I
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 32
To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to expand the types
of information on campaign spending required to be reported to the
Federal Election Commission, to transfer responsibility for the enforce-
ment of Federal laws governing the financing of campaigns for election
for Federal office from the Commission to the Attorney General, and
for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 6, 1999
Mr. DREIER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Commit-
tee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on Ways
and Means, and the Judiciary, 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 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to
expand the types of information on campaign spending
required to be reported to the Federal Election Commis-
sion, to transfer responsibility for the enforcement of
Federal laws governing the financing of campaigns for
election for Federal office from the Commission to the
Attorney General, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the
‘‘Voter Empowerment Act of 1999’’.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of
this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I—PROMOTING DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION ON
CAMPAIGN SPENDING
Sec. 101. Disclosure of certain expenditures for issue advocacy.
Sec. 102. Disclosure of certain permissible activities by labor organizations and
corporations.
Sec. 103. Disclosure by State and local political parties of information reported
under State law.
Sec. 104. Mandatory electronic filing and preservation of Federal Election
Commission reports.
Sec. 105. Timing for reporting.
Sec. 106. Waiver of ‘‘best efforts’’ exception for information on identification
of contributors.
Sec. 107. Disclosure of certain non-Federal financial activities of national polit-
ical parties.
TITLE II—ENCOURAGING PARTICIPATION IN CAMPAIGNS
Sec. 201. Indexing limits on contributions.
Sec. 202. Permitting corporate members of trade association to approve solici-
tations by more than one trade association.
Sec. 203. Tax credits for contributions by individuals.
TITLE III—REFORM OF FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION
Subtitle A—Enforcement of Federal Campaign Laws by Attorney General
Sec. 301. Enforcement by Attorney General.
Sec. 302. Termination of FEC enforcement authority.
Sec. 303. Reduction in number of members.
Subtitle B—Facilitating Dissemination of Information
Sec. 311. Index of advisory opinions.
Sec. 312. Written responses to questions.
Sec. 313. Publication of names of candidates accepting prohibited contribu-
tions.
TITLE IV—TERMINATION OF PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
CAMPAIGN FUND
Sec. 401. Termination of taxpayer financing of presidential election campaigns.
TITLE 
I—PROMOTING 
DISCLO-
SURE OF INFORMATION ON
CAMPAIGN SPENDING
SEC. 101. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN EXPENDITURES FOR
ISSUE ADVOCACY.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434) is amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(d)(1) Each person who makes a payment in an
amount equal to or greater than $100,000 for a commu-
nication containing issue advocacy shall submit a state-
ment to the Commission (not later than 24 hours after
making the payment) describing the amount spent, the
type of communication involved, and the market or area
in which the communication was disseminated.
‘‘(2) In this subsection, a communication containing
issue advocacy is any communication which uses the name
or likeness of an individual holding Federal office or a can-
didate for election for Federal officer, mentions a national
political party, or uses the terms ‘the President’ or ‘Con-
gress’ in reference to an individual holding Federal office,
except that this subsection shall not apply with respect
to any payment which would be described in clause (i),
(iii), or (v) of section 301(9)(B) if the payment were an
expenditure under such section.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to payments made
on or after January 2001.
SEC. 102. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN PERMISSIBLE ACTIVI-
TIES BY LABOR ORGANIZATIONS AND COR-
PORATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434), as amended
by section 101(a), is further amended by adding at the
end the following new subsection:
‘‘(e)(1) Each corporation, national bank, or labor or-
ganization who makes aggregate payments during a year
in an amount equal to or greater than $5,000 for any ac-
tivity described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section
316(a)(2) shall submit a statement to the Commission
(not later than 24 hours after making the payments) de-
scribing the amount spent and the activity involved.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to payments made
on or after January 1, 2001.
SEC. 103. DISCLOSURE BY STATE AND LOCAL POLITICAL
PARTIES 
OF 
INFORMATION 
REPORTED
UNDER STATE LAW.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434), as amended
by section 101(a) and section 102(a), is further amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(f) If a political committee of a State or local politi-
cal party is required under a State or local law, rule, or
regulation to submit a report on its disbursements to an
entity of the State or local government, the committee
shall file a copy of the report with the Commission at the
time it submits the report to such an entity.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to reports submit-
ted on or after January 1, 2001.
SEC. 104. MANDATORY ELECTRONIC FILING AND PRESER-
VATION OF FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION
REPORTS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection 304(a)(11)(A) of the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.
434(a)(11)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘permit reports re-
quired by’’ and inserting ‘‘require reports under’’.
(b) INCREASING ELECTRONIC DISCLOSURE.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of such Act (2
U.S.C. 434), as amended by section 101(a), section
102(a), and section 103(a), is further amended by
adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(g)(1) The Commission shall make the information
contained in the reports submitted under this section
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.
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘Internet’ means the
international computer network of both Federal and non-
Federal interoperable packet-switched data networks.’’.
(2) PERMITTING
WAIVER
OF
ACQUISITION
RULES
TO
EXPEDITE
ELECTRONIC
ACCESS.—Not-
withstanding any other provision of law, the Federal
Election Commission may waive any of the following
provisions of Federal acquisition law to the extent
the Commission determines necessary to make the
information contained in reports submitted to the
Commission available on the Internet upon the expi-
ration of the 1-year period which begins on the date
of the enactment of this Act:
(A) Title III of the Federal Property and
Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C.
252–266).
(B) The Office of Federal Procurement
Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 401 et seq.).
(C) The Clinger-Cohen Act of 1996 (divi-
sions D and E of Public Law 104–106).
(D) The Federal Acquisition Streamlining
Act of 1994 (Public Law 103–355).
(E) The Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
631 et seq.), except that all reasonable opportu-
nities to be awarded contracts shall be provided
to small business concerns and small business
concerns owned and controlled by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals.
(F) Subchapter V of chapter 35 of title 31,
relating to the procurement protest system.
(G) The Federal Acquisition Regulation
and any laws not listed in (A) through (F) of
this section providing authority to promulgate
regulations in the Federal Acquisition Regula-
tion.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to reports for periods
beginning after the expiration of the 1-year period which
begins on the date of the enactment of this Act. During
that period, the Federal Election Commission shall submit
regular reports to Committee on Rules of Administration
of the Senate and the Committee on House Oversight of
the House of Representatives describing the progress
made by the Commission in its ability to accept reports
filed electronically and to make the information contained
in such reports available on the Internet.
SEC. 105. TIMING FOR REPORTING.
(a) DEADLINE FOR FILING.—
(1) REQUIRING REPORTS FOR ALL CONTRIBU-
TIONS MADE WITHIN 60 DAYS OF ELECTION; RE-
QUIRING
REPORTS
TO
BE
MADE
WITHIN
HOURS.—Section 304(a)(6)(A) of the Federal Elec-
tion 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
inserting ‘‘during the period which begins on
the 60th 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)) is amended by
adding at the end the following new subpara-
graph:
‘‘(C) 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 re-
cipient 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) REQUIRING RECEIPT OF INDEPENDENT EXPEND-
ITURE 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
following 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 Com-
mission, or any other recipient to whom the no-
tification is required to be sent shall be consid-
ered the time of filing of the statement with the
recipient.’’.
(2) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section
304(a)(5) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(5)), as
amended by subsection (a)(2)(B), is further amend-
ed by striking ‘‘or (6)’’ and inserting ‘‘or (6), or
subsection (c)(2)’’.
(c) REQUIRING RECORDKEEPING 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 pro-
vide goods or services to the candidate or the can-
didate’s authorized committees, the name and ad-
dress of such other persons, together with the date,
amount, and purpose of such expenditures;’’.
(2) RECORDKEEPING.—Section 302 of such Act
(2 U.S.C. 432) is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
‘‘(j) 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 com-
mittee to report the information described in such sec-
tion.’’.
(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.
(d) INCLUDING REPORT ON CUMULATIVE CONTRIBU-
TIONS
AND EXPENDITURES
IN POST ELECTION RE-
PORTS.—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 statement of the total contributions received and expend-
itures made as of the date of the election.’’.
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply with respect to elections occurring
after January 2001.
SEC. 106. WAIVER OF ‘‘BEST EFFORTS’’ EXCEPTION FOR IN-
FORMATION ON IDENTIFICATION OF CON-
TRIBUTORS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302(i) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 432(i)) is
amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘(i) When the treasurer’’ and
inserting ‘‘(i)(1) Except as provided in paragraph
(2), when the treasurer’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply with respect to
information regarding the identification of any person who
makes a contribution or contributions aggregating more
than $200 during a calendar year (as required to be pro-
vided under subsection (c)(3)).’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to persons making
contributions for elections occurring after January 2001.
SEC. 107. DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN NON-FEDERAL FINAN-
CIAL ACTIVITIES OF NATIONAL POLITICAL
PARTIES.
Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act
of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434), as amended by section 101(a),
section 102(a), section 103(a), and section 104(b)(1), is
further amended—
(1) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub-
section (h); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (f) the follow-
ing new subsection:
‘‘(g)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
title, any person who provides any funds to a political com-
mittee of a national political party in an aggregate amount
of not less than $250,000 during a calendar year shall
file a statement with the Commission in accordance with
subsection (a)(2) and shall include in the statement all
information which would be required to be provided under
this section if the entire amount provided were treated as
a contribution for purposes of the limitations, prohibitions,
and reporting requirements of this title.
‘‘(2) Notwithstanding any other provision of this title,
each political committee of a national political party shall
include in the statements filed with the Commission under
this section information on all disbursements made by the
committee in an aggregate amount of not less than
$250,000 during a calendar year, without regard to
whether any portion of the disbursements are otherwise
treated as expenditures for purposes of the limitations,
prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this title.’’.
TITLE II—ENCOURAGING
PARTICIPATION IN CAMPAIGNS
SEC. 201. INDEXING LIMITS ON CONTRIBUTIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(c) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(c)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new para-
graph:
‘‘(3)(A) The amount of each limitation established
under subsection (a) shall be adjusted as follows:
‘‘(i) For calendar year 2001, each such amount
shall be equal to the amount described in such sub-
section, increased (in a compounded manner) by the
percentage increase in the price index (as defined in
subsection (c)(2)) for each year after 1976 and be-
fore 2001.
‘‘(ii) For calendar year 2003 and each second
subsequent year, each such amount shall be equal to
the amount for the second previous year (as ad-
justed under this subparagraph), increased (in a
compounded manner) by the percentage increase in
the price index for the previous year and the second
previous year.
‘‘(B) In the case of any amount adjusted under this
subparagraph which is not a multiple of $500, the amount
shall be rounded to the nearest highest multiple of $500.’’.
(b) APPLICATION
OF INDEXING
TO SUPPORT
OF
CANDIDATE’S
COMMITTEES.—Section 302(e)(3)(B) of
such Act (2 U.S.C. 432(e)(3)(B)) is amended by adding
at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The amount de-
scribed in the previous sentence shall be adjusted (for
years beginning with 2001) in the same manner as the
amounts of limitations on contributions under section
315(a) are adjusted under section 315(c)(3).’’.
SEC. 202. PERMITTING CORPORATE MEMBERS OF TRADE
ASSOCIATION TO APPROVE SOLICITATIONS
BY MORE THAN ONE TRADE ASSOCIATION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 316(b)(4)(D) of the Fed-
eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C.
441b(b)(4)(D)) is amended by striking ‘‘, and such mem-
ber corporation’’ and all that follows and inserting a pe-
riod.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections occur-
ring after January 2001.
SEC. 203. TAX CREDITS FOR CONTRIBUTIONS BY INDIVID-
UALS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart A of part IV of sub-
chapter A of chapter 1 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986 (relating to nonrefundable personal credits) is
amended by inserting after section 25A the following new
section:
‘‘SEC. 25B. POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS.
‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—In the case of an individual,
there shall be allowed as a credit against the tax imposed
by this chapter for the taxable year an amount equal to
one-half of all political contributions payment of which is
made by the taxpayer within the taxable year.
‘‘(b) LIMITATIONS.—
‘‘(1) AMOUNT OF CREDIT.—The credit allowed
by subsection (a) for a taxable year shall not exceed
$200 ($400 in the case of a joint return).
‘‘(2) VERIFICATION.—The credit allowed by
subsection (a) shall be allowed, with respect to any
political contribution, only if such contribution is
verified in such manner as the Secretary shall pre-
scribe by regulations.
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section—
‘‘(1) FEDERAL
CANDIDATE.—The term ‘Fed-
eral candidate’ means, with respect to any Federal
elective public office, an individual who—
‘‘(A) publicly announces before the close of
the calendar year following the calendar year in
which the contribution or gift is made that he
is a candidate for nomination or election to
such office, and
‘‘(B) meets the qualifications prescribed by
law to hold such office.
‘‘(2) POLITICAL
CONTRIBUTION.—The term
‘political contribution’ means a contribution or gift
of money to—
‘‘(i) an individual who is a Federal
candidate for use by such individual to fur-
ther the candidacy of such individual for
nomination or election to such office,
‘‘(ii) any committee, association, or
organization (whether or not incorporated)
organized and operated exclusively for the
purposes of influencing, or attempting to
influence, the nomination or election of one
or more individuals who are Federal can-
didates, for use by such committee, asso-
ciation, or organization to further the can-
didacy of such individual or individuals for
nomination or election to such office, or
‘‘(iii) the national committee of a na-
tional political party, the State committee
of such a party (as designated by such na-
tional committee), or a local committee of
such a party (as designated by such State
committee).
‘‘(3) NATIONAL POLITICAL PARTY.—The term
‘national political party’ means—
‘‘(A) in the case of contributions made
during a taxable year of the taxpayer in which
the electors of President and Vice President are
chosen, a political party presenting Federal can-
didates or electors for such offices on the offi-
cial election ballots of 10 or more States, and
‘‘(B) in the case of contributions made
during any other taxable year of the taxpayer,
a political party which met the qualifications
described in subparagraph (A) in the last pre-
ceding election of a President or Vice President.
‘‘(e) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.—In the case of any
taxable year beginning in a calendar year after 2002, the
$200 and $400 amounts in subsection (b)(1) shall each
be increased by an amount equal to—
‘‘(1) such dollar amount, multiplied by
‘‘(2) the cost-of-living adjustment under section
1(f)(3) for the calendar year in which the taxable
year begins, determined by substituting ‘calendar
year 2001’ for ‘calendar year 1992’ in subparagraph
(B) thereof.
If any amount as adjusted under the preceding sentence
is not a multiple of $10, such amount shall be rounded
to the nearest multiple of $10.
‘‘(f) CROSS REFERENCES.—
‘‘For transfer of appreciated property to a politi-
cal organization, see section 84.
‘‘For certain indirect contributions to political
parties, see section 276.’’
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections
for subpart A of part IV of subchapter A of chapter 1
of such Code is amended by inserting after the item relat-
ing to section 25A the following new item:
‘‘Sec. 245B. Political contributions.’’
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall apply to contributions made after Janu-
ary 1, 2001.
TITLE III—REFORM OF FEDERAL
ELECTION COMMISSION
Subtitle A—Enforcement of Federal
Campaign Laws by Attorney
General
SEC. 301. ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.
(a) TRANSFER OF AUTHORITY TO ATTORNEY GEN-
ERAL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall
establish an office within the Department of Justice
to enforce the provisions of title III of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 and chapter 95 and
96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 by inves-
tigating complaints, initiating civil or criminal ac-
tions for injunctive, declaratory, or other appropriate
relief, and taking such other measures as the Attor-
ney General considers appropriate consistent with
this section.
(2) ASSESSMENT OF COSTS AGAINST ATTORNEY
GENERAL FOR CERTAIN UNSUCCESSFUL APPEALS.—
If the Attorney General appeals a decision by a
court in an action brought by the office established
under paragraph (1) and the appeal is denied (in
whole or in part) on the basis of the first amend-
ment to the Constitution of the United States, the
court shall require the Attorney General to reim-
burse the opposing party for the costs incurred by
the party (including reasonable attorney’s fees) in
responding to the appeal.
(b) REVIEW OF PROPOSED REGULATIONS OF COM-
MISSION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, no rule or regulation proposed by
the Federal Election Commission after the expira-
tion of the period described in subsection (c) may
take effect unless the Attorney General certifies that
the regulation is consistent with the Constitution
and applicable statutes.
(2) DEEMED APPROVAL AFTER 90 DAYS.—The
Attorney General shall be deemed to have certified
a rule or regulation under this subsection if the At-
torney General does not reject the rule or regulation
during the 90-day period which begins on the date
the Federal Election Commission submits the rule or
regulation to the Attorney General for review under
this subsection.
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with
respect to any complaint that a person has violated the
provisions of title III of the Federal Election Campaign
Act of 1971 and chapter 95 and 96 of the Internal Reve-
nue Code of 1986 which is filed pursuant to this section
or pending under title III of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 after the expiration of the 90-day pe-
riod which begins on the date the Attorney General cer-
tifies to the President and Congress that the Attorney
General has established the office referred to in subsection
(a).
SEC. 302. TERMINATION OF FEC ENFORCEMENT AUTHOR-
ITY.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended
by striking section 309.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—(1) Section 306 of
such Act (2 U.S.C. 437c) is amended—
(A) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘shall ad-
minister,’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol-
lowing: ‘‘shall administer and formulate policy with
respect to, this Act and chapter 95 and chapter 96
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954.’’;
(B) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘(6),’’; and
(C) by striking subsection (f)(4).
(2) Section 307 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 437d) is
amended—
(A) by striking subsection (a)(6);
(B) in subsection (a)(9), by striking ‘‘to con-
duct investigations and hearings expeditiously,’’; and
(C) by striking subsection (e).
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by
this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the
period described in section 301(c).
SEC. 303. REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 306(a) of the Federal
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437c(a)) is
amended by adding at the end the following new para-
graph:
‘‘(6)(A) Notwithstanding paragraph (1) and (2)(A),
effective 90 days after the Attorney General certifies to
the President and Congress pursuant to section 301(c) of
the Voter Empowerment Act of 1999 that an office has
been established in the Department of Justice to enforce
the provisions of this title and chapter 95 and 96 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the Commission shall con-
sist of 2 members appointed by the President by and with
the advice and consent of the Senate. The members shall
not be affiliated with the same political party.
‘‘(B) Members of the Commission shall serve for
terms of 6 years, except that one of the first 2 members
appointed pursuant to this paragraph shall serve for a
term of 3 years. No individual appointed as a member pur-
suant to this paragraph may serve for more than 2 terms.
‘‘(C) The term of any member serving as of the date
referred to in subparagraph (A) shall expire upon the ap-
pointment of the 2 members under this paragraph.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The second sen-
tence of section 306(c) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 437c(c)) is
amended by inserting after ‘‘except that’’ the following:
‘‘(with respect to actions taken prior to the appointment
of members under subsection (a)(6))’’.
Subtitle B—Facilitating
Dissemination of Information
SEC. 311. INDEX OF ADVISORY OPINIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 308 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 437f) is amended
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
‘‘(e)(1) The Commission shall compile, publish, and
regularly update a complete and detailed index of the advi-
sory opinions issued under this section through which
opinions may be found on the basis of the subjects in-
cluded in the opinions.
‘‘(2) The Commission shall make the index compiled,
published, and updated under this subsection available on
the Internet.
‘‘(3) Upon the establishment by the Attorney General
of an office within the Department of Justice to enforce
the provisions of this title and chapter 95 and 96 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 pursuant to section 301
of the Voter Empowerment Act of 1999, this subsection
shall apply only to the extent provided by the Attorney
General under the operations of such office.’’.
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The Federal Election Com-
mission shall first publish the index of advisory opinions
described in section 308(e) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (as added by subsection (a)) not later
than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 312. WRITTEN RESPONSES TO QUESTIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended
by inserting after section 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
application of this Act, chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, a rule or regulation pre-
scribed 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 Com-
mission finds the application of the Act, chapter, rule, reg-
ulation, 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
Commission shall analyze each request submitted
under this section. If the staff believes that the
standard described in subsection (a) is met with re-
spect to the request, the staff shall circulate a state-
ment to that effect together with a draft response to
the request to the members of the Commission.
‘‘(2) ISSUANCE OF RESPONSE.—Upon the expi-
ration 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 sub-
ject to any sanction provided by this Act or by chap-
ter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, or any sanction of the Attorney General
under the office established under section 301(a) of
the Voter Empowerment Act of 1999.
‘‘(2) NO RELIANCE BY OTHER PARTIES.—Any
written response issued by the Commission under
this section may only be relied upon by the person
involved in the specific transaction or activity with
respect 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 en-
forcement or regulatory purposes.
‘‘(d) 
PUBLICATION
OF
REQUESTS
AND
RE-
SPONSES.—The Commission shall make public any re-
quest for a written response made, and the responses
issued, under this section. 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 detailed index of the responses issued under this sec-
tion through which responses may be found on the basis
of the subjects included in the responses.