Summary of The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act

Political Party Soft Money

National Party Committees:

National party soft money is prohibited. The national parties and their affiliates may only raise and spend money subject to federal contribution limits and source restrictions ("hard" money), no matter how the money is spent.

State and Local Parties:

State, district, and local party committees must fund "Federal Election Activities" with money subject to federal contribution limits. Federal Election Activities are defined to include:

• Voter registration activity within 120 days of the election (whether candidate-specific or generic);
• Voter identification, get-out-the-vote (GOTV) activity, or generic campaign activity conducted in connection with federal election (whether candidate-specific or generic);
• Communications naming a Federal candidate that promote or attack the candidate (as opposed, for example,to sample ballots).

"Federal Election Activity" does not include:

• Communications naming state candidates with no federal candidates;
• contributions to state candidates;
• state/local political conventions, state candidate grassroots materials;
• state/local party office construction/purchase costs.

Levin Amendment Exception - Voter Registration and GOTV may be funded with soft money, limited to $10,000 per source, if such contributions are allowed under state law. Contributors may include corporations and labor unions, if state law permits. Money raised under this exception must meet the following conditions:

• Federal officeholders, candidates, national parties and their agents may not raise "Levin Amendment" funds;
• The funds cannot be used for federal-candidate-specific or generic advertising;
• All receipts and disbursements must be disclosed;
• Party committees are prohibited from jointly raising these funds;
• A state party committee cannot raise the money for use in other states;
• The funds cannot be transferred between party committees; and
• The soft money must be matched by hard money under FEC allocation rules.

Non-Party Electioneering

An "electioneering communication" is a broadcast, cable, or satellite communication that refers to a clearly identified candidate within 60 days of a general election or 30 days of a primary, and that is "targeted." A communication is targeted if it can be received by 50,000 or more persons in the district or state where the election is being held. Subsequent FEC regulation said this provision was limited to paid advertising.

Corporations and unions are prohibited from directly or indirectly making or financing electioneering communications, although they may still form a registered political action committee (PAC), funded with voluntary, limited, individual contributions ("hard money"), for election communication. The corporate restriction extends to nonprofit corporations and to incorporated political committees (other than PACs, parties and candidates,) as defined by section "527" of the tax code. Subsequent FEC regulation exempted nonprofit charities [501(c)(3)s] which are prohibited from political activity under tax law.

Entities making electioneering communications (individuals and unincorporated associations) must file a disclosure report within 24 hours, once an aggregate of $10,000 is spent, and thereafter each time an additional $10,000 is spent. Disclosure includes the identity of the spender, all persons sharing control over the communication(s), and all donors giving $1,000 or more.

Federal Election Activity: Federal officeholders, candidates, national parties and their agents (as well as entities directly or indirectly establishe financed, maintained or controlled by, or acting on behalf of, federal candidates or officials) may not solicit, receive, direct, transfer, or spend any soft money in connection with a federal election, with a limited exception for nonprofit corporations described below. This includes "Levin Amendment" funds for registration and GOTV.

Any solicitation by federal officials or candidates in connection with a state or local election (e.g. for state or local candidates or parties) must be limited to money consistent with federal contribution and source limitations.

Appearances at State Party Events:

Federal officials, candidates,etc., may appear at, and be a featured guest or speaker, at a state party event at which the party raises soft money for its purposes. Although the law says the candidate may not solicit money at these events, the FEC said in its subsequent regulations that it would not police formal speeches or informal conversations at such events. Nothing in the law prohibits state party officials from soliciting money at an event at which a federal official speaks.

• Federal officials and candidates may solicit funds without limit for the general treasury of any tax-exempt organization described in section 501 (c) of the tax code as long as the principal purpose of the organization is not to conduct certain specified federal election activities.
• Amounts and sources are limited if the contributions are earmarked for registration or GOTV, but not if they are contributions for general funds and the organizations uses some of its general funds for political activity.
• National Parties may not contribute to or solicit money for nonprofit corporations or "527" political committees.

Contribution Limits

• To a candidate: Increased from $1000 per election (primary, general, runoff) to $2000 and indexed for inflation.
• To a single national party committee: increased from $20,000 per year to $25,000, within the aggregate limits below.
• To a state or local party committee: Changed from $5,000 for a state party's federal account (with no limit for nonfederal account) to $10,000 for each state, local or district committee that engages in federal activities, within the aggregate limits below.

Transfer, or spend any soft money in connection with a federal election,with a limited exception for nonprofit corporations described below. This includes "Levin Amendment" funds for registration and GOTV.

State or Local Election Activity: Any solicitation by federal officials or candidates in connection with a state or local election (e.g. for state or local candidates or parties) must be limited to money consistent with federal contribution and source limitations.

Appearances at State Party Events: Federal officials, candidates, etc., may appear at, and be a featured guest or speaker, at a state party event at which the party raises soft money for its purposes. Although the law says the candidate may not solicit money at these events, the FEC said in its subsequent regulations that it would not police formal speeches or informal conversations at such events. Nothing in the law prohibits state party officials from soliciting money at an event at which a federal official speaks.

Fundraising for Non-Profits:

• Federal officials and candidates may solicit funds without limit for the general treasury of any tax-exempt organization described in section 501 (c) of the tax code as long as the principal purpose of the organization is not to conduct certain specified federal election activities.
• Amounts and sources are limited if the contributions are earmarked for registration or GOTV, but not if they are contributions for general funds and the organizations uses some of its general funds for political activity.
• National Parties may not contribute to or solicit money for nonprofit corporations or "527" political committees.

Contribution Limits

Individuals

• To a candidate: Increased from $1000 per election (primary, general, runoff) to $2000 and indexed for inflation.
• To a single national party committee: increased from $20,000 per year to $25,000, within the aggregate limits below.
• To a state or local party committee: Changed from $5,000 for a state party's federal account (with no limit for nonfederal account) to $10,000 for each state, local or district committee that engages in federal activities, within the aggregate limits below.
• To a PAC: $5,000 (no change). Also no change in the limit of $5,000 per election for a contribution by a PAC to candidate. PAC limits are not indexed.
• Aggregate Limit: Increases the maximum an individual can given, in combined contributions, from 25,000 per year ($50,000 for two years), with no sub-limits, to $97,500 for two years with the following sub-limits:
• $37,500 to candidates.
• $57,500 to all PAC and party committees combined.
• The remainder to party committees. (All $57,500 may go to parties if nothing is given to PACs.)
• Indexing: Limits on individual contributions to candidates and parties and individual aggregate limits are indexed for inflation, as are the limits on coordinated party support for a candidate.
• Millionaire Opponent Provision (Variable Contribution Limit): Increases contribution limits for congressional candidates facing self-financed candidates. These go up on a sliding scale, depending upon the amount of self-financing, with qualifying thresholds and maximum contributions differing for the House and Senate. At its highest, the maximum contribution to Senate candidates may be increased six-fold, and the limits on party support for the candidate are removed. Increased contributions triggered by this provision do not count against a donor's aggregate limits.
• Self-financed candidates are also prohibited, after any given Election Day, from repaying outstanding loans the candidates make to their own campaigns in excess of $250,000.

Coordination

Coordinated spending as a contribution: Any expenditure made by a person other than a candidate or party will count as a contribution if it is coordinated with the candidate or party. Coordination is defined as a payment made in cooperation with, at the request or suggestion of, a candidate, candidate's agent or campaign, or party. This reiterates previous statute law. Congress also told the FEC to discard its current regulations and write new ones that do not require agreement or formal collaboration to establish coordination. The FEC's subsequent regulations covered all election-related communications disseminated within 120 days of an election if the person making the communication meets any one of a series of conduct standards, including sharing of a common vendor who makes use of material information about a campaign.

Source: Campaign Finance Institute. This summary was published previously in M. Malbin, ed. Life After Reform (2003)