II

105TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1666

To amend Federal election laws to better define the requirements for Presidential candidates and political parties that accept public funding, to

better define the limits on the election-related activities of tax exempt

organizations, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

FEBRUARY 23, 1998

Mr. LIEBERMAN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and

referred to the Committee on Finance

A BILL

To amend Federal election laws to better define the requirements for Presidential candidates and political parties

that accept public funding, to better define the limits

on the election-related activities of tax exempt organizations, 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. REQUIREMENTS FOR PRESIDENTIAL CAN4 DIDATES ACCEPTING PUBLIC FUNDING.

5 (a) RESTRICTIONS ON FUNDRAISING BY CAN6 DIDATES.—
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1 (1) DEFINITION OF FUNDRAISING.—Section

2 9002 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating

3 to definitions in the Presidential Election Campaign

4 Fund Act) is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing:

6 ‘‘(13) FUNDRAISING ACTIVITY.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘fundraising ac8 tivity’ means—

9 ‘‘(i) an activity or event the purpose or ef10 fect of which is the direct or indirect solicita11 tion, acceptance, or direction of a contribution

12 (as defined in section 271(b)(2)) for—

13 ‘‘(I) any candidate for public office,

14 ‘‘(II) a political committee (including

15 a national, State, or local committee of a

16 political party),

17 ‘‘(III) an organization that—

18 ‘‘(aa) is described in section

19 501(c) and exempt from taxation

20 under section 501(a) (or has submit21 ted an application to the Secretary of

22 the Treasury for determination of tax23 exemption under such section), and

24 ‘‘(bb) engages in any election-re25 lated activity, including, but not lim-
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1 ited to, voter registration, get-out-the2 vote activity, publication or distribu3 tion of a voter guide, or making com4 munications that are widely dissemi5 nated through a broadcasting station,

6 newspaper, magazine, outdoor adver7 tising facility, direct mailing, or any

8 other type of general public political

9 advertising and that clearly identify a

10 candidate (as defined in section 301

11 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

12 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431)) or a political

13 party,

14 ‘‘(IV) a political organization (as de15 fined in section 527), or

16 ‘‘(V) an organization that engages in

17 any electioneering advertising (as defined

18 in section 324 of the Federal Election

19 Campaign Act of 1971), or

20 ‘‘(ii) the authorization of use of a can21 didate’s name in connection with an activity or

22 event described in clause (i).

23 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘fundraising ac24 tivity’ does not include an activity or event the sole

25 purpose or effect of which is to solicit or accept a
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1 contribution (as defined in section 301(8) of the

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

3 431(8)) for the candidate participating in the activ4 ity or event that is specifically solicited for, and de5 posited in, the candidate’s legal and accounting com6 pliance fund or that is necessary to cover any defi7 ciency in payments received from the Presidential

8 Election Campaign Fund, to the extent otherwise

9 permissible by law.’’.

10 (2) GENERAL ELECTION.—Section 9003 of the

11 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (relating to condi12 tion for eligibility for payments) is amended—

13 (A) in subsection (b)—

14 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking

15 ‘‘and’’ at the end;

16 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the

17 period at the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’;

18 and

19 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (2)

20 the following:

21 ‘‘(3) such candidate, a member of the can22 didate’s immediate family (as defined in section

23 9004(e)), and the candidate’s authorized committee

24 or agents or officials of the committee shall not par-
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1 ticipate in any fundraising activity during the ex2 penditure report period.’’; and

3 (B) in subsection (c)—

4 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking

5 ‘‘and’’ at the end;

6 (ii) in paragraph (2), by striking the

7 period at the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’;

8 and

9 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (2)

10 the following:

11 ‘‘(3) subject to paragraph (2), such candidate,

12 a member of the candidate’s immediate family (as

13 defined in section 9004(e)), and the candidate’s au14 thorized committee or agents or officials of such

15 committee shall not participate in a fundraising ac16 tivity during the expenditure report period.’’.

17 (3) PRIMARY ELECTION.—Subsection (b) of sec18 tion 9033 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (re19 lating to eligibility for payments) is amended—

20 (A) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

21 the end;

22 (B) in paragraph (4), by striking the pe23 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and

24 (C) by adding at the end the following:
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1 ‘‘(5) the candidate, a member of the candidate’s

2 immediate family (as defined in section 9004(e)),

3 and the candidate’s authorized committee or agents

4 or officials of such committee shall not participate in

5 a fundraising activity during the matching payment

6 period unless such activity has as its sole purpose

7 and effect the solicitation or acceptance of contribu8 tions (as defined in section 301(8) of the Federal

9 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.

10 431(8))).’’.

11 (b) RESTRICTION ON COORDINATED DISBURSE12 MENT.—

13 (1) DEFINITION OF COORDINATED DISBURSE14 MENT.—Section 9002 of the Internal Revenue Code

15 of 1986 (as amended by subsection (a)) is amended

16 by adding at the end the following:

17 ‘‘(14) COORDINATED DISBURSEMENT.—

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘coordinated

19 disbursement’ means a purchase, payment, dis20 tribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of

21 money or anything of value, made in connection

22 with any broadcasting, newspaper, magazine,

23 billboard, direct mail, phone bank, widely dis24 tributed electronic mail, or similar type of gen25 eral public communication or advertising by a
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1 person (who is not a candidate or a candidate’s

2 authorized committee) in cooperation, consulta3 tion, or concert with, or at the request or sug4 gestion of, a candidate, a member of the can5 didate’s immediate family (as defined in section

6 9004(e)), the candidate’s authorized commit7 tees, or a committee of a political party.

8 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—In the case of a

9 candidate who designates a committee of a po10 litical party as the candidate’s authorized com11 mittee, the term ‘coordinated disbursement’

12 shall include disbursements made by the com13 mittee in cooperation, consultation, or concert

14 with, or at the request or suggestion of, a can15 didate or a member of the candidate’s imme16 diate family (as defined in section 9004(e)) in

17 excess of an amount equal to the aggregate of

18 the limit under section 315(d) of the Federal

19 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.

20 441a(d)) and the appropriate limit under sec21 tion 315(b)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C.

22 441a(b)(1)).

23 ‘‘(C) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘coordinated

24 disbursement’ does not include—
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1 ‘‘(i) a disbursement that is an expend2 iture subject to the limits under section

3 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign

4 Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)); or

5 ‘‘(ii) a disbursement for a bona fide

6 newscast, news interview, news documen7 tary (if the appearance of the candidate is

8 incidental to the presentation of the sub9 ject or subjects covered by the news docu10 mentary), editorial, or on-the-spot coverage

11 of bona fide news events.’’.

12 (2) GENERAL ELECTION.—Subsection (a) of

13 section 9003 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

14 (relating to condition for eligibility for payments) is

15 amended—

16 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

17 the end;

18 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking the pe19 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and

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

21 ‘‘(4) agree not to participate in a coordinated

22 disbursement during the election report period.’’.

23 (3) PRIMARY ELECTION.—Section 9033(b) (as

24 amended by subsection (a)(3)) is amended—
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1 (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at

2 the end;

3 (B) in paragraph (5), by striking the pe4 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and

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

6 ‘‘(6) the candidate and the candidate’s author7 ized committees shall not participate in a coordi8 nated disbursement (as defined in section 9002(14))

9 during the matching payment period except to the

10 extent that the disbursement is a contribution sub11 ject to the contribution limits of section 315 of the

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

13 441a).’’.

14 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR POLITICAL PARTIES ACCEPT15 ING PUBLIC FINANCING FOR PRESIDENTIAL

16 NOMINATING CONVENTIONS.

17 (a) REQUIREMENTS.—Title III of the Federal Elec18 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is

19 amended by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘SEC. 324. REQUIREMENTS FOR POLITICAL PARTIES AC21 CEPTING PUBLIC FINANCING FOR PRESI22 DENTIAL NOMINATING CONVENTIONS.

23 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—

24 ‘‘(1) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘committee’ shall

25 include a national, State, district, or local committee
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1 of a political party, an entity that is directly or indi2 rectly established, financed, maintained, or con3 trolled by any such party committee or its agent, an

4 agent acting on behalf of any such party committee,

5 and an officer or agent acting on behalf of any such

6 party committee or entity.

7 ‘‘(2) ELECTIONEERING ADVERTISING.—

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘electioneer9 ing advertising’ means a communication—

10 ‘‘(i) containing a phrase such as ‘vote

11 for’, ‘re-elect’, ‘support’, ‘cast your ballot

12 for’, ‘(name of individual) for President’,

13 ‘(name of individual) in (calendar year)’,

14 ‘vote against’, ‘defeat’, ‘reject’, or a cam15 paign slogan or words that in context can

16 have no reasonable meaning other than to

17 recommend the election or defeat of 1 or

18 more clearly identified candidates such as

19 ‘(name of candidate)’s the One’ or ‘(name

20 of candidate’); or

21 ‘‘(ii) referring to 1 or more clearly

22 identified candidates in a communication

23 that is widely disseminated to the elector24 ate for the election in which the identified

25 candidates are seeking office through a
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1 broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine,

2 outdoor advertising facility, direct mailing,

3 or any other type of general public commu4 nication.

5 ‘‘(B) VOTING RECORD AND VOTING GUIDE

6 EXCEPTION.—The term ‘electioneering advertis7 ing’ does not include a printed communication

8 that—

9 ‘‘(i) presents information in an edu10 cational manner solely about the voting

11 record or position on a campaign issue of

12 2 or more individuals;

13 ‘‘(ii) is not made in coordination with

14 an individual, political party, or agent of

15 the individual or party;

16 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a voter guide

17 based on a questionnaire, provides each in18 dividual seeking a particular seat or office

19 an equal opportunity to respond to the

20 questionnaire and have the individual’s re21 sponses incorporated into the voter guide;

22 ‘‘(iv) does not present an individual

23 with greater prominence than any other in24 dividual; and
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1 ‘‘(v) does not contain a phrase such as

2 ‘vote for’, ‘re-elect’, ‘support’, ‘cast your

3 ballot for’, ‘(name of individual) for Presi4 dent’, ‘(name of individual) in 1997’, ‘vote

5 against’, ‘defeat’, or ‘reject’, or a campaign

6 slogan or words that in context can have

7 no reasonable meaning other than to urge

8 the election or defeat of 1 or more clearly

9 identified individuals.

10 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE POLITICAL COMMITTEE.—The

11 term ‘eligible political committee’ means a national

12 committee of a political party entitled to receive pay13 ments under section 9008 of the Internal Revenue

14 Code of 1986 for a presidential nominating conven15 tion.’’.

16 ‘‘(b) LIMITS ON ELECTIONEERING ADVERTISING.—

17 During the matching payment period (as defined in sec18 tion 9032(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) and

19 the expenditure report period (as defined in section

20 9002(12) of such Code), an eligible political committee

21 shall not—

22 ‘‘(1) make disbursements for electioneering ad23 vertising in connection with an individual seeking

24 nomination for election, or election, to the office of

25 President or Vice President except from funds that
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1 are subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and re2 porting requirements of this Act; or

3 ‘‘(2) transfer of funds that are not subject to

4 the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting require5 ments of this Act to a State, district, or local com6 mittee of a political party that will be used to make

7 disbursements for electioneering advertising in con8 nection with an individual seeking nomination for

9 election, or election, to the office of President or

10 Vice President.

11 ‘‘(c) LIMITATION OF COORDINATED AND INDEPEND12 ENT EXPENDITURES.—In the case of an eligible political

13 committee, the limitation under section 315(d)(2) (relat14 ing to coordinated expenditures by committees of a politi15 cal party) shall apply to the aggregate of expenditures,

16 disbursements for electioneering advertising, and inde17 pendent expenditures made by the national committee in

18 connection with a candidate for President of the United

19 States.

20 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION OF COORDINATED DISBURSE21 MENTS.—During the matching payment period (as defined

22 in section 9032(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986)

23 and the expenditure report period (as defined in section

24 9002(12) of such Code), an eligible political committee

25 shall not participate in a coordinated disbursement (as de-
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1 fined in section 9002(14) of the Internal Revenue Code

2 of 1986) with respect to an individual seeking nomination

3 for election, or election, to the office of President or Vice

4 President.

5 ‘‘(e) PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN DONATIONS.—An eli6 gible political committee and any officer or agent acting

7 on behalf of such committee shall not solicit any funds

8 for, or make or direct any donation to, an organization

9 that—

10 ‘‘(1) is described in section 501(c) and exempt

11 from taxation under section 501(a) (or has submit12 ted an application to the Secretary of the Treasury

13 for determination of tax-exemption under such sec14 tion), and

15 ‘‘(2) engages in any election-related activity, in16 cluding, but not limited to, voter registration, get17 out-the-vote activity, publication or distribution of a

18 voter guide, or making communications that are

19 widely disseminated through a broadcasting station,

20 newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising facility,

21 direct mailing, or any other type of general public

22 political advertising that clearly identify a candidate

23 (as defined in section 301 of the Federal Election

24 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431)) or a political

25 party.
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1 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION OF SOFT MONEY.—

2 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL COMMITTEES.—

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An eligible political

4 committee (including a national congressional

5 campaign committee of a political party) and

6 any officers or agents of such committees, shall

7 not solicit, receive, or direct to another person

8 a contribution, donation, or transfer of funds,

9 or spend any funds, that are not subject to the

10 limitations, prohibitions, and reporting require11 ments of this Act.

12 ‘‘(B) APPLICABILITY.—This subsection

13 shall apply to an entity that is directly or indi14 rectly established, financed, maintained, or con15 trolled by an eligible committee (including a na16 tional congressional campaign committee of a

17 political party), or an entity acting on behalf of

18 a national committee, and an officer or agent

19 acting on behalf of any such committee or en20 tity.

21 ‘‘(2) STATE, DISTRICT, AND LOCAL COMMIT22 TEES.—

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An amount that is ex24 pended or disbursed by a State, district, or local

25 committee of a political party that has an eligi-
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1 ble political committee (including an entity that

2 is directly or indirectly established, financed,

3 maintained, or controlled by a State, district, or

4 local committee of a political party and an offi5 cer or agent acting on behalf of such committee

6 or entity) for Federal election activity shall be

7 made from funds subject to the limitations, pro8 hibitions, and reporting requirements of this

9 Act.

10 ‘‘(B) FEDERAL ELECTION ACTIVITY.—

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal

12 election activity’ means—

13 ‘‘(I) voter registration activity

14 during the period that begins on the

15 date that is 120 days before the date

16 a regularly scheduled Federal election

17 is held and ends on the date of the

18 election;

19 ‘‘(II) voter identification, get-out20 the-vote activity, or generic campaign

21 activity conducted in connection with

22 an election in which a candidate for

23 Federal office appears on the ballot

24 (regardless of whether a candidate for
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1 State or local office also appears on

2 the ballot); and

3 ‘‘(III) a communication that re4 fers to a clearly identified candidate

5 for Federal office (regardless of

6 whether a candidate for State or local

7 office is also mentioned or identified)

8 and is made for the purpose of influ9 encing a Federal election (regardless

10 of whether the communication is ex11 press advocacy).

12 ‘‘(ii) EXCLUDED ACTIVITY.—The term

13 ‘Federal election activity’ does not include

14 an amount expended or disbursed by a

15 State, district, or local committee of a po16 litical party for—

17 ‘‘(I) campaign activity conducted

18 solely on behalf of a clearly identified

19 candidate for State or local office if

20 the campaign activity is not a Federal

21 election activity described in clause

22 (i);

23 ‘‘(II) a contribution to a can24 didate for State or local office if the

25 contribution is not designated or used
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1 to pay for a Federal election activity

2 described in clause (i);

3 ‘‘(III) the costs of a State, dis4 trict, or local political convention;

5 ‘‘(IV) the costs of grassroots

6 campaign materials, including but7 tons, bumper stickers, and yard signs,

8 that name or depict only a candidate

9 for State or local office;

10 ‘‘(V) the non-Federal share of a

11 State, district, or local party commit12 tee’s administrative and overhead ex13 penses (but not including the com14 pensation in any month of an individ15 ual who spends more than 20 percent

16 of the individual’s time on Federal

17 election activity) as determined by a

18 regulation promulgated by the Com19 mission to determine the non-Federal

20 share of a State, district, or local

21 party committee’s administrative and

22 overhead expenses; and

23 ‘‘(VI) the cost of constructing or

24 purchasing an office facility or equip-
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1 ment for a State, district, or local

2 committee.

3 ‘‘(3) FUNDRAISING COSTS.—An amount

4 spent by a national, State, district, or local

5 committee of a political party (that has an eligi6 ble political committee) to raise funds that are

7 used, in whole or in part, to pay the costs of

8 a Federal election activity shall be made from

9 funds subject to the limitations, prohibitions,

10 and reporting requirements of this Act.’’.

11 (b) INCREASED CONTRIBUTION LIMIT.—Section

12 315(a)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971

13 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)) is amended—

14 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘or’’ at

15 the end;

16 (2) in subparagraph (C)—

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘(other than a committee

18 described in subparagraph (D))’’ after ‘‘com19 mittee’’; and

20 (B) by striking the period at the end and

21 inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

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

23 ‘‘(D) to a political committee established and

24 maintained by a State committee of a political party

25 that is entitled to receive payments under section
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1 9008 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for a

2 Presidential nominating convention in any calendar

3 year that, in the aggregate, exceed $10,000.’’.

4 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

5 (1) FEDERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN ACT OF

6 1971.—Section 315(d)(2) of the Federal Election

7 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)(2)) is

8 amended by striking ‘‘The national committee’’ and

9 inserting ‘‘Subject to section 324(b), the national

10 committee’’.

11 (2) INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1986.—Sub12 section (b) of section 9008 of the Internal Revenue

13 Code of 1986 (relating to payments for presidential

14 nominating conventions) is amended—

15 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and

16 section 324 of the Federal Election Campaign

17 Act of 1971’’ after ‘‘section’’; and

18 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘and

19 section 324 of the Federal Election Campaign

20 Act of 1971’’ after ‘‘section’’.

21 SEC. 3. REQUIRED DISCLAIMER FOR PRESIDENTIAL CAN22 DIDATES.

23 Section 318 of the Federal Election Campaign Act

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

25 the following:
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1 ‘‘(c) REQUIRED DISCLAIMER FOR PRESIDENTIAL

2 CANDIDATES.—In the case of an expenditure by a can3 didate for President or Vice President eligible under sec4 tion 9003 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 or under

5 section 9033 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to re6 ceive payments from the Secretary of the Treasury for an

7 advertisement that is broadcast by a radio broadcast sta8 tion or a television broadcast station or communicated by

9 direct mail, such advertisement shall contain the following

10 statement: ‘Federal law establishes voluntary spending

11 limits for candidates for President. This candidate ll

12 agreed to abide by the limits.’ (with the blank filled in

13 with ‘has’ or ‘has not’ as appropriate).’’.

14 SEC. 4. LIMITATIONS ON POLITICAL ACTIVITY BY TAX-EX15 EMPT ORGANIZATIONS.

16 Subsection (c) of section 501 of the Internal Revenue

17 Code of 1986 (relating to exemption from tax on corpora18 tions, certain trusts, etc.) is amended—

19 (1) by redesignating subsection (o) as sub20 section (p); and

21 (2) by inserting after subsection (n) the follow22 ing new subsection:

23 ‘‘(o) SPECIAL RULES FOR ORGANIZATIONS EXEMPT

24 UNDER PARAGRAPH (3) OR (4) OF SUBSECTION (c).—An

25 organization described in paragraph (3) or (4) of sub-
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1 section (c) shall be denied exemption from taxation under

2 subsection (a) if such organization—

3 ‘‘(1) solicits or accepts a contribution (as de4 fined in section 271(b)(2)) from a committee of a

5 political party or an authorized committee of a can6 didate (as defined in section 301 of the Federal

7 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431)),

8 ‘‘(2) makes or directs a contribution to a com9 mittee of a political party or an authorized commit10 tee of a candidate,

11 ‘‘(3) makes a disbursement for electioneering

12 advertising (as defined in section 324 of the Federal

13 Election Campaign Act of 1971), except to the ex14 tent that—

15 ‘‘(A) the disbursement constitutes an inde16 pendent expenditure (as defined in section

17 301(17) of the Federal Election Campaign Act

18 of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(17)), or

19 ‘‘(B) the advertising is—

20 ‘‘(i) described in section

21 324(a)(2)(A)(ii) of the Federal Election

22 Campaign Act of 1971,

23 ‘‘(ii) otherwise permitted by law, and

24 ‘‘(iii) made more than—
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1 ‘‘(I) 60 days before the date of a

2 general, special, or runoff election in

3 which the identified candidates are

4 seeking office, or

5 ‘‘(II) 30 days before the date of

6 a primary or preference election or a

7 convention or caucus of a political

8 party that has authority to nominate

9 a candidate for the office for which

10 the identified candidates are seeking

11 election, or

12 ‘‘(4) participates in a coordinated disbursement

13 (as defined in section 9002(14)).’’.

14 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS OF POLITICAL COMMITTEE AND PO15 LITICAL ORGANIZATION.

16 (a) DEFINITION OF POLITICAL COMMITTEE.—Sec17 tion 301(4) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971

18 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)) is amended—

19 (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘or’’ at

20 the end;

21 (2) in subparagraph (C), by striking the period

22 at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

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

24 ‘‘(D) a political organization (as defined in sec25 tion 527(e)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986
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1 and subject to section 527 of such Code) unless the

2 activities of the organization are for the exclusive

3 purpose of influencing or attempting to influence the

4 selection, nomination, election, or appointment of

5 any individual or individuals to any State or local

6 public office or office in a State or local political or7 ganization.’’.

8 (b) DEFINITION OF POLITICAL ORGANIZATION.—

9 Paragraph (e)(1) of section 527 of the Internal Revenue

10 Code of 1986 (relating to political organizations) is

11 amended by striking ‘‘incorporated) organized and oper12 ated’’ and all that follows through the period and inserting

13 ‘‘incorporated)—

14 ‘‘(A) organized and operated primarily for

15 the purpose of directly or indirectly accepting

16 contributions or making expenditures, or both,

17 for an exempt function, and

18 ‘‘(B) that is a political committee described

19 in section 301(4) of the Federal Election Cam20 paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)) except to

21 the extent that the activities of the organization

22 are for the exclusive purpose of influencing or

23 attempting to influence the selection, nomina24 tion, election, or appointment of any individual

25 or individuals to any State or local public office
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1 or office in a State or local political organiza2 tion.’’.

3 SEC. 6. SEVERABILITY.

4 If any provision of this Act or amendment made by

5 this Act, or the application of a provision or amendment

6 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu7 tional, the remainder of this Act and amendments made

8 by this Act, and the application of the provisions and

9 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be

10 affected by the holding.

11 SEC. 7. EFFECTIVE DATE.

12 Except as otherwise provided in this Act, this Act and

13 the amendments made by this Act take effect on the date

14 that is 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

15 SEC. 8. REGULATIONS.

16 The Federal Election Commission and the Commis17 sioner of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall—

18 (1) promulgate regulations as necessary to en19 force this Act; and

20 (2) in the promulgation of regulations under

21 paragraph (1), provide an exception to any provision

22 that the Commission or Commissioner determines

23 necessary to serve the public interest.

Æ