Fair Elections Now Act

Bill: 110-s-1285
Sponsor: Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL]
Introduced: 2007-05-03 in the Senate
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Subjects: Administrative procedure
Auctions
Auditing
Campaign funds
Congress
Congressional elections
Congressional mail
Congressional reporting requirements
Economics and Public Finance
Election administration
Election candidates
Electronic data interchange
Executive reorganization
Expedited congressional procedure
Federal Election Commission
Finance and Financial Sector
Fines (Penalties)
Franking privilege
Government paperwork
Government trust funds
Governmental investigations
House rules and procedure
Judicial review
Law
Legislation
Licenses
Negative campaigning
Political action committees
Political advertising
Political parties
Primaries
Radio spectrum allocation
Radio stations
Science, Technology, Communications
Senate
Senate rules and procedure
Supreme Court
Taxation
Telecommunication rates
Television stations
User charges

Summary:
action_date: 2007-05-03
text: 
Fair Elections Now Act - Amends the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (FECA) with respect to: (1) eligibility and qualifying contribution requirements, seed money limits, and benefits of fair elections financing of Senate election campaigns; (2) establishment of a Senate Fair Elections Fund; (3) eligibility for Fund allocations as well as such allocations; (4) a seed money contribution requirement; (5) contribution and expenditure requirements; (6) certification of whether or not a federal election candidate is a participating candidate; (7) benefits for participating candidates; (8) payment of fair fight funds; (9) administration of the Senate Fair Elections System; (10) reporting requirements for nonparticipating candidates; (11) modification of electioneering communication reporting requirements; and (12) the limitation on coordinated expenditures by political party committees with participating candidates.
 
Amends the Communications Act of 1934 with respect to the deposit of proceeds from recovered spectrum auctions

Establishes the Fair Elections Review Commission. 
 
Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to: (1) entitle participating candidates to receive specified reduced broadcast rates in certain circumstances; and (2) provide for political advertisement vouchers for them.
 
Directs the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to charge non-public broadcast stations a spectrum use fee, which shall be deposited into the Senate Fair Elections Fund.
 
Amends federal postal law to prohibit franked mass mailings by Members of Congress (except public meeting notices) during the 90 days before primary and general election periods, unless they are not candidates for re-election.
 
Amends FECA to: (1) empower the FEC to petition the U.S. Supreme Court for a proceeding on certiorari; (2) revise requirements for filing with the FEC by Senate candidates; and (3) reduce from 48 to 24 hours the deadline for electronic filing with the FEC of reports by each political committee of contributions received within 90 days before an election.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2007-06-20
text: Committee on Rules and Administration. Hearings held.
action_date: 2007-05-03
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration. (text of measure as introduced:  CR S5571-5580)
action_date: 2007-05-03
text: Introduced in Senate