Campaign Act of 1971 with respect to the 1998
general election. Any funds of such a committee
which remain unexpended after the 1998 general
election and before the date on which the com-
mittee disbands shall be returned to contributors
or available for any lawful purpose other than
use by the candidate or individual involved with
respect to an election for Federal office.
SEC. 106. PROHIBITING BUNDLING OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO
CANDIDATES BY POLITICAL ACTION COMMIT-
TEES AND LOBBYISTS.
Section 316 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 (2 U.S.C. 441b) is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
‘‘(c)(1) No political action committee or person re-
quired to register under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995
(2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) may act as an intermediary or con-
duit with respect to a contribution to a candidate for Fed-
eral office.
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘political action com-
mittee’ means any political committee which is not—
‘‘(A) the principal campaign committee of a can-
didate; or
‘‘(B) a political party committee.’’.
SEC. 107. DEFINITION OF INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES.
Section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 (2 U.S.C. 431) is amended by striking paragraph (17)
and inserting the following:
‘‘(17)(A) The term ‘independent expenditure’ means
an expenditure by a person for a communication expressly
advocating the election or defeat of a clearly identified can-
didate which is not made with the cooperation or with the
prior consent of, or in consultation with, or at the request
or suggestion of, a candidate or any agent or authorized
committee of such candidate.
‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph—
‘‘(i) ‘expressly advocating the election or defeat’
means the use in the communication of explicit words
such as ‘vote for’, ‘reelect’, ‘support’, ‘cast your ballot
for’, ‘vote against’, ‘defeat’, or ‘reject’, accompanied by
a reference in the communication to one or more
clearly identified candidates, or words such as ‘vote’
for or against a position on an issue, accompanied by
a listing in the communication of one or more clearly
identified candidates described as for or against a po-
sition on that issue;
‘‘(ii) ‘which is not made with the cooperation or
with the prior consent of, or in consultation with, or
at the request or suggestion of, a candidate or any
agent or authorized committee of such candidate’ re-
fers to the expenditure in question for the communica-
tion made by the person; and
‘‘(iii) the term ‘agent’ means any person who has
actual oral or written authority, either express or im-
plied, to make or authorize the making of expendi-
tures on behalf of a candidate.
‘‘(C) An expenditure by a person for a communication
which does not contain explicit words expressly advocating
the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate shall
not be considered an independent expenditure.’’.
SEC. 108. REQUIREMENTS FOR USE OF PAYROLL DEDUC-
TIONS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS.
Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971
(2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end
the following new section:
‘‘USE OF PAYROLL DEDUCTIONS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS
‘‘SEC. 323. (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR AUTHORIZATION
OF DEDUCTION.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No amounts withheld from
an individual’s wages or salary during a year may
be used for any contribution under this title unless
there is in effect an authorization in writing by the
individual permitting the withholding of such
amounts for the contribution.
‘‘(2) PERIOD OF AUTHORIZATION.—An author-
ization described in this subsection may be in effect
with respect to an individual for such period as the
individual may specify (subject to cancellation under
paragraph (3)), except that the period may not be
longer than 12 months.
‘‘(3) RIGHT OF CANCELLATION.—An individual
with an authorization in effect under this subsection
may cancel or revise the authorization at any time.
‘‘(b) INFORMATION PROVIDED BY WITHHOLDING EN-
TITY.—
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—Each entity withholding
wages or salary from an individual with an author-
ization in effect under subsection (a) shall provide the
individual with a statement that the individual may
at any time cancel or revise the authorization in ac-
cordance with subsection (a)(3).
‘‘(2) TIMING OF NOTICE.—The entity shall pro-
vide the information described in paragraph (1) to an
individual at the beginning of each calendar year oc-
curring during the period in which the individual’s
authorization is in effect.’’.
TITLE II—STRENGTHENING
POLITICAL PARTIES
SEC. 201. MODIFICATION OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS AND
REQUIREMENTS FOR POLITICAL PARTIES.
(a) TREATMENT OF PARTY CONTRIBUTIONS UNDER
AGGREGATE INDIVIDUAL CAP.—Section 315(a)(3) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(3)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new sentence:
‘‘For purposes of this paragraph, in determining the
amount of contributions made by an individual there shall
be excluded any contributions made by the individual to
a political party or a political party committee.’’.
(b) LIMITATION AMOUNT
FOR CONTRIBUTIONS
TO
STATE POLITICAL PARTIES.—Section 315(a)(1)(B) of such
Act (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)(B)) is amended by inserting after
‘‘national’’ the following: ‘‘or State’’.
SEC. 202. ALLOWING POLITICAL PARTIES TO OFFSET
FUNDS 
CARRIED 
OVER 
FROM 
PREVIOUS
ELECTIONS.
Section 315 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a), as amended by sections 101 and
103(a), is further amended by adding at the end the follow-
ing new subsection:
‘‘(k)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), if, in a general elec-
tion for Federal office, a candidate who is the incumbent
uses campaign funds carried forward from an earlier elec-
tion cycle, any political party committee may make con-
tributions to the nominee of that political party to match
the funds so carried forward by such incumbent. For pur-
poses of this paragraph, funds shall be considered to have
been carried forward if the funds represent cash on hand
as reported in the applicable post-general election report
filed under section 304(a) for the general election involved,
plus any amount expended on or before the filing of the
report for a later election, less legitimate outstanding debts
relating to the previous election up to the amount reported.
‘‘(2) The political party contributions under para-
graph (1) may be made without regard to any limitation
amount otherwise applicable to such contributions made
under subsections (a) or (i), but a candidate may not accept
contributions under this subsection in excess of the total of
funds carried forward by the incumbent candidate.’’.
SEC. 203. PROHIBITING USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS IN
FEDERAL ELECTIONS.
Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971
(2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.), as amended by section 108, is further
amended by adding at the end the following new section:
‘‘RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS
‘‘SEC. 324. (a) PROHIBITING USE OF FUNDS IN FED-
ERAL ELECTIONS.—No funds may be expended by a politi-
cal party committee for the purpose of influencing an elec-
tion for Federal office unless the funds are subject to the
limitations and prohibitions of this Act, except as may be
provided in this section.
‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF FUNDS FOR MIXED
ACTIVITIES.—
‘‘(1) PROHIBITING
USE
BY
NATIONAL
PARTY
COMMITTEES.—A national committee of a political
party (including any subordinate committee thereof)
may not use any funds which are not subject to the
limitations and prohibitions of this Act for any
mixed activity.
‘‘(2) MIXED
ACTIVITY
DEFINED.—In this sub-
section, the term ‘mixed activity’ means any activity
which is both for the purpose of influencing an elec-
tion for Federal office and for any purpose unrelated
to influencing an election for Federal office, including
voter registration, absentee ballot programs, and get-
out-the-vote programs, but does not include the pay-
ment of any administrative or overhead costs, includ-
ing salaries (other than payments made to individ-
uals for get-out-the-vote activities conducted on the
day of an election), rent, fundraising, or communica-
tions to members of a political party.
‘‘(c) RESTRICTIONS ON USE OF FUNDS FOR MIXED
CANDIDATE-SPECIFIC ACTIVITIES.—
‘‘(1) 
REQUIRING
ALLOCATION
AMONG
CAN-
DIDATES.—A political party committee may use
funds which are not subject to the limitations and
prohibitions of this Act for mixed candidate-specific
activities if the funds are allocated among the can-
didates involved on the basis of the time and space al-
located to the candidates.
‘‘(2) MIXED CANDIDATE-SPECIFIC ACTIVITY DE-
FINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘mixed can-
didate-specific activity’ means any activity which is
both for the purpose of promoting a specific candidate
or candidates in an election for Federal office and for
the purpose of promoting a specific candidate or can-
didates in any other election.’’.
SEC. 204. PERMITTING PARTIES TO HAVE UNLIMITED COM-
MUNICATION WITH MEMBERS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(d) of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)) is amended
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
‘‘(4)(A) For purposes of applying the limitations es-
tablished under paragraphs (2) and (3), in determining the
amount of expenditures made by a national committee of
a political party or a State committee of a political party
(including any subordinate committee of a State commit-
tee), there shall be excluded any amounts expended by the
committee for communications to the extent the communica-
tions are made to members of the party.
‘‘(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), an individual
shall be considered to be a ‘member’ of a political party
if any of the following apply:
‘‘(i) The individual is registered to vote as a
member of the party.
‘‘(ii) There is a public record that the individual
voted in the primary of the party during the most re-
cent primary election.
‘‘(iii) The individual has made a contribution to
the party and the contribution has been reported to
the Commission (in accordance with this Act) or to
a State reporting agency.
‘‘(iv) The individual has indicated in writing
that the individual is a member of the party.’’.
(b) FUNDS
AVAILABLE
FOR
PARTY
COMMUNICA-
TIONS.—Section 324 of such Act, as added by section 203,
is amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(d) FUNDS
FOR PARTY COMMUNICATIONS WITH
MEMBERS.—Subsection (a) shall not apply with respect to
funds expended by a political party for communications to
the extent the communications are made to members of the
party (as determined in accordance with section 315(d)(4)),
except that any communications which are both for the pur-
pose of expressly advocating the election or defeat of a spe-
cific candidate for election to Federal office and for any
other purpose shall be subject to allocation in the same man-
ner as funds expended for mixed candidate-specific activi-
ties under subsection (c).’’.
SEC. 205. PROMOTING STATE AND LOCAL PARTY VOLUN-
TEER AND GRASSROOTS ACTIVITY.
(a) ENCOURAGING STATE AND LOCAL PARTY ACTIVI-
TIES.—
(1) CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 301(8)(B) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.
431(8)(B)) is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(xiii);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (xiv) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xv) the payment by a State or local committee
of a political party for any of the following activities:
‘‘(I) The listing of the slate of the party’s
candidates, including the communication of the
slate to the public.
‘‘(II) The mailing of materials for or on be-
half of specific candidates by volunteers (includ-
ing labeling envelopes or affixing postage or
other indicia to particular pieces of mail), other
than the mailing of materials to a commercial
list.
‘‘(III) Conducting a telephone bank for or
on behalf of specific candidates staffed by volun-
teers.
‘‘(IV) The distribution of collateral mate-
rials (such as pins, bumper stickers, handbills,
brochures, posters, party tabloids, and yard
signs) for or on behalf of specific candidates
(whether by volunteers or otherwise).’’.
(2) EXPENDITURES.—Section 301(9)(B) of such
Act (2 U.S.C. 431(9)(B)) is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(ix);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (x) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xi) the payment by a State or local committee
of a political party for any of the following activities:
‘‘(I) The listing of the slate of the party’s
candidates, including the communication of the
slate to the public.
‘‘(II) The mailing of materials for or on be-
half of specific candidates by volunteers (includ-
ing labeling envelopes or affixing postage or
other indicia to particular pieces of mail), other
than the mailing of materials to a commercial
list.
‘‘(III) Conducting a telephone bank for or
on behalf of specific candidates staffed by volun-
teers.
‘‘(IV) The distribution of collateral mate-
rials (such as pins, bumper stickers, handbills,
brochures, posters, party tabloids, and yard
signs) for or on behalf of specific candidates
(whether by volunteers or otherwise).’’.
(3) CONFORMING
AMENDMENTS.—(A) Section
301(8)(B)(x) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(B)(x)) is
amended by striking ‘‘in connection with volunteer
activities on behalf of nominees of such party’’ and
inserting ‘‘in connection with State or local activities,
other than any payment described in clause (xv)’’.
(B) Section 301(9)(B)(viii) of such Act (2 U.S.C.
431(9)(B)(viii)) is amended by striking ‘‘in connec-
tion with volunteer activities on behalf of nominees of
such party’’ and inserting ‘‘in connection with State
or local activities, other than any payment described
in clause (xi)’’.
(b) FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR ACTIVITIES.—
(1) PERMITTING USE OF NON-FEDERAL FUNDS
FOR MIXED ACTIVITIES.—Section 324(b) of such Act,
as added by section 203, is amended—
(A) by redesignating paragraph (2) as
paragraph (3); and
(B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the fol-
lowing new paragraph:
‘‘(2) USE BY STATE OR LOCAL PARTY COMMIT-
TEES.—A State, local, or district committee of a po-
litical party (including any subordinate committee
thereof) may use funds which are not subject to the
limitations and prohibitions of this Act for mixed ac-
tivity if the funds are allocated in accordance with
the process described in subsection (g).’’.
(2) FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR STATE AND LOCAL
PARTIES.—Section 324 of such Act, as added by sec-
tion 203 and as amended by section 204(b), is
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(e) FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR STATE AND LOCAL PARTY
VOLUNTEER
AND GRASSROOTS ACTIVITIES.—Subsection
(a) shall not apply with respect to payments described in
section 301(8)(B)(xv) or section 301(9)(B)(xi), except that
any payments which are both for the purpose of expressly
advocating the election or defeat of a specific candidate for
election to Federal office and for any other purpose shall
be subject to allocation in the same manner as funds ex-
pended for mixed candidate-specific activities under sub-
section (c).’’.
(3) TREATMENT OF INTRA-PARTY TRANSFERS.—
Section 324 of such Act, as added by section 203 and
as amended by section 204(b) and paragraph (2), is
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(f) RULE
OF CONSTRUCTION REGARDING INTRA-
PARTY TRANSFERS.—Nothing in this section shall be con-
strued to prohibit the transfer between and among national,
State, or local party committees (including any subordinate
committees thereof) of funds which are not subject to the
limitations and prohibitions of this Act.’’.
(4) ALLOCATION PROCEDURES DESCRIBED.—Sec-
tion 324 of such Act, as added by section 203 and as
amended by section 204(b) and paragraphs (2) and
(3), is amended by adding at the end the following
new subsection:
‘‘(g) STATE AND LOCAL PARTY COMMITTEES; METHOD
FOR ALLOCATING EXPENDITURES
FOR MIXED ACTIVI-
TIES.—
‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—All State and local party
committees except those covered by paragraph (2)
shall allocate their expenses for mixed activities, as
described in subsection (b)(2), according to the ballot
composition method described as follows:
‘‘(A) Under this method, expenses shall be
allocated based on the ratio of Federal offices ex-
pected on the ballot to total Federal and non-
Federal offices expected on the ballot in the next
general election to be held in the committee’s
State or geographic area. This ratio shall be de-
termined by the number of categories of Federal
offices on the ballot and the number of categories
of non-Federal offices on the ballot, as described
in subparagraph (B).
‘‘(B) In calculating a ballot composition
ratio, a State or local party committee shall
count the Federal offices of President, United
States Senator, and United States Representa-
tive, if expected on the ballot in the next general
election, as one Federal office each. The commit-
tee shall count the non-Federal offices of Gov-
ernor, State Senator, and State Representative,
if expected on the ballot in the next general elec-
tion, as one non-Federal office each. The commit-
tee shall count the total of all other partisan
statewide executive candidates, if expected on the
ballot in the next general election, as a maxi-
mum of two non-Federal offices. State party
committees shall also include in the ratio one ad-
ditional non-Federal office if any partisan local
candidates are expected on the ballot in any reg-
ularly scheduled election during the 2 year con-
gressional election cycle. Local party committees
shall also include in the ratio a maximum of 2
additional non-Federal offices if any partisan
local candidates are expected on the ballot in
any regularly scheduled election during the 2
year congressional election cycle. State and local
party committees shall also include in the ratio
1 additional non-Federal office.
‘‘(2) EXCEPTION
FOR
STATES
THAT
DO
NOT
HOLD
FEDERAL
AND
NON-FEDERAL
ELECTIONS
IN
THE SAME YEAR.—State and local party committees
in states that do not hold Federal and non-Federal
elections in the same year shall allocate the costs of
mixed activities according to the ballot composition
method described in paragraph (1), based on a ratio
calculated for that calendar year.’’.
TITLE III—DISCLOSURE AND
ENFORCEMENT
SEC. 301. TIMELY REPORTING AND INCREASED DISCLO-
SURE.
(a) DEADLINE FOR FILING.—
(1) REQUIRING
REPORTS
FOR
ALL
CONTRIBU-
TIONS MADE WITHIN 20 DAYS OF ELECTION; REQUIR-
ING REPORTS TO BE MADE WITHIN 24 HOURS.—Sec-
tion 304(a)(6)(A) of the Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(6)(A)) is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘after the 20th day, but
more than 48 hours before any election’’ and in-
serting ‘‘during the period which begins on the
20th day before an election and ends at the time
the polls close for such election’’; and
(B) by striking ‘‘48 hours’’ the second place
it appears and inserting the following: ‘‘24 hours
(or, if earlier, by midnight of the day on which
the contribution is deposited)’’.
(2) REQUIRING
ACTUAL
DELIVERY
BY
DEAD-
LINE.—
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Section 304(a)(6) of
such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(6)), as amended by
section 103(b), is further amended by adding at
the end the following new subparagraph:
‘‘(D) Notwithstanding paragraph (5), the time at
which a notification or report under this paragraph is re-
ceived by the Secretary, the Commission, or any other recip-
ient to whom the notification is required to be sent shall
be considered the time of filing of the notification or report
with the recipient.’’.
(B) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
304(a)(5) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(5)) is
amended by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(A)(i) or
(4)(A)(ii)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraphs (2)(A)(i),
(4)(A)(ii), or (6))’’.
(b) INCREASING ELECTRONIC DISCLOSURE.—Section
304(a)(6) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(6)), as amended by
section 103(b) and subsection (a)(2)(A), is further amended
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
‘‘(E)(i) The Commission shall make the information
contained in the reports submitted under this paragraph
available on the Internet and publicly available at the of-
fices of the Commission as soon as practicable (but in no
case later than 24 hours) after the information is received
by the Commission.
‘‘(ii) In this subparagraph, the term ‘Internet’ means
the international computer network of both Federal and
non-Federal interoperable packet-switched data networks.’’.
(c) CHANGE IN CERTAIN REPORTING FROM A CAL-
ENDAR YEAR BASIS TO AN ELECTION CYCLE BASIS.—Sec-
tion 304(b) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(b)) is amended by
inserting ‘‘(or election cycle, in the case of an authorized
committee of a candidate for Federal office)’’ after ‘‘cal-
endar year’’ each place it appears in paragraphs (2), (3),
(4), (6), and (7).
(d) CLARIFICATION OF PERMISSIBLE USE OF FAC-
SIMILE
MACHINES
TO
FILE
REPORTS.—Section
304(a)(11)(A) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(11)) is amended
by striking ‘‘method,’’ and inserting ‘‘method (including by
facsimile device in the case of any report required to be
filed within 24 hours after the transaction reported has oc-
curred),’’.
(e) REQUIRING RECEIPT OF INDEPENDENT EXPENDI-
TURE REPORTS WITHIN 24 HOURS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304(c)(2) of such Act
(2 U.S.C. 434(c)(2)) is amended in the matter follow-
ing subparagraph (C)—
(A) by striking ‘‘shall be reported’’ and in-
serting ‘‘shall be filed’’; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new
sentence: ‘‘Notwithstanding subsection (a)(5), the
time at which the statement under this sub-
section is received by the Secretary, the Commis-
sion, or any other recipient to whom the notifi-
cation is required to be sent shall be considered
the time of filing of the statement with the recip-
ient.’’.
(2) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
304(a)(5) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(5)), as amend-
ed by subsection (a)(2)(B), is further amended by
striking ‘‘or (6)’’ and inserting ‘‘or (6), or subsection
(c)(2)’’.
(f) REQUIRING RECORD KEEPING AND REPORT OF
SECONDARY PAYMENTS BY CAMPAIGN COMMITTEES.—
(1) REPORTING.—Section 304(b)(5)(A) of such
Act (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(5)(A)) is amended by striking
the semicolon at the end and inserting the following:
‘‘, and, if such person in turn makes expenditures
which aggregate $500 or more in an election cycle to
other persons (not including employees) who provide
goods or services to the candidate or the candidate’s
authorized committees, the name and address of such
other persons, together with the date, amount, and
purpose of such expenditures;’’.
(2) RECORD KEEPING.—Section 302 of such Act
(2 U.S.C. 432), as amended by section 105(a), is fur-
ther amended by adding at the end the following new
subsection:
‘‘(k) A person described in section 304(b)(5)(A) who
makes expenditures which aggregate $500 or more in an
election cycle to other persons (not including employees)
who provide goods or services to a candidate or a can-
didate’s authorized committees shall provide to a political
committee the information necessary to enable the commit-
tee to report the information described in such section.’’.
(3) NO EFFECT ON OTHER REPORTS.—Nothing
in the amendments made by this subsection may be
construed to affect the terms of any other record-
keeping or reporting requirements applicable to can-
didates or political committees under title III of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
(g) INCLUDING REPORT ON CUMULATIVE CONTRIBU-
TIONS AND EXPENDITURES IN POST ELECTION REPORTS.—
Section 304(a)(7) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(7)) is
amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘(7)’’ and inserting ‘‘(7)(A)’’;
and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
paragraph:
‘‘(B) In the case of any report required to be filed by
this subsection which is the first report required to be filed
after the date of an election, the report shall include a state-
ment of the total contributions received and expenditures
made as of the date of the election.’’.
(h) INCLUDING INFORMATION ON AGGREGATE CON-
TRIBUTIONS IN REPORT ON ITEMIZED CONTRIBUTIONS.—
Section 304(b)(3) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(3)) is
amended—
(1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting after
‘‘such contribution’’ the following: ‘‘and the total
amount of all such contributions made by such person
with respect to the election involved’’; and
(2) in subparagraph (B), by inserting after
‘‘such contribution’’ the following: ‘‘and the total
amount of all such contributions made by such com-
mittee with respect to the election involved’’.
SEC. 302. STREAMLINING PROCEDURES AND RULES OF
FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION.
(a) STANDARDS FOR COMMISSION REGULATION AND
JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION.—Section 307 of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437d) is amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(f)(1) When developing prescribed forms and making,
amending, or repealing rules pursuant to the authority
granted to the Commission by subsection (a)(8), the Com-
mission shall act in a manner that will have the least re-
strictive effect on the rights of free speech and association
so protected by the First Article of Amendment to the Con-
stitution of the United States.
‘‘(2) When the Commission’s actions under paragraph
(1) are challenged, a reviewing court shall hold unlawful
and set aside any actions of the Commission that do not
conform with the principles set forth in paragraph (1).’’.
(b) WRITTEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS.—
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Title III of such Act (2
U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended by inserting after sec-
tion 308 the following new section:
‘‘OTHER WRITTEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS
‘‘SEC. 308A. (a) PERMITTING RESPONSES.—In addi-
tion to issuing advisory opinions under section 308, the
Commission shall issue written responses pursuant to this
section with respect to a written request concerning the ap-
plication of this Act, chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Inter-
nal Revenue Code of 1986, a rule or regulation prescribed
by the Commission, or an advisory opinion issued by the
Commission under section 308, with respect to a specific
transaction or activity by the person, if the Commission
finds the application of the Act, chapter, rule, regulation,
or advisory opinion to the transaction or activity to be clear
and unambiguous.
‘‘(b) PROCEDURE FOR RESPONSE.—
‘‘(1) ANALYSIS BY STAFF.—The staff of the Com-
mission shall analyze each request submitted under
this section. If the staff believes that the standard de-
scribed in subsection (a) is met with respect to the re-
quest, the staff shall circulate a statement to that ef-
fect together with a draft response to the request to the
members of the Commission.
‘‘(2) ISSUANCE OF RESPONSE.—Upon the expira-
tion of the 3-day period beginning on the date the
statement and draft response is circulated (excluding
weekends or holidays), the Commission shall issue the
response, unless during such period any member of
the Commission objects to issuing the response.
‘‘(c) EFFECT OF RESPONSE.—
‘‘(1) SAFE HARBOR.—Notwithstanding any other
provisions of law, any person who relies upon any
provision or finding of a written response issued
under this section and who acts in good faith in ac-
cordance with the provisions and findings of such re-
sponse shall not, as a result of any such act, be subject
to any sanction provided by this Act or by chapter
95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.