DOI: 10.3886/icpsr09314.v2
title: Campaign Expenditures in the United States, 1987-1988: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) Data
title: Version 2

description: These data are made available by the Federal Election 
 Commission (FEC) through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and are 
 taken directly from campaign finance reports filed by candidates, 
 political committees, and others required to file under the federal 
 election laws. The files are essentially copies of the FEC's on-line 
 computer files for the 1987-1988 election cycle. The Candidate Master 
 File (Part 1) contains a record for each registered candidate for 
 federal office. It includes the candidate's name, address, party 
 affiliation, incumbent/challenger status, identification number of the 
 principal campaign committee, office sought, and election year. The 
 Committee Master File (Part 2) contains a record for each registered 
 committee for federal office. Information provided includes the 
 committee's identification number, name, address, treasurer's name, 
 committee designation and type, party affiliation, report filing 
 frequency, special interest group category and connected organization's 
 name, and multicandidate committee status. The Detailed Report File 
 (Part 3) contains one record for each separate reporting period for 
 each FEC committee and, as such, is the source for longitudinal 
 information about committee financial activity during the 1987-1988 
 election cycle. Information presented in the file includes the 
 political committee identification number, the report year and type, 
 the time period covered by the report, total receipts and 
 disbursements, beginning and end cash balances, debts owed by and to 
 the committee, individual, political, and candidate contributions, 
 transfers from affiliated committees, loans received and payments made, 
 and refunds. The Itemized PAC Contribution File (Part 4) contains one 
 record for each type of contributor for each reporting period. 
 Information included in this file covers the type and year of the 
 report, the time period covered by the report, total contributions, net 
 contributions, total contribution refunds, net operating expenditures, 
 cash on hand, debts and obligations owed by the committee, debts and 
 obligations owed to the committee, contributions from individuals and 
loans made, or guaranteed by the candidate.
description: Datasets: 
DS0: Study-Level Files
DS1: Candidate Master Data
DS2: Committee Master Data
DS3: Detailed Report Data
DS4: Itemized PAC Contribution File
description: (1) All candidates for federal office registered with the 
 FEC under the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). (2) All political 
 committees, unauthorized delegate filers, independent expenditure 
 filers, and communications cost filers registered. (3) All transactions 
and reports occurring during the 1987-1988 election cycle.
description: The records in Parts 3 and 4 are derived from original 
 filings and incorporate changes from amendments to reports received by 
 the FEC prior to December 1989. The Candidate and Committee Master 
 Files (Parts 1 and 2) are FEC reference files, and are needed to find 
 the name of each committee or candidate associated with the 
identification numbers that appear in Part 3.