I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 1396

To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to provide for a

voluntary system of spending limits and partial public financing for

House of Representatives election campaigns, to prohibit contributions

by multicandidate political committees, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

MARCH 18, 1993

Mr. BEILENSON (for himself and Mr. LEACH) introduced the following bill;

which was referred jointly to the Committees on House Administration,

Post Office and Civil Service, and Energy and Commerce

A BILL

To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to

provide for a voluntary system of spending limits and

partial public financing for House of Representatives

election campaigns, to prohibit contributions by

multicandidate political committees, 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,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘House of Representa5 tives Election Campaign Reform Act of 1993’’.
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1 TITLE I—EXPENDITURE LIMITA2 TIONS, CONTRIBUTION LIMI3 TATIONS, MATCHING FUNDS,

4 REDUCED THIRD-CLASS MAIL

5 RATE, AND REDUCED BROAD6 CAST RATES FOR ELIGIBLE

7 HOUSE OF REPRESENTA8 TIVES CANDIDATES

9 SEC. 101. NEW TITLE OF THE FEDERAL ELECTION CAM10 PAIGN ACT OF 1971.

11 The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2

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

13 following new title:

14 ‘‘TITLE V—EXPENDITURE LIMI15 TATIONS, CONTRIBUTION

16 LIMITATIONS, AND MATCH17 ING FUNDS FOR ELIGIBLE

18 HOUSE OF REPRESENTA19 TIVES CANDIDATES

20 ‘‘SEC. 501. EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS.

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible House of Representa22 tives candidate may not, in an election cycle, make expend23 itures aggregating more than $350,000.

24 ‘‘(b) RUNOFF ELECTION AND SPECIAL ELECTION

25 AMOUNTS.—
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1 ‘‘(1) RUNOFF ELECTION AMOUNT.—In addition

2 to the expenditures under subsection (a), an eligible

3 House of Representatives candidate who is a can4 didate in a runoff election may make expenditures

5 aggregating not more than $100,000 in the general

6 election period.

7 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL ELECTION AMOUNT.—An eligible

8 House of Representatives candidate who is a can9 didate in a special election may make expenditures

10 aggregating not more than $350,000 with respect to

11 the special election.

12 ‘‘(c) COMPETITIVE PRIMARY.—If, as determined by

13 the Commission, an eligible House of Representatives can14 didate in a contested primary election has at least one op15 ponent who receives contributions or makes expenditures

16 of $50,000, subject to the general election period limita17 tion in subsection (a), the candidate may make additional

18 expenditures of not more than $150,000 in the general

19 election period. The additional expenditures shall be from

20 contributions described in section 503(h) and payments

21 described in section 504(g).

22 ‘‘(d) NONPARTICIPATING OPPONENT PROVISIONS.—

23 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION EXCEPTION.—The limitations

24 imposed by subsections (a) and (b) do not apply in

25 the case of an eligible House of Representatives can-
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1 didate if any other candidate seeking nomination or

2 election to that office—

3 ‘‘(A) is not an eligible House of Represent4 atives candidate; and

5 ‘‘(B) receives contributions or makes ex6 penditures in excess of $350,000.

7 ‘‘(2) CONTINUED ELIGIBILITY AND ADDITIONAL

8 MATCHING FUNDS.—An eligible House of Represent9 atives candidate referred to in paragraph (1)—

10 ‘‘(A) shall continue to be eligible for all

11 benefits under this title; and

12 ‘‘(B) shall receive matching funds without

13 regard to the ceiling under section 504(a).

14 ‘‘(3) REPORTING REQUIREMENT.—A candidate

15 for the office of Representative in, or Delegate or

16 Resident Commissioner to, the Congress who—

17 ‘‘(A) is not an eligible House of Represent18 atives candidate; and

19 ‘‘(B) receives contributions or makes ex20 penditures in excess of $350,000;

21 shall report that the threshold has been reached to

22 the Commission not later than 48 hours after reach23 ing the threshold. Not later than 48 hours after the

24 Commission receives a report under this paragraph,
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1 the Commission shall transmit a copy of the report

2 to each other candidate in the election.

3 ‘‘(e) INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE PROVISION.—

4 The limitation imposed by subsection (a) does not apply

5 to an eligible House of Representatives candidate if inde6 pendent expenditures totaling $10,000 are made in the

7 same election in favor of another candidate or against the

8 eligible House of Representatives candidate.

9 ‘‘(f) EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN COSTS AND TAXES.—

10 Payments up to $25,000 for legal and accounting compli11 ance costs and Federal and State taxes shall not be con12 sidered in the computation of amounts subject to limita13 tion under this section.

14 ‘‘(g) CIVIL PENALTIES.—

15 ‘‘(1) LOW AMOUNT OF EXCESS EXPENDI16 TURES.—Any eligible House of Representatives can17 didate who makes expenditures that exceed a limita18 tion under subsection (a) or subsection (b) by 2.5

19 percent or less shall pay to the Secretary of the

20 Treasury, for deposit in the House of Representa21 tives Election Campaign Fund, an amount equal to

22 the amount of the excess expenditures.

23 ‘‘(2) MEDIUM AMOUNT OF EXCESS EXPENDI24 TURES.—Any eligible House of Representatives can25 didate who makes expenditures that exceed a limita-
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1 tion under subsection (a) or subsection (b) by more

2 than 2.5 percent and less than 5 percent shall pay

3 to the Secretary of the Treasury, for deposit in the

4 House of Representatives Election Campaign Fund,

5 an amount equal to three times the amount of the

6 excess expenditures.

7 ‘‘(3) LARGE AMOUNT OF EXCESS EXPENDI8 TURES.—Any eligible House of Representatives can9 didate who makes expenditures that exceed a limita10 tion under subsection (a) or subsection (b) by 5 per11 cent or more shall pay to the Secretary of the Treas12 ury, for deposit in the House of Representatives

13 Election Campaign Fund, the amount of matching

14 payments received under section 504 and an amount

15 equal to three times the amount of the excess ex16 penditures plus a civil penalty in an amount deter17 mined by the Commission.

18 ‘‘(h) INDEXING.—The dollar amounts specified in

19 subsections (a), (b), (c), and (e) shall be adjusted in the

20 manner provided in section 315(c), except that, for the

21 purposes of such adjustment, the base period shall be cal22 endar year 1993.’’.
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1 ‘‘SEC. 502. STATEMENT OF PARTICIPATION; CONTINUING

2 ELIGIBILITY.

3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall determine

4 whether a candidate is in compliance with this title and,

5 by reason of such compliance, is eligible to receive benefits

6 under this title. Such determination shall—

7 ‘‘(1) in the case of an initial determination, be

8 based on a statement of participation submitted by

9 the candidate; and

10 ‘‘(2) in the case of a determination of continu11 ing eligibility, be based on relevant additional infor12 mation submitted in such form and manner as the

13 Commission may require.

14 ‘‘(b) FILING.—The statement of participation re15 ferred to in subsection (a) shall be filed not later than

16 January 31 of the election year or on the date on which

17 the candidate files a statement of candidacy, whichever is

18 later.

19 ‘‘SEC. 503. CONTRIBUTION LIMITATIONS.

20 ‘‘(a) ELIGIBLE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CAN21 DIDATE LIMITATION.—An eligible House of Representa22 tives candidate may not, with respect to an election cycle,

23 accept contributions aggregating in excess of $350,000.

24 ‘‘(b) TRANSFER PROVISIONS.—A candidate for the

25 office of Representative in, or Delegate or President Com26 missioner to, the Congress may not transfer more than
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1 $25,000 from an election cycle to a later election cycle.

2 Any balance in excess of $25,000 on the last day of Feb3 ruary of the year after the election shall, on March 1 of

4 such year, be paid to the Secretary of the Treasury, for

5 deposit in the House of Representatives Election Cam6 paign Fund.

7 ‘‘(c) RUNOFF AMOUNT.—In addition to the contribu8 tions under subsection (a), an eligible House of Represent9 atives candidate who is a candidate in a runoff election

10 may accept contributions aggregating not more than

11 $100,000 in the general election period.

12 ‘‘(d) PERSONAL CONTRIBUTIONS.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An eligible House of Rep14 resentatives candidate may not, with respect to an

15 election cycle, make contributions to his or her own

16 campaign totaling more than $30,000 from the per17 sonal funds of the candidate. Contributions from the

18 personal funds of a candidate may not be matched

19 under section 504.

20 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION EXCEPTION.—The limitation

21 imposed by paragraph (1) does not apply in the case

22 of an eligible House of Representatives candidate if

23 any other candidate—

24 ‘‘(A) is not an eligible House of Represent25 atives candidate; and
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1 ‘‘(B) receives contributions or makes ex2 penditures in excess of $350,000.

3 ‘‘(e) CIVIL PENALTIES.—

4 ‘‘(1) LOW AMOUNT OF EXCESS CONTRIBU5 TIONS.—Any eligible House of Representatives can6 didate who accepts contributions that exceed the lim7 itation under subsection (a) by 2.5 percent or less

8 shall refund the excess contributions to the persons

9 who made the contributions.

10 ‘‘(2) MEDIUM AMOUNT OF EXCESS CONTRIBU11 TIONS.—Any eligible House of Representatives can12 didate who accepts contributions that exceed a limi13 tation under subsection (a) by more than 2.5 per14 cent and less than 5 percent shall pay to the Sec15 retary of the Treasury, for deposit in the House of

16 Representatives Election Campaign Fund, an

17 amount equal to three times the amount of the ex18 cess contributions.

19 ‘‘(3) LARGE AMOUNT OF EXCESS CONTRIBU20 TIONS.—Any eligible House of Representatives can21 didate who accepts contributions that exceed a limi22 tation under subsection (a) by 5 percent or more

23 shall pay to the Secretary of the Treasury, for de24 posit in the House of Representatives Election Cam25 paign Fund, the amount of matching payments re-
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1 ceived under section 504 and an amount equal to

2 three times the amount of the excess contributions

3 plus a civil penalty in an amount determined by the

4 Commission.

5 ‘‘(f) EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN COSTS AND TAXES.—

6 Any amount—

7 ‘‘(1) accepted by a candidate for the office of

8 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis9 sioner to the Congress; and

10 ‘‘(2) up to $25,000 used for legal and account11 ing compliance costs and Federal and State taxes

12 shall not be considered in the computation of

13 amounts subject to limitation under subsection (a).

14 ‘‘(g) INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE PROVISION.—

15 The limitation imposed by subsection (a) does not apply

16 to an eligible House of Representatives candidate if inde17 pendent expenditures totaling $10,000 are made in the

18 same election in favor of another candidate or against the

19 eligible House of Representatives candidate.

20 ‘‘(h) COMPETITIVE PRIMARY.—If, as determined by

21 the Commission, an eligible House of Representatives can22 didate in a contested primary election has at least one op23 ponent who receives contributions or makes expenditures

24 of $50,000, notwithstanding the limitation in subsection
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1 (a), the candidate may, in the general election period, ac2 cept additional contributions of not more than $150,000.

3 ‘‘(i) PROHIBITION OF ACCEPTANCE OF

4 MULTICANDIDATE POLITICAL COMMITTEE CONTRIBU5 TIONS BY HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CANDIDATES.—

6 A candidate for the office of Representative in, or Dele7 gate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress may not

8 accept any contribution from a multicandidate political

9 committee.

10 ‘‘(j) ALTERNATIVE LIMITATION.—If the prohibition

11 under subsection (i) is held unconstitutional, a candidate

12 for the office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident

13 Commissioner to, the Congress may accept not more than

14 $1,000 from a multicandidate political committee in an

15 election cycle, but not more than a total of $70,000 from

16 all multicandidate political committees, except that a can17 didate may accept an additional $30,000 in the case of

18 a competitive primary and $20,000 in the case of a runoff.

19 ‘‘(k) LIMITATION ON ACCEPTANCE OF CONTRIBU20 TIONS BY CANDIDATES IN HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

21 ELECTIONS.—A candidate in a House of Representatives

22 election may not accept contributions totaling more than

23 $500 from any one individual in an election cycle.

24 ‘‘(l) INDEXING.—The dollar amounts specified in

25 subsections (a), (c), (d), (g), and (h) shall be adjusted in
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1 the manner provided in section 315(c), except that, for

2 the purposes of such adjustment, the base period shall be

3 calendar year 1993.’’.

4 ‘‘SEC. 504. MATCHING FUNDS.

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—An eligible House of Representa6 tives candidate shall be entitled to receive an amount equal

7 to the amount of contributions from individuals residing

8 in the State in which the candidate is seeking election re9 ceived by the candidate, but not more than $175,000, and

10 not to the extent that contributions from any individual

11 during the election cycle exceed $500 in the aggregate.

12 ‘‘(b) INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE PROVISION.—If,

13 with respect to a general election involving an eligible

14 House of Representatives candidate, independent expendi15 tures totaling $10,000 are made against the eligible House

16 of Representatives candidate or in favor of another can17 didate, the eligible House of Representatives candidate

18 shall be entitled, in addition to any amount received under

19 subsection (a), to a matching payment of $10,000 and ad20 ditional matching payments equal to the amount of such

21 independent expenditures above $10,000, and expendi22 tures may be made from such payments without regard

23 to the limitations in section 501.

24 ‘‘(c) SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS.—A candidate for the

25 office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com-
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1 missioner to, the Congress may receive matching funds

2 under subsection (a) only if the candidate—

3 ‘‘(1) in an election cycle, has received $10,000

4 in contributions from individuals;

5 ‘‘(2) qualifies for the primary or general elec6 tion ballot;

7 ‘‘(3) has an opponent on the primary or general

8 election ballot; and

9 ‘‘(4) files a statement of participation in which

10 the candidate agrees to—

11 ‘‘(A) comply with the limitations under

12 sections 501 and 503;

13 ‘‘(B) cooperate in the case of any audit by

14 the Commission by furnishing such campaign

15 records and other information as the Commis16 sion may require; and

17 ‘‘(C) comply with any repayment require18 ment under section 505.

19 ‘‘(d) WRITTEN INSTRUMENT REQUIREMENT.—No

20 contribution in any form other than a gift of money made

21 by a written instrument that identifies the individual mak22 ing the contribution may be used as a basis for any match23 ing payment under this section.

24 ‘‘(e) HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES ELECTION CAM25 PAIGN FUND.—There is established in the Treasury a
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1 fund, to be known as the ‘House of Representatives Elec2 tion Campaign Fund’, consisting of such amounts as may

3 be appropriated by law.

4 ‘‘(f) CERTIFICATION AND PAYMENT.—

5 ‘‘(1) CERTIFICATION.—Except as provided in

6 paragraphs (2) and (3), not later than 5 days after

7 receiving a request for payment, the Commission

8 shall submit to the Secretary of the Treasury a cer9 tification for payment of the amount requested

10 under subsection (a) or (b).

11 ‘‘(2) PAYMENTS.—The initial payment under

12 subsection (a) to an eligible candidate shall be

13 $10,000. All payments shall be—

14 ‘‘(A) made not later than 48 hours after

15 certification under paragraph (1); and

16 ‘‘(B) subject to proportional reduction in

17 the case of an insufficient balance in the Fund

18 established by subsection (e).

19 ‘‘(3) INCORRECT REQUEST.—If the Commission

20 determines that any portion of a request is incorrect,

21 the Commission shall withhold the certification for

22 that portion only and inform the candidate as to

23 how the candidate may correct the request.

24 ‘‘(g) COMPETITIVE PRIMARY.—If, as determined by

25 the Commission, an eligible House of Representatives can-
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1 didate in a contested primary election has at least one op2 ponent who receives contributions or makes expenditures

3 of $50,000, the candidate shall be entitled to matching

4 funds totaling not more than $75,000, in addition to any

5 other amount received under this section.

6 ‘‘(h) RUNOFF.—In the case of a runoff election, an

7 eligible House of Representatives candidate shall be enti8 tled to matching funds totaling not more than $50,000,

9 in addition to any other amount received under this sec10 tion.

11 ‘‘(i) INDEXING.—The dollar amounts specified in

12 subsections (a), (b), and (c) (other than the amount in

13 subsection (c) to be taken into account per individual),

14 and subsections (f) and (g) shall be adjusted in the man15 ner provided in section 315(c), except that, for the pur16 poses of such adjustment, the base period shall be cal17 endar year 1993.’’.

18 ‘‘SEC. 505. EXAMINATION AND AUDITS; REPAYMENTS.

19 ‘‘(a) GENERAL ELECTION.—After each general elec20 tion, the Commission shall conduct an examination and

21 audit of the campaign accounts of 10 percent of the eligi22 ble House of Representatives candidates, as designated by

23 the Commission through the use of an appropriate statis24 tical method of random selection, to determine whether

25 such candidates have complied with the conditions of eligi-
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1 bility and other requirements of this title. No other factors

2 shall be considered in carrying out such an examination

3 and audit. In selecting the accounts to be examined and

4 audited, the Commission shall select all eligible candidates

5 from a congressional district where any eligible candidate

6 is selected for examination and audit.

7 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL ELECTION.—After each special elec8 tion, the Commission shall conduct an examination and

9 audit of the campaign accounts of all eligible candidates

10 in the election to determine whether the candidates have

11 complied with the conditions of eligibility and other re12 quirements of this title.

13 ‘‘(c) AFFIRMATIVE VOTE.—The Commission may

14 conduct an examination and audit of the campaign ac15 counts of any eligible House of Representatives candidate

16 in a general election if the Commission, by an affirmative

17 vote of 4 members, determines that there exists reason

18 to believe that such candidate has violated any provision

19 of this title.

20 ‘‘(d) PAYMENTS.—If the Commission determines that

21 any amount of a payment to a candidate under this title

22 was in excess of the aggregate payments to which such

23 candidate was entitled, the Commission shall so notify the

24 candidate, and the candidate shall pay to the Secretary

25 an amount equal to the excess.
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1 ‘‘SEC. 506. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

2 ‘‘(a) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Any agency action by the

3 Commission made under the provisions of this title shall

4 be subject to review by the United States Court of Appeals

5 for the District of Columbia Circuit upon petition filed in

6 such court within 30 days after the agency action by the

7 Commission for which review is sought.

8 ‘‘(b) APPLICATION OF TITLE 5.—The provisions of

9 chapter 7 of title 5, United States Code, shall apply to

10 judicial review of any agency action by the Commission.

11 ‘‘(c) AGENCY ACTION.—For purposes of this section,

12 the term ‘agency action’ has the meaning given such term

13 by section 551(13) of title 5, United States Code.

14 ‘‘SEC. 507. PARTICIPATION BY COMMISSION IN JUDICIAL

15 PROCEEDINGS.

16 ‘‘(a) APPEARANCES.—The Commission is authorized

17 to appear in and defend against any action instituted

18 under this section and under section 506 either by attor19 neys employed in its office or by counsel whom it may ap20 point without regard to the provisions of title 5, United

21 States Code, governing appointments in the competitive

22 service, and whose compensation it may fix without regard

23 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chap24 ter 53 of such title.

25 ‘‘(b) INSTITUTION OF ACTIONS.—The Commission is

26 authorized, through attorneys and counsel described in
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1 subsection (a), to institute actions in the district courts

2 of the United States to seek recovery of any amounts de3 termined under this title to be payable to the Secretary.

4 ‘‘(c) APPEALS.—The Commission is authorized on

5 behalf of the United States to appeal from, and to petition

6 the Supreme Court for certiorari to review, judgments or

7 decrees entered with respect to actions in which it appears

8 pursuant to the authority provided in this section.

9 ‘‘SEC. 508. REPORTS TO CONGRESS; CERTIFICATIONS; REG10 ULATIONS.

11 ‘‘(a) REPORTS.—The Commission shall, as soon as

12 practicable after each election, submit a full report to the

13 House of Representatives setting forth—

14 ‘‘(1) the expenditures (shown in such detail as

15 the Commission determines appropriate) made by

16 each eligible candidate and the authorized commit17 tees of such candidate;

18 ‘‘(2) the aggregate amount of matching fund

19 payments certified by the Commission under section

20 504 for each eligible candidate; and

21 ‘‘(3) the amount of repayments, if any, required

22 under section 505, and the reasons for each repay23 ment required.

24 Each report submitted pursuant to this section shall be

25 printed as a House document.
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1 ‘‘(b) DETERMINATIONS BY COMMISSION.—All deter2 minations (including certifications under section 504)

3 made by the Commission under this title shall be final and

4 conclusive, except to the extent that they are subject to

5 examination and audit by the Commission under section

6 505 or judicial review under section 506.

7 ‘‘(c) RULES AND REGULATIONS.—The Commission is

8 authorized to prescribe such rules and regulations, in ac9 cordance with the provisions of subsection (d), to conduct

10 such audits, examinations and investigations, and to re11 quire the keeping and submission of such books, records,

12 and information, as it deems necessary to carry out the

13 functions and duties imposed on it by this title.

14 ‘‘(d) REPORT OF PROPOSED REGULATIONS.—The

15 Commission shall submit to the House of Representatives

16 a report containing a detailed explanation and justification

17 of each rule, regulation, and form of the Commission

18 under this title. No such rule, regulation, or form may

19 take effect until a period of 30 legislative days has elapsed

20 after the report is received. As used in this subsection—

21 ‘‘(1) the term ‘legislative day’ means any cal22 endar day on which the House of Representatives is

23 in session; and
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1 ‘‘(2) the terms ‘rule’ and ‘regulation’ mean a

2 provision or series of interrelated provisions stating

3 a single, separable rule of law.’’.

4 SEC. 102. DEFINITIONS.

5 Section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

6 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431) is amended by striking out para7 graph (19) and inserting in lieu thereof the following new

8 paragraphs:

9 ‘‘(19) The term ‘eligible House of Representatives

10 candidate’ means a candidate for election to the office of

11 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner

12 to, the Congress, who, as determined by the Commission

13 under section 502, is eligible to receive matching payments

14 and other benefits under title V by reason of filing a state15 ment of participation and complying with the continuing

16 eligibility requirements under section 502.

17 ‘‘(20) The term ‘general election period’ means, with

18 respect to any candidate, the period beginning on the day

19 after the date of the primary election for the specific office

20 the candidate is seeking, whichever is later, and ending

21 on the earlier of—

22 ‘‘(A) the date of such general election; or

23 ‘‘(B) the date on which the candidate withdraws

24 from the campaign or otherwise ceases actively to

25 seek election; and
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1 ‘‘(21) The term ‘election cycle’ means—

2 ‘‘(A) in the case of a candidate or the author3 ized committees of a candidate, the term beginning

4 on the day after the date of the most recent general

5 election for the specific office or seat which such

6 candidate seeks and ending on the date of the next

7 general election for such office or seat; or

8 ‘‘(B) for all other persons, the term beginning

9 on the first day following the date of the last general

10 election and ending on the date of the next general

11 election.’’.

12 SEC. 103. EXTENSION OF REDUCED THIRD-CLASS MAILING

13 RATES TO ELIGIBLE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA14 TIVES CANDIDATES.

15 Section 3626(e) of title 39, United States Code, is

16 amended—

17 (1) in paragraph (2)(A)—

18 (A) by striking out ‘‘and the National’’

19 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘the National’’;

20 and

21 (B) by striking out ‘‘Committee;’’ and in22 serting in lieu thereof ‘‘Committee, and, subject

23 to paragraph (3), the principal campaign com24 mittee of an eligible House of Representatives

25 candidate;’’;
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1 (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking out ‘‘and’’

2 after the semicolon;

3 (3) in paragraph (2)(C), by striking out the pe4 riod and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘; and’’;

5 (4) by adding after paragraph (2)(C) the fol6 lowing new subparagraph:

7 ‘‘(D) the terms ‘eligible House of Rep8 resentatives candidate’ and ‘principal campaign

9 committee’ have the meanings given those

10 terms in section 301 of the Federal Election

11 Campaign Act of 1971.’’; and

12 (5) by adding after paragraph (2) the following

13 new paragraph:

14 ‘‘(3) The rate made available under this subsection

15 with respect to an eligible House of Representatives can16 didate shall apply only to that number of pieces of mail

17 equal to 3 times the number of individuals in the voting

18 age population of the congressional district (as certified

19 under section 315(e) of such Act).’’.

20 SEC. 104. BROADCAST RATES AND PREEMPTION.

21 (a) BROADCAST RATES.—Section 315(b) of the Com22 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 315(b)) is amended—

23 (1) in paragraph (1)—

24 (A) by striking out ‘‘forty-five’’ and insert25 ing in lieu thereof ‘‘30’’;
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1 (B) by striking out ‘‘sixty’’ and inserting

2 in lieu thereof ‘‘45’’; and

3 (C) by striking out ‘‘lowest unit charge of

4 the station for the same class and amount of

5 time for the same period’’ and insert ‘‘lowest

6 charge of the station for the same amount of

7 time for the same period on the same date’’;

8 and

9 (2) by adding at the end the following new sen10 tence:

11 ‘‘In the case of an eligible House of Representatives can12 didate (as defined in section 301(19) of the Federal Elec13 tion Campaign Act of 1971), the charges during the gen14 eral election period (as defined in section 301(21) of such

15 Act) shall not exceed 50 percent of the lowest charge de16 scribed in paragraph (1).’’.

17 (b) PREEMPTION; ACCESS.—Section 315 of such Act

18 (47 U.S.C. 315) is amended by redesignating subsections

19 (c) and (d) as subsections (e) and (f), respectively, and

20 by inserting immediately after subsection (b) the following

21 new subsection:

22 ‘‘(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), a li23 censee shall not preempt the use, during any period speci24 fied in subsection (b)(1), of a broadcasting station by a

25 legally qualified candidate for public office who has pur-
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1 chased and paid for such use pursuant to the provisions

2 of subsection (b)(1).

3 ‘‘(2) If a program to be broadcast by a broadcasting

4 station is preempted because of circumstances beyond the

5 control of the broadcasting station, any candidate adver6 tising spot scheduled to be broadcast during that program

7 may also be preempted.’’.

8 TITLE II—MISCELLANEOUS PRO9 VISIONS RELATING TO THE

10 FEDERAL ELECTION CAM11 PAIGN ACT OF 1971

12 SEC. 201. TREATMENT OF CERTAIN CONTRIBUTIONS.

13 Section 315 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

14 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a) is amended by adding at the end

15 the following new subsection:

16 ‘‘(i)(1) An amount of up to $25,000—

17 ‘‘(A) accepted by a candidate for the office of

18 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis19 sioner to the Congress; and

20 ‘‘(B) used for legal and accounting compliance

21 costs and Federal and State taxes shall be subject

22 to the limitations of this Act.

23 ‘‘(2) In addition to any other contributions under this

24 subsection, if, as determined by the Commission, an eligi25 ble House of Representatives candidate in a contested pri-
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1 mary election, has at least one opponent who receives con2 tributions or makes expenditures of $50,000, the can3 didate may, in the general election period, accept contribu4 tions of not more than $150,000.

5 ‘‘(3) The dollar amount specified in paragraph (2)

6 (other than the amount relating to contribution totals)

7 shall be adjusted in the manner provided in section 315(c),

8 except that, for the purposes of such adjustment, the base

9 period shall be calendar year 1993.’’.

10 SEC. 202. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN INDE11 PENDENT EXPENDITURES.

12 Section 304(c) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

13 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(c)) is amended—

14 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking out the undes15 ignated matter after subparagraph (C);

16 (2) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para17 graph (5); and

18 (3) by inserting after paragraph (2), as amend19 ed by paragraph (1), the following new paragraphs:

20 ‘‘(3)(A) Any independent expenditure (including

21 those described in subsection (b)(6)(B)(iii) of this section)

22 aggregating $1,000 or more made after the 20th day, but

23 more than 24 hours, before any election shall be reported

24 within 24 hours after such independent expenditure is

25 made.
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1 ‘‘(B) Any independent expenditure aggregating

2 $10,000 or more made at any time up to and including

3 the 20th day before any election shall be reported within

4 48 hours after such independent expenditure is made. An

5 additional statement shall be filed each time independent

6 expenditures aggregating $10,000 are made with respect

7 to the same election as the initial statement filed under

8 this section.

9 ‘‘(C) Such statement shall be filed with the Clerk of

10 the House of Representatives and the Secretary of State

11 of the State involved and shall contain the information re12 quired by subsection (b)(6)(B)(iii) of this section, includ13 ing whether the independent expenditure is in support of,

14 or in opposition to, the candidate involved. The Clerk of

15 the House of Representatives shall as soon as possible (but

16 not later than 4 working hours of the Commission) after

17 receipt of a statement transmit it to the Commission. Not

18 later than 48 hours after the Commission receives a re19 port, the Commission shall transmit a copy of the report

20 to each candidate seeking nomination or election to that

21 office.

22 ‘‘(D) For purposes of this section, the term ‘made’

23 includes any action taken to incur an obligation for pay24 ment.
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1 ‘‘(4)(A) If any person intends to make independent

2 expenditures totaling $5,000 during the 20 days before

3 an election, such person shall file a statement no later

4 than the 20th day before the election.

5 ‘‘(B) Such statement shall be filed with the Clerk of

6 the House of Representatives and the Secretary of State

7 of the State involved, and shall identify each candidate

8 whom the expenditure will support or oppose. The Clerk

9 of the House of Representatives shall as soon as possible

10 (but not later than 4 working hours of the Commission)

11 after receipt of a statement transmit it to the Commission.

12 Not later than 48 hours after the Commission receives a

13 statement under this paragraph, the Commission shall

14 transmit a copy of the statement to each candidate identi15 fied.

16 ‘‘(5) The Commission may make its own determina17 tion that a person has made, or has incurred obligations

18 to make, independent expenditures with respect to any

19 Federal election which in the aggregate exceed the applica20 ble amounts under paragraph (3) or (4). The Commission

21 shall notify each candidate in such election of such deter22 mination within 24 hours of making it.

23 ‘‘(6) At the same time as a candidate is notified

24 under paragraph (3), (4), or (5) with respect to expendi25 tures during a general election period, the Commission
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•HR 1396 IH

1 shall certify eligibility to receive benefits under section

2 504(a) or section 604(b).

3 ‘‘(7) The Clerk of the House of Representatives shall

4 make any statement received under this subsection avail5 able for public inspection and copying in the same manner

6 as the Commission under section 311(a)(4), and shall pre7 serve such statements in the same manner as the Commis8 sion under section 311(a)(5).’’.

9 SEC. 203. CLARIFICATION OF DEFINITIONS RELATING TO

10 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES.

11 (a) INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE DEFINITION

12 AMENDMENT.—Section 301 of the Federal Election Cam13 paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431) is amended by striking

14 out paragraphs (17) and (18) and inserting in lieu thereof

15 the following:

16 ‘‘(17)(A) The term ‘independent expenditure’ means

17 an expenditure for an advertisement or other communica18 tion that—

19 ‘‘(i) contains express advocacy; and

20 ‘‘(ii) is made without the participation or co21 operation of a candidate or a candidate’s representa22 tive.

23 ‘‘(B) The following shall not be considered an inde24 pendent expenditure:
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•HR 1396 IH

1 ‘‘(i) An expenditure made by a political commit2 tee of a political party.

3 ‘‘(ii) An expenditure made by a person who,

4 during the election cycle, has communicated with or

5 received information from a candidate or a rep6 resentative of that candidate regarding activities

7 that have the purpose of influencing that candidate’s

8 election to Federal office, where the expenditure is

9 in support of that candidate or in opposition to an10 other candidate for that office.

11 ‘‘(iii) An expenditure if there is any arrange12 ment, coordination, or direction with respect to the

13 expenditure between the candidate or the candidate’s

14 agent and the person making the expenditure.

15 ‘‘(iv) An expenditure if, in the same election

16 cycle, the person making the expenditure is or has

17 been—

18 ‘‘(I) authorized to raise or expend funds on

19 behalf of the candidate or the candidate’s au20 thorized committees; or

21 ‘‘(II) serving as a member, employee, or

22 agent of the candidate’s authorized committees

23 in an executive or policymaking position.

24 ‘‘(v) An expenditure if the person making the

25 expenditure has advised or counseled the candidate
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•HR 1396 IH

1 or the candidate’s agents at any time on the can2 didate’s plans, projects, or needs relating to the can3 didate’s pursuit of nomination for election, or elec4 tion, to Federal office, in the same election cycle, in5 cluding any advice relating to the candidate’s deci6 sion to seek Federal office.

7 ‘‘(vi) An expenditure if the person making the

8 expenditure retains the professional services of any

9 individual or other person also providing those serv10 ices in the same election cycle to the candidate in

11 connection with the candidate’s pursuit of nomina12 tion for election, or election, to Federal office, in13 cluding any services relating to the candidate’s deci14 sion to seek Federal office.

15 ‘‘(vii) An expenditure if the person making the

16 expenditure has consulted at any time during the

17 same election cycle about the candidate’s plans,

18 projects, or needs relating to the candidate’s pursuit

19 of nomination for election, or election, to Federal of20 fice, with—

21 ‘‘(I) any officer, director, employee or

22 agent of a party committee that has made or

23 intends to make expenditures or contributions,

24 pursuant to subsections (a), (d), or (h) of sec-
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•HR 1396 IH

1 tion 315 in connection with the candidate’s

2 campaign; or

3 ‘‘(II) any person whose professional serv4 ices have been retained by a political party com5 mittee that has made or intends to make ex6 penditures or contributions pursuant to sub7 sections (a), (d), or (h) of section 315 in con8 nection with the candidate’s campaign.

9 For purposes of this subparagraph, the person making the

10 expenditure shall include any officer, director, employee,

11 or agent of such person.

12 ‘‘(18) The term ‘express advocacy’ means, when a

13 communication is taken as a whole, an expression of sup14 port for or opposition to a specific candidate, to a specific

15 group of candidates, or to candidates of a particular politi16 cal party, or a suggestion to take action with respect to

17 an election, such as to vote for or against, make contribu18 tions to, or participate in campaign activity.’’.

19 (b) CONTRIBUTION DEFINITION AMENDMENT.—Sec20 tion 301(8)(A) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

21 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(A)) is amended—

22 (1) in clause (i), by striking out ‘‘or’’ after the

23 semicolon at the end;

24 (2) in clause (ii), by striking out the period at

25 the end and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘; or’’; and
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•HR 1396 IH

1 (3) by adding at the end the following new

2 clause:

3 ‘‘(iii) any payment or other transaction referred

4 to in paragraph (17)(A)(i) that does not qualify as

5 an independent expenditure under paragraph

6 (17)(A)(ii).’’.

7 SEC. 204. CONTRIBUTIONS TO POLITICAL PARTY COMMIT8 TEES.

9 (a) INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO STATE

10 PARTY.—Paragraph (1) of section 315(a) of the Federal

11 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)) is

12 amended by striking out ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph

13 (B), by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph

14 (D), and by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following

15 new subparagraph:

16 ‘‘(C) to political committees established and

17 maintained by a State committee of a political party

18 in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed

19 $10,000; or’’.

20 (b) MULTICANDIDATE COMMITTEE CONTRIBUTIONS

21 TO STATE PARTY.—Paragraph (2) of section 315(a) of

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

23 441a(a)(2)) is amended by striking out ‘‘or’’ at the end

24 of subparagraph (B), by redesignating subparagraph (C)
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•HR 1396 IH

1 as subparagraph (D), and by inserting after subparagraph

2 (B) the following new subparagraph:

3 ‘‘(C) to political committees established and

4 maintained by a State committee of a political party

5 in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed

6 $10,000; or’’.

7 (c) INCREASE IN OVERALL LIMIT.—Paragraph (3) of

8 section 315(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

9 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(3)) is amended by adding at the

10 end the following new sentence: ‘‘The limitation under this

11 paragraph shall be increased (but not by more than

12 $5,000) by the amount of contributions made by an indi13 vidual during a calendar year to political committees

14 which are taken into account for purposes of paragraph

15 (1)(C).’’.

16 SEC. 205. PROVISIONS RELATING TO NATIONAL, STATE,

17 AND LOCAL PARTY COMMITTEES.

18 (a) EXPENDITURES BY STATE COMMITTEES IN CON19 NECTION WITH PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS.—Section

20 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2

21 U.S.C. 441a(d)) is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing new paragraph:

23 ‘‘(4) A State committee of a political party, including

24 subordinate committees of that State committee, shall not

25 make expenditures in connection with the general election
34

•HR 1396 IH

1 campaign of a candidate for President of the United

2 States who is affiliated with such party which, in the ag3 gregate, exceed an amount equal to 4 cents multiplied by

4 the voting age population of the State, as certified under

5 subsection (e). This paragraph shall not authorize a com6 mittee to make expenditures for audio broadcasts (includ7 ing television broadcasts) in excess of the amount which

8 could have been made without regard to this paragraph.’’.

9 (b) CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE EXCEP10 TIONS.—(1) Section 301(8)(B) of the Federal Election

11 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(B)) is amend12 ed—

13 (A) in clause (xi), by striking out ‘‘direct mail’’

14 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘mail’’; and

15 (B) by repealing clauses (x) and (xii).

16 (2) Section 301(9)(B) of the Federal Election Cam17 paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(9)(B)) is amended by

18 repealing clauses (viii) and (ix).

19 (c) SOFT MONEY OF COMMITTEES OF POLITICAL

20 PARTIES.—(1) Title III of the Federal Election Campaign

21 Act of 1971 is amended by inserting after section 323 the

22 following new section:

23 ‘‘POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEES

24 ‘‘SEC. 324. (a) Any amount solicited, received, or ex25 pended directly or indirectly by a national, State, district,

26 or local committee of a political party (including any sub-
35

•HR 1396 IH

1 ordinate committee) with respect to an activity which, in

2 whole or in part, is in connection with an election to Fed3 eral office shall be subject in its entirety to the limitations,

4 prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this Act.

5 ‘‘(b) For purposes of subsection (a)—

6 ‘‘(1) Any activity which is solely for the purpose

7 of influencing an election for Federal office is in

8 connection with an election for Federal office.

9 ‘‘(2) Except as provided in paragraph (3), any

10 of the following activities during a Federal election

11 period shall be treated as in connection with an elec12 tion for Federal office:

13 ‘‘(A) Voter registration and get-out-the14 vote activities.

15 ‘‘(B) Campaign activities, including broad16 casting, newspaper, magazine, billboard, mass

17 mail, and newsletter communications, and simi18 lar kinds of communications or public advertis19 ing that—

20 ‘‘(i) are generic campaign activities; or

21 ‘‘(ii) identify a Federal candidate re22 gardless of whether a State or local can23 didate is also identified.

24 ‘‘(C) The preparation and dissemination of

25 campaign materials that are part of a generic
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•HR 1396 IH

1 campaign activity or that identify a Federal

2 candidate, regardless of whether a State or

3 local candidate is also identified.

4 ‘‘(D) Development and maintenance of

5 voter files.

6 ‘‘(E) Any other activity affecting (in whole

7 or in part) an election for Federal office.

8 ‘‘(3) The following shall not be treated as in

9 connection with a Federal election:

10 ‘‘(A) Any amount described in section

11 301(8)(B)(viii).

12 ‘‘(B) Any amount contributed to a can13 didate for other than Federal office.

14 ‘‘(C) Any amount received or expended in

15 connection with a State or local political con16 vention.

17 ‘‘(D) Campaign activities, including broad18 casting, newspaper, magazine, billboard, mass

19 mail, and newsletter communications, and simi20 lar kinds of communications or public advertis21 ing that are exclusively on behalf of State or

22 local candidates and are not activities described

23 in paragraph (2)(A).
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•HR 1396 IH

1 ‘‘(E) Administrative expenses of a State or

2 local committee of a political party, including

3 expenses for—

4 ‘‘(i) overhead;

5 ‘‘(ii) staff (other than individuals de6 voting a substantial portion of their activi7 ties to elections for Federal office);

8 ‘‘(iii) meetings; and

9 ‘‘(iv) conducting party elections or

10 caucuses.

11 ‘‘(F) Research pertaining solely to State

12 and local candidates and issues.

13 ‘‘(G) Development and maintenance of

14 voter files other than during a Federal election

15 period.

16 ‘‘(H) Activities described in paragraph

17 (2)(A) which are conducted other than during

18 a Federal election period.

19 ‘‘(I) Any other activity which is solely for

20 the purpose of influencing, and which solely af21 fects, an election for non-Federal office.

22 ‘‘(4) For purposes of this subsection, the term

23 ‘Federal election period’ means the period—

24 ‘‘(A) beginning on June 1, of any even25 numbered calendar year (April 1 if an election
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•HR 1396 IH

1 to the office of President occurs in such year),

2 and

3 ‘‘(B) ending on the date during such year

4 on which regularly scheduled general elections

5 for Federal office occur.

6 In the case of a special election, the Federal election

7 period shall include at least the 60-day period end8 ing on the date of the election.

9 ‘‘(c) SOLICITATION OF COMMITTEES.—A national

10 committee of a political party may not solicit or accept

11 contributions not subject to the limitations, prohibitions,

12 and reporting requirements of this Act.

13 ‘‘(d) AMOUNTS RECEIVED FROM STATE AND LOCAL

14 CANDIDATE COMMITTEES.—(1) For purposes of sub15 section (a), any amount received by a national, State, dis16 trict, or local committee of a political party (including any

17 subordinate committee) from a State or local candidate

18 committee shall be treated as meeting the requirements

19 of subsection (a) and section 304(d) if—

20 ‘‘(A) such amount is derived from funds which

21 meet the requirements of this Act with respect to

22 any limitation or prohibition as to source or dollar

23 amount, and

24 ‘‘(B) the State or local candidate committee—
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1 ‘‘(i) maintains, in the account from which

2 payment is made, records of the sources and

3 amounts of funds for purposes of determining

4 whether such requirements are met, and

5 ‘‘(ii) certifies to the other committee that

6 such requirements were met.

7 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any committee

8 receiving any contribution described in paragraph (1) from

9 a State or local candidate committee shall be required to

10 meet the reporting requirements of this Act with respect

11 to receipt of the contribution from such candidate commit12 tee.

13 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection, a State or local

14 candidate committee is a committee established, financed,

15 maintained, or controlled by a candidate for other than

16 Federal office.’’.

17 (2) Section 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign

18 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)), as amended by subsection

19 (a), is amended by adding at the end the following new

20 paragraph:

21 ‘‘(5)(A) The national committee of a political

22 party, the congressional campaign committees of a

23 political party, and a State or local committee of a

24 political party, including a subordinate committee of

25 any of the preceding committees, shall not make ex-
40

•HR 1396 IH

1 penditures during any calendar year for activities

2 described in section 324(b)(2) with respect to such

3 State which, in the aggregate, exceed an amount

4 equal to 30 cents multiplied by the voting age popu5 lation of the State (as certified under subsection

6 (e)).

7 ‘‘(B) Expenditures authorized under this para8 graph shall be in addition to other expenditures al9 lowed under this subsection, except that this para10 graph shall not authorize a committee to make ex11 penditures to which paragraph (3) or (4) applies in

12 excess of the limit applicable to such expenditures

13 under paragraph (3) or (4).

14 ‘‘(C) No adjustment to the limitation under this

15 paragraph shall be made under subsection (c) before

16 1992 and the base period for purposes of any such

17 adjustment shall be 1990.

18 ‘‘(D) For purposes of this paragraph—

19 ‘‘(i) a local committee of a political party

20 shall only include a committee that is a political

21 committee (as defined in section 301(4)); and

22 ‘‘(ii) a State committee shall not be re23 quired to record or report under this Act the

24 expenditures of any other committee which are
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1 made independently from the State commit2 tee.’’.

3 (3) Section 301(4) of the Federal Election

4 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)) is amend5 ed by adding at the end the following new sentence:

6 ‘‘For purposes of subparagraph (C), any payments

7 for get-out-the-vote activities on behalf of candidates

8 for office other than Federal office shall be treated

9 as payments exempted from the definition of expend10 iture under paragraph (9) of this section.’’.

11 (4) Section 301(8)(B)(viii) of the Federal Elec12 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.

13 431(8)(B)(viii)) is amended by striking out ‘‘defray’’

14 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘pay indebtedness in15 curred prior to January 1, 1993, for the purpose of

16 defraying’’.

17 (d) GENERIC ACTIVITIES.—Section 301 of the Fed18 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431) is

19 amended by adding at the end the following new para20 graph:

21 ‘‘(31) The term ‘generic campaign activity’

22 means a campaign activity the preponderant purpose

23 or effect of which is to promote a political party

24 rather than any particular Federal or non-Federal

25 candidate.’’.
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1 SEC. 206. RESTRICTIONS ON FUNDRAISING BY CANDIDATES

2 AND OFFICEHOLDERS.

3 (a) STATE FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES.—Section 315

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

5 441a) is amended by adding at the end the following new

6 subsection:

7 ‘‘(i) LIMITATIONS ON FUNDRAISING ACTIVITIES OF

8 FEDERAL CANDIDATES AND OFFICEHOLDERS AND CER9 TAIN POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—(1) For purposes of this

10 Act, a candidate for Federal office (or an individual hold11 ing Federal office) may not solicit funds to, or receive

12 funds on behalf of, any Federal or non-Federal candidate

13 or political committee—

14 ‘‘(A) which are to be expended in connection

15 with any election for Federal office unless such

16 funds are subject to the limitations, prohibitions,

17 and requirements of this Act; or

18 ‘‘(B) which are to be expended in connection

19 with any election for other than Federal office unless

20 such funds are not in excess of amounts permitted

21 with respect to Federal candidates and political com22 mittees under this Act, and are not from sources

23 prohibited by this Act with respect to elections to

24 Federal office.

25 ‘‘(2)(A) The aggregate amount which a person de26 scribed in subparagraph (B) may solicit from a
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•HR 1396 IH

1 multicandidate political committee for State committees

2 described in subsection (a)(1)(C) (including subordinate

3 committees) for any calendar year shall not exceed the dol4 lar amount in effect under subsection (a)(2)(B) for the

5 calendar year.

6 ‘‘(B) A person is described in this subparagraph if

7 such person is a candidate for Federal office, an individual

8 holding Federal office, or any national, State, district, or

9 local committee of a political party (including subordinate

10 committees).

11 ‘‘(3) The appearance or participation by a candidate

12 or individual in any activity (including fundraising) con13 ducted by a committee of a political party or a candidate

14 for other than Federal office shall not be treated as a so15 licitation for purposes of paragraph (1) if—

16 ‘‘(A) such appearance or participation is other17 wise permitted by law; and

18 ‘‘(B) such candidate or individual does not so19 licit or receive, or make expenditures from, any

20 funds resulting from such activity.

21 ‘‘(4) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to the solicitation

22 or receipt of funds, or disbursements, by an individual who

23 is a candidate for other than Federal office if such activity

24 is permitted under State law.
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1 ‘‘(5) For purposes of this subsection, an individual

2 shall be treated as holding Federal office if such individual

3 is described in section 101(f) of the Ethics in Government

4 Act of 1978.’’.

5 (b) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS.—Section 315 of

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

7 441a), as amended by subsection (a), is amended by add8 ing at the end the following new subsection:

9 ‘‘(j) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS.—(1) If during

10 any period an individual is a candidate for, or holds, Fed11 eral office, such individual may not during such period so12 licit contributions to, or on behalf of, any organization

13 which is described in section 501(c) of the Internal Reve14 nue Code of 1986 if a significant portion of the activities

15 of such organization include voter registration or get-out16 the-vote campaigns.

17 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, an individual

18 shall be treated as holding Federal office if such individual

19 is described in section 101(f) of the Ethics in Government

20 Act of 1978.’’.

21 SEC. 207. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

22 (a) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304 of the

23 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434)

24 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub25 section:
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•HR 1396 IH

1 ‘‘(d) POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—(1) The national

2 committee of a political party and any congressional cam3 paign committee, and any subordinate committee of ei4 ther, shall report all receipts and disbursements during

5 the reporting period, whether or not in connection with

6 an election for Federal office.

7 ‘‘(2) A political committee (not described in para8 graph (1)) to which section 324 applies shall report all

9 receipts and disbursements in connection with a Federal

10 election (as determined under section 324).

11 ‘‘(3) Any political committee to which section 324 ap12 plies shall include in its report under paragraph (1) or

13 (2) the amount of any transfer described in section 324(c)

14 and the reason for the transfer.

15 ‘‘(4) Any political committee to which paragraph (1)

16 or (2) does not apply shall report any receipts or disburse17 ments which are used in connection with a Federal elec18 tion.

19 ‘‘(5) If any receipt or disbursement to which this sub20 section applies exceeds $200, the political committee shall

21 include identification of the person from whom, or to

22 whom, such receipt or disbursement was made.

23 ‘‘(6) Reports required to be filed by this subsection

24 shall be filed for the same time periods required for politi25 cal committees under subsection (a).’’.
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1 (b) REPORT OF EXEMPT CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section

2 301(8) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2

3 U.S.C. 431(8)) is amended by adding at the end the fol4 lowing:

5 ‘‘(C) The exclusions provided in clauses (v) and (viii)

6 of subparagraph (B) shall not apply for purposes of any

7 requirement to report contributions under this Act, and

8 all such contributions in excess of $200 shall be

9 reported.’’.

10 (c) REPORTING OF EXEMPT EXPENDITURES.—Sec11 tion 301(9) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971

12 (2 U.S.C. 431(9)) is amended by adding at the end the

13 following:

14 ‘‘(C) The exclusions provided in clause (iv) of sub15 paragraph (B) shall not apply for purposes of any require16 ment to report expenditures under this Act, and all such

17 expenditures in excess of $200 shall be reported.’’.

18 (d) CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES OF POLITI19 CAL COMMITTEES.—Section 301(4) of the Federal Elec20 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)) is amended

21 by adding at the end the following: ‘‘For purposes of this

22 paragraph, the receipt of contributions or the making of,

23 or obligating to make, expenditures shall be determined

24 by the Commission on the basis of facts and cir25 cumstances, in whatever combination, demonstrating a
47

•HR 1396 IH

1 purpose of influencing any election for Federal office, in2 cluding, but not limited to, the representations made by

3 any person soliciting funds about their intended uses; the

4 identification by name of individuals who are candidates

5 for Federal office or of any political party, in general pub6 lic political advertising; and the proximity to any primary,

7 runoff, or general election of general public political adver8 tising designed or reasonably calculated to influence voter

9 choice in that election.’’.

10 (e) REPORTS BY STATE COMMITTEES.—Section 304

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

12 434), as amended by subsection (a), is amended by adding

13 at the end the following new subsection:

14 ‘‘(e) FILING OF STATE REPORTS.—In lieu of any re15 port required to be filed by this Act, the Commission may

16 allow a State committee of a political party to file with

17 the Commission a report required to be filed under State

18 law if the Commission determines such reports contain

19 substantially the same information.’’.

20 SEC. 208. CONTRIBUTIONS THROUGH INTERMEDIARIES

21 AND CONDUITS.

22 Section 315(a)(8) of the Federal Election Campaign

23 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(8)) is amended to read

24 as follows:

25 ‘‘(8) For the purposes of this subsection:
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•HR 1396 IH

1 ‘‘(A) Contributions made by a person, either di2 rectly or indirectly, to or on behalf of a particular

3 candidate, including contributions that are in any

4 way earmarked or otherwise directed through an

5 intermediary or conduit to a candidate, shall be

6 treated as contributions from the person to the can7 didate.

8 ‘‘(B) Contributions made directly or indirectly

9 by a person to or on behalf of a particular candidate

10 through an intermediary or conduit, including con11 tributions made or arranged to be made by an

12 intermediary or conduit, shall be treated as contribu13 tions from the intermediary or conduit to the can14 didate if—

15 ‘‘(i) the contributions made through the

16 intermediary or conduit are in the form of a

17 check or other negotiable instrument made pay18 able to the intermediary or conduit rather than

19 the intended recipient; or

20 ‘‘(ii) the intermediary or conduit is—

21 ‘‘(I) a political committee with a con22 nected organization;

23 ‘‘(II) an officer, employee, or agent of

24 such a political committee;

25 ‘‘(III) a political party;
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1 ‘‘(IV) a partnership or sole proprietor2 ship;

3 ‘‘(V) a lobbyist; or

4 ‘‘(VI) an organization prohibited from

5 making contributions under section 316, or

6 an officer, employee, or agent of such an

7 organization acting on the organization’s

8 behalf.

9 ‘‘(C)(i) Except as specified in subparagraph

10 (B)(ii)(V), the term ‘intermediary or conduit’ does

11 not include—

12 ‘‘(I) a candidate or representative of a can13 didate receiving contributions to the candidate’s

14 principal campaign committee or authorized

15 committee;

16 ‘‘(II) a professional fundraiser com17 pensated for fundraising services at the usual

18 and customary rate;

19 ‘‘(III) a volunteer hosting a fundraising

20 event at the volunteer’s home, in accordance

21 with section 301(8)(B); or

22 ‘‘(IV) an individual who transmits a con23 tribution from the individual’s spouse.

24 ‘‘(ii) The term ‘representative’ means an indi25 vidual who is expressly authorized by the candidate
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1 to engage in fundraising, and who occupies a signifi2 cant position within the candidate’s campaign orga3 nization, provided that the individual is not de4 scribed in subparagraph (B)(ii).

5 ‘‘(iii) The term ‘contributions made or arranged

6 to be made’ includes—

7 ‘‘(I) contributions delivered to a particular

8 candidate or the candidate’s authorized commit9 tee or agent; and

10 ‘‘(II) contributions directly or indirectly ar11 ranged to be made to a particular candidate or

12 the candidate’s authorized committee or agent,

13 in a manner that identifies directly or indirectly

14 to the candidate or authorized committee or

15 agent the person who arranged the making of

16 the contributions or the person on whose behalf

17 such person was acting.

18 ‘‘(iv) The term ‘acting on the organization’s be19 half’ includes the following activities by an officer,

20 employee or agent of a person described in subpara21 graph (B)(ii)(IV):

22 ‘‘(I) Soliciting or directly or indirectly ar23 ranging the making of a contribution to a par24 ticular candidate in the name of, or by using

25 the name of, such a person.
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1 ‘‘(II) Soliciting or directly or indirectly ar2 ranging the making of a contribution to a par3 ticular candidate using other than incidental re4 sources of such a person.

5 ‘‘(III) Soliciting contributions for a par6 ticular candidate by substantially directing the

7 solicitations to other officers, employees, or

8 agents of such a person.

9 ‘‘(D) Nothing in this paragraph shall prohibit—

10 ‘‘(i) bona fide joint fundraising efforts con11 ducted solely for the purpose of sponsorship of

12 a fundraising reception, dinner, or other similar

13 event, in accordance with rules prescribed by

14 the Commission, by—

15 ‘‘(I) 2 or more candidates;

16 ‘‘(II) 2 or more national, State, or

17 local committees of a political party within

18 the meaning of section 301(4) acting on

19 their own behalf; or

20 ‘‘(III) a special committee formed by

21 2 or more candidates, or a candidate and

22 a national, State, or local committee of a

23 political party acting on their own behalf;

24 or
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1 ‘‘(ii) fundraising efforts for the benefit of

2 a candidate that are conducted by another can3 didate.

4 ‘‘(iii) bona fide fundraising efforts con5 ducted by and solely on behalf of an individual

6 for the purpose of sponsorship of a fundraising

7 reception, dinner, or other similar event, but

8 only if all contributions are made directly to a

9 candidate or a representative of a candidate.

10 When a contribution is made to a candidate through an

11 intermediary or conduit, the intermediary or conduit shall

12 report the original source and the intended recipient of

13 the contribution to the Commission and to the intended

14 recipient.’’.

15 SEC. 209. CONTRIBUTIONS BY DEPENDENTS NOT OF VOT16 ING AGE.

17 Section 315 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

18 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a), as amended by section 313, is

19 amended by adding at the end the following new sub20 section:

21 ‘‘(k) For purposes of this section, any contribution

22 by an individual who—

23 ‘‘(1) is a dependent of another individual; and

24 ‘‘(2) has not, as of the time of such contribu25 tion, attained the legal age for voting for elections
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1 to Federal office in the State in which such individ2 ual resides,

3 shall be treated as having been made by such other indi4 vidual. If such individual is the dependent of another indi5 vidual and such other individual’s spouse, the contribution

6 shall be allocated among such individuals in the manner

7 determined by them.’’.

8 SEC. 210. CONTRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES FROM STATE

9 AND LOCAL COMMITTEES OF POLITICAL PAR10 TIES TO BE AGGREGATED.

11 Section 315(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

12 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)) is amended by adding at the

13 end the following new paragraph:

14 ‘‘(9) A candidate for Federal office may not accept,

15 with respect to an election, any contribution from a State

16 or local committee of a political party (including any sub17 ordinate committee of such committee), if such contribu18 tion, when added to the total of contributions previously

19 accepted from all such committees of that political party,

20 exceeds a limitation on contributions to a candidate under

21 this section.’’.

22 SEC. 211. PROHIBITION OF LEADERSHIP COMMITTEES.

23 Section 302(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

24 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 432(e)) is amended—
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1 (1) by amending paragraph (3) to read as fol2 lows:

3 ‘‘(3) No political committee that supports or has sup4 ported more than one candidate may be designated as an

5 authorized committee, except that—

6 ‘‘(A) a candidate for the office of President

7 nominated by a political party may designate the na8 tional committee of such political party as the can9 didate’s principal campaign committee, but only if

10 that national committee maintains separate books of

11 account with respect to its functions as a principal

12 campaign committee; and

13 ‘‘(B) a candidate may designate a political com14 mittee established solely for the purpose of joint

15 fundraising by such candidates as an authorized

16 committee.’’; and

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

18 paragraph:

19 ‘‘(6)(A) A candidate for Federal office or any individ20 ual holding Federal office may not establish, maintain, or

21 control any political committee other than a principal cam22 paign committee of the candidate, authorized committee,

23 party committee, or other political committee designated

24 in accordance with paragraph (3). A candidate for more
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1 than one Federal office may designate a separate principal

2 campaign committee for each Federal office.

3 ‘‘(B) Not later than 60 days after the date of the

4 enactment of this paragraph, such political committee

5 shall disburse all funds by one or more of the following

6 means: making contributions to an entity qualified under

7 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;

8 making a contribution to the treasury of the United

9 States; contributing to the national, State or local commit10 tees of a political party; or making contributions not to

11 exceed $1,000 to candidates for elective office.’’.

12 SEC. 212. REDUCTION IN THRESHOLD FOR REPORTING OF

13 CERTAIN INFORMATION BY PERSONS OTHER

14 THAN POLITICAL COMMITTEES.

15 Section 304(b)(3)(A) of the Federal Election Cam16 paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(3)(A)) is amended

17 by striking out ‘‘$200’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

18 ‘‘$50’’.

19 SEC. 213. COMPUTERIZED INDICES OF CONTRIBUTIONS.

20 Section 311(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

21 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 438(a)) is amended—

22 (1) by striking out ‘‘and’’ at the end of para23 graph (9);
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1 (2) by striking out the period at the end of

2 paragraph (10) and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘; and’’;

3 and

4 (3) by adding at the end the following new

5 paragraph:

6 ‘‘(11) maintain computerized indices of con7 tributions of $50 or more.’’.

8 SEC. 214. RANDOM AUDITS.

9 Section 311(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

10 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 438(b)) is amended—

11 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘The Commis12 sion’’; and

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

14 paragraph:

15 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Commission

16 may from time to time conduct random audits and inves17 tigations to ensure voluntary compliance with this Act.

18 The subjects of such audits and investigations shall be se19 lected on the basis of criteria established by vote of at

20 least 4 members of the Commission to ensure impartiality

21 in the selection process. This paragraph does not apply

22 to an authorized committee of an eligible House of Rep23 resentatives candidate subject to audit under section

24 505(a).’’.
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1 SEC. 215. SENSE OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES RE2 GARDING FINANCING OF SENATE ELECTION

3 CAMPAIGNS.

4 It is the sense of the House of Representatives that

5 the Senate should consider legislation establishing a cor6 responding system of campaign financing for Senate elec7 tions which provides for the following: voluntary spending

8 limits, partial public financing, a prohibition of contribu9 tions from multicandidate political committees, an individ10 ual contribution limit of $500 per candidate per election

11 cycle, and a strict limit on the amount of campaign funds

12 that may be carried from one election cycle to the next.

13 SEC. 216. SEVERABILITY.

14 If any provision of this Act (including any amend15 ment made by this Act), or the application of any such

16 provision to any person or circumstance, is held invalid,

17 the validity of any other provision of this Act, or the appli18 cation of such provision to other persons and cir19 cumstances, shall not be affected thereby.

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