This morning the Supreme Court denied review in Danielczyk v. United States, a criminal case in which the defendants challenged the century-old federal ban on direct corporate contributions to candidates.  The district court had granted a motion to dismiss Count Four of the indictment, alleging that the defendants had…
Continue Reading Supreme Court Declines Review in Corporate Contributions Case

When is an independent expenditure-only committee, or Super PAC, truly independent of the candidate the Super PAC supports?  Surprisingly few courts in the post-Citizens United world have decided this question.  A recent Vermont Superior Court decision, however, provides a rare example of a court grappling with this issue.

The…
Continue Reading Courts Begin To Grapple With Challenges To Super PAC “Independence”

The top story in today’s campaign finance press is the Supreme Court’s decision to hear McCutcheon v. FEC, a challenge to the Federal Election Campaign Act’s biennial limits on individual contributions to candidate and non-candidate committees.  Here are a few key take-aways.

Timing.  The Court’s argument calendar is…
Continue Reading Supreme Court to Take Up Biennial Contribution Limits

It is about to become a little more challenging for companies to pay travel costs for House Members and staff.  Starting for trips on or after April 1, 2013, Members and employees of the House must submit pre-approval request forms to the House Ethics Committee at least 30 days prior…
Continue Reading Privately-Sponsored Travel For House Members and Staffers About To Get More Difficult

The FEC is often caricatured as either a “sleeping watch dog” or the “speech police.”  We decided to take a more balanced look at the agency’s work in 2012, to see if we could identify broader trends or decisions that were overlooked at the time, but which seem likely to…
Continue Reading 2012 FEC Year in Review

The Federal Election Commission increased the limits on the amount an individual can contribute to a candidate or national political party, as well as the overall limit on the amount an individual can give to all federal candidates and federal political committees in a two-year election cycle.

An individual can…
Continue Reading FEC Increases Individual Contribution Limits for 2013-2014

As has been widely reported, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recently made some rumblings about undertaking a rulemaking requiring corporations to disclose their funding and participation in political activities to shareholders.  The move has been heralded by corporate governance reform groups and decried by some from the business sector. …
Continue Reading SEC Rulemaking on Corporate Political Spending Disclosure

Corporations can engage in political activity.  But they must be careful how they do so; corporations still face restrictions, such as the prohibition on making contributions to federal candidates.  As we have seen, following a line of cases culminating in Citizens United, corporations may give unlimited sums to Super…
Continue Reading Straw Contributors and Corporate Contributions

Commissioner Cynthia Bauerly of the Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) announced to Commission staff today that she will be leaving the agency effective February 1.

What does this mean for business before the FEC?  As a practical matter, it is unlikely to have a significant impact on the FEC’s day-to-day business. …
Continue Reading FEC Commissioner Bauerly To Step Down

With Inauguration Day just under three weeks away, many corporations and individuals are being asked to participate in the festivities that will accompany the presidential swearing-in ceremony.  While less regulated than pre-election political activities, presidential inaugurations are nonetheless subject to a number of easily-overlooked rules.  Yesterday’s Covington E-Alert identifies three…
Continue Reading What To Watch Out For During Presidential Inauguration Festivities