‘‘(2) NO
RELIANCE
BY
OTHER
PARTIES.—Any
written response issued by the Commission under this
section may only be relied upon by the person in-
volved in the specific transaction or activity with re-
spect to which such response is issued, and may not
be applied by the Commission with respect to any
other person or used by the Commission for enforce-
ment or regulatory purposes.
‘‘(d) PUBLICATION OF REQUESTS AND RESPONSES.—
The Commission shall make public any request for a writ-
ten response made, and the responses issued, under this sec-
tion. In carrying out this subsection, the Commission may
not make public the identity of any person submitting a
request for a written response unless the person specifically
authorizes to Commission to do so.
‘‘(e) COMPILATION OF INDEX.—The Commission shall
compile, publish, and regularly update a complete and de-
tailed index of the responses issued under this section
through which responses may be found on the basis of the
subjects included in the responses.’’.
(2) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
307(a)(7) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 437d(a)(7)) is amend-
ed by striking ‘‘of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘and other
written responses under section 308A’’.
(c) OPPORTUNITY
FOR ORAL ARGUMENTS BEFORE
COMMISSION.—Section 309(a)(3) of such Act (2 U.S.C.
437g(a)(3)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘(3)’’ and inserting ‘‘(3)(A)’’;
and
(2) by adding at the end the following new sub-
paragraph:
‘‘(B) If a respondent submits a brief under subpara-
graph (A), the respondent may submit (at the time of sub-
mitting the brief) a request to present an oral argument
in support of the respondent’s brief before the Commission.
If at least 2 members of the Commission approve of the re-
quest, the respondent shall be permitted to appear before
the Commission in open session and make an oral presen-
tation in support of the brief and respond to questions of
members of the Commission. Such appearance shall take
place at a time specified by the Commission during the 30-
day period which begins on the date the request is approved,
and the Commission may limit the length of the respond-
ent’s appearance to such period of time as the Commission
considers appropriate. Any information provided by the re-
spondent during the appearance shall be considered by the
Commission before proceeding under paragraph (4).’’.
(d) INDEX OF ADVISORY OPINIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 308 of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437f) is
amended by adding at the end the following new sub-
section:
‘‘(e) The Commission shall compile, publish, and regu-
larly update a complete and detailed index of the advisory
opinions issued under this section through which opinions
may be found on the basis of the subjects included in the
opinions.’’.
(2) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—The Federal Election
Commission shall first publish the index of advisory
opinions described in section 308(e) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by para-
graph (1)) not later than 60 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(e) STANDARD FOR INITIATION OF ACTIONS.—Section
309(a)(2) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971
(2 U.S.C. 437g(a)(2)) is amended by striking ‘‘it has reason
to believe’’ and all that follows through ‘‘of 1954,’’ and in-
serting the following: ‘‘it has a reason to investigate a pos-
sible violation of this Act or of chapter 95 or chapter 96
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that has occurred or
is about to occur (based on the same criteria applicable
under this paragraph prior to the enactment of the Cam-
paign Finance Reform Act of 1996),’’.
(f) APPLICATION OF AGGREGATE CONTRIBUTION LIMIT
ON
CALENDAR
YEAR
BASIS
DURING
NON-ELECTION
YEARS.—Section 315(a)(3) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(3)) is amended by
striking the second sentence.
(g) REPEAL REPORT BY SECRETARY OF COMMERCE ON
DISTRICT-SPECIFIC VOTING AGE POPULATION.—Section
315(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2
U.S.C. 441a(e)) is amended by striking ‘‘States, of each
State, and of each congressional district’’ and inserting
‘‘States and of each State’’.
(h) COMMERCIALLY REASONABLE LOANS NOT TO BE
TREATED
AS
CONTRIBUTIONS
BY
LENDER.—Section
301(8)(B)(vii) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(B)(vii)) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘or a depository’’ and inserting
‘‘a depository’’; and
(2) by inserting after ‘‘Administration,’’ the fol-
lowing: ‘‘or any other commercial lender,’’.
(i) ABOLITION
OF EX OFFICIO MEMBERSHIP
OF
CLERK
OF HOUSE
OF REPRESENTATIVES
ON COMMIS-
SION.—Section 306(a) of the Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437c(a)) is amended—
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and the
Clerk’’ and all that follows through ‘‘designees’’ and
inserting ‘‘or the designee of the Secretary’’; and
(2) in paragraphs (3), (4), and (5), by striking
‘‘and the Clerk of the House of Representatives’’ each
place it appears.
(j) GRANTING COMMISSION AUTHORITY TO WAIVE RE-
PORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304 of such Act (2
U.S.C. 434), as amended by section 101(b), is further
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(e) The Commission may by unanimous vote relieve
any person or category of persons of the obligation to file
any of the reports required by this section, or may change
the due dates of any of the reports required by this section,
if it determines that such action is consistent with the pur-
poses of this title. The Commission may waive requirements
to file reports or change due dates in accordance with this
subsection through a rule of general applicability or, in a
specific case, by notifying all the political committees in-
volved.’’.
(k) PERMITTING CORPORATIONS TO COMMUNICATE
WITH ALL EMPLOYEES.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 316(b) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441b(b)) is
amended by striking ‘‘executive or administrative per-
sonnel’’ each place it appears in paragraphs (2)(A),
(2)(B), (4)(A)(i), (4)(D), and (5) and inserting ‘‘offi-
cers or employees’’.
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 316(b)
of such Act is amended by striking paragraph (7).
(l) PERMITTING UNLIMITED SOLICITATIONS BY COR-
PORATIONS OR LABOR ORGANIZATIONS; PROTECTING CON-
FIDENTIALITY OF CONTRIBUTIONS NOT GREATER THAN
$100.—Section 316(b) of the Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441b(b)(3)), as amended by subsection
(k)(2), is amended—
(1) in paragraph (4)(A), by striking ‘‘(B), (C),’’
and inserting ‘‘(C)’’;
(2) in paragraph (4)(A)(ii), by striking the pe-
riod at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘, its offi-
cers or employees and their families, employees who
are not members and their families, and officers, em-
ployees, or stockholders of a corporation (and their
families) in which the labor organization represents
members working for the corporation.’’;
(3) in paragraph (4), by striking subparagraph
(B); and
(4) by adding at the end the following new para-
graph:
‘‘(7)(A) Any corporation or labor organization (or sep-
arate segregated fund established by such a corporation or
such a labor organization) making solicitations of contribu-
tions shall make such solicitations in a manner that ensures
that the corporation, organization, or fund cannot deter-
mine who makes a contribution of $100 or less as a result
of such solicitation and who does not make such a contribu-
tion.
‘‘(B) Subparagraph (A) shall not apply with respect
to any solicitation of contributions of a corporation from
its stockholders.’’.
(m) GREATER PROTECTION AGAINST FORCE AND RE-
PRISALS.—Section 316(b)(3) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441b(b)(3)), is amended—
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through
(C) as subparagraphs (B) through (D); and
(2) by inserting before subparagraph (B) (as so
redesignated) the following new subparagraph:
‘‘(A) for such a fund to cause another person to
make a contribution or expenditure by physical force,
job discrimination, financial reprisals, or the threat
of force, job discrimination, or financial reprisal;’’.
(n) REQUIRING COMPLAINANT TO PROVIDE NOTICE TO
RESPONDENTS.—Section 309(a)(1) of the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437g(a)(1)) is amended
by striking the third sentence and inserting the following:
‘‘The complaint shall include the names and addresses of
persons alleged to have committed such a violation. Within
5 days after receipt of the complaint, the Commission shall
provide written notice of the complaint together with a copy
of the complaint to each person described in the previous
sentence, except that if the Commission determines that it
is not necessary for a person described in the previous sen-
tence to receive a copy of the complaint, the Commission
shall provide the person with written notice that the com-
plaint has been filed, together with written instructions on
how to obtain a copy of the complaint without charge from
the Commission.’’.
(o) STANDARD FORM FOR COMPLAINTS; STRONGER
DISCLAIMER LANGUAGE.—
(1) STANDARD FORM.—Section 309(a)(1) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.
437g(a)(1)) is amended by inserting after ‘‘shall be
notarized,’’ the following: ‘‘shall be in a standard
form prescribed by the Commission, shall not include
(but may refer to) extraneous materials,’’.
(2) DISCLAIMER LANGUAGE.—Section 309(a)(1)
of such Act (2 U.S.C. 437g(a)(1)) is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘(a)(1)’’ and inserting
‘‘(a)(1)(A)’’; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new
subparagraph:
‘‘(B) The written notice of a complaint provided by
the Commission under subparagraph (A) to a person alleged
to have committed a violation referred to in the complaint
shall include a cover letter (in a form prescribed by the
Commission) and the following statement: ‘The enclosed
complaint has been filed against you with the Federal Elec-
tion Commission. The Commission has not verified or given
official sanction to the complaint. The Commission will
make no decision to pursue the complaint for a period of
at least 15 days from your receipt of this complaint. You
may, if you wish, submit a written statement to the Com-
mission explaining why the Commission should take no ac-
tion against you based on this complaint. If the Commis-
sion should decide to investigate, you will be notified and
be given further opportunity to respond.’ ’’.
(p) BANNING ACCEPTANCE OF CASH CONTRIBUTIONS
GREATER THAN $100.—Section 315 of the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a), as amended by sec-
tions 101, 103(a)(1), and 202, is further amended by add-
ing at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(l) No candidate or political committee may accept
any contributions of currency of the United States or cur-
rency of any foreign country from any person which, in
the aggregate, exceed $100.’’.
(q) APPOINTMENT AND SERVICE OF STAFF DIRECTOR
AND GENERAL COUNSEL OF COMMISSION.—
(1) APPOINTMENT; LENGTH OF TERM OF SERV-
ICE.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The first sentence of sec-
tion 306(f)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437c(f)(1)) is amended by
striking ‘‘by the Commission’’ and inserting the
following: ‘‘by an affirmative vote of not less
than 4 members of the Commission and may not
serve for a term of more than 4 consecutive years
without reappointment in accordance with this
paragraph’’.
(B) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—The amendment
made by subparagraph (A) shall apply with re-
spect to any individual serving as the staff direc-
tor or general counsel of the Federal Election
Commission on or after January 1, 1997, with-
out regard to whether or not the individual
served as staff director or general counsel prior
to such date.
(2) TREATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS FILLING VACAN-
CIES; TERMINATION OF AUTHORITY UPON EXPIRATION
OF TERM.—Section 306(f)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C.
437c(f)(1)) is amended by inserting after the first sen-
tence the following new sentences: ‘‘An individual ap-
pointed as a staff director or general counsel to fill
a vacancy occurring other than by the expiration of
a term of office shall be appointed only for the
unexpired term of the individual he or she succeeds.
An individual serving as staff director or general
counsel may not serve in any capacity on behalf of
the Commission after the expiration of the individ-
ual’s term unless reappointed in accordance with this
paragraph.’’.
(3) APPOINTMENT OF ADDITIONAL STAFF.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The last sentence of sec-
tion 306(f)(1) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 437c(f)(1))
is amended by inserting ‘‘not less than 4 mem-
bers of’’ after ‘‘approval of’’.
(B) EFFECTIVE
DATE.—The amendment
made by subparagraph (A) shall apply with re-
spect to personnel appointed on or after January
1, 1997.
(r) ENCOURAGING CITIZEN GRASSROOTS ACTIVITY ON
BEHALF OF FEDERAL CANDIDATES.—
(1) EXEMPTION OF INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTIONS
UNDER $100.—Section 301(8)(B) of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(8)(B)), as
amended by section 205(a), is further amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(xiv);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (xv) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xvi) any payment of funds on behalf of a can-
didate (whether in cash or in kind, but not including
a direct payment of cash to a candidate or a political
committee of the candidate) by an individual from
the individual’s personal funds which in the aggregate
does not exceed $100, if the funds are used for activi-
ties carried out by the individual or a member of the
individual’s family.’’.
(2) EXEMPTION OF INDIVIDUAL EXPENDITURES
UNDER $100.—Section 301(9)(B) of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(9)(B)), as
amended by section 205(b), is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(x);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (xi) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xii) any payment of funds on behalf of a can-
didate (whether in cash or in kind, but not including
a direct payment of cash to a candidate or a political
committee of the candidate) by an individual from
the individual’s personal funds which in the aggregate
does not exceed $100, if the funds are used for activi-
ties carried out by the individual or a member of the
individual’s family.’’.
(s) PERMITTING PARTNERSHIPS TO SOLICIT CON-
TRIBUTIONS AND PAY ADMINISTRATIVE COSTS OF POLITI-
CAL COMMITTEES IN SAME MANNER AS CORPORATIONS AND
LABOR UNIONS.—
(1) TREATMENT
OF
CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section
301(8)(B) of the Federal Election Campaign Act (2
U.S.C. 431(8)(B)), as amended by section 205(a) and
subsection (r)(1), is amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(xv);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (xvi) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xvii) any payment made or obligation in-
curred by a partnership in the establishment and
maintenance of a political committee, the administra-
tion of such a political committee, or the solicitation
of contributions to such committee.’’.
(2) TREATMENT
OF
EXPENDITURES.—Section
301(9)(B) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 431(9)(B)), as
amended by section 205(b) and subsection (r)(2), is
amended—
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause
(xi);
(B) by striking the period at the end of
clause (xii) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new
clause:
‘‘(xiii) any payment made or obligation incurred
by a partnership in the establishment and mainte-
nance of a political committee, the administration of
such a political committee, or the solicitation of con-
tributions to such committee.’’.
TITLE IV—GENERAL PROVISIONS
SEC. 401. EFFECTIVE DATE.
Except as otherwise specifically provided, this Act and
the amendments made by this Act shall take effect January
1, 1997.
SEC. 402. SEVERABILITY.
If any provision of this Act or any amendment made
by this Act, or the application thereof to any person or cir-
cumstance, is held invalid, the validity of the remainder
of the Act and the application of such provision to other
persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
SEC. 403. EXPEDITED COURT REVIEW.
(a) RIGHT TO BRING ACTION.—The Federal Election
Commission, a political committee under title III of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, or any individual
eligible to vote in any election for the office of President
of the United States may institute an action in an appro-
priate district court of the United States (including an ac-
tion for declaratory judgment) as may be appropriate to
construe the constitutionality of any provision of this Act
or any amendment made by this Act.
(b) HEARING BY THREE-JUDGE COURT.—Upon the
institution of an action described in subsection (a), a dis-
trict court of three judges shall immediately be convened
to decide the action pursuant to section 2284 of title 28,
United States Code. Such action shall be advanced on the
docket and expedited to the greatest extent possible.
(c) APPEAL
OF INITIAL DECISION
TO SUPREME
COURT.—An appeal may be taken directly to the Supreme
Court of the United States from any interlocutory order or
final judgment, decree, or order issued by the court of 3
judges convened pursuant to subsection (b) in an action de-
scribed in subsection (a). Such appeal shall be brought not
later than 20 days after the issuance by the court of the
judgment, decree, or order.
(d) EXPEDITED REVIEW BY SUPREME COURT.—The
Supreme Court shall accept jurisdiction over, advance on
the docket, and expedite to the greatest extent possible an
appeal taken pursuant to subsection (c).