘(3) INELIGIBILITY OF INDIVIDUALS USING

2 GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY COUPONS.—No credit 

3 shall be allowed under this section with respect to 

4 any individual for any taxable year during which 

5 such individual submitted a Grassroots Democracy 

6 Coupon under subtitle B of title I of the Grassroots 

7 Democracy Act of 2013 to a candidate for election 

8 for Federal office. In the case of a joint return with 

9 respect to which this paragraph applies to one of the 

10 spouses, such return shall not be treated as a joint 

11 return for purposes of determining the dollar limita12 tion under paragraph (1). 

13 ‘‘(c) QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS FEDERAL CONGRES14 SIONAL CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.—For purposes of 

15 this section, the term ‘qualified grassroots Federal con16 gressional campaign contribution’ means any contribution 

17 of cash by an individual to a Federal congressional can18 didate or to a political committee established and main19 tained by a national political party if such contribution 

20 is not prohibited under the Federal Election Campaign 

21 Act of 1971. 

22 ‘‘(d) FEDERAL CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE.—For 

23 purposes of this section— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal congres25 sional candidate’ means any candidate for election to 


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1 the office of Senator or Representative in, or Dele2 gate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress. 

3 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF AUTHORIZED COMMIT4 TEES.—Any contribution made to an authorized 

5 committee of a Federal congressional candidate shall 

6 be treated as made to such candidate. 

7 ‘‘(e) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a taxable 

9 year beginning after 2014, the $25 amount under 

10 subsection (b)(1) shall be increased by an amount 

11 equal to— 

12 ‘‘(A) such dollar amount, multiplied by 

13 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter14 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

15 year in which the taxable year begins, deter16 mined by substituting ‘calendar year 2013’ for 

17 ‘calendar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

18 thereof. 

19 ‘‘(2) ROUNDING.—If any amount as adjusted 

20 under subparagraph (A) is not a multiple of $5, 

21 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest mul22 tiple of $5.’’. 

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

24 (1) Section 6211(b)(4)(A) of such Code is 

25 amended by inserting ‘‘36C,’’ after ‘‘36B,’’. 


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1 (2) Section 1324(b)(2) of title 31, United 

2 States Code, is amended by inserting ‘‘36C,’’ after 

3 ‘‘36B,’’. 

4 (3) The table of sections for subpart C of part 

5 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Rev6 enue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting after the 

7 item relating to section 36B the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 36C. Credit for grassroots contributions to Federal congressional candidates.’’. 

8 (c) FORMS.—The Secretary of the Treasury, or his 

9 designee, shall ensure that the credit for grassroots con10 tributions to Federal congressional candidates allowed 

11 under section 36C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

12 as added by this section, may be claimed on Forms 

13 1040EZ and 1040A. 

14 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

15 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

16 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

17 Subtitle B—Grassroots Democracy 

18 Coupon Pilot Program 

19 SEC. 111. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Grassroots Democracy 

21 Advisory Commission established under section 542 of the 

22 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by sec23 tion 201) (hereafter in this subtitle referred to as the 


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1 ‘‘Commission’’) shall establish a pilot program under 

2 which— 

3 (1) a qualified individual who resides in a State 

4 selected for participation in the program shall be 

5 provided with a voucher to be known as a ‘‘Grass6 roots Democracy Coupon’’ during the election cycle 

7 which will be assigned a routing number and which 

8 at the option of the individual will be provided in ei9 ther paper or electronic form; 

10 (2) using the routing number assigned to the 

11 Coupon, the individual may submit the Grassroots 

12 Democracy Coupon in either electronic or paper 

13 form to qualified candidates for election for Federal 

14 office and allocate such portion of the value of the 

15 voucher in increments of $5 (in an amount not to 

16 exceed $50 for any single candidate) as the indi17 vidual may select to any such candidate; and 

18 (3) if the candidate transmits such Grassroots 

19 Democracy Coupon to the Commission, the Commis20 sion shall pay the candidate the portion of the value 

21 of the voucher that the individual allocated to the 

22 candidate, which shall be considered a contribution 

23 by the individual to the candidate for purposes of 

24 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. 

25 (b) SELECTION OF STATES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A State that seeks to par2 ticipate in the pilot program under this title shall 

3 submit to the Commission (at such time and in such 

4 form as the Commission may require) an application 

5 containing such information and assurances as the 

6 Commission may require. 

7 (2) CRITERIA.—In selecting among States that 

8 seek to participate in the program, the Commission 

9 shall ensure a balance among various geographic re10 gions, population sizes, and other demographic char11 acteristics. 

12 (c) STANDARDS FOR QUALIFICATION OF INDIVID13 UALS.—The Commission shall establish standards for the 

14 qualification of individuals to whom Grassroots Democ15 racy Coupons will be provided, so that only individuals 

16 who are registered to vote in elections for Federal office 

17 may qualify and such individuals would be able to claim 

18 the Coupons immediately upon registering to vote. 

19 (d) OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE SPECIFICATIONS.—In 

20 carrying out the pilot program under this subtitle, the 

21 Commission shall— 

22 (1) create the necessary routing numbers for 

23 the Grassroots Democracy Coupons, which will be 

24 matched with State-issued voter registration cards; 


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1 (2) provide incentives for candidates for election 

2 for Federal office and interested organizations to de3 velop online platforms through which individuals 

4 may select among eligible candidates for the submis5 sion and acceptance of Grassroots Democracy Cou6 pons in electronic or paper form; and 

7 (3) establish fraud prevention mechanisms so 

8 that an individual may revoke a Grassroots Democ9 racy Coupon not later than 2 days after submitting 

10 the Coupon to a candidate. 

11 SEC. 112. REPORTS TO CONGRESS. 

12 (a) REPORTS.—Not later than 6 months after each 

13 election cycle during which the pilot program under this 

14 subtitle is in effect, the Commission and the Government 

15 Accountability Office shall each submit a report to Con16 gress analyzing the operation and effectiveness of the pro17 gram during the cycle, and shall include in each such re18 port such recommendations as the Commission and the 

19 Government Accountability Office (as the case may be) 

20 consider appropriate regarding the expansion of the pilot 

21 program to all States and territories, along with such 

22 other recommendations as the Commission and Govern23 ment Accountability Office consider appropriate. 

24 (b) DEFINITION.—In subsection (a), the term ‘‘elec25 tion cycle’’ means the period beginning on the day after 


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1 the date of the most recent regularly scheduled general 

2 election for Federal office and ending on the date of the 

3 next regularly scheduled general election for Federal of4 fice. 

5 TITLE II—GRASSROOTS FINANC6 ING OF CONGRESSIONAL 

7 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

8 SEC. 201. BENEFITS AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR 

9 CANDIDATES. 

10 The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 

11 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘TITLE V—GRASSROOTS FINANC14 ING OF CONGRESSIONAL 

15 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

16 ‘‘Subtitle A—Benefits 

17 ‘‘SEC. 501. BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—If a candidate for election to the 

19 office of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resi20 dent Commissioner to, the Congress is certified as a par21 ticipating candidate under this title with respect to an 

22 election for such office, the candidate shall be entitled to 

23 payments as provided under this title. 

24 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) TIER 1 CANDIDATES.—In the case of a 

2 participating candidate who is a Tier 1 candidate, 

3 the amount of a payment made under this title shall 

4 be equal to 500 percent of the amount of qualified 

5 grassroots contributions received by the candidate 

6 since the most recent payment made to the can7 didate under this title during the election cycle 

8 which are attributable to residents of the State in 

9 which the candidate seeks election. 

10 ‘‘(2) TIER 2 CANDIDATES.—In the case of a 

11 participating candidate who is a Tier 2 candidate, 

12 the amount of the payment made under this title 

13 shall be equal to 1,000 percent of the amount of 

14 qualified grassroots contributions received by the 

15 candidate since the most recent payment made to 

16 the candidate under this title during the election 

17 cycle. 

18 ‘‘(c) LIMIT ON AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF PAY19 MENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) TIER 1 CANDIDATES.—In the case of a 

21 participating candidate who is a Tier 1 candidate, 

22 the aggregate amount of payments made under this 

23 title may not exceed 50% of the average of the 10 

24 greatest amounts of disbursements made by the au25 thorized committees of any winning candidate for 


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1 the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi2 dent Commissioner to, the Congress during the most 

3 recent election cycle (in the case of a participating 

4 candidate for such office) or any winning candidate 

5 for the office of Senator during the most recent elec6 tion cycle (in the case of a participating candidate 

7 for such office). 

8 ‘‘(2) TIER 2 CANDIDATES.—In the case of a 

9 participating candidate who is a Tier 2 candidate, 

10 the aggregate amount of payments made under this 

11 title may not exceed 100% of the average of the 10 

12 greatest amounts of disbursements made by the au13 thorized committees of any winning candidate for 

14 the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi15 dent Commissioner to, the Congress during the most 

16 recent election cycle (in the case of a participating 

17 candidate for such office) or any winning candidate 

18 for the office of Senator during the most recent elec19 tion cycle (in the case of a participating candidate 

20 for such office). 

21 ‘‘SEC. 502. PROCEDURES FOR MAKING PAYMENTS. 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission make a pay23 ment under section 501 to a candidate who is certified 

24 as a participating candidate upon receipt from the can25 didate of a request for a payment which includes— 


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1 ‘‘(1) a statement of the number of qualified 

2 grassroots contributions received by the candidate 

3 since the most recent payment made to the can4 didate under this title during the election cycle; 

5 ‘‘(2) a statement of the amount of the payment 

6 the candidate anticipates receiving with respect to 

7 the request; and 

8 ‘‘(3) such other information and assurances as 

9 the Commission may require. 

10 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS ON SUBMISSION OF RE11 QUESTS.—A candidate may not submit a request under 

12 subsection (a) unless each of the following applies: 

13 ‘‘(1) The number of individuals in the state14 ment referred to in subsection (a)(1) is equal to or 

15 greater than 100, unless the request is submitted 

16 during the 30-day period which ends on the date of 

17 a general election. 

18 ‘‘(2) Of the number of individuals in the state19 ment referred to in subsection (a)(1), at least 50 

20 percent are residents of the Congressional district 

21 involved (in the case of a candidate for election for 

22 the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi23 dent Commissioner to, the Congress) or the State in24 volved (in the case of a candidate for election for the 

25 office of Senator). 


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1 ‘‘(3) The candidate did not receive a payment 

2 under this title during the 7-day period which ends 

3 on the date the candidate submits the request. 

4 ‘‘(c) TIME OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall 

5 make payments under this section not later than 2 busi6 ness days after the receipt of a request submitted under 

7 subsection (a). 

8 ‘‘(d) DECLARATION OF TIER 1 OR TIER 2 STATUS.— 

9 A candidate shall include in the first request for payment 

10 submitted under subsection (a) a statement specifying 

11 whether the candidate is a Tier 1 candidate or a Tier 2 

12 candidate under this title. 

13 ‘‘(e) APPEALS.—The Commission shall provide a 

14 written explanation with respect to any denial of a request 

15 for payment which is submitted under this section and 

16 shall provide for the opportunity for review and reconsid17 eration within 5 business days of such denial. 

18 ‘‘SEC. 503. USE OF FUNDS. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate shall use payments 

20 made under this title only for making direct payments for 

21 the receipt of goods and services which constitute author22 ized expenditures in connection with the election cycle in23 volved. 

24 ‘‘(b) LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF PAYMENT MADE ON

25 COMMISSION BASIS TO INDIVIDUALS COLLECTING QUALIVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:25 Jan 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H268.IH H268

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1 FIED GRASSROOTS CONTRIBUTIONS.—If a candidate who 

2 is certified as a participating candidate under this title 

3 pays any person a commission on a per contribution basis 

4 for collecting qualified grassroots contributions, the 

5 amount paid by the candidate and the authorized commit6 tees of the candidate may not exceed 20% of the value 

7 of the qualified grassroots contributions the person col8 lected. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 504. QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS CONTRIBUTIONS DE10 SCRIBED. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In this title, the term ‘qualified 

12 grassroots contribution’ means, with respect to a can13 didate and the authorized committees of a candidate, a 

14 contribution that meets the following requirements: 

15 ‘‘(1) The contribution is in an amount that is— 

16 ‘‘(A) not less than the greater of $5 or the 

17 amount determined by the Commission under 

18 section 542(c)(2); and 

19 ‘‘(B) not more than the greater of $100 or 

20 the amount determined by the Commission 

21 under section 542(c)(2). 

22 ‘‘(2) The contribution is made by an individual 

23 who is not otherwise prohibited from making a con24 tribution under this Act. 


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1 ‘‘(3) The individual who makes the contribution 

2 has not made any contribution to the candidate or 

3 the authorized committees of the candidate during 

4 the election cycle involved that is not a qualified 

5 grassroots contribution. 

6 ‘‘(b) TREATMENT OF GRASSROOTS REFUNDABLE

7 CREDITS AND GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY VOUCHERS.— 

8 Any payment received by a candidate and the authorized 

9 committees of a candidate which is treated as a qualified 

10 grassroots Federal congressional campaign contribution 

11 under section 36B of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

12 or which consists of a Grassroots Democracy Coupon 

13 under subtitle B of title I of the Grassroots Democracy 

14 Act of 2013 shall be considered a qualified grassroots con15 tribution for purposes of this title, so long as the indi16 vidual making the payment meets the requirements of 

17 paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection (a). 

18 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS BY INDIVID19 UALS OPTING OUT OF GRASSROOTS SYSTEMS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A contribution by an indi21 vidual shall not be treated as a qualified grassroots 

22 contribution for purposes of this title if, at the time 

23 the individual makes the contribution, the individual 

24 notifies the recipient that the contribution is not to 

25 be treated as a qualified grassroots contribution. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTIONS DEEMED QUALIFIED.— 

2 Any contribution which meets the requirements set 

3 forth in subsection (a) shall be deemed a qualified 

4 grassroots contribution without regard to whether 

5 the individual making the contribution designates 

6 the contribution as a qualified grassroots contribu7 tion for purposes of this title. 

8 ‘‘(d) RESTRICTION ON SUBSEQUENT CONTRIBU9 TIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual who makes a 

11 qualified grassroots contribution to a candidate or 

12 the authorized committees of a candidate during an 

13 election cycle may not make any contribution to such 

14 candidate or the authorized committees of such can15 didate during the cycle which is not a qualified 

16 grassroots contribution. 

17 ‘‘(2) NO EFFECT ON ABILITY TO MAKE MUL18 TIPLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Nothing in this section 

19 may be construed to prohibit an individual from 

20 making multiple qualified grassroots contributions to 

21 any candidate or any number of candidates, so long 

22 as each contribution meets the requirements of this 

23 section. 

24 ‘‘(e) NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CAN25 DIDATES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) NOTIFICATION.—Each authorized com2 mittee of a candidate who seeks to be a participating 

3 candidate under this title shall provide the following 

4 information in any materials for the solicitation of 

5 contributions, including any Internet site through 

6 which individuals may make contributions to the 

7 committee: 

8 ‘‘(A) A statement that if the candidate is 

9 certified as a participating candidate under this 

10 title, the candidate will receive matching pay11 ments in an amount which is based on the total 

12 amount of qualified grassroots contributions re13 ceived. 

14 ‘‘(B) A statement that a contribution 

15 which meets the requirements set forth in sub16 section (a) shall be treated as a qualified grass17 roots contribution under this title unless the 

18 contributor notifies the committee that the con19 tribution is not to be so treated. 

20 ‘‘(C) A statement that if a contribution is 

21 treated as qualified grassroots contribution 

22 under this title, the individual who makes the 

23 contribution may not make any contribution to 

24 the candidate or the authorized committees of 


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1 the candidate during the election cycle which is 

2 not a qualified grassroots contribution. 

3 ‘‘(2) EXPANSION OF OTHER DISCLOSURE

4 STATEMENTS.—An authorized committee may meet 

5 the requirements of paragraph (1) by modifying the 

6 information it provides to persons making contribu7 tions which is otherwise required under title III (in8 cluding information it provides through the Inter9 net). 

10 ‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and 

11 Certification 

12 ‘‘SEC. 511. ELIGIBILITY. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate for the office of 

14 Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 

15 Commissioner to, the Congress is eligible to be certified 

16 as a participating candidate under this title with respect 

17 to an election if the candidate meets the following require18 ments: 

19 ‘‘(1) During the election cycle for the office in20 volved, the candidate files with the Commission a 

21 statement of intent to seek certification as a partici22 pating candidate, and specifies in the statement 

23 whether the candidate intends to seek certification 

24 as a Tier 1 candidate or a Tier 2 candidate. 


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1 ‘‘(2) Each authorized committee of the can2 didate provides the information required under sec3 tion 503(d). 

4 ‘‘(3) The candidate meets the qualifying re5 quirements of section 512. 

6 ‘‘(4) Not later than the last day of the Grass7 roots Democracy qualifying period, the candidate 

8 files with the Commission an affidavit signed by the 

9 candidate and the treasurer of the candidate’s prin10 cipal campaign committee declaring that the can11 didate— 

12 ‘‘(A) has complied and, if certified, will 

13 comply with the contribution and expenditure 

14 requirements of section 521; 

15 ‘‘(B) if certified, will run only as a partici16 pating candidate for all elections for the office 

17 that such candidate is seeking during that elec18 tion cycle; and 

19 ‘‘(C) has either qualified or will take steps 

20 to qualify under State law to be on the ballot. 

21 ‘‘(b) GENERAL ELECTION.—Notwithstanding sub22 section (a), a candidate shall not be eligible to be certified 

23 as a participating candidate under this title for a general 

24 election or a general runoff election unless the candidate’s 

25 party nominated the candidate to be placed on the ballot 


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1 for the general election or the candidate is otherwise quali2 fied to be on the ballot under State law. 

3 ‘‘(c) GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY QUALIFYING PERIOD

4 DEFINED.—The term ‘Grassroots Democracy qualifying 

5 period’ means, with respect to any candidate for an office, 

6 the 240-day period (during the election cycle for such of7 fice) which begins on the date on which the candidate files 

8 a statement of intent under section 511(a)(1), except that 

9 such period may not continue after the date that is 30 

10 days before— 

11 ‘‘(1) the date of the primary election; or 

12 ‘‘(2) in the case of a State that does not hold 

13 a primary election, the date prescribed by State law 

14 as the last day to qualify for a position on the gen15 eral election ballot. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 512. QUALIFYING REQUIREMENTS. 

17 ‘‘(a) RECEIPT OF QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS CON18 TRIBUTIONS.—A candidate for the office of Senator or 

19 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner 

20 to, the Congress meets the requirement of this section if, 

21 during the Grassroots Democracy qualifying period de22 scribed in section 511(c), the candidate obtains the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(1) A single qualified grassroots contribution 

25 from not fewer than— 


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1 ‘‘(A) in the case of a candidate for the of2 fice of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi3 dent Commissioner to, the Congress, 2,000 in4 dividuals, of whom not fewer than 50 percent 

5 shall be residents of the Congressional district 

6 the candidate seeks to represent; or 

7 ‘‘(B) in the case of a candidate for the of8 fice of Senator, a number of individuals equal 

9 to the sum of 2,000 plus an amount equal to 

10 the product of 500 and the number of Congres11 sional districts in the State involved, of whom 

12 not fewer than 50 percent shall be residents of 

13 the State in which the candidate seeks election. 

14 ‘‘(2) A total dollar amount of qualified grass15 roots contributions equal to or greater than— 

16 ‘‘(A) in the case of a candidate for the of17 fice of Representative in, or Delegate or Resi18 dent Commissioner to, the Congress, $50,000; 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(B) in the case of a candidate for the of21 fice of Senator, the sum of $200,000 plus an 

22 amount equal to the product of $25,000 and 

23 the number of Congressional districts in the 

24 State involved. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECEIPT OF

2 QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS CONTRIBUTION.—Each quali3 fied grassroots contribution— 

4 ‘‘(1) may be made by means of a personal 

5 check, money order, debit card, credit card, elec6 tronic payment account, or text message; 

7 ‘‘(2) shall be accompanied by a signed state8 ment (or, in the case of a contribution made online 

9 or through other electronic means, an electronic 

10 equivalent) containing— 

11 ‘‘(A) the contributor’s name and the con12 tributor’s address in the State in which the pri13 mary residence of the contributor is located, 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(B) an oath declaring that the contrib16 utor— 

17 ‘‘(i) understands that the purpose of 

18 the contribution is to show support for the 

19 candidate so that the candidate may qual20 ify for Grassroots Democracy financing, 

21 ‘‘(ii) is making the contribution in his 

22 or her own name and from his or her own 

23 funds, 

24 ‘‘(iii) has made the contribution will25 ingly, and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) has not received any thing of 

2 value in return for the contribution; and 

3 ‘‘(3) shall be acknowledged by a receipt that is 

4 sent to the contributor with a copy (in paper or elec5 tronic form) kept by the candidate for the Commis6 sion and a copy (in paper or electronic form) kept 

7 by the candidate for the election authorities in the 

8 State with respect to which the candidate is seeking 

9 election. 

10 ‘‘(c) VERIFICATION OF QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS

11 CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Commission shall establish proce12 dures for the auditing and verification of qualified grass13 roots contributions to ensure that such contributions meet 

14 the requirements of this section. 

15 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITING PAYMENT ON COMMISSION BASIS

16 OF INDIVIDUALS COLLECTING QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS

17 CONTRIBUTIONS.—No person may be paid a commission 

18 on a per contribution basis for collecting qualified grass19 roots contributions. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 513. CERTIFICATION. 

21 ‘‘(a) DEADLINE AND NOTIFICATION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 days after 

23 a candidate files an affidavit under section 

24 511(a)(3), the Commission shall— 


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1 ‘‘(A) determine whether or not the can2 didate meets the requirements for certification 

3 as a participating candidate; 

4 ‘‘(B) if the Commission determines that 

5 the candidate meets such requirements, certify 

6 the candidate as a participating Tier 1 can7 didate or a participating Tier 2 candidate; and 

8 ‘‘(C) notify the candidate of the Commis9 sion’s determination. 

10 ‘‘(2) DEEMED CERTIFICATION FOR ALL ELEC11 TIONS IN ELECTION CYCLE.—If the Commission cer12 tifies a candidate as a participating Tier 1 candidate 

13 or a participating Tier 2 candidate with respect to 

14 the first election of the election cycle involved, the 

15 Commissioner shall be deemed to have certified the 

16 candidate as such a participating candidate with re17 spect to all subsequent elections of the election cycle. 

18 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATION.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may re20 voke a certification under subsection (a) if— 

21 ‘‘(A) a candidate fails to qualify to appear 

22 on the ballot at any time after the date of cer23 tification (other than a candidate certified as a 

24 participating candidate with respect to a pri25 mary election who fails to qualify to appear on 


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1 the ballot for a subsequent election in that elec2 tion cycle); or 

3 ‘‘(B) a candidate otherwise fails to comply 

4 with the requirements of this title, including 

5 any regulatory requirements prescribed by the 

6 Commission. 

7 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—If a can8 didate’s certification is revoked under paragraph 

9 (1)— 

10 ‘‘(A) the candidate shall repay to the 

11 Grassroots Democracy Fund established under 

12 section 541 an amount equal to the payments 

13 received under this title with respect to the elec14 tion cycle involved plus interest (at a rate deter15 mined by the Commission) on any such amount 

16 received; 

17 ‘‘(B) the candidate may not receive pay18 ments under this title during the remainder of 

19 the election cycle involved; and 

20 ‘‘(C) the candidate may not be certified as 

21 a participating candidate under this title with 

22 respect to the next election cycle. 

23 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITING PARTICIPATION IN FUTURE

24 ELECTIONS FOR CANDIDATES WITH MULTIPLE REV25 OCATIONS.—If the Commission revokes the certifiVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:25 Jan 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H268.IH H268

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1 cation of an individual as a participating candidate 

2 under this title 3 times, the individual may not be 

3 certified as a participating candidate under this title 

4 with respect to any subsequent election. 

5 ‘‘(c) PARTICIPATING CANDIDATE DEFINED.—In this 

6 title, a ‘participating candidate’ means a candidate for the 

7 office of Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resi8 dent Commissioner to, the Congress who is certified under 

9 this section as eligible to receive benefits under this title. 

10 ‘‘Subtitle C—Requirements for Can11 didates Certified as Partici12 pating Candidates 

13 ‘‘SEC. 521. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIRE14 MENTS. 

15 ‘‘(a) PERMITTED SOURCES OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND

16 EXPENDITURES.— 

17 ‘‘(1) TIER 1 CANDIDATES.—Except as provided 

18 in subsection (c), a participating candidate who is 

19 certified as a Tier 1 candidate with respect to an 

20 election shall, with respect to all elections occurring 

21 during the election cycle for the office involved, ac22 cept no contributions from any source and make no 

23 expenditures from any amounts, other than the fol24 lowing: 

25 ‘‘(A) Qualified grassroots contributions. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Payments under this title. 

2 ‘‘(C) Contributions from political commit3 tees established and maintained by a national 

4 or State political party. 

5 ‘‘(D) Subject to subsection (b), personal 

6 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

7 family member of the candidate (other than 

8 funds received through qualified grassroots con9 tributions). 

10 ‘‘(E) Subject to subsection (e), contribu11 tions from individuals who are otherwise per12 mitted to make contributions under this Act. 

13 ‘‘(2) TIER 2 CANDIDATES.—Except as provided 

14 in subsection (c), a participating candidate who is 

15 certified as a Tier 2 candidate with respect to an 

16 election shall, with respect to all elections occurring 

17 during the election cycle for the office involved, ac18 cept no contributions from any source and make no 

19 expenditures from any amounts, other than the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(A) Qualified grassroots contributions. 

22 ‘‘(B) Payments under this title. 

23 ‘‘(C) Contributions from political commit24 tees established and maintained by a national 

25 or State political party. 


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1 ‘‘(D) Subject to subsection (b), personal 

2 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

3 family member of the candidate (other than 

4 funds received through qualified grassroots con5 tributions). 

6 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULES FOR PERSONAL FUNDS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) LIMIT ON AMOUNT.—A candidate who is 

8 certified as a participating candidate may use per9 sonal funds (including personal funds of any imme10 diate family member of the candidate) so long as— 

11 ‘‘(A) the amount used with respect to the 

12 election cycle does not exceed $50,000; and 

13 ‘‘(B) the funds are used only for making 

14 direct payments for the receipt of goods and 

15 services which constitute authorized expendi16 tures in connection with the election cycle in17 volved. 

18 ‘‘(2) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER DEFINED.— 

19 In this subsection, the term ‘immediate family’ 

20 means, with respect to a candidate— 

21 ‘‘(A) the candidate’s spouse; 

22 ‘‘(B) a child, stepchild, parent, grand23 parent, brother, half-brother, sister, or half-sis24 ter of the candidate or the candidate’s spouse; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(C) the spouse of any person described in 

2 subparagraph (B). 

3 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE5 CEIVED PRIOR TO FILING OF STATEMENT OF IN6 TENT.—A candidate who has accepted contributions 

7 that are not described in paragraph (1) of sub8 section (a) (in the case of a Tier 1 candidate) or in 

9 paragraph (2) of subsection (a) (in the case of a 

10 Tier 2 candidate) prior to the date the candidate 

11 files a statement of intent under section 511(a)(1) 

12 is not in violation of subsection (a), but only if all 

13 such contributions are— 

14 ‘‘(A) returned to the contributor; 

15 ‘‘(B) submitted to the Commission for de16 posit in the Grassroots Democracy Fund estab17 lished under section 541; or 

18 ‘‘(C) spent in accordance with paragraph 

19 (2). 

20 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR EXPENDITURES MADE

21 PRIOR TO FILING OF STATEMENT OF INTENT.—If a 

22 candidate has made expenditures prior to the date 

23 the candidate files a statement of intent under sec24 tion 511(a)(1) that the candidate is prohibited from 

25 making under subsection (a) or subsection (b), the 


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1 candidate is not in violation of such subsection if the 

2 aggregate amount of the prohibited expenditures is 

3 less than the amount referred to in section 

4 512(a)(2) (relating to the total dollar amount of 

5 qualified grassroots contributions which the can6 didate is required to obtain) which is applicable to 

7 the candidate. 

8 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION FOR CAMPAIGN SURPLUSES

9 FROM A PREVIOUS ELECTION.—Notwithstanding 

10 paragraph (1), unexpended contributions received by 

11 the candidate or the an authorized committee of the 

12 candidate with respect to a previous election may be 

13 retained, but only if the candidate places the funds 

14 in escrow and refrains from raising additional funds 

15 for or spending funds from that account during the 

16 election cycle in which a candidate is a participating 

17 candidate. 

18 ‘‘(4) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE19 CEIVED BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS

20 TITLE.—Contributions received and expenditures 

21 made by the candidate or an authorized committee 

22 of the candidate prior to the effective date of this 

23 title shall not constitute a violation of subsection (a) 

24 or (b). Unexpended contributions shall be treated 

25 the same as campaign surpluses under paragraph 


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1 (3), and expenditures made shall count against the 

2 limit in paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL RULE FOR COORDINATED PARTY EX4 PENDITURES.—For purposes of this section, a payment 

5 made by a political party in coordination with a partici6 pating candidate shall not be treated as a contribution to 

7 or as an expenditure made by the participating candidate. 

8 ‘‘(e) PHASE-OUT OF AMOUNT OF PRIVATE CON9 TRIBUTIONS THAT MAY BE ACCEPTED BY TIER 1 CAN10 DIDATES.—With respect to an election cycle occurring 

11 after the first 3 election cycles for which this title is in 

12 effect, the amount of a contribution that may be accepted 

13 from an individual by a participating candidate who is cer14 tified as a Tier 1 candidate may not exceed the following: 

15 ‘‘(1) For the fourth election cycle for which this 

16 title is in effect, an amount equal to 60% of the lim17 itation on the amount of a contribution which a can18 didate may accept from an individual for such cycle 

19 under section 315(a)(1). 

20 ‘‘(2) For the fifth election cycle for which this 

21 title is in effect, an amount equal to 40% of the lim22 itation on the amount of a contribution which a can23 didate may accept from an individual for such cycle 

24 under section 315(a)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(3) For the sixth election cycle for which this 

2 title is in effect and any subsequent election cycle, 

3 an amount equal to 20% of the limitation on the 

4 amount of a contribution which a candidate may ac5 cept from an individual for such cycle under section 

6 315(a)(1). 

7 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT8 TEES.— 

9 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—An authorized committee 

10 of a candidate who is certified as a participating 

11 candidate under this title with respect to an election 

12 may not establish a joint fundraising committee with 

13 a political committee other than another authorized 

14 committee of the candidate. 

15 ‘‘(2) STATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES FOR

16 PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate established a 

17 joint fundraising committee described in paragraph 

18 (1) with respect to a prior election for which the 

19 candidate was not certified as a participating can20 didate under this title and the candidate does not 

21 terminate the committee, the candidate shall not be 

22 considered to be in violation of paragraph (1) so 

23 long as that joint fundraising committee does not re24 ceive any contributions or make any disbursements 


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1 during the election cycle for which the candidate is 

2 certified as a participating candidate under this title. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 522. ADMINISTRATION OF CAMPAIGN. 

4 ‘‘(a) USE OF SEPARATE ACCOUNTS FOR VARIOUS

5 PERMITTED CONTRIBUTIONS.—Each authorized com6 mittee of a candidate certified as a participating candidate 

7 under this title— 

8 ‘‘(1) shall establish a separate account for each 

9 type of contribution described in paragraph (1) of 

10 section 521(a) (in the case of a Tier 1 candidate) or 

11 paragraph (2) of section 521(a) (in the case of a 

12 Tier 2 candidate) which is received by the com13 mittee, and shall deposit each contribution in the ac14 count established for that type of contribution; and 

15 ‘‘(2) shall establish a separate account for the 

16 payments received under this title, and shall deposit 

17 each such payment in that account. 

18 ‘‘(b) ENHANCED REPORTING OF DISBURSEMENTS.— 

19 In addition to any reports required under section 304, not 

20 later than 3 months after the end of the election cycle 

21 involved, each authorized committee of a candidate cer22 tified as a participating candidate under this title shall 

23 submit a report to the Commission on all disbursements 

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1 section (a) (in the same manner as the report required 

2 under section 304(b)(4)). 

3 ‘‘(c) ENHANCED INTERNET DISCLOSURE OF INFOR4 MATION ON DONORS.—Each authorized committee of a 

5 candidate shall ensure that all information reported to the 

6 Commission under this Act with respect to contributions 

7 and expenditures of the committee is available to the pub8 lic on the Internet (whether through a site established for 

9 purposes of this subsection, a hyperlink on another public 

10 site of the committee, or a hyperlink on a report filed elec11 tronically with the Commission) in a searchable, sortable, 

12 and downloadable manner. 

13 ‘‘SEC. 523. PREVENTING UNNECESSARY SPENDING OF PUB14 LIC FUNDS. 

15 ‘‘(a) MANDATORY SPENDING OF AVAILABLE PRI16 VATE FUNDS.—An authorized committee of a candidate 

17 certified as a participating candidate under this title may 

18 not make any expenditure of any payments received under 

19 this title in any amount unless the committee has made 

20 an expenditure in an equivalent amount of funds received 

21 by the committee which are described in— 

22 ‘‘(1) subparagraphs (C), (D), and (E) of para23 graph (1) of section 521(a), in the case of a Tier 1 

24 candidate; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) subparagraphs (C) and (D) of paragraph 

2 (2) of section 521(a), in the case of a Tier 2 can3 didate. 

4 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—Subsection (a) applies to an au5 thorized committee only to the extent that the funds re6 ferred to in paragraph (1) of such subsection (in the case 

7 of a Tier 1 candidate) or in paragraph (2) of such sub8 section (in the case of a Tier 2 candidate) are available 

9 to the committee at the time the committee makes an ex10 penditure of a payment received under this title. 

11 ‘‘SEC. 524. REMITTING UNSPENT FUNDS AFTER ELECTION. 

12 ‘‘(a) REMITTANCE REQUIRED.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date 

14 that is 60 days after the last election for which a 

15 candidate certified as a participating candidate 

16 qualifies to be on the ballot during the election cycle 

17 involved, such participating candidate shall remit to 

18 the Commission for deposit in the Grassroots De19 mocracy Fund established under section 541 an 

20 amount equal to the balance of the accounts estab21 lished by the authorized committees of the candidate 

22 under section 522 for the payments received under 

23 this title. 

24 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR TIER 2 CANDIDATES PAR25 TICIPATING IN NEXT CYCLE.—Notwithstanding 


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1 paragraph (1), a Tier 2 candidate may withhold not 

2 more than $50,000 from the amount required to be 

3 remitted under paragraph (1) if the candidate files 

4 a signed affidavit with the Commission that the can5 didate will seek certification as a Tier 2 candidate 

6 with respect to the next election cycle. If the can7 didate fails to seek certification as a Tier 2 can8 didate prior to the last day of the Grassroots De9 mocracy qualifying period for the next election cycle 

10 (as described in section 511), or if the Commission 

11 notifies the candidate of the Commission’s deter12 mination does not meet the requirements for certifi13 cation as a Tier 2 candidate with respect to such 

14 cycle, the candidate shall immediately remit to the 

15 Commission the amount withheld. 

16 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR EXPENDITURES INCURRED

17 BUT NOT PAID AS OF DATE OF REMITTANCE.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A candidate may withhold 

19 from the amount required to be remitted under sub20 section (a) the amount of any authorized expendi21 tures which were incurred in connection with the 

22 candidate’s campaign but which remain unpaid as of 

23 the deadline applicable to the candidate under such 

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1 mission not later than 120 days after the date of the 

2 election to which such subsection applies. 

3 ‘‘(2) DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED.—A can4 didate may withhold an amount of an expenditure 

5 pursuant to paragraph (1) only if the candidate sub6 mits documentation of the expenditure and the 

7 amount to the Commission not later than the dead8 line applicable to the candidate under subsection (a). 

9 ‘‘Subtitle D—Supplemental Grass10 roots Democracy People’s Fund 

11 Payments 

12 ‘‘SEC. 531. ELIGIBILITY OF PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES 

13 FOR PAYMENTS. 

14 ‘‘(a) PAYMENTS TO CANDIDATES.—In addition to the 

15 payments made under subtitle A, a candidate certified as 

16 a participating candidate under this title with respect to 

17 an election shall be entitled to a supplemental Grassroots 

18 Democracy People’s Fund payment from the Grassroots 

19 Democracy Fund each time during the election cycle that 

20 the Commission issues a determination under subsection 

21 (b) that the outside speech threshold with respect to the 

22 election has been reached. 

23 ‘‘(b) OUTSIDE SPEECH THRESHOLD.— 

24 ‘‘(1) DETERMINATIONS BY COMMISSION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

2 section, the Commission shall issue a deter3 mination that the outside speech threshold with 

4 respect to an election is reached each time dur5 ing the election cycle that the Commission de6 termines that the amount disbursed for political 

7 activity with respect to the election exceeds— 

8 ‘‘(i) the House threshold, in the case 

9 of an election for the office of Representa10 tive in, or Delegate or Resident Commis11 sioner to, the Congress; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) the Senate threshold, in the case 

13 of an election for the office of Senator. 

14 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN DISBURSE15 MENTS.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), in 

16 determining the amount disbursed for political 

17 activity with respect to an election, there shall 

18 be excluded— 

19 ‘‘(i) disbursements made by any au20 thorized committee of a candidate; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) disbursements made by a polit22 ical committee of a national political party. 

23 ‘‘(C) INCLUSION OF AMOUNTS SPENT ON

24 NON-CANDIDATE-SPECIFIC ADVERTISEMENTS.— 

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1 ical activity with respect to an election under 

2 subparagraph (A), there shall be included any 

3 amount disbursed for a political advertisement 

4 described in subsection (c)(3). 

5 ‘‘(2) SUBSEQUENT DETERMINATIONS AFTER

6 THRESHOLD IS FIRST REACHED.—After the first 

7 time during the election cycle that the Commission 

8 issues a determination under paragraph (1) that the 

9 outside speech threshold with respect to an election 

10 has been reached, any subsequent determination as 

11 to whether the threshold has been reached shall be 

12 made only on the basis of disbursements made after 

13 the most recent such determination issued by the 

14 Commission. 

15 ‘‘(3) HOUSE THRESHOLD.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of para17 graph (1)(A), the ‘House threshold’ with re18 spect to an election is an amount equal to the 

19 product of the adjusted baseline amount under 

20 subparagraph (B) and the number of can21 didates in the election. 

22 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTED BASELINE AMOUNT.—For 

23 purposes of subparagraph (A), the ‘adjusted 

24 baseline amount’ with respect to an election is 

25 an amount equal to the product of $250,000 


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1 and an adjustment factor applied by the Com2 mission to take into account the relative media3 related costs of political activity in the Congres4 sional district involved as compared to the aver5 age of such costs among all Congressional dis6 tricts. 

7 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN CAN8 DIDATES.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), 

9 in determining the number of candidates in an 

10 election, there shall be excluded any candidate 

11 who is determined by the Commission to be a 

12 minor candidate, in accordance with such cri13 teria as the Commission shall by regulation es14 tablish, taking into account the amount of 

15 funds raised and expended by the candidate, 

16 the candidate’s ability to qualify for the ballot, 

17 and such other factors as the Commission con18 siders appropriate. 

19 ‘‘(4) SENATE THRESHOLD.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of para21 graph (1)(A), the ‘Senate threshold’ with re22 spect to an election is an amount equal to the 

23 product of the adjusted baseline amount under 

24 subparagraph (B) and the number of can25 didates in the election. 


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1 ‘‘(B) ADJUSTED BASELINE AMOUNT.—For 

2 purposes of subparagraph (A), the ‘adjusted 

3 baseline amount’ with respect to an election is 

4 an amount equal to the product of— 

5 ‘‘(i) the sum of $250,000 plus the 

6 product of $100,000 and the number of 

7 Congressional districts in the State in8 volved; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) an adjustment factor applied by 

10 the Commission to take into account the 

11 relative media-related costs of political ac12 tivity in the State involved as compared to 

13 the average of such costs among all States. 

14 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN CAN15 DIDATES.—For purposes of subparagraph (A), 

16 in determining the number of candidates in an 

17 election, there shall be excluded any candidate 

18 who is determined by the Commission to be a 

19 minor candidate, in accordance with such cri20 teria as the Commission shall by regulation es21 tablish, taking into account the amount of 

22 funds raised and expended by the candidate, 

23 the candidate’s ability to qualify for the ballot, 

24 and such other factors as the Commission con25 siders appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(c) POLITICAL ACTIVITY DEFINED.—In this sec2 tion, ‘political activity’ means, with respect to an election, 

3 any of the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) A publicly disseminated communication 

5 consisting of an independent expenditure (as defined 

6 in section 301(17)) which advocates the election or 

7 defeat of a candidate in the election. 

8 ‘‘(2) A publicly disseminated communication 

9 consisting of an electioneering communication (as 

10 defined in section 304(f)) which refers to a can11 didate in the election. 

12 ‘‘(3) A publicly disseminated communication 

13 consisting of a communication which refers to the 

14 political party of a candidate in the election and 

15 which would be treated as an electioneering commu16 nication (as defined in section 304(f)) if it referred 

17 to a clearly identified candidate for Federal office. 

18 ‘‘(4) Voter registration, voter identification, get19 out-the-vote, and other related activity carried out in 

20 connection with the election. 

21 ‘‘SEC. 532. AMOUNT OF PAYMENT; USE OF FUNDS. 

22 ‘‘(a) AMOUNT.—The amount of the supplemental 

23 Grassroots Democracy People’s Fund payment made to a 

24 candidate under this subtitle shall be equal to 100 percent 

25 of the aggregate amount of qualified grassroots donations 


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1 received by the candidate, as reported in the most recent 

2 request for a payment under this title which has been sub3 mitted by the candidate under section 502 at the time the 

4 Commission issues a determination under section 541(b). 

5 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A candidate shall use the sup6 plemental payment under this subtitle only for authorized 

7 expenditures in connection with the election cycle involved. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 533. SEVERABILITY. 

9 ‘‘If any provision of this subtitle, or the application 

10 of a provision of this subtitle to any person or cir11 cumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder 

12 of this title, and the application of the provisions to any 

13 person or circumstance, shall not be affected by the hold14 ing. 

15 ‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative 

16 Provisions 

17 ‘‘SEC. 541. GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY FUND. 

18 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

19 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Grassroots Democ20 racy Fund’. 

21 ‘‘(b) AMOUNTS HELD BY FUND.—The Fund shall 

22 consist of the following amounts: 

23 ‘‘(1) APPROPRIATED AMOUNTS.—Amounts ap24 propriated to the Fund, including trust fund 


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1 amounts appropriated pursuant to applicable provi2 sions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

3 ‘‘(2) VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS.—Voluntary 

4 contributions to the Fund. 

5 ‘‘(3) OTHER DEPOSITS.—Amounts deposited 

6 into the Fund under— 

7 ‘‘(A) section 6098 of the Internal Revenue 

8 Code of 1986 (relating to contributions to 

9 Grassroots Democracy Fund); 

10 ‘‘(B) section 521(c) (relating to exceptions 

11 to contribution requirements); 

12 ‘‘(C) section 523 (relating to remittance of 

13 unused payments from the Fund); 

14 ‘‘(D) section 544 (relating to violations); 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(E) any other section of this Act. 

17 ‘‘(4) INVESTMENT RETURNS.—Interest on, and 

18 the proceeds from, the sale or redemption of, any 

19 obligations held by the Fund under subsection (c). 

20 ‘‘(c) INVESTMENT.—The Commission shall invest 

21 portions of the Fund in obligations of the United States 

22 in the same manner as provided under section 9602(b) 

23 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

24 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUND.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The sums in the Fund 

2 shall be used to make payments to participating can3 didates as provided in this title. 

4 ‘‘(2) INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS.—Under regula5 tions established by the Commission, rules similar to 

6 the rules of section 9006(c) of the Internal Revenue 

7 Code of 1986 shall apply. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 542. GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY ADVISORY COMMIS9 SION. 

10 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

11 the Federal Election Commission an entity to be known 

12 as the ‘Grassroots Democracy Advisory Commission’ (in 

13 this title referred to as the ‘Advisory Commission’). 

14 ‘‘(b) STRUCTURE AND MEMBERSHIP.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Commission 

16 shall be composed of 5 members appointed by the 

17 President with the advice and consent of the Senate, 

18 of whom— 

19 ‘‘(A) 2 shall be appointed after consulta20 tion with the Majority Leader of the House of 

21 Representatives; 

22 ‘‘(B) 2 shall be appointed after consulta23 tion with the Minority Leader of the House of 

24 Representatives; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) 1 shall be appointed upon the rec2 ommendation of the members appointed under 

3 subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

4 ‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The members shall be 

6 individuals who by reason of their education, 

7 experience, and attainments, are exceptionally 

8 qualified to perform the duties of members of 

9 the Advisory Commission. 

10 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION.—No member of the 

11 Advisory Commission may be— 

12 ‘‘(i) an employee of the Federal Gov13 ernment; 

14 ‘‘(ii) a registered lobbyist or an indi15 vidual who was a registered lobbyist at any 

16 time during the 2-year period preceding 

17 appointment to the Advisory Commission; 

18 or 

19 ‘‘(iii) an officer or employee of a polit20 ical party or political campaign. 

21 ‘‘(3) DATE.—Members of the Advisory Commis22 sion shall be appointed not later than 60 days after 

23 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

24 ‘‘(4) TERMS.—A member of the Advisory Com25 mission shall be appointed for a term of 5 years. 


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1 ‘‘(5) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Advisory 

2 Commission shall be filled not later than 30 calendar 

3 days after the date on which the Advisory Commis4 sion is given notice of the vacancy, in the same man5 ner as the original appointment. The individual ap6 pointed to fill the vacancy shall serve only for the 

7 unexpired portion of the term for which the individ8 ual’s predecessor was appointed. 

9 ‘‘(6) CHAIRPERSON.—The Advisory Commission 

10 shall designate a Chairperson from among the mem11 bers of the Board. 

12 ‘‘(c) DUTIES AND POWERS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.—The Advisory Commis14 sion shall have such duties and powers as the Com15 mission may prescribe, including the power to ad16 minister the provisions of this title. 

17 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY FI18 NANCING.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After each regularly 

20 scheduled general election for Federal office, 

21 the Advisory Commission shall conduct a com22 prehensive review of the Grassroots Democracy 

23 financing program under this title, including— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the maximum and minimum dol2 lar amounts of qualified grassroots con3 tributions under section 504; 

4 ‘‘(ii) the number and value of quali5 fied grassroots contributions a candidate is 

6 required to obtain under section 512(a) to 

7 be eligible for certification as a partici8 pating candidate; 

9 ‘‘(iii) the maximum amount of pay10 ments a candidate may receive under this 

11 title; 

12 ‘‘(iv) the overall satisfaction of partici13 pating candidates and the American public 

14 with the program; and 

15 ‘‘(v) such other matters relating to fi16 nancing of campaigns as the Advisory 

17 Commission determines are appropriate. 

18 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR REVIEW.—In con19 ducting the review under subparagraph (A), the 

20 Advisory Commission shall consider the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(i) QUALIFIED GRASSROOTS CON23 TRIBUTIONS.—The Advisory Commission 

24 shall consider whether the number and dol25 lar amounts of qualified grassroots conVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:25 Jan 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H268.IH H268

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1 tributions required strikes a balance re2 garding the importance of voter involve3 ment, the need to assure adequate incen4 tives for participating, and fiscal responsi5 bility, taking into consideration the num6 ber of primary and general election partici7 pating candidates, the electoral perform8 ance of those candidates, program cost, 

9 and any other information the Advisory 

10 Commission determines is appropriate. 

11 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF PAYMENT LEVELS.— 

12 The Advisory Commission shall consider 

13 whether the totality of the amount of 

14 funds allowed to be raised by participating 

15 candidates (including through qualified 

16 grassroots contributions) and payments 

17 under this title are sufficient for voters in 

18 each State to learn about the candidates to 

19 cast an informed vote, taking into account 

20 the historic amount of spending by winning 

21 candidates, media costs, primary election 

22 dates, and any other information the Advi23 sory Commission determines is appro24 priate. 

25 ‘‘(C) ADJUSTMENT OF AMOUNTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Based on the re2 view conducted under subparagraph (A), 

3 the Advisory Commission shall provide for 

4 the adjustments of the following amounts: 

5 ‘‘(I) The maximum and minimum 

6 dollar amounts of qualified grassroots 

7 contributions under section 504. 

8 ‘‘(II) The number and value of 

9 qualified grassroots contributions a 

10 candidate is required to obtain under 

11 section 512(a) to be eligible for cer12 tification as a participating candidate. 

13 ‘‘(III) The maximum amount of 

14 payments may receive under this title. 

15 ‘‘(ii) REGULATIONS.—The Commis16 sion shall promulgate regulations providing 

17 for the adjustments made by the Advisory 

18 Commission under clause (i). 

19 ‘‘(D) REVIEW OF GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY

20 PEOPLE’S FUND PROGRAM.—After each regu21 larly scheduled general election for Federal of22 fice, the Advisory Commission shall conduct a 

23 comprehensive review of the program for mak24 ing supplemental Grassroots Democracy PeoVerDate Mar 15 2010 01:25 Jan 30, 2013 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00052 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H268.IH H268

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1 ple’s Fund payments under subtitle D, and 

2 shall include in the review the following: 

3 ‘‘(i) A review of the outside speech 

4 threshold established under section 531(b), 

5 including the amounts used to determine 

6 the House threshold under paragraph (3) 

7 of such section and the Senate threshold 

8 under paragraph (4) of such section. 

9 ‘‘(ii) The effectiveness of the adjust10 ment factors applied by the Commission 

11 under section 531(b) to take into account 

12 the relative media-related costs of political 

13 activity in Congressional districts and 

14 States. 

15 ‘‘(iii) The overall satisfaction of par16 ticipating candidates and the American 

17 public with the Program. 

18 ‘‘(iv) Such other matters relating to 

19 the making of payments under such sub20 title as the Advisory Commission deter21 mines are appropriate. 

22 ‘‘(E) REPORT.—Not later than each June 

23 1 which follows a regularly scheduled general 

24 election for Federal office for which payments 

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1 mission shall submit a report to Congress on 

2 the review conducted under this paragraph. 

3 Such report shall contain a detailed statement 

4 of the findings, conclusions, and recommenda5 tions of the Advisory Commission based on such 

6 review. 

7 ‘‘(d) MEETINGS AND HEARINGS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) MEETINGS.—The Advisory Commission 

9 may hold such hearings, sit and act at such times 

10 and places, take such testimony, and receive such 

11 evidence as the Advisory Commission considers ad12 visable to carry out the purposes of this Act. 

13 ‘‘(2) QUORUM.—Three members of the Advi14 sory Commission shall constitute a quorum for pur15 poses of voting, but a quorum is not required for 

16 members to meet and hold hearings. 

17 ‘‘(e) REPORTS.—Not later than each June 1 which 

18 follows a regularly scheduled general election for Federal 

19 office for which payments were made under this title, the 

20 Advisory Commission shall submit to the Committee on 

21 House Administration of the House of Representatives a 

22 report documenting, evaluating, and making recommenda23 tions relating to the administrative implementation and 

24 enforcement of the provisions of this title. 

25 ‘‘(f) ADMINISTRATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each member, other 

3 than the Chairperson, shall be paid at a rate 

4 equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum 

5 annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV 

6 of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 

7 of title 5, United States Code. 

8 ‘‘(B) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson 

9 shall be paid at a rate equal to the daily equiva10 lent of the minimum annual rate of basic pay 

11 prescribed for level III of the Executive Sched12 ule under section 5314 of title 5, United States 

13 Code. 

14 ‘‘(2) PERSONNEL.— 

15 ‘‘(A) DIRECTOR.—The Advisory Commis16 sion shall have a staff headed by an Executive 

17 Director. The Executive Director shall be paid 

18 at a rate equivalent to a rate established for the 

19 Senior Executive Service under section 5382 of 

20 title 5, United States Code. 

21 ‘‘(B) STAFF APPOINTMENT.—With the ap22 proval of the Chairperson, the Executive Direc23 tor may appoint such personnel as the Execu24 tive Director and the Advisory Commission de25 termines to be appropriate. 


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1 ‘‘(C) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—With 

2 the approval of the Chairperson, the Executive 

3 Director may procure temporary and intermit4 tent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, 

5 United States Code. 

6 ‘‘(D) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOY7 EES.—Upon the request of the Chairperson, the 

8 head of any Federal agency may detail, without 

9 reimbursement, any of the personnel of such 

10 agency to the Advisory Commission to assist in 

11 carrying out the duties of the Advisory Com12 mission. Any such detail shall not interrupt or 

13 otherwise affect the civil service status or privi14 leges of the Federal employee. 

15 ‘‘(E) OTHER RESOURCES.—The Advisory 

16 Commission shall have reasonable access to ma17 terials, resources, statistical data, and other in18 formation from the Library of Congress and 

19 other agencies of the executive and legislative 

20 branches of the Federal Government. The 

21 Chairperson of the Advisory Commission shall 

22 make requests for such access in writing when 

23 necessary. 


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1 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec3 essary to carry out the purposes of this subtitle. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 543. ADMINISTRATION BY COMMISSION. 

5 ‘‘The Commission shall prescribe regulations to carry 

6 out the purposes of this title, including regulations— 

7 ‘‘(1) to establish procedures for— 

8 ‘‘(A) verifying the amount of qualified 

9 grassroots contributions with respect to a can10 didate, 

11 ‘‘(B) effectively and efficiently monitoring 

12 and enforcing the limits on the raising of quali13 fied grassroots contributions, 

14 ‘‘(C) effectively and efficiently monitoring 

15 and enforcing the limits on the use of personal 

16 funds by participating candidates, and 

17 ‘‘(D) monitoring the use of allocations 

18 from the Grassroots Democracy Fund estab19 lished under section 541 and matching con20 tributions under this title through audits of not 

fewer than 1 21 ⁄10 (or, in the case of the first 3 

22 election cycles during which the program under 

this title is in effect, not fewer than 1 23 ⁄3) of all 

24 participating candidates or other mechanisms; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(2) regarding the conduct of debates in a man2 ner consistent with the best practices of States that 

3 provide public financing for elections. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 544. VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES. 

5 ‘‘(a) CIVIL PENALTY FOR VIOLATION OF CONTRIBU6 TION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIREMENTS.—If a can7 didate who has been certified as a participating candidate 

8 accepts a contribution or makes an expenditure that is 

9 prohibited under section 521, the Commission shall assess 

10 a civil penalty against the candidate in an amount that 

11 is not more than 3 times the amount of the contribution 

12 or expenditure. Any amounts collected under this sub13 section shall be deposited into the Grassroots Democracy 

14 Fund established under section 541. 

15 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR IMPROPER USE OF GRASS16 ROOTS DEMOCRACY FUND.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Commission deter18 mines that any payment made to a participating 

19 candidate was not used as provided for in this title 

20 or that a participating candidate has violated any of 

21 the dates for remission of funds contained in this 

22 title, the Commission shall so notify the candidate 

23 and the candidate shall pay to the Fund an amount 

24 equal to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the amount of payments so used or 

2 not remitted, as appropriate; and 

3 ‘‘(B) interest on any such amounts (at a 

4 rate determined by the Commission). 

5 ‘‘(2) OTHER ACTION NOT PRECLUDED.—Any 

6 action by the Commission in accordance with this 

7 subsection shall not preclude enforcement pro8 ceedings by the Commission in accordance with sec9 tion 309(a), including a referral by the Commission 

10 to the Attorney General in the case of an apparent 

11 knowing and willful violation of this title. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 545. ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED. 

13 ‘‘In this title, the term ‘election cycle’ means, with 

14 respect to an election for an office, the period beginning 

15 on the day after the date of the most recent general elec16 tion for that office (or, if the general election resulted in 

17 a runoff election, the date of the runoff election) and end18 ing on the date of the next general election for that office 

19 (or, if the general election resulted in a runoff election, 

20 the date of the runoff election).’’. 


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1 SEC. 202. PROHIBITING USE OF CONTRIBUTIONS BY PAR2 TICIPATING CANDIDATES FOR PURPOSES 

3 OTHER THAN CAMPAIGN FOR ELECTION. 

4 Section 313 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

5 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 439a) is amended by adding at the end 

6 the following new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(d) RESTRICTIONS ON PERMITTED USES OF FUNDS

8 BY CANDIDATES RECEIVING GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY

9 FINANCING.—Notwithstanding paragraphs (2), (3), or (4) 

10 of subsection (a), if a candidate for election for the office 

11 of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis12 sioner to, the Congress is certified as a participating can13 didate under title V with respect to the election, any con14 tribution which the candidate is permitted to accept under 

15 such title may be used only for authorized expenditures 

16 in connection with the candidate’s campaign for such of17 fice.’’. 

18 TITLE III—OTHER 

19 ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 

20 SEC. 301. EXPANDING REQUIREMENT TO DISCLOSE 

21 BUNDLERS WHO ARE REGISTERED LOBBY22 ISTS TO ALL BUNDLERS. 

23 (a) EXPANDING BUNDLER DISCLOSURE REQUIRE24 MENTS TO ALL BUNDLERS.—Section 304(i)(1) of the 

25 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 


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1 434(i)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘reasonably known by 

2 the committee to be a person described in paragraph (7)’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 304(i) of 

4 such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(i)) is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking ‘‘described 

6 in paragraph (7)’’; 

7 (2) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘a person 

8 described in paragraph (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘any per9 son’’; 

10 (3) in paragraph (5)— 

11 (A) by striking subparagraph (B) and re12 designating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as sub13 paragraphs (B) and (C), 

14 (B) in subparagraph (B) (as so redesig15 nated), by striking ‘‘described in paragraph 

16 (7)’’, and 

17 (C) in subparagraph (C) (as so redesig18 nated), by striking ‘‘by persons described in 

19 paragraph (7)’’; 

20 (4) by striking paragraph (7) and redesignating 

21 paragraph (8) as paragraph (7); and 

22 (5) in paragraph (7)(A) (as so redesignated), by 

23 striking ‘‘a person described in paragraph (7),’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘a person,’’. 


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1 SEC. 302. EXPANSION OF PERIOD FOR TREATMENT OF 

2 COMMUNICATIONS AS ELECTIONEERING 

3 COMMUNICATIONS. 

4 (a) EXPANSION OF PERIOD COVERING GENERAL

5 ELECTION.—Section 304(f)(3)(A)(I)(II)(aa) of the Fed6 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 

7 434(f)(3)(A)(I)(II)(aa)) is amended by striking ‘‘60 days’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘120 days’’. 

9 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION FOR COMMU10 NICATIONS MADE PRIOR TO ENACTMENT.—The amend11 ment made by subsection (a) shall apply with respect to 

12 communications made on or after the date of the enact13 ment of this Act, without regard to whether or not the 

14 Federal Election Commission has promulgated regulations 

15 to carry out such amendments, except that no communica16 tion which is made prior to the date of the enactment of 

17 this Act shall be treated as an electioneering communica18 tion under section 304(f)(3)(A)(I)(II) of the Federal Elec19 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (as amended by subsection 

20 (a)) unless the communication would be treated as an elec21 tioneering communication under such section if the 

22 amendment made by subsection (a) did not apply. 

23 SEC. 303. USER FEES FOR COMMITTEES AND BUNDLERS. 

24 (a) POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—Section 303 of the 

25 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 433) 


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1 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub2 section: 

3 ‘‘(e) USER FEE.— 

4 ‘‘(1) PAYMENT.—At the time a political com5 mittee files the statement of organization required 

6 under subsection (a), and annually thereafter until 

7 the termination of the committee, the committee 

8 shall pay a user fee to the Commission in an amount 

9 equal to $100. 

10 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR CANDIDATE COMMIT11 TEES.—Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of 

12 a political committee which is an authorized com13 mittee of a candidate. 

14 ‘‘(3) USE OF FUNDS.—The amounts received by 

15 the Commission under this subsection shall be used 

16 to support the administration of the Grassroots De17 mocracy Advisory Commission under section 542.’’. 

18 (b) BUNDLERS.—Title III of such Act (2 U.S.C. 431 

19 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 303 the fol20 lowing new section: 

21 ‘‘USER FEES FOR BUNDLERS OF CONTRIBUTIONS

22 ‘‘SEC. 303A. (a) USER FEE REQUIRED.—A person 

23 may not provide a bundled contribution to a political com24 mittee during a year unless the person has paid a user 

25 fee to the Commission during the year in an amount equal 

26 to $100. 


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1 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—The amounts received by the 

2 Commission under this subsection shall be used to support 

3 the administration of the Grassroots Democracy Advisory 

4 Commission under section 542. 

5 ‘‘(c) BUNDLED CONTRIBUTION DEFINED.—In this 

6 section, the term ‘bundled contribution’ has the meaning 

7 given such term in section 304(i)(7).’’. 

8 SEC. 304. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 

9 Section 307(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

10 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437d(a)(6)) is amended by insert11 ing ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme Court on 

12 certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 

13 SEC. 305. FILING BY ALL CANDIDATES WITH COMMISSION. 

14 Section 302(g) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

15 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 432(g)) is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(g) FILING WITH THE COMMISSION.—All designa17 tions, statements, and reports required to be filed under 

18 this Act shall be filed with the Commission.’’. 

19 SEC. 306. ELECTRONIC FILING OF FEC REPORTS. 

20 Section 304(a)(11) of the Federal Election Campaign 

21 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(11)) is amended— 

22 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘under 

23 this Act—’’ and all that follows and inserting 

24 ‘‘under this Act shall be required to maintain and 


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1 file such designation, statement, or report in elec2 tronic form accessible by computers.’’; 

3 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘48 

4 hours’’ and all that follows through ‘‘filed electroni5 cally)’’ and inserting ‘‘24 hours’’; and 

6 (3) by striking subparagraph (D). 

7 SEC. 307. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

8 Except as provided in section 302(b), the amend9 ments made by this title shall apply with respect to reports 

10 filed on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

11 TITLE IV—OFFSETS 

12 SEC. 401. REFORM OF TAX RULES RELATED TO POLITICAL 

13 ORGANIZATIONS. 

14 (a) DECOUPLING OF RATE OF TAX ON POLITICAL

15 ORGANIZATIONS FROM CORPORATE TAX RATE.—Sub16 section (b) of section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code 

17 of 1986 is amended— 

18 (1) by striking all that precedes ‘‘A tax is here19 by imposed’’ and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(b) TAX IMPOSED.—’’, 

21 (2) by striking paragraph (2), and 

22 (3) by striking ‘‘the highest rate of tax specified 

23 in section 11(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘35 percent’’. 


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1 (b) REPEAL OF EXEMPTIONS FOR PROCEEDS FROM

2 MERCHANDISE AND ENTERTAINMENT EVENTS.—Para3 graph (3) of section 527(c) of such Code is amended— 

4 (1) by adding ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 

5 (A), 

6 (2) by striking the comma at the end of sub7 paragraph (B) and inserting a period, and 

8 (3) by striking subparagraphs (C) and (D). 

9 (c) MODIFICATION OF LIMITATION ON TAX PAID BY

10 CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS ENGAGED IN EXEMPT

11 FUNCTIONS.—Paragraph (1) of section 527(f) of such 

12 Code is amended by striking ‘‘equal to the lesser of—’’ 

13 and all that follows and inserting ‘‘equal to the aggregate 

14 amount so expended during the taxable year for such an 

15 exempt function. If such aggregate amount does not ex16 ceed $500,000, the amount included in gross income 

17 under the preceding sentence shall not exceed the net in18 vestment income of such organization for the taxable 

19 year.’’. 

20 (d) REPEAL OF GRADUATED RATES FOR PRINCIPAL

21 CAMPAIGN COMMITTEES.—Section 527 of such Code is 

22 amended by striking subsection (h). 

23 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

24 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

25 the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 402. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE GRASS2 ROOTS DEMOCRACY FUND. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter A of chapter 61 of the 

4 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

5 the end the following new part: 

6 ‘‘PART IX—CONTRIBUTIONS TO GRASSROOTS 

7 DEMOCRACY FUND 

‘‘Sec. 6098. Contributions to Grassroots Democracy Fund. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 6098. CONTRIBUTIONS TO GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY 

9 FUND. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Every individual, with respect to 

11 the taxpayer’s return for the taxable year of the tax im12 posed by chapter 1, may designate that a specified portion 

13 (not less than $1) of any overpayment of tax shall be con14 tributed to the Grassroots Democracy Fund established 

15 under section 541 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

16 of 1971. 

17 ‘‘(b) MANNER AND TIME OF DESIGNATION.— 

18 ‘‘(1) TIME OF DESIGNATION.—A designation 

19 under subsection (a) may be made with respect to 

20 any taxable year— 

21 ‘‘(A) at the time of filing the return of the 

22 tax imposed by chapter 1 for such taxable year, 

23 or 


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1 ‘‘(B) at any other time (after such time of 

2 filing) specified in regulations prescribed by the 

3 Secretary. 

4 ‘‘(2) MANNER OF DESIGNATION.—Such des5 ignation shall be made in such manner as the Sec6 retary prescribes by regulations except that, if such 

7 designation is made at the time of filing the return 

8 of the tax imposed by chapter 1 for such taxable 

9 year, such designation shall be made either on the 

10 first page of the return or on the page bearing the 

11 taxpayer’s signature. 

12 ‘‘(c) OVERPAYMENTS TREATED AS REFUNDED.—For 

13 purposes of this title, any portion of an overpayment of 

14 tax designated under subsection (a) shall be treated as— 

15 ‘‘(1) being refunded to the taxpayer as of the 

16 last date prescribed for filing the return of tax im17 posed by chapter 1 (determined without regard to 

18 extensions) or, if later, the date the return is filed, 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(2) a contribution made by such taxpayer on 

21 such date to the United States. 

22 ‘‘(d) ON-LINE CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary 

23 shall establish and maintain a Web site through which per24 sons may make contributions to the Grassroots Democracy 

25 Fund. Any such contribution shall not be treated as an 


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1 overpayment of tax but shall be treated as a contribution 

2 made by such person to the United States.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of parts for 

4 subchapter A of chapter 61 of the Internal Revenue Code 

5 of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following 

6 new item: 

‘‘PART IX. CONTRIBUTIONS TO GRASSROOTS DEMOCRACY FUND.’’. 

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

8 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 TITLE V—EXPANDING CAN11 DIDATE ACCESS TO ADVER12 TISING 

13 SEC. 501. BROADCASTS BY OR ON BEHALF OF CANDIDATES. 

14 (a) USE OF BROADCASTING STATION AT LOWEST

15 UNIT CHARGE.—Section 315(b) of the Communications 

16 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 315(b)) is amended— 

17 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

18 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

19 (A), by inserting ‘‘, or by a national committee 

20 of a political party in connection with such a 

21 campaign of such a candidate who is affiliated 

22 with the party,’’ after ‘‘to such office’’; 

23 (B) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘for 

24 preemptible use thereof’’ after ‘‘station’’; and 


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1 (C) by moving subparagraphs (A) and (B) 

2 2 ems to the right; and 

3 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

4 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘IN GENERAL.—’’ and 

6 inserting ‘‘CERTIFICATION.—’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘the broadcast sta8 tion’’ and inserting ‘‘such station’’; 

9 (iii) by striking ‘‘In the case of’’ and 

10 inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) BY CANDIDATES.—In the case 

12 of’’; and 

13 (iv) by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(ii) BY PARTY NATIONAL COMMIT16 TEES.—In the case of the use of any 

17 broadcasting station by a national com18 mittee of a political party in connection 

19 with the campaign of a candidate for Fed20 eral office who is affiliated with the party, 

21 such committee shall not be entitled to re22 ceive the rate under paragraph (1)(A) for 

23 such use unless such committee provides 

24 written certification to such station that 

25 such committee shall not make any direct 


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1 reference to another candidate for the 

2 same office, in any broadcast using the 

3 rights and conditions of access under this 

4 Act, unless such reference meets the re5 quirements of subparagraph (C) or (D).’’; 

6 (B) in subparagraph (B)— 

7 (i) by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘subparagraph (A)(i)’’; 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘If a candidate’’ and 

10 inserting the following: 

11 ‘‘(i) FOR CANDIDATES.—If a can12 didate’’; and 

13 (iii) by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(ii) FOR PARTY NATIONAL COMMIT16 TEES.—If the national committee of a po17 litical party makes a reference described in 

18 subparagraph (A)(ii) in any broadcast that 

19 does not meet the requirements of sub20 paragraph (C) or (D), such national com21 mittee shall not be entitled to receive the 

22 rate under paragraph (1)(A) for such 

23 broadcast or any other broadcast in con24 nection with the campaign of the candidate 

25 during any portion of the 45-day and 60- 


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1 day periods described in paragraph (1)(A), 

2 that occur on or after the date of such 

3 broadcast.’’; 

4 (C) in subparagraph (C)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘A candidate’’ and in6 serting ‘‘A television broadcast’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘, in the case of a tele8 vision broadcast,’’; and 

9 (iii) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘or the 

10 national committee of a political party’’ 

11 after ‘‘authorized committee’’; 

12 (D) in subparagraph (D)— 

13 (i) by striking ‘‘A candidate’’ and in14 serting ‘‘A radio broadcast’’; and 

15 (ii) by striking ‘‘, in the case of a 

16 radio broadcast,’’; and 

17 (E) in subparagraph (E), by inserting ‘‘or 

18 national committee’’ after ‘‘candidate)’’. 

19 (b) PREEMPTION; AUDITS.—Section 315 of the Com20 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 315) is amended— 

21 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub22 section (g); 

23 (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub24 section (f); and 


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1 (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(c) PREEMPTION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para5 graph (2) and notwithstanding the requirements of 

6 subsection (b)(1)(A), a licensee may not preempt the 

7 use of a broadcasting station by a legally qualified 

8 candidate or national committee of a political party 

9 that has purchased and paid for such use under cir10 cumstances entitling such candidate or committee to 

11 receive the rate under such subsection for such use. 

12 ‘‘(2) CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND CONTROL OF LI13 CENSEE.—If a program to be broadcast by a broad14 casting station is preempted because of cir15 cumstances beyond the control of the licensee, an 

16 advertisement that is scheduled to be broadcast dur17 ing such program and the broadcast of which con18 stitutes use of the broadcasting station described in 

19 paragraph (1) shall be treated in the same fashion 

20 as a comparable commercial advertisement. 

21 ‘‘(d) AUDITS.—During the 45-day period preceding 

22 the date of a primary or primary runoff election and dur23 ing the 60-day period preceding the date of a general elec24 tion or special election, the Commission shall conduct such 

25 audits as it considers necessary to ensure that the licensee 


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1 of each broadcasting station is allocating use of the station 

2 in accordance with this section and in a manner that does 

3 not warrant revocation of the station license under section 

4 312(a)(7).’’. 

5 (c) REVOCATION OF LICENSE FOR FAILURE TO PER6 MIT ACCESS BY FEDERAL CANDIDATES.—Section 312 of 

7 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 312) is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)(7)— 

10 (A) by inserting ‘‘in accordance with sub11 section (h),’’ before ‘‘for willful’’; 

12 (B) by striking ‘‘or repeated’’; 

13 (C) by inserting ‘‘or a cable system’’ after 

14 ‘‘non-commercial educational broadcast sta15 tion,’’; and 

16 (D) by striking ‘‘his candidacy’’ and insert17 ing ‘‘the candidacy of the candidate, or by a na18 tional committee of a political party in connec19 tion with the campaign of a legally qualified 

20 candidate for Federal elective office who is af21 filiated with the party, under the same terms, 

22 conditions, and business practices as apply to 

23 the most-favored advertiser of the broadcasting 

24 station or cable system’’; and 

25 (2) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(h) CONDITIONS FOR REVOCATION FOR FAILURE

2 TO ALLOW ACCESS BY FEDERAL CANDIDATES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) THREE-STRIKES RULE.—The Commission 

4 may revoke a station license or construction permit 

5 under subsection (a)(7) only if the Commission finds 

6 that the licensee or permittee has engaged in at least 

7 3 failures described in such subsection with respect 

8 to the broadcasting station or cable system to which 

9 the license or permit relates. 

10 ‘‘(2) DURATION.—In the case of a person 

11 whose station license or construction permit with re12 spect to a broadcasting station or cable system has 

13 been revoked under subsection (a)(7)— 

14 ‘‘(A) the Commission may not grant a sta15 tion license or construction permit to such per16 son with respect to such broadcasting station or 

17 cable system during the 5-year period following 

18 the revocation; and 

19 ‘‘(B) if the Commission grants such a sta20 tion license or construction permit to such per21 son after such 5-year period, the number of 

22 failures described in subsection (a)(7) shall be 

23 calculated for purposes of paragraph (1) with24 out regard to any such failures that occurred 


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1 while a previous license or permit was in ef2 fect.’’. 

3 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 315 of the 

4 Communications Act of 1934, as amended by subsection 

5 (b), is further amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘If any li7 censee’’ and inserting ‘‘EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR

8 CANDIDATES FOR SAME OFFICE.—If any licensee’’; 

9 (2) in subsection (f), as redesignated, by strik10 ing ‘‘The Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘REGULA11 TIONS.—The Commission’’; and 

12 (3) in subsection (g), as redesignated, by strik13 ing ‘‘For purposes’’ and inserting ‘‘DEFINITIONS.— 

14 For purposes’’. 

Æ 


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