II

105TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1117

To amend Federal elections law to provide for campaign finance reform,

and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

JULY 31, 1997

Ms. SNOWE introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Rules and Administration

A BILL

To amend Federal elections law to provide for campaign

finance reform, 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. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 The table of contents of this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Table of contents.

TITLE I—CONTRIBUTIONS

Sec. 101. Multicandidate political committees contributions to candidates.

Sec. 102. Prohibition of bundling of contributions by lobbyists.

Sec. 103. Credit for contributions to congressional candidates.

Sec. 104. Modification of contribution limits for Senate candidates when opposing candidates make expenditures from personal funds.

Sec. 105. Prohibition of contributions by individuals not qualified to vote.

Sec. 106. Indexing of contribution limits.
2

•S 1117 IS

TITLE II—INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES

Sec. 201. Reporting requirements for certain independent expenditures.

Sec. 202. Definition of independent expenditure; express advocacy.

TITLE III—POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEES

Sec. 301. Soft money of political party committee.

Sec. 302. State party grassroots funds.

Sec. 303. Modification of contribution limits to committees of political parties.

Sec. 304. Reporting requirements.

Sec. 305. Expenditure limit of political party committees in response to candidate transfer of contributions from a previous election cycle.

Sec. 306. Prohibition of solicitation of political party soft money in Federal

buildings.

TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 401. Prohibition of leadership committees.

Sec. 402. Political activity of corporations, national banks, and labor organizations.

1 TITLE I—CONTRIBUTIONS

2 SEC. 101. MULTICANDIDATE POLITICAL COMMITTEES CON3 TRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES.

4 Section 315(a)(2)(A) of the Federal Election Cam5 paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(2)(A)) is amended

6 by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$1,000’’.

7 SEC. 102. PROHIBITION OF BUNDLING OF CONTRIBUTIONS

8 BY LOBBYISTS.

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

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

11 as follows:

12 ‘‘(8) INTERMEDIARIES AND CONDUITS.—

13 ‘‘(A) TREATMENT AS CONTRIBUTIONS

14 FROM PERSONS BY WHOM MADE.—

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of

16 the limitations imposed by this section, all
3

•S 1117 IS

1 contributions made by a person, either di2 rectly or indirectly, on behalf of a can3 didate, including contributions that are in

4 any way earmarked or otherwise directed

5 through an intermediary or conduit to the

6 candidate, shall be treated as contributions

7 from the person to the candidate.

8 ‘‘(ii) REPORTING.—The intermediary

9 or conduit through which a contribution is

10 made shall report the name of the original

11 contributor and the intended recipient of

12 the contribution to the Commission and to

13 the intended recipient.

14 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT AS CONTRIBUTIONS

15 FROM THE BUNDLER.—

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Contributions that

17 a bundler delivers to a candidate or the

18 candidate’s authorized committees shall be

19 treated as contributions from the bundler

20 to the candidate as well as from the origi21 nal contributor.

22 ‘‘(C) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph:

23 ‘‘(i) BUNDLER.—The term ‘bundler’

24 means an intermediary or conduit that—
4

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(I) delivers contributions made

2 by other persons; and

3 ‘‘(II) is—

4 ‘‘(aa) a person required to

5 be listed as a lobbyist on a reg6 istration or other report filed

7 pursuant to the Lobbying Disclo8 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601

9 et seq.) or any successor law that

10 requires reporting on the activi11 ties of a person who is a lobbyist

12 or foreign agent; or

13 ‘‘(bb) an entity that is di14 rectly or indirectly established, fi15 nanced, maintained, or controlled

16 by a lobbyist or its agent, an en17 tity acting on behalf of a lobby18 ist, and an officer or agent acting

19 on behalf of any such lobbyist or

20 entity.

21 ‘‘(ii) DELIVER.—The term ‘deliver’

22 means to deliver contributions to a can23 didate by any method used or suggested by

24 a bundler that communicates to the can25 didate (or to the person who receives the
5

•S 1117 IS

1 contributions on behalf of the candidate)

2 that the bundler collected the contributions

3 for the candidate, including such methods

4 as—

5 ‘‘(I) personal delivery;

6 ‘‘(II) United States mail or simi7 lar services;

8 ‘‘(III) messenger service; and

9 ‘‘(IV) collection at an event or re10 ception.’’.

11 SEC. 103. CREDIT FOR CONTRIBUTIONS TO CONGRES12 SIONAL CANDIDATES.

13 (a) GENERAL RULE.—Subpart A of part IV of sub14 chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of

15 1986 (relating to nonrefundable personal credits) is

16 amended by inserting after section 23 the following new

17 section:

18 ‘‘SEC. 24. IN-STATE CONTRIBUTIONS TO CONGRESSIONAL

19 CANDIDATES.

20 ‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—In the case of an individual,

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

22 by this chapter for the taxable year an amount equal to

23 the total amount of local congressional political contribu24 tions made by the individual.

25 ‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.—
6

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(1) MAXIMUM CREDIT.—The credit allowed by

2 subsection (a) for a taxable year shall not exceed

3 $100 ($200 in the case of a joint return under sec4 tion 6013).

5 ‘‘(2) VERIFICATION.—The credit allowed by

6 subsection (a) shall be allowed with respect to any

7 contribution only if such contribution is verified in

8 such manner as the Secretary shall prescribe by reg9 ulations.

10 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section—

11 ‘‘(1) CANDIDATE.—The term ‘candidate’ has

12 the meaning given that term in section 301 of the

13 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.

14 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION.—The term ‘contribution’

15 has the meaning given that term in section 301 of

16 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.

17 ‘‘(3) LOCAL CONGRESSIONAL POLITICAL CON18 TRIBUTION.—The term ‘local congressional political

19 contribution’ means a contribution or gift of money

20 to—

21 ‘‘(A) a local congressional candidate, or

22 ‘‘(B) a committee, association, or organiza23 tion (whether or not incorporated) organized

24 and operated exclusively for the purpose of in25 fluencing (or attempting to influence) the nomi-
7

•S 1117 IS

1 nation or election of a local congressional can2 didate,

3 for use to further the candidacy of such candidate

4 for nomination or election to the Senate or House of

5 Representatives.

6 ‘‘(4) LOCAL CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE.—The

7 term ‘local congressional candidate’ means a can8 didate in a primary, general, or special election seek9 ing nomination for election to, or election to, the—

10 ‘‘(A) Senate for the State in which the

11 principal residence of the taxpayer is located; or

12 ‘‘(B) House of Representative for the con13 gressional district in which the principal resi14 dence of the taxpayer is located.

15 ‘‘(5) PRINCIPAL RESIDENCE.—The term ‘prin16 cipal residence’ has the same meaning as when used

17 in section 1034.’’.

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

19 (1) Section 642 of such Code (relating to spe20 cial rules for credits and deductions of estates or

21 trusts) is amended by adding at the end the follow22 ing:

23 ‘‘(j) CREDIT FOR CERTAIN CONTRIBUTIONS NOT AL24 LOWED.—An estate or trust shall not be allowed the credit

25 against tax provided by section 24.’’.
8

•S 1117 IS

1 (2) The table of sections for subpart A of part

2 IV of subchapter A of chapter 1 of such Code is

3 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec4 tion 23 the following new item:

‘‘Sec. 24. In-State contributions to congressional candidates.’’.

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

6 this section shall apply to taxable years beginning after

7 December 31, 1997.

8 SEC. 104. MODIFICATION OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS FOR

9 SENATE CANDIDATES WHEN OPPOSING CAN10 DIDATES MAKE EXPENDITURES FROM PER11 SONAL FUNDS.

12 (a) DECLARATION AND NOTIFICATION OF EXPENDI13 TURES FROM PERSONAL FUNDS.—Section 304(a)(6) of

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

15 434(a)(6)) is amended—

16 (1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as sub17 paragraph (D); and

18 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the fol19 lowing:

20 ‘‘(B)(i) Not later than the date on which a candidate

21 for nomination to the Senate qualifies under State law for

22 a primary election ballot, the candidate or the candidate’s

23 authorized committees shall file a declaration with the

24 Commission stating the amount of personal funds that the

25 candidate intends to expend in connection with the can-
9

•S 1117 IS

1 didate’s campaign for election from the date of the filing

2 of the declaration through the date of the general election.

3 ‘‘(ii) A candidate who—

4 ‘‘(I) declares, under clause (i), that the can5 didate does not intend to expend personal funds in

6 an amount in excess of $100,000; and

7 ‘‘(II) subsequently changes the declaration or

8 expends personal funds in excess of that amount,

9 shall file an amended declaration with the Commission and

10 notify all other candidates for the same office within 24

11 hours after changing the declaration or exceeding the lim12 its, whichever first occurs, by sending a notice by certified

13 mail, return receipt requested.

14 ‘‘(C)(i) A candidate for election to the Senate or the

15 candidate’s authorized committees shall notify the Com16 mission and each opponent of the candidate if the can17 didate or the candidate’s authorized committees makes or

18 obligates to make an aggregate amount of expenditures

19 using personal funds in excess of 90 percent of the amount

20 stated in subparagraph (B).

21 ‘‘(ii) After a candidate files a notification under

22 clause (i), the person shall file an additional notification

23 each time an aggregate amount of expenditures is made

24 or obligated to be made using personal funds that equals

25 $15,000.
10

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) A notification under clause (i) or (ii) shall—

2 ‘‘(I) be submitted not later than 24 hours after

3 the expenditure that is the subject of the notification

4 is made or obligated to be made;

5 ‘‘(II) include the name of the candidate, the of6 fice sought by the candidate, and the date and

7 amount of the expenditure; and

8 ‘‘(III) include the total amount of expenditures

9 from personal funds that have been made or obli10 gated to be made with respect to that election as of

11 the date of the expenditure that is the subject of the

12 notification.’’.

13 (b) MODIFICATION OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS.—Sec14 tion 315 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971

15 (2 U.S.C. 441a) is amended—

16 (1) in subsection (a)—

17 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘No per18 son’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in sub19 section (i), no person’’;

20 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘No

21 multicandidate’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as pro22 vided in subsection (i), no multicandidate’’;

23 (2) in subsection (d)(3), by striking ‘‘The na24 tional committee’’ and inserting ‘‘Except as provided

25 in subsection (i), the national committee’’; and
11

•S 1117 IS

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

2 ‘‘(i) CONTRIBUTION LIMITS IN RESPONSE TO SEN3 ATE CANDIDATE EXPENDITURES OF PERSONAL

4 FUNDS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—

6 ‘‘(A) CONTRIBUTION LIMIT UNDER PARA7 GRAPHS (1)(A) AND (2)(A) OF SECTION 315(a).—

8 An individual or multicandidate political com9 mittee may make contributions to a candidate

10 with respect to any general election to the Sen11 ate in an amount—

12 ‘‘(i) not to exceed the applicable limit

13 multiplied by 2, if an opponent of the can14 didate or the opponent’s authorized com15 mittees in such election declares an inten16 tion to make, makes, or obligates to make

17 an aggregate amount of expenditures using

18 personal funds that is equal to or greater

19 than $100,000 and less than $250,000;

20 ‘‘(ii) not to exceed $5,000, if an oppo21 nent of the candidate or the opponent’s au22 thorized committees declares an intention

23 to make, makes, or obligates to make an

24 aggregate amount of expenditures using
12

•S 1117 IS

1 personal funds that is equal to or greater

2 than $250,000; or

3 ‘‘(iii) not to exceed $5,000, if an op4 ponent of the candidate or the opponent’s

5 authorized committees makes or obligates

6 to make an aggregate amount of expendi7 tures in excess of the amount the opponent

8 declared under section 304(a)(6)(B).

9 ‘‘(B) CONTRIBUTION LIMIT UNDER SEC10 TION 315(d)(3).—If the opponent of a candidate

11 for election to the Senate or the opponent’s au12 thorized committees makes or obligates to make

13 an aggregate amount of expenditures in excess

14 of the amount the opponent declared under sec15 tion 304(a)(6)(B), a national committee of a

16 political party may make expenditures in con17 nection with the general election campaign of

18 the candidate without regard to the limitations

19 in subsection (a) or this subsection in an

20 amount not to exceed the amount of expendi21 tures that the opponent makes or obligates to

22 make in excess of the amount the opponent de23 clared under such section.

24 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The limits under paragraph

25 (1) shall apply to contributions to a candidate only
13

•S 1117 IS

1 if the candidate declares an amount under section

2 304(a)(6)(B) and expends an amount that is less

3 than $100,000.’’.

4 (c) DEFINITION OF PERSONAL FUNDS.—Section 301

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

6 431) is amended by adding at the end the following:

7 ‘‘(20) PERSONAL FUNDS.—The term ‘personal funds’

8 means an amount that is derived from—

9 ‘‘(A) personal funds of the candidate and

10 members of the candidate’s immediate family;

11 or

12 ‘‘(B) proceeds of indebtedness incurred by

13 the candidate or a member of the candidate’s

14 immediate family.’’.

15 SEC. 105. PROHIBITION OF CONTRIBUTIONS BY INDIVID16 UALS NOT QUALIFIED TO VOTE.

17 (a) PROHIBITION.—Section 319 of the Federal Elec18 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441e) is amended—

19 (1) in the heading by adding ‘‘AND INDIVID20 UALS NOT QUALIFIED TO REGISTER TO

21 VOTE’’ at the end; and

22 (2) in subsection (a)—

23 (A) by striking ‘‘(a) It shall’’ and inserting

24 the following:

25 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITIONS.—
14

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(1) FOREIGN NATIONALS.—It shall’’; and

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

3 ‘‘(2) INDIVIDUALS NOT QUALIFIED TO VOTE.—

4 It shall be unlawful for—

5 ‘‘(A) an individual who is not qualified to

6 register to vote in a Federal election to make

7 a contribution, or to promise expressly or

8 impliedly to make a contribution, in connection

9 with a Federal election; or

10 ‘‘(B) any person to solicit, accept, or re11 ceive a contribution in connection with a Fed12 eral election from an individual who is not

13 qualified to register to vote in a Federal elec14 tion.’’.

15 (b) INCLUSION IN DEFINITION OF IDENTIFICA16 TION.—Section 301(13) of the Federal Election Campaign

17 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(13)) is amended—

18 (1) in subparagraph (A)—

19 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ the first place it ap20 pears; and

21 (B) by inserting ‘‘, and an affirmation that

22 the individual is an individual who is not pro23 hibited by section 319 from making a contribu24 tion’’ after ‘‘employer’’; and
15

•S 1117 IS

1 (2) in subparagraph (B) by inserting ‘‘and an

2 affirmation that the person is a person that is not

3 prohibited by section 319 from making a contribu4 tion’’ after ‘‘such person’’.

5 SEC. 106. INDEXING OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS.

6 Section 315(c) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

7 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(c)) is amended—

8 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘subsection

9 (b) and subsection (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsections

10 (a), (b), and (d)’’; and

11 (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘means the

12 calendar year 1974.’’ and inserting ‘‘means—

13 ‘‘(i) for purposes of subsections (b) and

14 (d), calendar year 1974; and

15 ‘‘(ii) for purposes of subsection (a), cal16 endar year 1997.’’.

17 TITLE II—INDEPENDENT

18 EXPENDITURES

19 SEC. 201. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR CERTAIN INDE20 PENDENT EXPENDITURES.

21 Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

22 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434) is amended—

23 (1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking the undes24 ignated matter after subparagraph (C); and

25 (2) by adding at the end the following:
16

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(d) TIME FOR REPORTING CERTAIN EXPENDI2 TURES.—

3 ‘‘(1) EXPENDITURES AGGREGATING $1,000

4 WITHIN 20 DAYS BEFORE AN ELECTION.—

5 ‘‘(A) INITIAL REPORT.—A person (includ6 ing a political committee) that makes or obli7 gates to make independent expenditures aggre8 gating $1,000 or more after the 20th day, but

9 more than 24 hours, before the date of an elec10 tion shall file a report describing the expendi11 tures within 24 hours after that amount of

12 independent expenditures has been made.

13 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REPORTS.—After a per14 son files a report under subparagraph (A), the

15 person shall file an additional report each time

16 that the person makes or obligates to make

17 independent expenditures during the period de18 scribed in (A) aggregating an additional $1,000

19 with respect to the same election as that to

20 which the initial report relates.

21 ‘‘(2) EXPENDITURES AGGREGATING $5,000 BE22 FORE 20TH DAY BEFORE ELECTION.—

23 ‘‘(A) INITIAL REPORT.—A person (includ24 ing a political committee) that makes or obli25 gates to make independent expenditures aggre-
17

•S 1117 IS

1 gating $5,000 or more at any time up to and

2 including the 20th day before the date of an

3 election shall file a report describing the ex4 penditures within 48 hours after that amount

5 of independent expenditures has been made.

6 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REPORTS.—After a per7 son files a report under subparagraph (A), the

8 person shall file an additional report each time

9 that the person makes or obligates to make

10 independent expenditures during the period de11 scribed in subparagraph (A) aggregating an ad12 ditional $5,000 with respect to the same elec13 tion as that to which the initial report relates.

14 ‘‘(3) PLACE OF FILING; CONTENTS.—A report

15 under this subsection—

16 ‘‘(A) shall be filed with the Commission;

17 and

18 ‘‘(B) shall contain the information required

19 by subsection (b)(6)(B)(iii), including the name

20 of each candidate whom an expenditure is in21 tended to support or oppose.’’.

22 SEC. 202. DEFINITION OF INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE; EX23 PRESS ADVOCACY.

24 (a) DEFINITION OF INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE.—

25 Section 301(17) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
18

•S 1117 IS

1 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(17) et seq.) is amended to read as

2 follows:

3 ‘‘(17) INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE.—The term

4 ‘independent expenditure’ means an expenditure that—

5 ‘‘(A) contains express advocacy; and

6 ‘‘(B) is made without the participation or co7 operation of, or without consultation with, or with8 out coordination with a candidate or a candidate’s

9 authorized committee or agent.’’.

10 (b) EXPRESS ADVOCACY.—

11 (1) AMENDMENT OF DEFINITION OF EXPENDI12 TURE.—Section 301(9)(A) of the Federal Election

13 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(9)(A)) is

14 amended—

15 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause

16 (i);

17 (B) by striking the period at the end of

18 clause (ii) and inserting a semicolon; and

19 (C) by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(iii) any payment during an election

21 year (or in a nonelection year, during the

22 period beginning on the date on which a

23 vacancy for Federal office occurs and end24 ing on the date of the special election for

25 that office) for a communication that is
19

•S 1117 IS

1 made through any broadcast medium,

2 newspaper, magazine, billboard, direct

3 mail, or similar type of general public com4 munication or political advertising by a na5 tional, State, district, or local committee of

6 a political party, including a congressional

7 campaign committee of a party, that refers

8 to a clearly identified candidate; and

9 ‘‘(iv) any payment for a communica10 tion that contains express advocacy.’’.

11 (2) DEFINITION OF EXPRESS ADVOCACY.—Sec12 tion 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

13 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431) (as amended by section 104(c))

14 is amended by adding at the end the following:

15 ‘‘(21) EXPRESS ADVOCACY.—

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘express advo17 cacy’ includes—

18 ‘‘(i) a communication that conveys a mes19 sage that advocates the election or defeat of a

20 clearly identified candidate for Federal office by

21 using an expression such as ‘vote for,’ ‘elect,’

22 ‘support,’ ‘vote against,’ ‘defeat,’ ‘reject,’

23 ‘(name of candidate) for Congress’, ‘vote pro24 life,’ or ‘vote pro-choice’, accompanied by a list25 ing or picture of a clearly identified candidate
20

•S 1117 IS

1 described as ‘pro-life’ or ‘pro-choice,’ ‘reject the

2 incumbent’, or a similar expression;

3 ‘‘(ii) a communication that is made

4 through a broadcast medium, newspaper, maga5 zine, billboard, direct mail, or similar type of

6 general public communication or political adver7 tising that involves aggregate disbursements of

8 $10,000 or more, that refers to a clearly identi9 fied candidate, that a reasonable person would

10 understand as advocating the election or defeat

11 of the candidate, and that is made within 30

12 days before the date of a primary election (and

13 is targeted to the State in which the primary is

14 occurring), or 60 days before a general election;

15 or

16 ‘‘(iii) a communication that is made

17 through a broadcast medium, newspaper, maga18 zine, billboard, direct mail, or similar type of

19 general public communication or political adver20 tising that involves aggregate disbursements of

21 $10,000 or more, that refers to a clearly identi22 fied candidate, that a reasonable person would

23 understand as advocating the election or defeat

24 of a candidate, that is made before the date

25 that is 30 days before the date of a primary
21

•S 1117 IS

1 election, or 60 days before the date of a general

2 election, and that is made for the purpose of

3 advocating the election or defeat of the can4 didate, as shown by 1 or more factors such as

5 a statement or action by the person making the

6 communication, the targeting or placement of

7 the communication, or the use by the person

8 making the communication of polling, demo9 graphic, or other similar data relating to the

10 candidate’s campaign or election.

11 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—The term ‘express advo12 cacy’ does not include the publication or distribution

13 of a communication that is limited solely to provid14 ing information about the voting record of elected

15 officials on legislative matters and that a reasonable

16 person would not understand as advocating the elec17 tion or defeat of a particular candidate.’’.

18 TITLE III—POLITICAL PARTY

19 COMMITTEES

20 SEC. 301. SOFT MONEY OF POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEE.

21 Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

22 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended by adding at the

23 end the following:
22

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘SEC. 324. SOFT MONEY OF PARTY COMMITTEES.

2 ‘‘(a) NATIONAL COMMITTEES.—A national commit3 tee of a political party (including a national congressional

4 campaign committee of a political party but not including

5 an entity regulated under subsection (b)) shall not solicit

6 or receive any contributions, donations, or transfers of

7 funds, or spend any funds, that are not subject to the limi8 tations, prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this

9 Act.

10 ‘‘(b) STATE, DISTRICT, AND LOCAL COMMITTEES.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A State, district, or local

12 committee of a political party shall not expend or

13 disburse any amount during a calendar year in

14 which a Federal election is held for any activity that

15 might affect the outcome of a Federal election, in16 cluding any voter registration or get-out-the-vote ac17 tivity, any generic campaign activity, and any com18 munication that refers to a candidate (regardless of

19 whether a candidate for State or local office is also

20 mentioned or identified) unless the amount is sub21 ject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting

22 requirements of this Act.

23 ‘‘(2) ACTIVITY EXCLUDED FROM PARAGRAPH

24 (1).—

25 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (1) shall

26 not apply to an expenditure or disbursement
23

•S 1117 IS

1 made by a State, district, or local committee of

2 a political party for—

3 ‘‘(i) a contribution to a candidate for

4 State or local office if the contribution is

5 not designated or otherwise earmarked to

6 pay for an activity described in paragraph

7 (1);

8 ‘‘(ii) the costs of a State, district, or

9 local political convention;

10 ‘‘(iii) the non-Federal share of a

11 State, district, or local party committee’s

12 administrative and overhead expenses (but

13 not including the compensation in any

14 month of any individual who spends more

15 than 20 percent of the individual’s time on

16 activities during the month that may affect

17 the outcome of a Federal election), except

18 that for purposes of this paragraph, the

19 non-Federal share of a party committee’s

20 administrative and overhead expenses shall

21 be determined by applying the ratio of the

22 non-Federal disbursements to the total

23 Federal expenditures and non-Federal dis24 bursements made by the committee during

25 the previous presidential election year to
24

•S 1117 IS

1 the committee’s administrative and over2 head expenses in the election year in ques3 tion;

4 ‘‘(iv) the costs of grassroots campaign

5 materials, including buttons, bumper stick6 ers, and yard signs that name or depict

7 only a candidate for State or local office;

8 and

9 ‘‘(v) the cost of any campaign activity

10 conducted solely on behalf of a clearly

11 identified candidate for State or local of12 fice, if the candidate activity is not an ac13 tivity described in paragraph (1).

14 ‘‘(B) FUNDRAISING COSTS.—A national,

15 State, district, or local committee of a political

16 party shall not expend any amount to raise

17 funds that are used, in whole or in part, to pay

18 the costs of an activity described in paragraph

19 (1) unless the amount is subject to the limita20 tions, prohibitions, and reporting requirements

21 of this Act.

22 ‘‘(c) TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS.—A national,

23 State, district, or local committee of a political party (in24 cluding a national congressional campaign committee of

25 a political party) shall not solicit any funds for or make
25

•S 1117 IS

1 any donations to an organization that is exempt from Fed2 eral taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue

3 Code of 1986 and that is described in section 501(c) of

4 such Code.

5 ‘‘(d) CANDIDATES.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A candidate, individual

7 holding Federal office, or agent of a candidate or in8 dividual holding Federal office shall not—

9 ‘‘(A) solicit, receive, transfer, or spend

10 funds in connection with an election for Federal

11 office unless the funds are subject to the limita12 tions, prohibitions, and reporting requirements

13 of this Act;

14 ‘‘(B) solicit, receive, or transfer funds that

15 are to be expended in connection with any elec16 tion other than a Federal election unless the

17 funds—

18 ‘‘(i) are not in excess of the amounts

19 permitted with respect to contributions to

20 candidates and political committees under

21 paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 315(a);

22 and

23 ‘‘(ii) are not from sources prohibited

24 by this Act from making contributions with

25 respect to an election for Federal office; or
26

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(C) solicit, receive, or transfer any funds

2 on behalf of any person that are not subject to

3 the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting re4 quirements of this Act if the funds are for use

5 in financing any campaign-related activity or

6 any communication that refers to a clearly iden7 tified candidate for Federal office.

8 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) does not

9 apply to the solicitation or receipt of funds by an in10 dividual who is a candidate for a State or local office

11 if the solicitation or receipt of funds is permitted

12 under State law for the individual’s State or local

13 campaign committee.

14 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION OF COMMITTEE.—In this section,

15 the term ‘committee of a political party’ includes an entity

16 that is directly or indirectly established, financed, main17 tained, or controlled by a committee or its agent, an entity

18 acting on behalf of a committee, and an officer or agent

19 acting on behalf of any such committee or entity.’’.

20 SEC. 302. STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUNDS.

21 (a) INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section

22 315(a)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971

23 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)) is amended—

24 (1) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the

25 end;
27

•S 1117 IS

1 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as sub2 paragraph (D); and

3 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the fol4 lowing:

5 ‘‘(C) to—

6 ‘‘(i) a State Party Grassroots Fund estab7 lished and maintained by a State committee of

8 a political party in any calendar year which, in

9 the aggregate, exceed $20,000;

10 ‘‘(ii) any other political committee estab11 lished and maintained by a State committee of

12 a political party in any calendar year which, in

13 the aggregate, exceed $5,000;

14 except that the aggregate contributions described in

15 this subparagraph that may be made by a person to

16 the State Party Grassroots Fund and all committees

17 of a State Committee of a political party in any

18 State in any calendar year shall not exceed $20,000;

19 or’’.

20 (b) LIMITS.—

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(a) of the Fed22 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.

23 441a(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (3) and

24 inserting the following:

25 ‘‘(3) OVERALL LIMITS.—
28

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(A) INDIVIDUAL LIMIT.—No individual

2 shall make contributions during any calendar

3 year that, in the aggregate, exceed $30,000.

4 ‘‘(B) CALENDAR YEAR.—No individual

5 shall make contributions during any calendar

6 year—

7 ‘‘(i) to all candidates and their au8 thorized political committees that, in the

9 aggregate, exceed $25,000; or

10 ‘‘(ii) to all political committees estab11 lished and maintained by State committees

12 of a political party that, in the aggregate,

13 exceed $20,000.

14 ‘‘(C) NONELECTION YEARS.—For purposes

15 of subparagraph (B)(i), any contribution made

16 to a candidate or the candidate’s authorized po17 litical committees in a year other than the cal18 endar year in which the election is held with re19 spect to which the contribution is made shall be

20 treated as being made during the calendar year

21 in which the election is held.’’.

22 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 301 of the Federal Elec23 tion Campaign Act of 1970 (2 U.S.C. 431) (as amended

24 by section 202(b)(2)) is amended by adding at the end

25 the following:
29

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(22) GENERIC CAMPAIGN ACTIVITY.—The

2 term ‘generic campaign activity’ means a campaign

3 activity that promotes a political party and does not

4 refer to any particular Federal or non-Federal can5 didate.

6 ‘‘(23) STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUND.—The

7 term ‘State Party Grassroots Fund’ means a sepa8 rate segregated fund established and maintained by

9 a State committee of a political party solely for pur10 poses of making expenditures and other disburse11 ments described in section 326(d).’’.

12 (d) STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUNDS.—Title III of

13 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431

14 et seq.) (as amended by section 301) is amended by adding

15 at the end the following:

16 ‘‘SEC. 325. STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUNDS.

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A State committee of a political

18 party shall only make disbursements and expenditures

19 from the committee’s State Party Grassroots Fund that

20 are described in subsection (d).

21 ‘‘(b) TRANSFERS.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section

23 315(a)(4), a State committee of a political party

24 shall not transfer any funds from the committee’s

25 State Party Grassroots Fund to any other State
30

•S 1117 IS

1 Party Grassroots Fund or to any other political com2 mittee, except as provided in paragraph (2).

3 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—A committee of a political

4 party may transfer funds from the committee’s

5 State Party Grassroots Fund to a district or local

6 committee of the same political party in the same

7 State if the district or local committee—

8 ‘‘(A) has established a separate segregated

9 fund for the purposes described in subsection

10 (d); and

11 ‘‘(B) uses the transferred funds solely for

12 those purposes.

13 ‘‘(c) AMOUNTS RECEIVED BY GRASSROOTS FUNDS

14 FROM STATE AND LOCAL CANDIDATE COMMITTEES.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any amount received by a

16 State Party Grassroots Fund from a State or local

17 candidate committee for expenditures described in

18 subsection (d) that are for the benefit of that can19 didate shall be treated as meeting the requirements

20 of 324(b)(1) and section 304(e) if—

21 ‘‘(A) the amount is derived from funds

22 which meet the requirements of this Act with

23 respect to any limitation or prohibition as to

24 source or dollar amount specified in paragraphs

25 (1)(A) and (2)(A)(i) of section 315(a); and
31

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(B) the State or local candidate commit2 tee—

3 ‘‘(i) maintains, in the account from

4 which payment is made, records of the

5 sources and amounts of funds for purposes

6 of determining whether those requirements

7 are met; and

8 ‘‘(ii) certifies that the requirements

9 were met.

10 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION OF COMPLIANCE.—For

11 purposes of paragraph (1)(A), in determining wheth12 er the funds transferred meet the requirements of

13 this Act described in paragraph (1)(A)—

14 ‘‘(A) a State or local candidate commit15 tee’s cash on hand shall be treated as consisting

16 of the funds most recently received by the com17 mittee; and

18 ‘‘(B) the committee must be able to dem19 onstrate that its cash on hand contains funds

20 meeting those requirements sufficient to cover

21 the transferred funds.

22 ‘‘(3) REPORTING.—Notwithstanding paragraph

23 (1), any State Party Grassroots Fund that receives

24 a transfer described in paragraph (1) from a State

25 or local candidate committee shall be required to
32

•S 1117 IS

1 meet the reporting requirements of this Act, and

2 shall submit to the Commission all certifications re3 ceived, with respect to receipt of the transfer from

4 the candidate committee.

5 ‘‘(d) DISBURSEMENTS AND EXPENDITURES.—A

6 State committee of a political party may make disburse7 ments and expenditures from its State Party Grassroots

8 Fund only for—

9 ‘‘(1) any generic campaign activity;

10 ‘‘(2) payments described in clauses (v), (viii),

11 and (x) of paragraph (8)(B) and clauses (iv), (viii),

12 and (ix) of paragraph (9)(B) of section 301;

13 ‘‘(3) subject to the limitations of section

14 315(d), payments described in clause (xii) of para15 graph (8)(B), and clause (ix) of paragraph (9)(B),

16 of section 301 on behalf of candidates other than for

17 President and Vice President;

18 ‘‘(4) voter registration; and

19 ‘‘(5) development and maintenance of voter files

20 during an even-numbered calendar year.

21 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘State

22 or local candidate committee’ means a committee estab23 lished, financed, maintained, or controlled by a candidate

24 for other than Federal office.’’.
33

•S 1117 IS

1 SEC. 303. MODIFICATION OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS TO

2 COMMITTEES OF POLITICAL PARTIES.

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

4 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a) et seq.) is amended—

5 (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘$20,000’’

6 and inserting ‘‘$25,000’’; and

7 (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘$15,000’’

8 and inserting ‘‘$20,000’’.

9 SEC. 304. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

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

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

12 (as amended by section 201) is amended by adding at the

13 end the following:

14 ‘‘(e) POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—

15 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL AND CONGRESSIONAL POLITI16 CAL COMMITTEES.—The national committee of a po17 litical party, any congressional campaign committee

18 of a political party, and any subordinate committee

19 of either, shall report all receipts and disbursements

20 during the reporting period, whether or not in con21 nection with an election for Federal office.

22 ‘‘(2) OTHER POLITICAL COMMITTEES TO WHICH

23 SECTION 324 APPLIES.—A political committee to

24 which section 324(b)(1) applies shall report all re25 ceipts and disbursements made for activities de-
34

•S 1117 IS

1 scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2)(A)(iii) of section

2 324(b).

3 ‘‘(3) OTHER POLITICAL COMMITTEES.—Any po4 litical committee to which paragraph (1) or (2) does

5 not apply shall report any receipts or disbursements

6 that are used in connection with a Federal election.

7 ‘‘(4) ITEMIZATION.—If a political committee

8 has receipts or disbursements to which this sub9 section applies from any person aggregating in ex10 cess of $200 for any calendar year, the political

11 committee shall separately itemize its reporting for

12 such person in the same manner as required in para13 graphs (3)(A), (5), and (6) of subsection (b).

14 ‘‘(5) REPORTING PERIODS.—Reports required to be

15 filed under this subsection shall be filed for the same time

16 periods required for political committees under

17 subsection (a).’’.

18 (b) BUILDING FUND EXCEPTION TO THE DEFINI19 TION OF CONTRIBUTION.—Section 301(8)(B) of the Fed20 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(B))

21 is amended—

22 (1) by striking clause (viii); and

23 (2) by redesignating clauses (ix) through (xiv)

24 as clauses (viii) through (xiii), respectively.
35

•S 1117 IS

1 (c) REPORTS BY STATE COMMITTEES.—Section 304

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

3 434) (as amended by subsection (a)) is amended by adding

4 at the end the following:

5 ‘‘(f) FILING OF STATE REPORTS.—In lieu of any re6 port required to be filed by this Act, the Commission may

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

8 the Commission a report required to be filed under State

9 law if the Commission determines such reports contain

10 substantially the same information.’’.

11 (d) OTHER REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—

12 (1) AUTHORIZED COMMITTEES.—Section

13 304(b)(4) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

14 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(4)) is amended—

15 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub16 paragraph (H);

17 (B) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub18 paragraph (I); and

19 (C) by adding at the end the following new

20 subparagraph:

21 ‘‘(J) in the case of an authorized commit22 tee, disbursements for the primary election, the

23 general election, and any other election in which

24 the candidate participates;’’.
36

•S 1117 IS

1 (2) NAMES AND ADDRESSES.—Section

2 304(b)(5)(A) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

3 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(5)(A)) is amended by in4 serting ‘‘, and the election to which the operating ex5 penditure relates’’ after ‘‘operating expenditure’’.

6 SEC. 305. EXPENDITURE LIMIT OF POLITICAL PARTY COM7 MITTEES IN RESPONSE TO CANDIDATE

8 TRANSFER OF CONTRIBUTIONS FROM A PRE9 VIOUS ELECTION CYCLE.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(d) of the Federal

11 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)) (as

12 amended by section 104(b)(2)) is amended—

13 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘(2) and (3)’’

14 and inserting ‘‘(2), (3), and (4)’’;

15 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘subsection

16 (i)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (i) and paragraph

17 (4)’’; and

18 (3) by adding at the end the following:

19 ‘‘(4) If a candidate for election to the Senate or the

20 House of Representatives or the candidate’s authorized

21 committees transfers funds from a previous election cycle

22 to the current election cycle, a national or State committee

23 of a political party may make an aggregate amount of ex24 penditures in connection with the general election cam25 paign of an opponent of the candidate in the same election
37

•S 1117 IS

1 that does not exceed the amount of such funds transferred

2 by the candidate.’’.

3 (b) DEFINITION OF ELECTION CYCLE.—Section 301

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

5 431) (as amended by section 302(c)) is amended by add6 ing at the end the following:

7 ‘‘(24) ELECTION CYCLE.—The term ‘election cycle’

8 means—

9 ‘‘(A) in the case of a candidate or the author10 ized committees of a candidate, the period beginning

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

12 election for the office or seat that the candidate is

13 seeking and ending on the date of the next general

14 election for that office or seat; and

15 ‘‘(B) in the case of all other persons, the period

16 beginning on the first day following the date of the

17 last general election and ending on the date of the

18 next general election.’’.

19 SEC. 306. PROHIBITION OF SOLICITATION OF POLITICAL

20 PARTY SOFT MONEY IN FEDERAL BUILDINGS.

21 Section 607 of title 18, United States Code, is

22 amended—

23 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘within the

24 meaning of section 301(8) of the Federal Election

25 Campaign Act of 1971’’; and
38

•S 1117 IS

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

2 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION OF CONTRIBUTION.—In this sec3 tion, the term ‘contribution’ means a gift, subscription,

4 loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value

5 made by any person in connection with—

6 ‘‘(1) any election or elections for Federal office;

7 or

8 ‘‘(2) any political committee (as defined in sec9 tion 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of

10 1971).’’.

11 TITLE IV—MISCELLANEOUS

12 SEC. 401. PROHIBITION OF LEADERSHIP COMMITTEES.

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

14 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 432(e)) is amended by adding at the

15 end the following:

16 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION OF LEADERSHIP COMMIT17 TEES.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—

19 ‘‘(i) PROHIBITION.—A candidate or

20 an individual holding Federal office shall

21 not establish, finance, maintain, or control

22 any political committee or non-Federal po23 litical committee other than a principal

24 campaign committee of the candidate, au25 thorized committee, party committee, or
39

•S 1117 IS

1 other political committee designated in ac2 cordance with paragraph (3).

3 ‘‘(ii) CANDIDATE FOR MORE THAN 1

4 OFFICE.—A candidate for more than 1

5 Federal office may designate a separate

6 principal campaign committee for the cam7 paign for election to each Federal office.

8 ‘‘(iii) CANDIDATES FOR STATE OR

9 LOCAL OFFICE.—This paragraph does not

10 preclude a Federal officeholder who is a

11 candidate for State or local office from es12 tablishing, financing, maintaining, or con13 trolling a political committee for election of

14 the individual to the State or local office.

15 ‘‘(B) TRANSITION.—

16 ‘‘(i) CONTINUATION FOR 12

17 MONTHS.—For a period of 12 months

18 after the effective date of this paragraph,

19 any political committee established before

20 that date but that is prohibited under sub21 paragraph (A) may continue to make con22 tributions.

23 ‘‘(ii) DISBURSEMENT AT THE END OF

24 12 MONTHS.—At the end of the 12-month

25 period, the political committee shall dis-
40

•S 1117 IS

1 burse all funds by 1 or more of the follow2 ing means:

3 ‘‘(I) Making contributions to a

4 person described in section 501(c)(3)

5 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

6 and exempt from taxation under sec7 tion 501(a) of the Code.

8 ‘‘(II) Making a contribution to

9 the Treasury of the United States.

10 ‘‘(III) Contributing to the na11 tional, State, or local committee of a

12 political party.

13 ‘‘(IV) Making a contribution of

14 not to exceed $1,000 each to 1 or

15 more candidates or non-Federal can16 didates.’’.

17 SEC. 402. POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF CORPORATIONS, NA18 TIONAL BANKS, AND LABOR ORGANIZATIONS.

19 Section 316 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

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

21 the following:

22 ‘‘(c) USE OF FUNDS FOR POLITICAL ACTIVITY.—

23 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED.—Except with

24 the prior, written, voluntary authorization of each

25 member, stockholder, or employee—
41

•S 1117 IS

1 ‘‘(A) a national bank or corporation de2 scribed in this section shall not collect from or

3 assess its stockholders or employees any dues,

4 initiation fee, or other payment as a condition

5 of employment or ownership if any part of the

6 dues, fee, or payment will be used for political

7 activities in which the national bank or corpora8 tion, as the case may be, is engaged; and

9 ‘‘(B) a labor organization described in this

10 section shall not collect from or assess its mem11 bers or nonmembers any dues, initiation fee, or

12 other payment if any part of the dues, fee, or

13 payment will be used for political activities.

14 ‘‘(2) LENGTH OF AUTHORIZATION.—An author15 ization under paragraph (1) shall cease to be effec16 tive on the date that it is revoked by the individual

17 that gave the authorization.

18 ‘‘(3) FORM OF AUTHORIZATION.—An authoriza19 tion under paragraph (1) shall be presented to the

20 individual as a separate document, clearly explaining

21 the purpose and effect of the authorization.

22 ‘‘(4) DEFINITION OF POLITICAL ACTIVITY.—In

23 this subsection, the term ‘political activity’ means a

24 communication or other activity that involves carry25 ing on propaganda, attempting to influence legisla-
42

•S 1117 IS

1 tion, or participating or intervening in a political

2 campaign or political party.’’.

Æ