I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 20 

To reform the financing of congressional elections by broadening participation 

by small dollar donors, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 24, 2017 

Mr. SARBANES (for himself, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. HOYER, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. 

CROWLEY, Ms. SA ́NCHEZ, Mr. AGUILAR, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. BERA, Mr. 

BEYER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of 

Pennsylvania, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Mr. 

CASTRO of Texas, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. 

CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. CLEAVER, Mr. 

COHEN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. COOPER, Mr. COURTNEY, 

Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. DELANEY, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. 

DELBENE, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. DEUTCH, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. ELLISON, Mr. 

ENGEL, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. ESTY, Ms. FRANKEL of Florida, Ms. 

GABBARD, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. AL GREEN of Texas, Mr. GENE GREEN

of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIE ́RREZ, Mr. HASTINGS, Mr. HECK, 

Mr. HIMES, Ms. NORTON, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. 

JAYAPAL, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Ms. 

KAPTUR, Mr. KEATING, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. 

KHANNA, Mr. KIHUEN, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KIND, Mr. 

KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. CLAY, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Ms. LEE, Mr. 

LEWIS of Georgia, Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. LOEBSACK, Ms. 

LOFGREN, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. BEN RAY LUJA ́N of New 

Mexico, Ms. MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, Mr. LYNCH, 

Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALONEY of New York, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY

of New York, Ms. MATSUI, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. 

KUSTER of New Hampshire, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. MENG, Ms. MOORE, Mr. 

MOULTON, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, 

Mr. NOLAN, Mr. NORCROSS, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Mr. O’ROURKE, Mr. 

PALLONE, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Mr. PETERS, 

Ms. PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Mr. POLIS, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Miss 

RICE of New York, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. 

RYAN of Ohio, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mr. SCOTT of VirVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:11 Feb 01, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H20.IH H20

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ginia, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Mr. 

SIRES, Ms. SLAUGHTER, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Mr. SOTO, Ms. 

SPEIER, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. THOMPSON of 

California, Mr. TONKO, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. 

VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. WALZ, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. WATSON

COLEMAN, Mr. WELCH, Mr. YARMUTH, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Ms. 

FUDGE, Mr. JONES, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. MCNERNEY, and Ms. BASS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on Energy and 

Commerce, and Ways and Means, 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 broadening participation by small dollar donors, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Government By the People Act of 2017’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—PARTICIPATION IN FUNDING OF ELECTIONS 

Subtitle A—My Voice Tax Credit 

Sec. 101. Refundable tax credit for congressional House campaign contributions. 

Subtitle B—My Voice Voucher Pilot Program 

Sec. 111. Establishment of pilot program. 

Sec. 112. Voucher program described. 

Sec. 113. Reports. 

Sec. 114. Election cycle defined. 


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TITLE II—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF CONGRESSIONAL 

ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

Sec. 201. Benefits and eligibility requirements for candidates. 

‘‘TITLE V—SMALL DOLLAR 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 small dollar 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—Enhanced Match Support 

‘‘Sec. 531. Enhanced support for general election. 

‘‘Sec. 532. Eligibility. 

‘‘Sec. 533. Amount. 

‘‘Sec. 534. Waiver of authority to retain portion of unspent funds after 

election. 

‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative Provisions 

‘‘Sec. 541. Freedom From Influence Fund. 

‘‘Sec. 542. Government by the People Oversight Commission. 

‘‘Sec. 543. Administration by Commission. 

‘‘Sec. 544. Violations and penalties. 

‘‘Sec. 545. Appeals process. 

‘‘Sec. 546. Indexing of amounts. 

‘‘Sec. 547. Election cycle defined. 

Sec. 202. Contributions and expenditures by multicandidate and political party 

political committees on behalf of participating candidates. 

Sec. 203. 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. Petition for certiorari. 

Sec. 303. Filing by all candidates with Commission. 

Sec. 304. Electronic filing of FEC reports. 


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Sec. 305. Effective date. 

TITLE IV—EXPANDING CANDIDATE ACCESS TO ADVERTISING 

Sec. 401. Broadcasts by candidates. 

TITLE V—CONTRIBUTIONS TO FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE 

FUND 

Sec. 501. Voluntary contributions to the Freedom From Influence Fund. 

TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 

Sec. 601. Severability. 

1 TITLE I—PARTICIPATION IN 

2 FUNDING OF ELECTIONS 

3 Subtitle A—My Voice Tax Credit 

4 SEC. 101. REFUNDABLE TAX CREDIT FOR CONGRESSIONAL 

5 HOUSE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart C of part IV of sub7 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

8 1986 (relating to refundable credits) is amended by insert9 ing after section 36B the following new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 36C. CREDIT FOR CONGRESSIONAL HOUSE CAM11 PAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS. 

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

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

14 by this subtitle an amount equal to 50 percent of the 

15 qualified My Voice Federal congressional House campaign 

16 contributions paid or incurred by the taxpayer during the 

17 taxable year. 

18 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) DOLLAR LIMITATION.—The amount of 

2 qualified My Voice Federal congressional House 

3 campaign contributions taken into account under 

4 subsection (a) for the taxable year shall not exceed 

5 $50 (twice such amount in the case of a joint re6 turn). 

7 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON CONTRIBUTIONS TO FED8 ERAL CONGRESSIONAL HOUSE CANDIDATES.—No 

9 credit shall be allowed under this section to any tax10 payer for any taxable year if such taxpayer made ag11 gregate contributions in excess of $300 during the 

12 taxable year to— 

13 ‘‘(A) any single Federal congressional 

14 House candidate, or 

15 ‘‘(B) any political committee established 

16 and maintained by a national political party. 

17 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF INFORMATION.—No credit 

18 shall be allowed under this section to any taxpayer 

19 unless the taxpayer provides the Secretary with such 

20 information as the Secretary may require to verify 

21 the taxpayer’s eligibility for the credit and the 

22 amount of the credit for the taxpayer. 

23 ‘‘(4) INELIGIBILITY OF INDIVIDUALS RECEIVING

24 MY VOICE VOUCHERS.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No credit shall be al2 lowed under this section with respect to any in3 dividual for any taxable year which occurs dur4 ing an election cycle in which such individual 

5 received a My Voice Voucher under subtitle B 

6 of title I of the Government By the People Act 

7 of 2017. In the case of a joint return with re8 spect to which this paragraph applies to one of 

9 the spouses, such return shall not be treated as 

10 a joint return for purposes of determining the 

11 dollar limitation under paragraph (1). 

12 ‘‘(B) ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED.—In sub13 paragraph (A), the term ‘election cycle’ has the 

14 meaning given such term in section 114 of the 

15 Government By the People Act of 2017. 

16 ‘‘(c) QUALIFIED MY VOICE FEDERAL CONGRES17 SIONAL HOUSE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS.—For pur18 poses of this section, the term ‘My Voice Federal congres19 sional House campaign contribution’ means any contribu20 tion of cash by an individual to a Federal congressional 

21 House candidate or to a political committee established 

22 and maintained by a national political party if such con23 tribution is not prohibited under the Federal Election 

24 Campaign Act of 1971. 


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1 ‘‘(d) FEDERAL CONGRESSIONAL HOUSE CAN2 DIDATE.—For purposes of this section— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal congres4 sional House candidate’ means any candidate for 

5 election to the office of Representative in, or Dele6 gate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress. 

7 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF AUTHORIZED COMMIT8 TEES.—Any contribution made to an authorized 

9 committee of a Federal congressional House can10 didate shall be treated as made to such candidate. 

11 ‘‘(e) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

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

13 year beginning after 2017, the $50 amount under 

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

15 equal to— 

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

17 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter18 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

19 year in which the taxable year begins, deter20 mined by substituting ‘calendar year 2017’ for 

21 ‘calendar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

22 thereof. 

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

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


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1 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest mul2 tiple of $5.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

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

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

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

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

8 ‘‘36B,’’. 

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

10 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Rev11 enue Code of 1986 is amended by inserting after the 

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

‘‘Sec. 36C. Credit for congressional House campaign contributions.’’. 

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

14 designee, shall ensure that the credit for contributions to 

15 Federal congressional House candidates allowed under 

16 section 36C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as 

17 added by this section, may be claimed on Forms 1040EZ 

18 and 1040A. 

19 (d) ADMINISTRATION.—At the request of the Sec20 retary of the Treasury, the Federal Election Commission 

21 shall provide the Secretary of the Treasury with such in22 formation and other assistance as the Secretary may rea23 sonably require to administer the credit allowed under sec24 tion 36C of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as added 

25 by this section. 


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

2 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after 

3 December 31, 2016. 

4 Subtitle B—My Voice Voucher Pilot 

5 Program 

6 SEC. 111. ESTABLISHMENT OF PILOT PROGRAM. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Government by the Peo8 ple Oversight Commission established under section 542 

9 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added 

10 by section 201) (hereafter in this subtitle referred to as 

11 the ‘‘Commission’’) shall establish a pilot program under 

12 which the Commission shall select 3 eligible States to oper13 ate a voucher pilot program which is described in section 

14 112. 

15 (b) ELIGIBILITY OF STATES.—A State is eligible to 

16 be selected to operate a voucher pilot program under this 

17 subtitle if the State submits to the Commission (at such 

18 time during the application period and in such form as 

19 the Commission may require) an application containing— 

20 (1) information and assurances that the State 

21 will operate a voucher program which contains the 

22 elements described in section 112(a); 

23 (2) information and assurances that the State 

24 will establish fraud prevention mechanisms described 

25 in section 112(b); 


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1 (3) information and assurances that the State 

2 will establish a commission to oversee and implement 

3 the program as described in section 112(c); 

4 (4) information and assurances that the State 

5 will submit reports as required under section 113; 

6 and 

7 (5) such other information and assurances as 

8 the Commission may require. 

9 (c) TIMING OF PROGRAM.— 

10 (1) ISSUANCE OF INITIAL GUIDANCE.—Not 

11 later than 90 days after the appointment of a 

12 quorum of its members, the Commission shall issue 

13 initial guidance regarding the process by which 

14 States may apply to operate voucher pilot programs 

15 under this subtitle and initial guidance regarding the 

16 implementation of such programs. 

17 (2) SELECTION OF PARTICIPATING STATES.— 

18 The Commission shall select the 3 States which will 

19 operate voucher pilot programs under this subtitle 

20 not later than 90 days before the end of the applica21 tion period. 

22 (3) PERIOD OF OPERATION OF PROGRAM.— 

23 Each State selected to operate a voucher pilot pro24 gram under this subtitle shall operate such program 

25 during each of the 3 election cycles which begin after 


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1 the application period, and shall ensure that the pro2 gram is ready to be operated not later than the first 

3 January 1 of the first election cycle which begins 

4 after the application period. 

5 (4) TERMINATION.—Each voucher pilot pro6 gram under this subtitle shall terminate as of the 

7 first day after the third election cycle during which 

8 the State operated the program. 

9 (d) REIMBURSEMENT OF COSTS.—Upon receiving 

10 the report submitted by a State under section 113 with 

11 respect to an election cycle, the Commission shall transmit 

12 a payment to the State in an amount equal to the reason13 able costs incurred by the State in operating the voucher 

14 pilot program under this subtitle during the cycle. 

15 (e) APPLICATION PERIOD DEFINED.—In this section, 

16 the term ‘‘application period’’ means the first election 

17 cycle which begins after the date of the enactment of this 

18 Act. 

19 SEC. 112. VOUCHER PROGRAM DESCRIBED. 

20 (a) GENERAL ELEMENTS OF PROGRAM.— 

21 (1) ELEMENTS DESCRIBED.—The elements of a 

22 voucher pilot program operated by a State under 

23 this subtitle are as follows: 

24 (A) The State shall provide each qualified 

25 individual upon the individual’s request with a 


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1 voucher worth $50 to be known as a ‘‘My Voice 

2 Voucher’’ during the election cycle which will be 

3 assigned a routing number and which at the op4 tion of the individual will be provided in either 

5 paper or electronic form. 

6 (B) Using the routing number assigned to 

7 the My Voice Voucher, the individual may sub8 mit the My Voice Voucher in either electronic 

9 or paper form to qualified candidates for elec10 tion for Federal office and allocate such portion 

11 of the value of the My Voice Voucher in incre12 ments of $5 as the individual may select to any 

13 such candidate. 

14 (C) If the candidate transmits the My 

15 Voice Voucher to the Commission, the Commis16 sion shall pay the candidate the portion of the 

17 value of the My Voice Voucher that the indi18 vidual allocated to the candidate, which shall be 

19 considered a contribution by the individual to 

20 the candidate for purposes of the Federal Elec21 tion Campaign Act of 1971. 

22 (2) DESIGNATION OF QUALIFIED INDIVID23 UALS.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(A), a ‘‘quali24 fied individual’’ with respect to a State means an in25 dividual— 


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1 (A) who is a resident of the State; 

2 (B) who will be of voting age as of the 

3 date of the election for the candidate to whom 

4 the individual submits a My Voice Voucher; 

5 (C) who is not prohibited under Federal 

6 law from making contributions to candidates 

7 for election for Federal office; and 

8 (D) who meets such other requirements as 

9 the State may impose, except that the State 

10 may not require the individual to be a reg11 istered voter in the State as a condition of 

12 being a qualified individual. 

13 (b) FRAUD PREVENTION MECHANISM.—In addition 

14 to the elements described in subsection (a), a State oper15 ating a voucher pilot program under this subtitle shall per16 mit an individual to revoke a My Voice Voucher not later 

17 than 2 days after submitting the My Voice Voucher to a 

18 candidate. 

19 (c) OVERSIGHT COMMISSION.—In addition to the ele20 ments described in subsection (a), a State operating a 

21 voucher pilot program under this subtitle shall establish 

22 a commission or designate an existing entity to oversee 

23 and implement the program in the State, except that no 

24 such commission or entity may be comprised of elected 

25 officials. 


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1 SEC. 113. REPORTS. 

2 (a) ELECTION CYCLE REPORTS.—Not later than 6 

3 months after each election cycle during which a State op4 erates a voucher pilot program under this subtitle, the 

5 State shall submit a report to the Commission analyzing 

6 the operation and effectiveness of the program during the 

7 cycle and including such other information as the Commis8 sion may require. 

9 (b) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 

10 the termination of the voucher pilot programs under this 

11 subtitle, each State which operated such a program shall 

12 submit a final report to the Commission on the operation 

13 of the program during the previous election cycles, and 

14 shall include in each such report such recommendations 

15 as the State considers appropriate regarding the expan16 sion of the pilot program to all States and territories, 

17 along with such other recommendations and other infor18 mation as the Commission may require. 

19 SEC. 114. ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED. 

20 In this subtitle, the term ‘‘election cycle’’ means the 

21 period beginning on the day after the date of the most 

22 recent regularly scheduled general election for Federal of23 fice and ending on the date of the next regularly scheduled 

24 general election for Federal office. 


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1 TITLE II—SMALL DOLLAR FI2 NANCING OF CONGRES3 SIONAL ELECTION CAM4 PAIGNS 

5 SEC. 201. BENEFITS AND ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR 

6 CANDIDATES. 

7 The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

8 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘TITLE V—SMALL DOLLAR FI11 NANCING OF CONGRES12 SIONAL ELECTION CAM13 PAIGNS 

14 ‘‘Subtitle A—Benefits 

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

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

17 office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com18 missioner to, the Congress is certified as a participating 

19 candidate under this title with respect to an election for 

20 such office, the candidate shall be entitled to payments 

21 as provided under this title. 

22 ‘‘(b) AMOUNT OF PAYMENT.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The amount of a payment 

24 made under this title shall be equal to 600 percent 

25 of the amount of qualified small dollar contributions 


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1 received by the candidate since the most recent pay2 ment made to the candidate under this title during 

3 the election cycle, without regard to whether or not 

4 the candidate received any of the contributions be5 fore, during, or after the Small Dollar Democracy 

6 qualifying period applicable to the candidate under 

7 section 511(c). 

8 ‘‘(2) INCREASE IN PAYMENT FOR CANDIDATES

9 ACCEPTING GREATER RESTRICTIONS.—In the case of 

10 a candidate who exercises the option described in 

11 section 521(a)(2) to accept greater restrictions on 

12 the permissible sources of contributions and expendi13 tures, the amount of the payment under this sub14 section shall be the amount otherwise determined 

15 under paragraph (1) increased by 50 percent. 

16 ‘‘(c) LIMIT ON AGGREGATE AMOUNT OF PAY17 MENTS.—The aggregate amount of payments made to a 

18 participating candidate with respect to an election cycle 

19 under this title may not exceed 50 percent (or, in the case 

20 of a candidate who exercises the option described in sec21 tion 521(a)(2) to accept greater restrictions on the per22 missible sources of contributions and expenditures, 100 

23 percent) of the average of the 20 greatest amounts of dis24 bursements made by the authorized committees of any 

25 winning candidate for the office of Representative in, or 


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1 Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress dur2 ing the most recent election cycle, rounded to the nearest 

3 $100,000. 

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

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall make a 

6 payment under section 501 to a candidate who is certified 

7 as a participating candidate upon receipt from the can8 didate of a request for a payment which includes— 

9 ‘‘(1) a statement of the number and amount of 

10 qualified small dollar contributions received by the 

11 candidate since the most recent payment made to 

12 the candidate under this title during the election 

13 cycle; 

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

15 the candidate anticipates receiving with respect to 

16 the request; 

17 ‘‘(3) a statement of the total amount of pay18 ments the candidate has received under this title as 

19 of the date of the statement; and 

20 ‘‘(4) such other information and assurances as 

21 the Commission may require. 

22 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS ON SUBMISSION OF RE23 QUESTS.—A candidate may not submit a request under 

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


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1 ‘‘(1) The amount of the qualified small dollar 

2 contributions in the statement referred to in sub3 section (a)(1) is equal to or greater than $5,000, un4 less the request is submitted during the 30-day pe5 riod which ends on the date of a general election. 

6 ‘‘(2) Of the total number of individuals who 

7 have made qualified small dollar contributions to the 

8 candidate as of the date of the request (including in9 dividuals whose contributions were included in a pre10 vious request under subsection (a) and individuals 

11 who made such contributions during the Small Dol12 lar Democracy qualifying period described in section 

13 511(c)), at least 50 percent are residents of the 

14 State in which the candidate seeks election. 

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

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

17 on the date the candidate submits the request. 

18 ‘‘(c) TIME OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall en19 sure that payments under this section are made from the 

20 Treasury not later than 2 business days after the receipt 

21 of a request submitted under subsection (a). 

22 ‘‘SEC. 503. USE OF FUNDS. 

23 ‘‘A candidate shall use payments made under this 

24 title, including payments provided with respect to a pre25 vious election cycle which are withheld from remittance to 


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1 the Commission in accordance with section 524(a)(2), only 

2 for making direct payments for the receipt of goods and 

3 services (including legal fees related to the election or a 

4 legal challenge to the results of the election) which con5 stitute authorized expenditures (as determined in accord6 ance with title III) in connection with the election cycle 

7 involved. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 504. QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CONTRIBUTIONS DE9 SCRIBED. 

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

11 small dollar contribution’ means, with respect to a can12 didate and the authorized committees of a candidate, a 

13 contribution that meets the following requirements: 

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

15 ‘‘(A) not less than $1; and 

16 ‘‘(B) not more than $150. 

17 ‘‘(2) The contribution is made by an individual, 

18 either directly or through an intermediary or conduit 

19 (as described in section 315(a)(8)), who is not other20 wise prohibited from making a contribution under 

21 this Act. 

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

23 does not make contributions to the candidate or the 

24 authorized committees of the candidate with respect 

25 to the election involved in an aggregate amount that 


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1 exceeds the amount described in paragraph (1)(B), 

2 or any contribution to the candidate or the author3 ized committees of the candidate with respect to the 

4 election involved that otherwise is not a qualified 

5 small dollar contribution. 

6 ‘‘(b) TREATMENT OF MY VOICE TAX CREDITS AND

7 MY VOICE VOUCHERS.—Any payment received by a can8 didate and the authorized committees of a candidate which 

9 is treated as a qualified My Voice Federal congressional 

10 House campaign contribution under section 36C of the In11 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 or which consists of a My 

12 Voice Voucher under subtitle B of title I of the Govern13 ment By the People Act of 2017 shall be considered a 

14 qualified small dollar contribution for purposes of this 

15 title, so long as the individual making the payment meets 

16 the requirements of paragraphs (2) and (3) of subsection 

17 (a). 

18 ‘‘(c) RESTRICTION ON SUBSEQUENT CONTRIBU19 TIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITING DONOR FROM MAKING SUB21 SEQUENT NON-QUALIFIED CONTRIBUTIONS DURING

22 ELECTION CYCLE.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An individual who 

24 makes a qualified small dollar contribution to a 

25 candidate or the authorized committees of a 


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1 candidate with respect to an election may not 

2 make any subsequent contribution to such can3 didate or the authorized committees of such 

4 candidate with respect to the election cycle 

5 which is not a qualified small dollar contribu6 tion. 

7 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO

8 CANDIDATES WHO VOLUNTARILY WITHDRAW

9 FROM PARTICIPATION DURING QUALIFYING PE10 RIOD.—Subparagraph (A) does not apply with 

11 respect to a contribution made to a candidate 

12 who, during the Small Dollar Democracy quali13 fying period described in section 511(c), sub14 mits a statement to the Commission under sec15 tion 513(c) to voluntarily withdraw from par16 ticipating in the program under this title. 

17 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF SUBSEQUENT NON-QUALI18 FIED CONTRIBUTIONS.—If, notwithstanding the pro19 hibition described in paragraph (1), an individual 

20 who makes a qualified small dollar contribution to a 

21 candidate or the authorized committees of a can22 didate with respect to an election makes a subse23 quent contribution to such candidate or the author24 ized committees of such candidate with respect to 

25 the election which is prohibited under paragraph (1) 


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1 because it is not a qualified small dollar contribu2 tion, the candidate may take one of the following ac3 tions: 

4 ‘‘(A) Not later than 2 weeks after receiving 

5 the contribution, the candidate may return the 

6 subsequent contribution to the individual. 

7 ‘‘(B) Unless the candidate has exercised 

8 the option described in section 521(a)(2) to ac9 cept greater restrictions on the permissible 

10 sources of contributions and expenditures, the 

11 candidate may retain the subsequent contribu12 tion, so long as not later than 2 weeks after re13 ceiving the subsequent contribution, the can14 didate remits to the Commission for deposit in 

15 the Freedom From Influence Fund under sec16 tion 541 an amount equal to any payments re17 ceived by the candidate under this title which 

18 are attributable to the qualified small dollar 

19 contribution made by the individual involved. 

20 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON ABILITY TO MAKE MUL21 TIPLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Nothing in this section 

22 may be construed to prohibit an individual from 

23 making multiple qualified small dollar contributions 

24 to any candidate or any number of candidates, so 

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1 ments of paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection 

2 (a). 

3 ‘‘(d) NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR CAN4 DIDATES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) NOTIFICATION.—Each authorized com6 mittee of a candidate who seeks to be a participating 

7 candidate under this title shall provide the following 

8 information in any materials for the solicitation of 

9 contributions, including any Internet site through 

10 which individuals may make contributions to the 

11 committee: 

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

13 certified as a participating candidate under this 

14 title, the candidate will receive matching pay15 ments in an amount which is based on the total 

16 amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

17 received. 

18 ‘‘(B) A statement that a contribution 

19 which meets the requirements set forth in sub20 section (a) shall be treated as a qualified small 

21 dollar contribution under this title unless the 

22 contributor notifies the committee not later 

23 than 48 hours after making the contribution 

24 that the contribution is not to be so treated. 


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

2 treated as a qualified small dollar contribution 

3 under this title, the individual who makes the 

4 contribution may not make any contribution to 

5 the candidate or the authorized committees of 

6 the candidate during the election cycle which is 

7 not a qualified small dollar contribution. 

8 ‘‘(2) ALTERNATIVE METHODS OF MEETING RE9 QUIREMENTS.—An authorized committee may meet 

10 the requirements of paragraph (1)— 

11 ‘‘(A) by including the information de12 scribed in paragraph (1) in the receipt provided 

13 under section 512(b)(3) to a person making a 

14 qualified small dollar contribution; or 

15 ‘‘(B) by modifying the information it pro16 vides to persons making contributions which is 

17 otherwise required under title III (including in18 formation it provides through the Internet). 

19 ‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and 

20 Certification 

21 ‘‘SEC. 511. ELIGIBILITY. 

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

23 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner 

24 to, the Congress is eligible to be certified as a participating 


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1 candidate under this title with respect to an election if 

2 the candidate meets the following requirements: 

3 ‘‘(1) The candidate files with the Commission a 

4 statement of intent to seek certification as a partici5 pating candidate, and specifies in the statement 

6 whether the candidate intends to exercise the option 

7 described in section 521(a)(2) to accept greater re8 strictions on the permissible sources of contributions 

9 and expenditures. 

10 ‘‘(2) The candidate meets the qualifying re11 quirements of section 512. 

12 ‘‘(3) The candidate files with the Commission a 

13 statement certifying that the authorized committees 

14 of the candidate meet the requirements of section 

15 504(d). 

16 ‘‘(4) Not later than the last day of the Small 

17 Dollar Democracy qualifying period, the candidate 

18 files with the Commission an affidavit signed by the 

19 candidate and the treasurer of the candidate’s prin20 cipal campaign committee declaring that the can21 didate— 

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

23 comply with the contribution and expenditure 

24 requirements of section 521; 


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1 ‘‘(B) if certified, will run only as a partici2 pating candidate for all elections for the office 

3 that such candidate is seeking during that elec4 tion cycle; and 

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

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

7 ‘‘(b) GENERAL ELECTION.—Notwithstanding sub8 section (a), a candidate shall not be eligible to be certified 

9 as a participating candidate under this title for a general 

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

11 party nominated the candidate to be placed on the ballot 

12 for the general election or the candidate is otherwise quali13 fied to be on the ballot under State law. 

14 ‘‘(c) SMALL DOLLAR DEMOCRACY QUALIFYING PE15 RIOD DEFINED.—The term ‘Small Dollar Democracy 

16 qualifying period’ means, with respect to any candidate 

17 for an office, the 180-day period (during the election cycle 

18 for such office) which begins on the date on which the 

19 candidate files a statement of intent under section 

20 511(a)(1), except that such period may not continue after 

21 the date that is 30 days before the date of the general 

22 election for the office. 

23 ‘‘SEC. 512. QUALIFYING REQUIREMENTS. 

24 ‘‘(a) RECEIPT OF QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON25 TRIBUTIONS FROM IN-STATE RESIDENTS.—A candidate 


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

2 Commissioner to, the Congress meets the requirement of 

3 this section if, during the Small Dollar Democracy quali4 fying period described in section 511(c), each of the fol5 lowing occurs: 

6 ‘‘(1) Not fewer than 1,000 individuals who are 

7 residents of the State in which the candidate seeks 

8 election make a qualified small dollar contribution to 

9 the candidate. 

10 ‘‘(2) The candidate obtains a total dollar 

11 amount of qualified small dollar contributions from 

12 individuals who are residents of the State in which 

13 the candidate seeks election which is equal to or 

14 greater than $50,000. 

15 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECEIPT OF

16 QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CONTRIBUTION.—Each 

17 qualified small dollar contribution— 

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

19 check, money order, debit card, credit card, elec20 tronic payment account, or any other method 

21 deemed appropriate by the Commission; 

22 ‘‘(2) shall be accompanied by a signed state23 ment (or, in the case of a contribution made online 

24 or through other electronic means, an electronic 

25 equivalent) containing— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the contributor’s name and the con2 tributor’s address in the State in which the pri3 mary residence of the contributor is located; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(B) an oath declaring that the contrib6 utor— 

7 ‘‘(i) understands that the purpose of 

8 the contribution is to show support for the 

9 candidate so that the candidate may qual10 ify for financing under this title; 

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

12 or her own name and from his or her own 

13 funds; 

14 ‘‘(iii) has made the contribution will15 ingly; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) has not received anything of 

17 value in return for the contribution; and 

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

19 sent to the contributor with a copy (in paper or elec20 tronic form) kept by the candidate for the Commis21 sion and a copy (in paper or electronic form) kept 

22 by the candidate for the election authorities in the 

23 State with respect to which the candidate is seeking 

24 election. 


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1 ‘‘(c) VERIFICATION OF QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR

2 CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Commission shall establish proce3 dures for the auditing and verification of qualified small 

4 dollar contributions, including procedures for random au5 dits, to ensure that such contributions meet the require6 ments of this section. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 513. CERTIFICATION. 

8 ‘‘(a) DEADLINE AND NOTIFICATION.— 

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

10 a candidate files an affidavit under section 

11 511(a)(3), the Commission shall— 

12 ‘‘(A) determine whether or not the can13 didate meets the requirements for certification 

14 as a participating candidate; 

15 ‘‘(B) if the Commission determines that 

16 the candidate meets such requirements, certify 

17 the candidate as a participating candidate; and 

18 ‘‘(C) notify the candidate of the Commis19 sion’s determination. 

20 ‘‘(2) DEEMED CERTIFICATION FOR ALL ELEC21 TIONS IN ELECTION CYCLE.—If the Commission cer22 tifies a candidate as a participating candidate with 

23 respect to the first election of the election cycle in24 volved, the Commissioner shall be deemed to have 

25 certified the candidate as a participating candidate 


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1 with respect to all subsequent elections of the elec2 tion cycle. 

3 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may re5 voke a certification under subsection (a) if— 

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

7 on the ballot at any time after the date of cer8 tification (other than a candidate certified as a 

9 participating candidate with respect to a pri10 mary election who fails to qualify to appear on 

11 the ballot for a subsequent election in that elec12 tion cycle); 

13 ‘‘(B) a candidate ceases to be a candidate 

14 for the office involved, as determined on the 

15 basis of an official announcement by an author16 ized committee of the candidate or on the basis 

17 of a reasonable determination by the Commis18 sion; or 

19 ‘‘(C) a candidate otherwise fails to comply 

20 with the requirements of this title, including 

21 any regulatory requirements prescribed by the 

22 Commission. 

23 ‘‘(2) EXISTENCE OF REPEATED OR SERIOUS

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1 sessed against the candidate under section 309(d) 

2 with respect to the election. 

3 ‘‘(3) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—If a can4 didate’s certification is revoked under this sub5 section— 

6 ‘‘(A) the candidate shall repay to the Free7 dom From Influence Fund established under 

8 section 541 an amount equal to the payments 

9 received under this title with respect to the elec10 tion cycle involved plus interest (at a rate deter11 mined by the Commission on the basis of an ap12 propriate annual percentage rate for the month 

13 involved) on any such amount received; 

14 ‘‘(B) the candidate may not receive pay15 ments under this title during the remainder of 

16 the election cycle involved; and 

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

18 a participating candidate under this title with 

19 respect to the next election cycle. 

20 ‘‘(4) PROHIBITING PARTICIPATION IN FUTURE

21 ELECTIONS FOR CANDIDATES WITH MULTIPLE REV22 OCATIONS.—If the Commission revokes the certifi23 cation of an individual as a participating candidate 

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


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1 certified as a participating candidate under this title 

2 with respect to any subsequent election. 

3 ‘‘(c) VOLUNTARY WITHDRAWAL FROM PARTICI4 PATING DURING QUALIFYING PERIOD.—At any time dur5 ing the Small Dollar Democracy qualifying period de6 scribed in section 511(c), a candidate may withdraw from 

7 participation in the program under this title by submitting 

8 to the Commission a statement of withdrawal (without re9 gard to whether or not the Commission has certified the 

10 candidate as a participating candidate under this title as 

11 of the time the candidate submits such statement), so long 

12 as the candidate has not submitted a request for payment 

13 under section 502. 

14 ‘‘(d) PARTICIPATING CANDIDATE DEFINED.—In this 

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

16 office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Com17 missioner to, the Congress who is certified under this sec18 tion as eligible to receive benefits under this title. 

19 ‘‘Subtitle C—Requirements for Can20 didates Certified as Partici21 pating Candidates 

22 ‘‘SEC. 521. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIRE23 MENTS. 

24 ‘‘(a) PERMITTED SOURCES OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND

25 EXPENDITURES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in sub2 section (c), a participating candidate with respect to 

3 an election shall, with respect to all elections occur4 ring during the election cycle for the office involved, 

5 accept no contributions from any source and make 

6 no expenditures from any amounts, other than the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(A) Qualified small dollar contributions. 

9 ‘‘(B) Payments under this title. 

10 ‘‘(C) Contributions from political commit11 tees established and maintained by a national 

12 or State political party, subject to the applica13 ble limitations of section 315. 

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

15 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

16 family member of the candidate (other than 

17 funds received through qualified small dollar 

18 contributions). 

19 ‘‘(E) Contributions from individuals who 

20 are otherwise permitted to make contributions 

21 under this Act, subject to the applicable limita22 tions of section 315, except that the aggregate 

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1 spect to any election during the election cycle 

2 may not exceed $1,000. 

3 ‘‘(F) Contributions from multicandidate 

4 political committees, subject to the applicable 

5 limitations of section 315. 

6 ‘‘(2) OPTION TO ACCEPT STRICTER LIMITS.—A 

7 participating candidate with respect to an election 

8 may, at the time of submitting the first request for 

9 payment under section 502(a), exercise an option to 

10 accept no contributions from any source and make 

11 no expenditures from any amounts with respect to 

12 all elections occurring during the election cycle for 

13 the office involved, other than the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) Qualified small dollar contributions. 

15 ‘‘(B) Payments under this title. 

16 ‘‘(C) Subject to subsection (b), personal 

17 funds of the candidate or of any immediate 

18 family member of the candidate (other than 

19 funds received through qualified small dollar 

20 contributions). 

21 ‘‘(D) Contributions from individuals who 

22 are otherwise permitted to make contributions 

23 under this Act, subject to the applicable limita24 tions of section 315, except that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the aggregate amount of con2 tributions the candidate may accept from 

3 any individual with respect to any election 

4 during the election cycle may not exceed 

5 $1,000; 

6 ‘‘(ii) the aggregate amount of con7 tributions a candidate may accept from all 

8 individuals under this subparagraph with 

9 respect to the election cycle may not exceed 

10 $50,000; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) the candidate may not accept 

12 any contributions under this subparagraph 

13 after the date on which the Commission 

14 notifies the candidate under section 513(a) 

15 that the candidate is certified as a partici16 pating candidate under this title. 

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

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

19 certified as a participating candidate may use per20 sonal funds (including personal funds of any imme21 diate family member of the candidate) so long as— 

22 ‘‘(A) the aggregate amount used with re23 spect to the election cycle (including any period 

24 of the cycle occurring prior to the candidate’s 


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1 certification as a participating candidate) does 

2 not exceed $10,000; and 

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

4 direct payments for the receipt of goods and 

5 services which constitute authorized expendi6 tures in connection with the election cycle in7 volved. 

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

9 In this subsection, the term ‘immediate family’ 

10 means, with respect to a candidate— 

11 ‘‘(A) the candidate’s spouse; 

12 ‘‘(B) a child, stepchild, parent, grand13 parent, brother, half-brother, sister, or half-sis14 ter of the candidate or the candidate’s spouse; 

15 and 

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

17 subparagraph (B). 

18 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE20 CEIVED PRIOR TO FILING OF STATEMENT OF IN21 TENT.—A candidate who has accepted contributions 

22 that are not described in paragraph (1) of sub23 section (a) (or, in the case of a candidate who has 

24 exercised the option described in paragraph (2) of 

25 subsection (a), that are not described in paragraph 


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1 (2) of subsection (a)) is not in violation of sub2 section (a), but only if all such contributions are— 

3 ‘‘(A) returned to the contributor; 

4 ‘‘(B) submitted to the Commission for de5 posit in the Freedom From Influence Fund es6 tablished under section 541; or 

7 ‘‘(C) spent in accordance with paragraph 

8 (2). 

9 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR EXPENDITURES MADE

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

11 candidate has made expenditures prior to the date 

12 the candidate files a statement of intent under sec13 tion 511(a)(1) that the candidate is prohibited from 

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

15 candidate is not in violation of such subsection if the 

16 aggregate amount of the prohibited expenditures is 

17 less than the amount referred to in section 

18 512(a)(2) (relating to the total dollar amount of 

19 qualified small dollar contributions which the can20 didate is required to obtain) which is applicable to 

21 the candidate. 

22 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION FOR CAMPAIGN SURPLUSES

23 FROM A PREVIOUS ELECTION.—Notwithstanding 

24 paragraph (1), unexpended contributions received by 

25 the candidate or an authorized committee of the 


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1 candidate with respect to a previous election may be 

2 retained, but only if the candidate places the funds 

3 in escrow and refrains from raising additional funds 

4 for or spending funds from that account during the 

5 election cycle in which a candidate is a participating 

6 candidate. 

7 ‘‘(4) EXCEPTION FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RE8 CEIVED BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS

9 TITLE.—Contributions received and expenditures 

10 made by the candidate or an authorized committee 

11 of the candidate prior to the effective date of this 

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

13 or (b). Unexpended contributions shall be treated 

14 the same as campaign surpluses under paragraph 

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

16 limit in paragraph (2). 

17 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL RULE FOR COORDINATED PARTY EX18 PENDITURES.—For purposes of this section, a payment 

19 made by a political party in coordination with a partici20 pating candidate shall not be treated as a contribution to 

21 or as an expenditure made by the participating candidate. 

22 ‘‘(e) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT23 TEES.— 

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

25 of a candidate who is certified as a participating 


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1 candidate under this title with respect to an election 

2 may not establish a joint fundraising committee with 

3 a political committee other than another authorized 

4 committee of the candidate. 

5 ‘‘(2) STATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES FOR

6 PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate established a 

7 joint fundraising committee described in paragraph 

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

9 candidate was not certified as a participating can10 didate under this title and the candidate does not 

11 terminate the committee, the candidate shall not be 

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

13 long as that joint fundraising committee does not re14 ceive any contributions or make any disbursements 

15 during the election cycle for which the candidate is 

16 certified as a participating candidate under this title. 

17 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION ON LEADERSHIP PACS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—A candidate who is cer19 tified as a participating candidate under this title 

20 with respect to an election may not establish, fi21 nance, maintain, or control a leadership PAC. 

22 ‘‘(2) STATUS OF EXISTING LEADERSHIP

23 PACS.—If a candidate established, financed, main24 tained, or controlled a leadership PAC prior to being 

25 certified as a participating candidate under this title 


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1 and the candidate does not terminate the leadership 

2 PAC, the candidate shall not be considered to be in 

3 violation of paragraph (1) so long as the leadership 

4 PAC does not receive any contributions or make any 

5 disbursements during the election cycle for which the 

6 candidate is certified as a participating candidate 

7 under this title. 

8 ‘‘(3) LEADERSHIP PAC DEFINED.—In this sub9 section, the term ‘leadership PAC’ has the meaning 

10 given such term in section 304(i)(8)(B). 

11 ‘‘SEC. 522. ADMINISTRATION OF CAMPAIGN. 

12 ‘‘(a) SEPARATE ACCOUNTING FOR VARIOUS PER13 MITTED CONTRIBUTIONS.—Each authorized committee of 

14 a candidate certified as a participating candidate under 

15 this title— 

16 ‘‘(1) shall provide for separate accounting of 

17 each type of contribution described in paragraph (1) 

18 of section 521(a) (or described in paragraph (2) of 

19 section 521(a) in the case of a candidate who exer20 cises the option described in such paragraph) which 

21 is received by the committee; and 

22 ‘‘(2) shall provide for separate accounting for 

23 the payments received under this title. 

24 ‘‘(b) ENHANCED DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION ON

25 DONORS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) MANDATORY IDENTIFICATION OF INDIVID2 UALS MAKING QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON3 TRIBUTIONS.—Each authorized committee of a par4 ticipating candidate under this title shall elect, in ac5 cordance with section 304(b)(3)(A), to include in the 

6 reports the committee submits under section 304 the 

7 identification of each person who makes a qualified 

8 small dollar contribution to the committee. 

9 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY DISCLOSURE THROUGH

10 INTERNET.—Each authorized committee of a partici11 pating candidate under this title shall ensure that all 

12 information reported to the Commission under this 

13 Act with respect to contributions and expenditures 

14 of the committee is available to the public on the 

15 Internet (whether through a site established for pur16 poses of this subsection, a hyperlink on another pub17 lic site of the committee, or a hyperlink on a report 

18 filed electronically with the Commission) in a search19 able, sortable, and downloadable manner. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 523. PREVENTING UNNECESSARY SPENDING OF PUB21 LIC FUNDS. 

22 ‘‘(a) MANDATORY SPENDING OF AVAILABLE PRI23 VATE FUNDS.—An authorized committee of a candidate 

24 certified as a participating candidate under this title may 

25 not make any expenditure of any payments received under 


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1 this title in any amount unless the committee has made 

2 an expenditure in an equivalent amount of funds received 

3 by the committee which are described in subparagraphs 

4 (C), (D), (E), and (F) of paragraph (1) of section 521(a) 

5 (or described in subparagraph (C) and (D) of paragraph 

6 (2) of section 521(a) in the case of a candidate who exer7 cises the option described in such paragraph). 

8 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—Subsection (a) applies to an au9 thorized committee only to the extent that the funds re10 ferred to in such subsection are available to the committee 

11 at the time the committee makes an expenditure of a pay12 ment received under this title. 

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

14 ‘‘(a) REMITTANCE REQUIRED.— 

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

16 that is 180 days after the last election for which a 

17 candidate certified as a participating candidate 

18 qualifies to be on the ballot during the election cycle 

19 involved, such participating candidate shall remit to 

20 the Commission for deposit in the Freedom From 

21 Influence Fund established under section 541 an 

22 amount equal to the balance of the payments re23 ceived under this title by the authorized committees 

24 of the candidate which remain unexpended as of 

25 such date. 


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1 ‘‘(2) PERMITTING CANDIDATES PARTICIPATING

2 IN NEXT ELECTION CYCLE TO RETAIN PORTION OF

3 UNSPENT FUNDS.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), 

4 a participating candidate may withhold not more 

5 than $100,000 (or, in the case of a candidate who 

6 exercises the option described in section 521(a)(2) to 

7 accept greater restrictions on the permissible sources 

8 of contributions and expenditures, not more than 

9 $200,000) from the amount required to be remitted 

10 under paragraph (1) if the candidate files a signed 

11 affidavit with the Commission that the candidate 

12 will seek certification as a participating candidate 

13 with respect to the next election cycle, except that 

14 the candidate may not use any portion of the 

15 amount withheld until the candidate is certified as 

16 a participating candidate with respect to that next 

17 election cycle. If the candidate fails to seek certifi18 cation as a participating candidate prior to the last 

19 day of the Small Dollar Democracy qualifying period 

20 for the next election cycle (as described in section 

21 511), or if the Commission notifies the candidate of 

22 the Commission’s determination does not meet the 

23 requirements for certification as a participating can24 didate with respect to such cycle, the candidate shall 


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1 immediately remit to the Commission the amount 

2 withheld. 

3 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION FOR EXPENSES INCURRED AS A RE4 SULT OF CONTESTED ELECTION.— 

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

6 from the amount required to be remitted under sub7 section (a) the amount of any authorized expendi8 tures which were incurred as the result of a legal 

9 challenge to the results of the election, except that 

10 any amount withheld pursuant to this paragraph 

11 shall be remitted to the Commission not later than 

12 120 days after the date of the election to which such 

13 subsection applies. 

14 ‘‘(2) DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED.—A can15 didate may withhold an amount of an expenditure 

16 pursuant to paragraph (1) only if the candidate sub17 mits documentation of the expenditure and the 

18 amount to the Commission not later than the dead19 line applicable to the candidate under subsection (a). 

20 ‘‘Subtitle D—Enhanced Match 

21 Support 

22 ‘‘SEC. 531. ENHANCED SUPPORT FOR GENERAL ELECTION. 

23 ‘‘(a) AVAILABILITY OF ENHANCED SUPPORT.—In 

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1 mission shall make an additional payment to an eligible 

2 candidate under this subtitle. 

3 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A candidate shall use the ad4 ditional payment under this subtitle only for authorized 

5 expenditures in connection with the election involved. 

6 ‘‘SEC. 532. ELIGIBILITY. 

7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate is eligible to receive 

8 an additional payment under this subtitle if the candidate 

9 meets each of the following requirements: 

10 ‘‘(1) The candidate is on the ballot for the gen11 eral election for the office the candidate seeks. 

12 ‘‘(2) The candidate is certified as a partici13 pating candidate under this title with respect to the 

14 election. 

15 ‘‘(3) During the enhanced support qualifying 

16 period, the candidate receives qualified small dollar 

17 contributions in a total amount of not less than 

18 $50,000. 

19 ‘‘(4) During the enhanced support qualifying 

20 period, the candidate submits to the Commission a 

21 request for the payment which includes— 

22 ‘‘(A) a statement of the number and 

23 amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

24 received by the candidate during the enhanced 

25 support qualifying period; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a statement of the amount of the 

2 payment the candidate anticipates receiving 

3 with respect to the request; and 

4 ‘‘(C) such other information and assur5 ances as the Commission may require. 

6 ‘‘(5) After submitting a request for the addi7 tional payment under paragraph (4), the candidate 

8 does not submit any other application for an addi9 tional payment under this subtitle. 

10 ‘‘(b) ENHANCED SUPPORT QUALIFYING PERIOD DE11 SCRIBED.—In this subtitle, the term ‘enhanced support 

12 qualifying period’ means, with respect to a general elec13 tion, the period which begins 60 days before the date of 

14 the election and ends 14 days before the date of the elec15 tion. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 533. AMOUNT. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), the 

18 amount of the additional payment made to an eligible can19 didate under this subtitle shall be an amount equal to 50 

20 percent of— 

21 ‘‘(1) the amount of the payment made to the 

22 candidate under section 501(b) with respect to the 

23 qualified small dollar contributions which are re24 ceived by the candidate during the enhanced support 


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1 qualifying period (as included in the request sub2 mitted by the candidate under section 532(a)(4)); or 

3 ‘‘(2) in the case of a candidate who is not eligi4 ble to receive a payment under section 501(b) with 

5 respect to such qualified small dollar contributions 

6 because the candidate has reached the limit on the 

7 aggregate amount of payments under subtitle A for 

8 the election cycle under section 501(c), the amount 

9 of the payment which would have been made to the 

10 candidate under section 501(b) with respect to such 

11 qualified small dollar contributions if the candidate 

12 had not reached such limit. 

13 ‘‘(b) LIMIT.—The amount of the additional payment 

14 determined under subsection (a) with respect to a can15 didate may not exceed $500,000. 

16 ‘‘(c) NO EFFECT ON AGGREGATE LIMIT.—The 

17 amount of the additional payment made to a candidate 

18 under this subtitle shall not be included in determining 

19 the aggregate amount of payments made to a participating 

20 candidate with respect to an election cycle under section 

21 501(c). 

22 ‘‘SEC. 534. WAIVER OF AUTHORITY TO RETAIN PORTION OF 

23 UNSPENT FUNDS AFTER ELECTION. 

24 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 524(a)(2), a candidate who 

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1 spect to an election is not permitted to withhold any por2 tion from the amount of unspent funds the candidate is 

3 required to remit to the Commission under section 

4 524(a)(1). 

5 ‘‘Subtitle E—Administrative 

6 Provisions 

7 ‘‘SEC. 541. FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND. 

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

9 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Freedom From Influ10 ence Fund’. 

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

12 consist of the following amounts: 

13 ‘‘(1) APPROPRIATED AMOUNTS.—Amounts ap14 propriated to the Fund, including trust fund 

15 amounts appropriated pursuant to applicable provi16 sions of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

17 ‘‘(2) VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS.—Voluntary 

18 contributions to the Fund, including contributions 

19 made pursuant to section 6098 of the Internal Rev20 enue Code of 1986. 

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

22 into the Fund under— 

23 ‘‘(A) section 521(c)(1)(B) (relating to ex24 ceptions to contribution requirements); 


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1 ‘‘(B) section 523 (relating to remittance of 

2 unused payments from the Fund); 

3 ‘‘(C) section 544 (relating to violations); 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(D) any other section of this Act. 

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

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

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

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

10 portions of the Fund in obligations of the United States 

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

12 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

13 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUND.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts in the Fund shall 

15 be available without further appropriation or fiscal 

16 year limitation to make payments to participating 

17 candidates as provided in this title. 

18 ‘‘(2) INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS.—Under regula19 tions established by the Commission, rules similar to 

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

21 Code of 1986 shall apply. 

22 ‘‘SEC. 542. GOVERNMENT BY THE PEOPLE OVERSIGHT COM23 MISSION. 

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

25 the Federal Election Commission an entity to be known 


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1 as the ‘Government by the People Oversight Commission’ 

2 (in this title referred to as the ‘Oversight Commission’). 

3 ‘‘(b) STRUCTURE AND MEMBERSHIP.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Oversight Commission 

5 shall be composed of 5 members appointed by the 

6 President with the advice and consent of the Senate, 

7 of whom— 

8 ‘‘(A) 2 shall be appointed after consulta9 tion with the Majority Leader of the House of 

10 Representatives; 

11 ‘‘(B) 2 shall be appointed after consulta12 tion with the Minority Leader of the House of 

13 Representatives; and 

14 ‘‘(C) 1 shall be appointed upon the rec15 ommendation of the members appointed under 

16 subparagraphs (A) and (B). 

17 ‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

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

19 individuals who by reason of their education, 

20 experience, and attainments, are exceptionally 

21 qualified to perform the duties of members of 

22 the Oversight Commission. 

23 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION.—No individual may be 

24 appointed to the Oversight Commission who 

25 is— 


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1 ‘‘(i) an employee of the Federal Gov2 ernment; 

3 ‘‘(ii) a registered lobbyist or an indi4 vidual who was a registered lobbyist at any 

5 time during the 2-year period preceding 

6 appointment to the Oversight Commission; 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(iii) an officer or employee of a polit9 ical party or political campaign. 

10 ‘‘(3) DATE.—Members of the Oversight Com11 mission shall be appointed not later than 60 days 

12 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 ‘‘(4) TERMS.—A member of the Oversight Com14 mission shall be appointed for a term of 5 years. 

15 ‘‘(5) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Oversight 

16 Commission shall be filled not later than 30 calendar 

17 days after the date on which the Oversight Commis18 sion is given notice of the vacancy, in the same man19 ner as the original appointment. The individual ap20 pointed to fill the vacancy shall serve only for the 

21 unexpired portion of the term for which the individ22 ual’s predecessor was appointed. 

23 ‘‘(6) CHAIRPERSON.—The Oversight Commis24 sion shall designate a Chairperson from among the 

25 members of the Board. 


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1 ‘‘(c) DUTIES AND POWERS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.—The Oversight Com3 mission shall have such duties and powers as the 

4 Commission may prescribe, including the power to 

5 administer the provisions of this title. 

6 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING.— 

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

8 scheduled general election for Federal office, 

9 the Oversight Commission shall conduct a com10 prehensive review of the Small Dollar financing 

11 program under this title, including— 

12 ‘‘(i) the maximum and minimum dol13 lar amounts of qualified small dollar con14 tributions under section 504; 

15 ‘‘(ii) the number and value of quali16 fied small dollar contributions a candidate 

17 is required to obtain under section 512(a) 

18 to be eligible for certification as a partici19 pating candidate; 

20 ‘‘(iii) the maximum amount of pay21 ments a candidate may receive under this 

22 title; 

23 ‘‘(iv) the overall satisfaction of partici24 pating candidates and the American public 

25 with the program; and 


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1 ‘‘(v) such other matters relating to fi2 nancing of campaigns as the Oversight 

3 Commission determines are appropriate. 

4 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR REVIEW.—In con5 ducting the review under subparagraph (A), the 

6 Oversight Commission shall consider the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(i) QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON9 TRIBUTIONS.—The Oversight Commission 

10 shall consider whether the number and dol11 lar amounts of qualified small dollar con12 tributions required strikes an appropriate 

13 balance regarding the importance of voter 

14 involvement, the need to assure adequate 

15 incentives for participating, and fiscal re16 sponsibility, taking into consideration the 

17 number of primary and general election 

18 participating candidates, the electoral per19 formance of those candidates, program 

20 cost, and any other information the Over21 sight Commission determines is appro22 priate. 

23 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF PAYMENT LEVELS.— 

24 The Oversight Commission shall consider 

25 whether the totality of the amount of 


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1 funds allowed to be raised by participating 

2 candidates (including through qualified 

3 small dollar contributions) and payments 

4 under this title are sufficient for voters in 

5 each State to learn about the candidates to 

6 cast an informed vote, taking into account 

7 the historic amount of spending by winning 

8 candidates, media costs, primary election 

9 dates, and any other information the Over10 sight Commission determines is appro11 priate. 

12 ‘‘(C) RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ADJUST13 MENT OF AMOUNTS.—Based on the review con14 ducted under subparagraph (A), the Oversight 

15 Commission may recommend to Congress ad16 justments of the following amounts: 

17 ‘‘(i) The number and value of quali18 fied small dollar contributions a candidate 

19 is required to obtain under section 512(a) 

20 to be eligible for certification as a partici21 pating candidate. 

22 ‘‘(ii) The maximum amount of pay23 ments may receive under this title. 

24 ‘‘(d) MEETINGS AND HEARINGS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) MEETINGS.—The Oversight Commission 

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

3 and places, take such testimony, and receive such 

4 evidence as the Oversight Commission considers ad5 visable to carry out the purposes of this Act. 

6 ‘‘(2) QUORUM.—Three members of the Over7 sight Commission shall constitute a quorum for pur8 poses of voting, but a quorum is not required for 

9 members to meet and hold hearings. 

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

11 follows a regularly scheduled general election for Federal 

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

13 Oversight Commission shall submit to the Committee on 

14 House Administration of the House of Representatives a 

15 report— 

16 ‘‘(1) containing an analysis of the review con17 ducted under subsection (c)(2), including a detailed 

18 statement of Commission’s findings, conclusions, 

19 and recommendations based on such review, includ20 ing any recommendations for adjustments of 

21 amounts described in subsection (c)(2)(C); and 

22 ‘‘(2) documenting, evaluating, and making rec23 ommendations relating to the administrative imple24 mentation and enforcement of the provisions of this 

25 title. 


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1 ‘‘(f) ADMINISTRATION.— 

2 ‘‘(1) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.— 

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

4 than the Chairperson, shall be paid at a rate 

5 equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum 

6 annual rate of basic pay prescribed for level IV 

7 of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 

8 of title 5, United States Code. 

9 ‘‘(B) CHAIRPERSON.—The Chairperson 

10 shall be paid at a rate equal to the daily equiva11 lent of the minimum annual rate of basic pay 

12 prescribed for level III of the Executive Sched13 ule under section 5314 of title 5, United States 

14 Code. 

15 ‘‘(2) PERSONNEL.— 

16 ‘‘(A) DIRECTOR.—The Oversight Commis17 sion shall have a staff headed by an Executive 

18 Director. The Executive Director shall be paid 

19 at a rate equivalent to a rate established for the 

20 Senior Executive Service under section 5382 of 

21 title 5, United States Code. 

22 ‘‘(B) STAFF APPOINTMENT.—With the ap23 proval of the Chairperson, the Executive Direc24 tor may appoint such personnel as the ExecuVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:23 Jan 31, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H20.IH H20

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1 tive Director and the Oversight Commission de2 termines to be appropriate. 

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

4 the approval of the Chairperson, the Executive 

5 Director may procure temporary and intermit6 tent services under section 3109(b) of title 5, 

7 United States Code. 

8 ‘‘(D) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOY9 EES.—Upon the request of the Chairperson, the 

10 head of any Federal agency may detail, without 

11 reimbursement, any of the personnel of such 

12 agency to the Oversight Commission to assist in 

13 carrying out the duties of the Oversight Com14 mission. Any such detail shall not interrupt or 

15 otherwise affect the civil service status or privi16 leges of the Federal employee. 

17 ‘‘(E) OTHER RESOURCES.—The Oversight 

18 Commission shall have reasonable access to ma19 terials, resources, statistical data, and other in20 formation from the Library of Congress and 

21 other agencies of the executive and legislative 

22 branches of the Federal Government. The 

23 Chairperson of the Oversight Commission shall 

24 make requests for such access in writing when 

25 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 small dollar contributions with respect to a can10 didate; 

11 ‘‘(B) effectively and efficiently monitoring 

12 and enforcing the limits on the raising of quali13 fied small dollar 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 Freedom From Influence 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 may 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 Freedom From Influ14 ence Fund established under section 541. 

15 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR IMPROPER USE OF FREEDOM

16 FROM INFLUENCE 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 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITING CERTAIN CANDIDATES FROM

13 QUALIFYING AS PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) CANDIDATES WITH MULTIPLE CIVIL PEN15 ALTIES.—If the Commission assesses 3 or more civil 

16 penalties under subsection (a) against a candidate 

17 (with respect to either a single election or multiple 

18 elections), the Commission may refuse to certify the 

19 candidate as a participating candidate under this 

20 title with respect to any subsequent election, except 

21 that if each of the penalties were assessed as the re22 sult of a knowing and willful violation of any provi23 sion of this Act, the candidate is not eligible to be 

24 certified as a participating candidate under this title 

25 with respect to any subsequent election. 


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1 ‘‘(2) CANDIDATES SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL PEN2 ALTY.—A candidate is not eligible to be certified as 

3 a participating candidate under this title with re4 spect to an election if a penalty has been assessed 

5 against the candidate under section 309(d) with re6 spect to any previous election. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 545. APPEALS PROCESS. 

8 ‘‘(a) REVIEW OF ACTIONS.—Any action by the Com9 mission in carrying out this title shall be subject to review 

10 by the United States Court of Appeals for the District 

11 of Columbia upon petition filed in the Court not later than 

12 30 days after the Commission takes the action for which 

13 the review is sought. 

14 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURES.—The provisions of chapter 7 of 

15 title 5, United States Code, apply to judicial review under 

16 this section. 

17 ‘‘SEC. 546. INDEXING OF AMOUNTS. 

18 ‘‘(a) INDEXING.—In any calendar year after 2017, 

19 section 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to each amount described 

20 in subsection (b) in the same manner as such section ap21 plies to the limitations established under subsections 

22 (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), (a)(3), and (h) of such section, ex23 cept that for purposes of applying such section to the 

24 amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base period’ 

25 shall be 2017. 


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1 ‘‘(b) AMOUNTS DESCRIBED.—The amounts described 

2 in this subsection are as follows: 

3 ‘‘(1) The amount referred to in section 

4 502(b)(1) (relating to the minimum amount of quali5 fied small dollar contributions included in a request 

6 for payment). 

7 ‘‘(2) The amounts referred to in section 

8 504(a)(1) (relating to the amount of a qualified 

9 small dollar contribution). 

10 ‘‘(3) The amount referred to in section 

11 512(a)(2) (relating to the total dollar amount of 

12 qualified small dollar contributions). 

13 ‘‘(4) The amount referred to in section 

14 521(a)(1)(E) (relating to the aggregate amount of 

15 contributions a participating candidate may accept 

16 from any individual with respect to an election). 

17 ‘‘(5) The amount referred to in section 

18 521(a)(2)(D)(i) (relating to the aggregate amount of 

19 contributions that may be accepted from any indi20 vidual with respect to an election by a participating 

21 candidate who exercises the option described in such 

22 section to accept greater restrictions on the permis23 sible sources of contributions and expenditures). 

24 ‘‘(6) The amount referred to in section 

25 521(a)(2)(D)(ii) (relating to the aggregate amount 


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1 of contributions that may be accepted from all indi2 viduals with respect to an election cycle by a partici3 pating candidate who exercises the option described 

4 in such section to accept greater restrictions on the 

5 permissible sources of contributions and expendi6 tures). 

7 ‘‘(7) The amount referred to in section 

8 521(b)(1)(A) (relating to the amount of personal 

9 funds that may be used by a candidate who is cer10 tified as a participating candidate). 

11 ‘‘(8) The amounts referred to in section 

12 524(a)(2) (relating to the amount of unspent funds 

13 a candidate may retain for use in the next election 

14 cycle). 

15 ‘‘(9) The amount referred to in section 

16 532(a)(3) (relating to the total dollar amount of 

17 qualified small dollar contributions for a candidate 

18 seeking an additional payment under subtitle D). 

19 ‘‘(10) The amount referred to in section 533(b) 

20 (relating to the limit on the amount of an additional 

21 payment made to a candidate under subtitle D). 

22 ‘‘SEC. 547. ELECTION CYCLE DEFINED. 

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

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

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1 tion for that office (or, if the general election resulted in 

2 a runoff election, the date of the runoff election) and end3 ing on the date of the next general election for that office 

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

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

6 SEC. 202. CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES BY MULTI7 CANDIDATE AND POLITICAL PARTY POLIT8 ICAL COMMITTEES ON BEHALF OF PARTICI9 PATING CANDIDATES. 

10 (a) AUTHORIZING CONTRIBUTIONS ONLY FROM SEP11 ARATE ACCOUNTS CONSISTING OF QUALIFIED SMALL

12 DOLLAR CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 315(a) of the Federal 

13 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)) is 

14 amended by adding at the end the following new para15 graph: 

16 ‘‘(9) In the case of a multicandidate political com17 mittee or any political committee of a political party, the 

18 committee may make a contribution to a candidate who 

19 is a participating candidate under title V with respect to 

20 an election only if the contribution is paid from a separate, 

21 segregated account of the committee which consists solely 

22 of contributions which meet the following requirements: 

23 ‘‘(A) Each such contribution is in an amount 

24 which meets the requirements for the amount of a 


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1 qualified small dollar contribution under section 

2 504(a)(1) with respect to the election involved. 

3 ‘‘(B) Each such contribution is made by an in4 dividual who is not otherwise prohibited from mak5 ing a contribution under this Act. 

6 ‘‘(C) The individual who makes the contribution 

7 does not make contributions to the committee during 

8 the year in an aggregate amount that exceeds the 

9 limit described in section 504(a)(1).’’. 

10 (b) PERMITTING UNLIMITED COORDINATED EX11 PENDITURES FROM SMALL DOLLAR SOURCES BY POLIT12 ICAL PARTIES.—Section 315(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

13 30116(d)) is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘The national 

15 committee’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in 

16 paragraph (5), the national committee’’; and 

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

18 paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(5) The limits described in paragraph (3) do not 

20 apply in the case of expenditures in connection with the 

21 general election campaign of a candidate for the office of 

22 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner 

23 to, the Congress who is a participating candidate under 

24 title V with respect to the election, but only if— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the expenditures are paid from a separate, 

2 segregated account of the committee which is de3 scribed in subsection (a)(9); and 

4 ‘‘(B) the expenditures are the sole source of 

5 funding provided by the committee to the can6 didate.’’. 

7 SEC. 203. PROHIBITING USE OF CONTRIBUTIONS BY PAR8 TICIPATING CANDIDATES FOR PURPOSES 

9 OTHER THAN CAMPAIGN FOR ELECTION. 

10 Section 313 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

11 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114) is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following new subsection: 

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

14 BY CANDIDATES RECEIVING SMALL DOLLAR FINANC15 ING.—Notwithstanding paragraph (2), (3), or (4) of sub16 section (a), if a candidate for election for the office of Rep17 resentative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, 

18 the Congress is certified as a participating candidate 

19 under title V with respect to the election, any contribution 

20 which the candidate is permitted to accept under such title 

21 may be used only for authorized expenditures in connec22 tion with the candidate’s campaign for such office.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—OTHER 

2 ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 

3 SEC. 301. EXPANDING REQUIREMENT TO DISCLOSE 

4 BUNDLERS WHO ARE REGISTERED LOBBY5 ISTS TO ALL BUNDLERS. 

6 (a) EXPANDING BUNDLER DISCLOSURE REQUIRE7 MENTS TO ALL BUNDLERS.—Section 304(i)(1) of the 

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

9 30104(i)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘reasonably known 

10 by the committee to be a person described in paragraph 

11 (7)’’. 

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

13 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(i)) is amended— 

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

15 in paragraph (7)’’; 

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

17 described in paragraph (7)’’ and inserting ‘‘any per18 son’’; 

19 (3) in paragraph (5)— 

20 (A) by striking subparagraph (B) and re21 designating subparagraphs (C) and (D) as sub22 paragraphs (B) and (C); 

23 (B) in subparagraph (B) (as so redesig24 nated), by striking ‘‘described in paragraph 

25 (7)’’; and 


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1 (C) in subparagraph (C) (as so redesig2 nated), by striking ‘‘by persons described in 

3 paragraph (7)’’; 

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

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

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

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

8 inserting ‘‘a person,’’. 

9 SEC. 302. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 

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

11 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30107(a)(6)) is amended by in12 serting ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme 

13 Court on certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 

14 SEC. 303. FILING BY ALL CANDIDATES WITH COMMISSION. 

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

16 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102(g)) is amended to read as fol17 lows: 

18 ‘‘(g) FILING WITH THE COMMISSION.—All designa19 tions, statements, and reports required to be filed under 

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

21 SEC. 304. ELECTRONIC FILING OF FEC REPORTS. 

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

23 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(a)(11)) is amended— 

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

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


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

2 file such designation, statement, or report in elec3 tronic form accessible by computers.’’; 

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

5 hours’’ and all that follows through ‘‘filed electroni6 cally)’’ and inserting ‘‘24 hours’’; and 

7 (3) by striking subparagraph (D). 

8 SEC. 305. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 The amendments made by this title shall apply with 

10 respect to reports filed on or after the date of the enact11 ment of this Act. 

12 TITLE IV—EXPANDING CAN13 DIDATE ACCESS TO ADVER14 TISING 

15 SEC. 401. BROADCASTS BY CANDIDATES. 

16 (a) LOWEST UNIT CHARGE.—Section 315(b)(1)(A) 

17 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

18 315(b)(1)(A)) is amended by inserting ‘‘for preemptible 

19 use thereof’’ after ‘‘station’’. 

20 (b) PREEMPTION; AUDITS.—Section 315 of the Com21 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 315) is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub23 section (g) and transferring such subsection, as re24 designated, to the end; 


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1 (2) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub2 section (f) and transferring such subsection, as re3 designated, so that it appears after subsection (e); 

4 and 

5 (3) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(c) PREEMPTION.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para9 graph (2) and notwithstanding the requirements of 

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

11 use of a broadcasting station by a legally qualified 

12 candidate that has purchased and paid for such use 

13 under circumstances entitling such candidate to re14 ceive the rate under such subsection for such use. 

15 ‘‘(2) CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND CONTROL OF LI16 CENSEE.—If a program to be broadcast by a broad17 casting station is preempted because of cir18 cumstances beyond the control of the licensee, an 

19 advertisement that is scheduled to be broadcast dur20 ing such program and the broadcast of which con21 stitutes use of the broadcasting station described in 

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

23 as a comparable commercial advertisement. 

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

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1 ing the 60-day period preceding the date of a general elec2 tion or special election, the Commission shall conduct such 

3 audits as it considers necessary to ensure that the licensee 

4 of each broadcasting station is allocating use of the station 

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

6 not warrant revocation of the station license under section 

7 312(a)(7).’’. 

8 (c) REVOCATION OF LICENSE FOR FAILURE TO

9 ALLOW ACCESS BY FEDERAL CANDIDATES.—Section 312 

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

11 amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)(7)— 

13 (A) by inserting ‘‘in accordance with sub14 section (h),’’ before ‘‘for willful’’; 

15 (B) by striking ‘‘or repeated’’; 

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

17 ‘‘non-commercial educational broadcast sta18 tion,’’; and 

19 (D) by striking ‘‘his candidacy’’ and insert20 ing ‘‘the candidacy of the candidate, under the 

21 same terms, conditions, and business practices 

22 as apply to the most-favored advertiser of the 

23 broadcasting station or cable system’’; and 

24 (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) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 315 of the 

4 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 315), as amend5 ed by subsection (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 (b)(1), by moving subpara10 graphs (A) and (B) 2 ems to the right; 

11 (3) in subsection (f), as redesignated, by strik12 ing ‘‘The Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘REGULA13 TIONS.—The Commission’’; and 

14 (4) in subsection (g), as redesignated, by strik15 ing ‘‘For purposes’’ and inserting ‘‘DEFINITIONS.— 

16 For purposes’’. 

17 TITLE V—CONTRIBUTIONS TO 

18 FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE 

19 FUND 

20 SEC. 501. VOLUNTARY CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE FREEDOM 

21 FROM INFLUENCE FUND. 

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

23 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

24 the end the following new part: 


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1 ‘‘PART IX—CONTRIBUTIONS TO FREEDOM FROM 

2 INFLUENCE FUND 

‘‘Sec. 6098. Contributions to Freedom From Influence Fund. 

3 ‘‘SEC. 6098. CONTRIBUTIONS TO FREEDOM FROM INFLU4 ENCE FUND. 

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

6 the taxpayer’s return for the taxable year of the tax im7 posed by chapter 1, may designate that a specified portion 

8 (not less than $1) of any overpayment of tax shall be con9 tributed to the Freedom From Influence Fund established 

10 under section 541 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

11 of 1971. 

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

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

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

15 any taxable year— 

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

17 tax imposed by chapter 1 for such taxable year, 

18 or 

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

20 filing) specified in regulations prescribed by the 

21 Secretary. 

22 ‘‘(2) MANNER OF DESIGNATION.—Such des23 ignation shall be made in such manner as the Sec24 retary prescribes by regulations except that, if such 

25 designation is made at the time of filing the return 


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1 of the tax imposed by chapter 1 for such taxable 

2 year, such designation shall be made either on the 

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

4 taxpayer’s signature. 

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

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

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

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

9 last date prescribed for filing the return of tax im10 posed by chapter 1 (determined without regard to 

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

12 and 

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

14 such date to the United States. 

15 ‘‘(d) ONLINE CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Secretary shall 

16 establish and maintain a Web site through which persons 

17 may make contributions to the Freedom From Influence 

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

19 overpayment of tax but shall be treated as a contribution 

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

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

22 subchapter A of chapter 61 of the Internal Revenue Code 

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

24 new item: 

‘‘PART IX. CONTRIBUTIONS TO FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND’’. 


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

2 this section shall apply with respect to tax returns re3 quired to be filed after December 31, 2016. 

4 TITLE VI—MISCELLANEOUS 

5 PROVISIONS 

6 SEC. 601. SEVERABILITY. 

7 If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 

8 by this Act, or the application of a provision of this Act 

9 or an amendment made by this Act to any person or cir10 cumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder 

11 of this Act, and the application of the provisions to any 

12 person or circumstance, shall not be affected by the hold13 ing. 

Æ 


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