I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4053 

To amend chapters 95 and 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 

reform the system of public financing for Presidential election campaigns, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 25, 2019 

Mr. PRICE of North Carolina introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, 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 amend chapters 95 and 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 

of 1986 to reform the system of public financing for 

Presidential election campaigns, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

5 ‘‘Empower Act of 2019’’. 

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

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 


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TITLE I—PRIMARY ELECTIONS 

Sec. 101. Increase in and modifications to matching payments. 

Sec. 102. Eligibility requirements for matching payments. 

Sec. 103. Repeal of expenditure limitations. 

Sec. 104. Period of availability of matching payments. 

Sec. 105. Examination and audits of matchable contributions. 

Sec. 106. Modification to limitation on contributions for Presidential primary 

candidates. 

Sec. 107. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments. 

TITLE II—GENERAL ELECTIONS 

Sec. 201. Modification of eligibility requirements for public financing. 

Sec. 202. Repeal of expenditure limitations and use of qualified campaign contributions. 

Sec. 203. Matching payments and other modifications to payment amounts. 

Sec. 204. Increase in limit on coordinated party expenditures. 

Sec. 205. Establishment of uniform date for release of payments. 

Sec. 206. Amounts in Presidential Election Campaign Fund. 

Sec. 207. Use of general election payments for general election legal and accounting compliance. 

Sec. 208. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments. 

TITLE III—FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND 

Sec. 301. Freedom From Influence Fund. 

Sec. 302. Assessments against fines and penalties. 

TITLE IV—OTHER CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORMS 

Sec. 401. Rules relating to joint fundraising committees. 

Sec. 402. Repeal of special contribution limits for contributions to national parties for certain purposes. 

TITLE V—EFFECTIVE DATE 

Sec. 501. Effective date. 

1 TITLE I—PRIMARY ELECTIONS 

2 SEC. 101. INCREASE IN AND MODIFICATIONS TO MATCHING 

3 PAYMENTS. 

4 (a) INCREASE AND MODIFICATION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The first sentence of section 

6 9034(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

7 amended— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘an amount equal to the 

9 amount of each contribution’’ and inserting ‘‘an 


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1 amount equal to 600 percent of the amount of 

2 each matchable contribution (disregarding any 

3 amount of contributions from any person to the 

4 extent that the total of the amounts contributed 

5 by such person for the election exceeds $200)’’; 

6 and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘authorized committees’’ 

8 and all that follows through ‘‘$250’’ and insert9 ing ‘‘authorized committees’’. 

10 (2) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 

11 9034 of such Code is amended— 

12 (A) by striking the last sentence of sub13 section (a); and 

14 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

15 subsection: 

16 ‘‘(c) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION DEFINED.—For 

17 purposes of this section and section 9033(b)— 

18 ‘‘(1) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

19 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

20 nomination for election to the office of President of 

21 the United States, a contribution by an individual to 

22 a candidate or an authorized committee of a can23 didate with respect to which the candidate has cer24 tified in writing that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu2 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in3 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

4 candidate and the authorized committees of 

5 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec6 tion; 

7 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

8 committees of such candidate will not accept 

9 contributions from such individual (including 

10 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 

11 than the amount described in subparagraph 

12 (A); and 

13 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con14 tribution. 

15 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION.—For purposes of this 

16 subsection, the term ‘contribution’ means a gift of 

17 money made by a written instrument which identi18 fies the individual making the contribution by full 

19 name and mailing address, but does not include a 

20 subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money, or 

21 anything of value or anything described in subpara22 graph (B), (C), or (D) of section 9032(4). 

23 ‘‘(3) DIRECT CONTRIBUTION.— 

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

25 subsection, the term ‘direct contribution’ 


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1 means, with respect to a candidate, a contribu2 tion which is made directly by an individual to 

3 the candidate or an authorized committee of the 

4 candidate and is not— 

5 ‘‘(i) forwarded from the individual 

6 making the contribution to the candidate 

7 or committee by another person; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) received by the candidate or com9 mittee with the knowledge that the con10 tribution was made at the request, sugges11 tion, or recommendation of another person. 

12 ‘‘(B) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—In subpara13 graph (A)— 

14 ‘‘(i) the term ‘person’ does not include 

15 an individual (other than an individual de16 scribed in section 304(i)(7) of the Federal 

17 Election Campaign Act of 1971), a polit18 ical committee of a political party, or any 

19 political committee which is not a separate 

20 segregated fund described in section 

21 316(b) of the Federal Election Campaign 

22 Act of 1971 and which does not make con23 tributions or independent expenditures, 

24 does not engage in lobbying activity under 

25 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 


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1 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and is not estab2 lished by, controlled by, or affiliated with 

3 a registered lobbyist under such Act, an 

4 agent of a registered lobbyist under such 

5 Act, or an organization which retains or 

6 employs a registered lobbyist under such 

7 Act; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) a contribution is not ‘made at 

9 the request, suggestion, or recommendation 

10 of another person’ solely on the grounds 

11 that the contribution is made in response 

12 to information provided to the individual 

13 making the contribution by any person, so 

14 long as the candidate or authorized com15 mittee does not know the identity of the 

16 person who provided the information to 

17 such individual.’’. 

18 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

19 (A) Section 9032(4) of such Code is 

20 amended by striking ‘‘section 9034(a)’’ and in21 serting ‘‘section 9034’’. 

22 (B) Section 9033(b)(3) of such Code is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘matching contributions’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘matchable contributions’’. 


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1 (b) MODIFICATION OF PAYMENT LIMITATION.—Sec2 tion 9034(b) of such Code is amended— 

3 (1) by striking ‘‘The total’’ and inserting the 

4 following: 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The total’’; 

6 (2) by striking ‘‘shall not exceed’’ and all that 

7 follows and inserting ‘‘shall not exceed 

8 $250,000,000.’’; and 

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

10 paragraph: 

11 ‘‘(2) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any ap13 plicable period beginning after 2029, the dollar 

14 amount in paragraph (1) shall be increased by 

15 an amount equal to— 

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

17 ‘‘(ii) the cost-of-living adjustment de18 termined under section 1(f)(3) for the cal19 endar year following the year which such 

20 applicable period begins, determined by 

21 substituting ‘calendar year 2028’ for ‘cal22 endar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

23 thereof. 

24 ‘‘(B) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes 

25 of this paragraph, the term ‘applicable period’ 


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1 means the 4-year period beginning with the 

2 first day following the date of the general elec3 tion for the office of President and ending on 

4 the date of the next such general election. 

5 ‘‘(C) ROUNDING.—If any amount as ad6 justed under subparagraph (1) is not a multiple 

7 of $10,000, such amount shall be rounded to 

8 the nearest multiple of $10,000.’’. 

9 SEC. 102. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR MATCHING 

10 PAYMENTS. 

11 (a) AMOUNT OF AGGREGATE CONTRIBUTIONS PER

12 STATE; DISREGARDING OF AMOUNTS CONTRIBUTED IN

13 EXCESS OF $200.—Section 9033(b)(3) of the Internal 

14 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$25,000’’; and 

17 (2) by striking ‘‘20 States’’ and inserting the 

18 following: ‘‘20 States (disregarding any amount of 

19 contributions from any such resident to the extent 

20 that the total of the amounts contributed by such 

21 resident for the election exceeds $200)’’. 

22 (b) CONTRIBUTION LIMIT.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (4) of section 

24 9033(b) of such Code is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(4) the candidate and the authorized commit2 tees of the candidate will not accept aggregate con3 tributions from any person with respect to the nomi4 nation for election to the office of President of the 

5 United States in excess of $1,000 for the election.’’. 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (A) Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following 

9 new flush sentence: 

10 ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (4), the term ‘contribution’ 

11 has the meaning given such term in section 301(8) of the 

12 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

13 (B) Section 9032(4) of such Code, as 

14 amended by section 101(a)(3)(A), is amended 

15 by inserting ‘‘or 9033(b)’’ after ‘‘9034’’. 

16 (c) PARTICIPATION IN SYSTEM FOR PAYMENTS FOR

17 GENERAL ELECTION.—Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

20 (3); 

21 (2) by striking the period at the end of para22 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 

23 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol24 lowing new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(5) if the candidate is nominated by a political 

2 party for election to the office of President, the can3 didate will apply for and accept payments with re4 spect to the general election for such office in ac5 cordance with chapter 95.’’. 

6 (d) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT7 TEES.—Section 9033(b) of such Code, as amended by sub8 section (c), is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

10 (4); 

11 (2) by striking the period at the end of para12 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

13 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol14 lowing new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(6) the candidate will not establish a joint 

16 fundraising committee with a political committee 

17 other than another authorized committee of the can18 didate, except that if the candidate established a 

19 joint fundraising committee with respect to a prior 

20 election for which the candidate was not eligible to 

21 receive payments under section 9037 and the can22 didate does not terminate the committee, the can23 didate shall not be considered to be in violation of 

24 this paragraph so long as that joint fundraising 

25 committee does not receive any contributions or 


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1 make any disbursements during the election cycle for 

2 which the candidate is eligible to receive payments 

3 under such section.’’. 

4 SEC. 103. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 9035 of 

6 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read 

7 as follows: 

8 ‘‘(a) PERSONAL EXPENDITURE LIMITATION.—No 

9 candidate shall knowingly make expenditures from his per10 sonal funds, or the personal funds of his immediate family, 

11 in connection with his campaign for nomination for elec12 tion to the office of President in excess of, in the aggre13 gate, $50,000.’’. 

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (1) of 

15 section 9033(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

16 amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(1) the candidate will comply with the per18 sonal expenditure limitation under section 9035,’’. 

19 SEC. 104. PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF MATCHING PAY20 MENTS. 

21 Section 9032(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

22 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘the beginning of the cal23 endar year in which a general election for the office of 

24 President of the United States will be held’’ and inserting 


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1 ‘‘the date that is 6 months prior to the date of the earliest 

2 State primary election’’. 

3 SEC. 105. EXAMINATION AND AUDITS OF MATCHABLE CON4 TRIBUTIONS. 

5 Section 9038(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

6 1986 is amended by inserting ‘‘and matchable contribu7 tions accepted by’’ after ‘‘qualified campaign expenses of’’. 

8 SEC. 106. MODIFICATION TO LIMITATION ON CONTRIBU9 TIONS FOR PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY CAN10 DIDATES. 

11 Section 315(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

12 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(6)) is amended by strik13 ing ‘‘calendar year’’ and inserting ‘‘four-year election 

14 cycle’’. 

15 SEC. 107. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

16 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 96 of subtitle H of the 

18 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

19 the end the following new section: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 9043. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

21 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro23 vision of this chapter, effective with respect to the Presi24 dential election held in 2028 and each succeeding Presi25 dential election, all payments made to candidates under 


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1 this chapter shall be made from the Freedom From Influ2 ence Fund established under title III of the Empower Act 

3 of 2019 (hereafter in this section referred to as the 

4 ‘Fund’). 

5 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF PAYMENTS IN

6 CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN FUND.— 

7 ‘‘(1) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.—Not 

8 later than 90 days before the first day of each Presi9 dential election cycle (beginning with the cycle for 

10 the election held in 2028), the Commission shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) audit the Fund to determine whether 

12 the amounts in the Fund will be sufficient to 

13 make payments to candidates under this chap14 ter in the amounts provided under this chapter 

15 during such election cycle; and 

16 ‘‘(B) submit a report to Congress describ17 ing the results of the audit. 

18 ‘‘(2) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.— 

19 ‘‘(A) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION ON PRO

20 RATA BASIS.—If, on the basis of the audit de21 scribed in paragraph (1), the Commission deter22 mines that the amount anticipated to be avail23 able in the Fund with respect to the Presi24 dential election cycle involved is not, or may not 

25 be, sufficient to satisfy the full entitlements of 


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1 candidates to payments under this chapter for 

2 such cycle, the Commission shall reduce each 

3 amount which would otherwise be paid to a can4 didate under this chapter by such pro rata 

5 amount as may be necessary to ensure that the 

6 aggregate amount of payments anticipated to 

7 be made with respect to the cycle will not ex8 ceed the amount anticipated to be available for 

9 such payments in the Fund with respect to such 

10 cycle. 

11 ‘‘(B) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS IN

12 CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT FUNDS

13 DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, after reducing 

14 the amounts paid to candidates with respect to 

15 an election cycle under subparagraph (A), the 

16 Commission determines that there are sufficient 

17 amounts in the Fund to restore the amount by 

18 which such payments were reduced (or any por19 tion thereof), to the extent that such amounts 

20 are available, the Commission may make a pay21 ment on a pro rata basis to each such candidate 

22 with respect to the election cycle in the amount 

23 by which such candidate’s payments were re24 duced under subparagraph (A) (or any portion 

25 thereof, as the case may be). 


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1 ‘‘(C) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM OTHER

2 SOURCES.—In any case in which the Commis3 sion determines that there are insufficient mon4 eys in the Fund to make payments to can5 didates under this chapter, moneys shall not be 

6 made available from any other source for the 

7 purpose of making such payments. 

8 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED

9 FOR PEDIATRIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—This sec10 tion does not apply to the transfer of funds under 

11 section 9008(i). 

12 ‘‘(4) PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CYCLE DE13 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘Presidential elec14 tion cycle’ means, with respect to a Presidential elec15 tion, the period beginning on the day after the date 

16 of the previous Presidential general election and 

17 ending on the date of the Presidential election.’’. 

18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

19 for chapter 96 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 9043. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments.’’. 

21 TITLE II—GENERAL ELECTIONS 

22 SEC. 201. MODIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS 

23 FOR PUBLIC FINANCING. 

24 Subsection (a) of section 9003 of the Internal Rev25 enue Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to receive 

2 any payments under section 9006, the candidates of a po3 litical party in a Presidential election shall meet the fol4 lowing requirements: 

5 ‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY PAYMENT

6 SYSTEM.—The candidate for President received pay7 ments under chapter 96 for the campaign for nomi8 nation for election to be President. 

9 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENTS WITH COMMISSION.—The 

10 candidates, in writing— 

11 ‘‘(A) agree to obtain and furnish to the 

12 Commission such evidence as it may request of 

13 the qualified campaign expenses of such can14 didates, 

15 ‘‘(B) agree to keep and furnish to the 

16 Commission such records, books, and other in17 formation as it may request, and 

18 ‘‘(C) agree to an audit and examination by 

19 the Commission under section 9007 and to pay 

20 any amounts required to be paid under such 

21 section. 

22 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING

23 COMMITTEES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—The candidates cer25 tifies in writing that the candidates will not esVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:53 Aug 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00016 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4053.IH H4053

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1 tablish a joint fundraising committee with a po2 litical committee other than another authorized 

3 committee of the candidate. 

4 ‘‘(B) STATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES

5 FOR PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate estab6 lished a joint fundraising committee described 

7 in subparagraph (A) with respect to a prior 

8 election for which the candidate was not eligible 

9 to receive payments under section 9006 and the 

10 candidate does not terminate the committee, 

11 the candidate shall not be considered to be in 

12 violation of subparagraph (A) so long as that 

13 joint fundraising committee does not receive 

14 any contributions or make any disbursements 

15 with respect to the election for which the can16 didate is eligible to receive payments under sec17 tion 9006.’’. 

18 SEC. 202. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS AND USE 

19 OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS. 

20 (a) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

21 WITHOUT EXPENDITURE LIMITS; APPLICATION OF SAME

22 REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR, MINOR, AND NEW PAR23 TIES.—Section 9003 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

24 1986 is amended by striking subsections (b) and (c) and 

25 inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(b) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

2 TO DEFRAY EXPENSES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to 

4 receive any payments under section 9006, the can5 didates of a party in a Presidential election shall 

6 certify to the Commission, under penalty of perjury, 

7 that— 

8 ‘‘(A) such candidates and their authorized 

9 committees have not and will not accept any 

10 contributions to defray qualified campaign ex11 penses other than— 

12 ‘‘(i) qualified campaign contributions, 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) contributions to the extent nec15 essary to make up any deficiency payments 

16 received out of the Fund on account of the 

17 application of section 9006(c), and 

18 ‘‘(B) such candidates and their authorized 

19 committees have not and will not accept any 

20 contribution to defray expenses which would be 

21 qualified campaign expenses but for subpara22 graph (C) of section 9002(11). 

23 ‘‘(2) TIMING OF CERTIFICATION.—The can24 didate shall make the certification required under 

25 this subsection at the same time the candidate 


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1 makes the certification required under subsection 

2 (a)(3).’’. 

3 (b) DEFINITION OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CON4 TRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of such Code is amended by 

5 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(13) QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION.— 

7 The term ‘qualified campaign contribution’ means, 

8 with respect to any election for the office of Presi9 dent of the United States, a contribution from an in10 dividual to a candidate or an authorized committee 

11 of a candidate which— 

12 ‘‘(A) does not exceed $1,000 for the elec13 tion; and 

14 ‘‘(B) with respect to which the candidate 

15 has certified in writing that— 

16 ‘‘(i) the individual making such con17 tribution has not made aggregate contribu18 tions (including such qualified contribu19 tion) to such candidate and the authorized 

20 committees of such candidate in excess of 

21 the amount described in subparagraph (A), 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(ii) such candidate and the author24 ized committees of such candidate will not 

25 accept contributions from such individual 


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1 (including such qualified contribution) ag2 gregating more than the amount described 

3 in subparagraph (A) with respect to such 

4 election.’’. 

5 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

6 (1) REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 315 of the Fed8 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

9 30116) is amended by striking subsection (b). 

10 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

11 315(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)) is 

12 amended— 

13 (i) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 

14 ‘‘, (b)’’; and 

15 (ii) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by striking 

16 ‘‘subsections (b) and (d)’’ and inserting 

17 ‘‘subsection (d)’’. 

18 (2) REPEAL OF REPAYMENT REQUIREMENT.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 9007(b) of the 

20 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 

21 striking paragraph (2) and redesignating para22 graphs (3), (4), and (5) as paragraphs (2), (3), 

23 and (4), respectively. 

24 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Para25 graph (2) of section 9007(b) of such Code, as 


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1 redesignated by subparagraph (A), is amend2 ed— 

3 (i) by striking ‘‘a major party’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘a party’’; 

5 (ii) by inserting ‘‘qualified contribu6 tions and’’ after ‘‘contributions (other 

7 than’’; and 

8 (iii) by striking ‘‘(other than qualified 

9 campaign expenses with respect to which 

10 payment is required under paragraph 

11 (2))’’. 

12 (3) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

13 (A) REPEAL OF PENALTY FOR EXCESS EX14 PENSES.—Section 9012 of the Internal Revenue 

15 Code of 1986 is amended by striking subsection 

16 (a). 

17 (B) PENALTY FOR ACCEPTANCE OF DIS18 ALLOWED CONTRIBUTIONS; APPLICATION OF

19 SAME PENALTY FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, 

20 MINOR, AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (b) of 

21 section 9012 of such Code is amended to read 

22 as follows: 

23 ‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

24 ‘‘(1) ACCEPTANCE OF DISALLOWED CONTRIBU25 TIONS.—It shall be unlawful for an eligible canVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:53 Aug 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4053.IH H4053

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1 didate of a party in a Presidential election or any of 

2 his authorized committees knowingly and willfully to 

3 accept— 

4 ‘‘(A) any contribution other than a quali5 fied campaign contribution to defray qualified 

6 campaign expenses, except to the extent nec7 essary to make up any deficiency in payments 

8 received out of the Fund on account of the ap9 plication of section 9006(c); or 

10 ‘‘(B) any contribution to defray expenses 

11 which would be qualified campaign expenses but 

12 for subparagraph (C) of section 9002(11). 

13 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—Any person who violates para14 graph (1) shall be fined not more than $5,000, or 

15 imprisoned not more than one year, or both. In the 

16 case of a violation by an authorized committee, any 

17 officer or member of such committee who knowingly 

18 and willfully consents to such violation shall be fined 

19 not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than 

20 one year, or both.’’. 

21 SEC. 203. MATCHING PAYMENTS AND OTHER MODIFICA22 TIONS TO PAYMENT AMOUNTS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

24 (1) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS; APPLICATION OF

25 SAME AMOUNT FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, MINOR, 


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1 AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (a) of section 9004 

2 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to 

3 read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 

5 chapter, the eligible candidates of a party in a Presidential 

6 election shall be entitled to equal payment under section 

7 9006 in an amount equal to 600 percent of the amount 

8 of each matchable contribution received by such candidate 

9 or by the candidate’s authorized committees (disregarding 

10 any amount of contributions from any person to the extent 

11 that the total of the amounts contributed by such person 

12 for the election exceeds $200), except that total amount 

13 to which a candidate is entitled under this paragraph shall 

14 not exceed $250,000,000.’’. 

15 (2) REPEAL OF SEPARATE LIMITATIONS FOR

16 CANDIDATES OF MINOR AND NEW PARTIES; INFLA17 TION ADJUSTMENT.—Subsection (b) of section 9004 

18 of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

19 ‘‘(b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any applica21 ble period beginning after 2029, the $250,000,000 

22 dollar amount in subsection (a) shall be increased by 

23 an amount equal to— 

24 ‘‘(A) such dollar amount; multiplied by 


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1 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter2 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

3 year following the year which such applicable 

4 period begins, determined by substituting ‘cal5 endar year 2028’ for ‘calendar year 1992’ in 

6 subparagraph (B) thereof. 

7 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes of 

8 this subsection, the term ‘applicable period’ means 

9 the 4-year period beginning with the first day fol10 lowing the date of the general election for the office 

11 of President and ending on the date of the next such 

12 general election. 

13 ‘‘(3) ROUNDING.—If any amount as adjusted 

14 under paragraph (1) is not a multiple of $10,000, 

15 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest mul16 tiple of $10,000.’’. 

17 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

18 9005(a) of such Code is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Commission 

20 shall make such additional certifications as may be 

21 necessary to receive payments under section 9004.’’. 

22 (b) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of 

23 such Code, as amended by section 202(b), is amended by 

24 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(14) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

2 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

3 election to the office of President of the United 

4 States, a contribution by an individual to a can5 didate or an authorized committee of a candidate 

6 with respect to which the candidate has certified in 

7 writing that— 

8 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu9 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in10 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

11 candidate and the authorized committees of 

12 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec13 tion; 

14 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

15 committees of such candidate will not accept 

16 contributions from such individual (including 

17 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 

18 than the amount described in subparagraph (A) 

19 with respect to such election; and 

20 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con21 tribution (as defined in section 9034(c)(3)).’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. INCREASE IN LIMIT ON COORDINATED PARTY EX2 PENDITURES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(d)(2) of the Federal 

4 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)(2)) 

5 is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(2)(A) The national committee of a political party 

7 may not make any expenditure in connection with the gen8 eral election campaign of any candidate for President of 

9 the United States who is affiliated with such party which 

10 exceeds $100,000,000. 

11 ‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph— 

12 ‘‘(i) any expenditure made by or on behalf of a 

13 national committee of a political party and in con14 nection with a Presidential election shall be consid15 ered to be made in connection with the general elec16 tion campaign of a candidate for President of the 

17 United States who is affiliated with such party; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) any communication made by or on behalf 

19 of such party shall be considered to be made in con20 nection with the general election campaign of a can21 didate for President of the United States who is af22 filiated with such party if any portion of the commu23 nication is in connection with such election. 

24 ‘‘(C) Any expenditure under this paragraph shall be 

25 in addition to any expenditure by a national committee 

26 of a political party serving as the principal campaign comVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:53 Aug 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4053.IH H4053

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1 mittee of a candidate for the office of President of the 

2 United States.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO TIM4 ING OF COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(c)(1) of such 

6 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(1)) is amended— 

7 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘(d)’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘(d)(2)’’; and 

9 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

10 subparagraph: 

11 ‘‘(D) In any calendar year after 2028— 

12 ‘‘(i) the dollar amount in subsection (d)(2) shall 

13 be increased by the percent difference determined 

14 under subparagraph (A); 

15 ‘‘(ii) the amount so increased shall remain in 

16 effect for the calendar year; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) if the amount after adjustment under 

18 clause (i) is not a multiple of $100, such amount 

19 shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $100.’’. 

20 (2) BASE YEAR.—Section 315(c)(2)(B) of such 

21 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(2)(B)) is amended— 

22 (A) in clause (i)— 

23 (i) by striking ‘‘(d)’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘(d)(3)’’; and 

25 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 


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•HR 4053 IH

1 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period at 

2 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

4 clause: 

5 ‘‘(iii) for purposes of subsection (d)(2), cal6 endar year 2027.’’. 

7 SEC. 205. ESTABLISHMENT OF UNIFORM DATE FOR RE8 LEASE OF PAYMENTS. 

9 (a) DATE FOR PAYMENTS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 9006(b) of the In11 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read as 

12 follows: 

13 ‘‘(b) PAYMENTS FROM THE FUND.—If the Secretary 

14 of the Treasury receives a certification from the Commis15 sion under section 9005 for payment to the eligible can16 didates of a political party, the Secretary shall pay to such 

17 candidates out of the Fund the amount certified by the 

18 Commission on the later of— 

19 ‘‘(1) the last Friday occurring before the first 

20 Monday in September; or 

21 ‘‘(2) 24 hours after receiving the certifications 

22 for the eligible candidates of all major political par23 ties. 

24 Amounts paid to any such candidates shall be under the 

25 control of such candidates.’’. 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The first sen2 tence of section 9006(c) of such Code is amended by 

3 striking ‘‘the time of a certification by the Commis4 sion under section 9005 for payment’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘the time of making a payment under subsection 

6 (b)’’. 

7 (b) TIME FOR CERTIFICATION.—Section 9005(a) of 

8 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 

9 ‘‘10 days’’ and inserting ‘‘24 hours’’. 

10 SEC. 206. AMOUNTS IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAM11 PAIGN FUND. 

12 Section 9006(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

13 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

14 sentence: ‘‘In making a determination of whether there are 

15 insufficient moneys in the Fund for purposes of the pre16 vious sentence, the Secretary shall take into account in 

17 determining the balance of the Fund for a Presidential 

18 election year the Secretary’s best estimate of the amount 

19 of moneys which will be deposited into the Fund during 

20 the year, except that the amount of the estimate may not 

21 exceed the average of the annual amounts deposited in the 

22 Fund during the previous 3 years.’’. 


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1 SEC. 207. USE OF GENERAL ELECTION PAYMENTS FOR GEN2 ERAL ELECTION LEGAL AND ACCOUNTING 

3 COMPLIANCE. 

4 Section 9002(11) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

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

6 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of subparagraph (A), an expense 

7 incurred by a candidate or authorized committee for gen8 eral election legal and accounting compliance purposes 

9 shall be considered to be an expense to further the election 

10 of such candidate.’’. 

11 SEC. 208. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

12 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 95 of subtitle H of the 

14 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

15 the end the following new section: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 9013. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

17 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro19 vision of this chapter, effective with respect to the Presi20 dential election held in 2028 and each succeeding Presi21 dential election, all payments made under this chapter 

22 shall be made from the Freedom From Influence Fund 

23 established under title III of the Empower Act of 2019. 

24 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF PAYMENTS IN

25 CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN FUND.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.—Not 

2 later than 90 days before the first day of each Presi3 dential election cycle (beginning with the cycle for 

4 the election held in 2028), the Commission shall— 

5 ‘‘(A) audit the Fund to determine whether, 

6 after first making payments to candidates 

7 under chapter 96, the amounts remaining in 

8 the Fund will be sufficient to make payments to 

9 candidates under this chapter in the amounts 

10 provided under this chapter during such elec11 tion cycle; and 

12 ‘‘(B) submit a report to Congress describ13 ing the results of the audit. 

14 ‘‘(2) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION ON PRO

16 RATA BASIS.—If, on the basis of the audit de17 scribed in paragraph (1), the Commission deter18 mines that the amount anticipated to be avail19 able in the Fund with respect to the Presi20 dential election cycle involved is not, or may not 

21 be, sufficient to satisfy the full entitlements of 

22 candidates to payments under this chapter for 

23 such cycle, the Commission shall reduce each 

24 amount which would otherwise be paid to a can25 didate under this chapter by such pro rata 


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1 amount as may be necessary to ensure that the 

2 aggregate amount of payments anticipated to 

3 be made with respect to the cycle will not ex4 ceed the amount anticipated to be available for 

5 such payments in the Fund with respect to such 

6 cycle. 

7 ‘‘(B) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS IN

8 CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT FUNDS

9 DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, after reducing 

10 the amounts paid to candidates with respect to 

11 an election cycle under subparagraph (A), the 

12 Commission determines that there are sufficient 

13 amounts in the Fund to restore the amount by 

14 which such payments were reduced (or any por15 tion thereof), to the extent that such amounts 

16 are available, the Commission may make a pay17 ment on a pro rata basis to each such candidate 

18 with respect to the election cycle in the amount 

19 by which such candidate’s payments were re20 duced under subparagraph (A) (or any portion 

21 thereof, as the case may be). 

22 ‘‘(C) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM OTHER

23 SOURCES.—In any case in which the Commis24 sion determines that there are insufficient mon25 eys in the Fund to make payments to canVerDate Sep 11 2014 04:53 Aug 14, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4053.IH H4053

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1 didates under this chapter, moneys shall not be 

2 made available from any other source for the 

3 purpose of making such payments. 

4 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED

5 FOR PEDIATRIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—This sec6 tion does not apply to the transfer of funds under 

7 section 9008(i). 

8 ‘‘(4) PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CYCLE DE9 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘Presidential elec10 tion cycle’ means, with respect to a Presidential elec11 tion, the period beginning on the day after the date 

12 of the previous Presidential general election and 

13 ending on the date of the Presidential election.’’. 

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

15 for chapter 95 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by 

16 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 9013. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments.’’. 

17 TITLE III—FREEDOM FROM 

18 INFLUENCE FUND 

19 SEC. 301. FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

21 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘‘Freedom From In22 fluence Fund’’. 

23 (b) AMOUNTS HELD BY FUND.—The Fund shall con24 sist of the following amounts: 


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1 (1) ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES, SETTLE2 MENTS, AND PENALTIES.—Amounts transferred 

3 under section 3015 of title 18, United States Code 

4 (as added by section 302(a)), section 9707 of title 

5 31, United States Code (as added by section 

6 302(b)), and section 6761 of the Internal Revenue 

7 Code of 1986 (as added by section 302(c)). 

8 (2) INVESTMENT RETURNS.—Interest on, and 

9 the proceeds from, the sale or redemption of any ob10 ligations held by the Fund under subsection (c). 

11 (c) INVESTMENT.—The Secretary of the Treasury 

12 shall invest portions of the Fund in obligations of the 

13 United States in the same manner as provided under sec14 tion 9602(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

15 (d) USE OF FUND TO MAKE PAYMENTS TO CAN16 DIDATES.—Amounts in the Fund shall be available with17 out further appropriation or fiscal year limitation— 

18 (1) to make payments to candidates under 

19 chapter 95 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue 

20 Code of 1986, subject to reductions under section 

21 9013(b) of such Code; and 

22 (2) to make payments to candidates under 

23 chapter 96 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue 

24 Code of 1986, subject to reductions under section 

25 9043(b) of such Code. 


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1 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take effect 

2 on the date of the enactment of this title. 

3 SEC. 302. ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES AND PENALTIES. 

4 (a) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CRIMINAL OF5 FENSES.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 201 of title 18, 

7 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

8 end the following new section: 

9 ‘‘§ 3015. Special assessments for Freedom From Influ10 ence Fund 

11 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) CONVICTIONS OF CRIMES.—In addition to 

13 any assessment imposed under this chapter, the 

14 court shall assess on any organizational defendant or 

15 any defendant who is a corporate officer or person 

16 with equivalent authority in any other organization 

17 who is convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 

18 law an amount equal to 2.75 percent of any fine im19 posed on that defendant in the sentence imposed for 

20 that conviction. 

21 ‘‘(2) SETTLEMENTS.—The court shall assess on 

22 any organizational defendant or defendant who is a 

23 corporate officer or person with equivalent authority 

24 in any other organization who has entered into a 

25 settlement agreement or consent decree with the 


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1 United States in satisfaction of any allegation that 

2 the defendant committed a criminal offense under 

3 Federal law an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

4 amount of the settlement. 

5 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as6 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected in the man7 ner in which fines are collected in criminal cases. 

8 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec9 tion 3302(b) of title 31, there shall be transferred from 

10 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

11 Influence Fund under title III of the Empower Act of 

12 2019 an amount equal to the amount of the assessments 

13 collected under this section.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec15 tions of chapter 201 of title 18, United States Code, 

16 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3015. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

17 (b) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CIVIL PEN18 ALTIES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 31, 

20 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following new section: 

22 ‘‘§ 9707. Special assessments for Freedom From Influ23 ence Fund 

24 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any entity of the Fed2 eral Government which is authorized under any law, 

3 rule, or regulation to impose a civil penalty shall as4 sess on each person, other than a natural person 

5 who is not a corporate officer or person with equiva6 lent authority in any other organization, on whom 

7 such a penalty is imposed an amount equal to 2.75 

8 percent of the amount of the penalty. 

9 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.—Any entity 

10 of the Federal Government which is authorized 

11 under any law, rule, or regulation to impose an ad12 ministrative penalty shall assess on each person, 

13 other than a natural person who is not a corporate 

14 officer or person with equivalent authority in any 

15 other organization, on whom such a penalty is im16 posed an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

17 amount of the penalty. 

18 ‘‘(3) SETTLEMENTS.—Any entity of the Federal 

19 Government which is authorized under any law, rule, 

20 or regulation to enter into a settlement agreement or 

21 consent decree with any person, other than a natural 

22 person who is not a corporate officer or person with 

23 equivalent authority in any other organization, in 

24 satisfaction of any allegation of an action or omis25 sion by the person which would be subject to a civil 


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1 penalty or administrative penalty shall assess on 

2 such person an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

3 amount of the settlement. 

4 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as5 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected— 

6 ‘‘(1) in the case of an amount assessed under 

7 paragraph (1) of such subsection, in the manner in 

8 which civil penalties are collected by the entity of the 

9 Federal Government involved; 

10 ‘‘(2) in the case of an amount assessed under 

11 paragraph (2) of such subsection, in the manner in 

12 which administrative penalties are collected by the 

13 entity of the Federal Government involved; and 

14 ‘‘(3) in the case of an amount assessed under 

15 paragraph (3) of such subsection, in the manner in 

16 which amounts are collected pursuant to settlement 

17 agreements or consent decrees entered into by the 

18 entity of the Federal Government involved. 

19 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec20 tion 3302(b) of this title, there shall be transferred from 

21 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

22 Influence Fund under title III of the Empower Act of 

23 2019 an amount equal to the amount of the assessments 

24 collected under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION FOR PENALTIES AND SETTLE2 MENTS UNDER AUTHORITY OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE

3 CODE OF 1986.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No assessment shall be 

5 made under subsection (a) with respect to any civil 

6 or administrative penalty imposed, or any settlement 

7 agreement or consent decree entered into, under the 

8 authority of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

9 ‘‘(2) CROSS REFERENCE.—For application of 

10 special assessments for the Freedom From Influence 

11 Fund with respect to certain penalties under the In12 ternal Revenue Code of 1986, see section 6761 of 

13 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec15 tions of chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, 

16 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘9707. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

17 (c) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN18 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

19 1986.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 68 of the Internal 

21 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

22 end the following new subchapter: 


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1 ‘‘Subchapter D—Special Assessments for 

2 Freedom From Influence Fund 

3 ‘‘SEC. 6761. SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM 

4 INFLUENCE FUND. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each person required to pay a 

6 covered penalty shall pay an additional amount equal to 

7 2.75 percent of the amount of such penalty. 

8 ‘‘(b) COVERED PENALTY.—For purposes of this sec9 tion, the term ‘covered penalty’ means any addition to tax, 

10 additional amount, penalty, or other liability provided 

11 under subchapter A or B. 

12 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a taxpayer 

14 who is an individual, subsection (a) shall not apply 

15 to any covered penalty if such taxpayer is an exempt 

16 taxpayer for the taxable year for which such covered 

17 penalty is assessed. 

18 ‘‘(2) EXEMPT TAXPAYER.—For purposes of this 

19 subsection, a taxpayer is an exempt taxpayer for any 

20 taxable year if the taxable income of such taxpayer 

21 for such taxable year does not exceed the dollar 

22 amount at which begins the highest rate bracket in 

23 effect under section 1 with respect to such taxpayer 

24 for such taxable year. 


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1 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN RULES.—Except as 

2 provided in subsection (e), the additional amount deter3 mined under subsection (a) shall be treated for purposes 

4 of this title in the same manner as the covered penalty 

5 to which such additional amount relates. 

6 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER TO FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

7 FUND.—The Secretary shall deposit any additional 

8 amount under subsection (a) in the General Fund of the 

9 Treasury and shall transfer from such General Fund to 

10 the Freedom From Influence Fund established under title 

11 III of the Empower Act of 2019 an amount equal to the 

12 amounts so deposited (and, notwithstanding subsection 

13 (d), such additional amount shall not be the basis for any 

14 deposit, transfer, credit, appropriation, or any other pay15 ment, to any other trust fund or account). Rules similar 

16 to the rules of section 9601 shall apply for purposes of 

17 this subsection.’’. 

18 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sub19 chapters for chapter 68 of such Code is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER D—SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

FUND’’. 

21 (d) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2), the amendments made by this section 

24 shall apply with respect to convictions, agreements, 


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1 and penalties which occur on or after the date of the 

2 enactment of this Act. 

3 (2) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN4 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

5 1986.—The amendments made by subsection (c) 

6 shall apply to covered penalties assessed after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act. 

8 TITLE IV—OTHER CAMPAIGN 

9 FINANCE REFORMS 

10 SEC. 401. RULES RELATING TO JOINT FUNDRAISING COM11 MITTEES. 

12 (a) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT13 TEES FOR CANDIDATES.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 302(e) of the Fed15 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

16 30102(e)) is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(6) No authorized committee of a candidate may es19 tablish, participate in, or have any involvement with any 

20 joint fundraising committee.’’. 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

22 302(e)(3)(A) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30102(e)(3)) is 

23 amended— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘except that’’ and all that 

2 follows through ‘‘the candidate’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘except that the candidate’’, 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a pe5 riod, and 

6 (C) by striking clause (ii). 

7 (b) LIMITATION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT8 TEES FOR PARTY COMMITTEES.—Section 302 of the Fed9 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) 

10 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub11 section: 

12 ‘‘(j) PARTICIPATION OF PARTY COMMITTEES IN

13 JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMITTEES.—No committee of a 

14 political party may establish, participate in, or have any 

15 involvement with any joint fundraising committee other 

16 than a joint fundraising committee that consists of the 

17 national committee of a political party and one other com18 mittee of the political party.’’. 

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

20 this section shall take effect on January 1, 2020. 


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1 SEC. 402. REPEAL OF SPECIAL CONTRIBUTION LIMITS FOR 

2 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NATIONAL PARTIES FOR 

3 CERTAIN PURPOSES. 

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

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

6 amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘, or, in 

8 the case of contributions made to any of the ac9 counts described in paragraph (9), exceed 300 per10 cent of the amount otherwise applicable under this 

11 subparagraph with respect to such calendar year’’, 

12 (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘, or, in 

13 the case of contributions made to any of the ac14 counts described in paragraph (9), exceed 300 per15 cent of the amount otherwise applicable under this 

16 subparagraph with respect to such calendar year’’, 

17 and 

18 (3) by striking paragraph (9). 

19 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 315(d) of 

20 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)) is amended by striking 

21 paragraph (5). 

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

23 this section shall apply to contributions made after the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act. 

25 (d) RETURN OF PREVIOUSLY CONTRIBUTED

26 AMOUNTS.—Not later than 90 days after the date of the 


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1 enactment of this Act, each political committee established 

2 and maintained by a political party shall distribute all 

3 amounts in accounts described in section 315(a)(9) of the 

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

5 30116(a)(9)) to individuals who made contributions to 

6 such accounts. The amount distributed to any contributor 

7 from any account shall bear the same ratio to the amount 

8 of contributions made by such contributor to such account 

9 as the balance of such account on the date of the enact10 ment of this Act bears to the total amount of contributions 

11 made to such account. 

12 TITLE V—EFFECTIVE DATE 

13 SEC. 501. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, this 

15 Act and the amendments made by this Act shall apply 

16 with respect to the Presidential election held in 2028 and 

17 each succeeding Presidential election, without regard to 

18 whether or not the Federal Election Commission has pro19 mulgated the final regulations necessary to carry out this 

20 Act and the amendments made by this Act by the deadline 

21 set forth in subsection (b). 

22 (b) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—Not later than 

23 June 30, 2026, the Federal Election Commission shall 


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1 promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry 

2 out this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 

Æ 


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