Opinion ID: 3171275
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Support Rationale

Text: The FEC was concerned that some individuals who contribute to a union or corporation’s general treasury may not support that entity’s electioneering communications, and a robust disclosure rule would thus mislead voters as to who really supports the communications. The agency explained, A corporation’s general treasury funds are often largely comprised of funds received from investors such as shareholders who have acquired stock in the corporation and customers who have purchased the corporation’s products or services, or in the case of a non-profit corporation, donations from persons who support the corporation’s mission. These investors, customers, and donors do not necessarily support the corporation’s electioneering communications. Likewise, the general treasury funds of labor organizations and incorporated membership organizations are composed of member dues obtained from individuals and other members who may not 20 necessarily support the organization's electioneering communications. 72 Fed. Reg. at 72911 (emphases added). It’s hard to escape the intuitive logic behind this rationale. Imagine the following not unlikely scenario. A Republican donates $5,000 to the American Cancer Society (ACS), eager to fund the ongoing search for a cure. Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress, aware of a growth in private donations to ACS, push for fewer federal grants to scientists studying cancer in order to reduce the deficit. In response to their push, the ACS runs targeted advertisements against those Republicans, leading to the defeat of several candidates in the upcoming election. Wouldn’t a rule requiring disclosure of ACS’s Republican donor, who did not support issue ads against her own party, convey some misinformation to the public about who supported the advertisements? Granted, as Van Hollen is quick to point out, the FEC’s assertions here were not corroborated with any hard evidence showing contributors who disagree with their chosen corporation’s electioneering communications. But these assertions “are, at the very least, speculation based firmly in common sense and economic reality.” Verizon v. FCC., 740 F.3d 623, 646 (D.C. Cir. 2014); see also San Luis Obispo Mothers for Peace v. NRC, 789 F.2d 26, 44 (D.C. Cir. 1986) (“[T]he Commission is not required to hold a hearing to prove what common sense shows.”). Here, the FEC’s assertion that some number of a corporation’s investors, a nonprofit’s donors, or a union’s members may generally support the entity but not its electioneering communications seems fairly intuitive, at least enough to pass State Farm’s “very deferential scope of review.” Transmission Access, 225 F.3d at 714. 21