[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2109 Engrossed in House (EH)]


  2d Session

                               H. R. 2109

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require reports 
  filed under such Act to be filed electronically and to require the 
   Federal Election Commission to make such reports available to the 
                   public within 24 hours of receipt.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 2109

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to require reports 
  filed under such Act to be filed electronically and to require the 
   Federal Election Commission to make such reports available to the 
                   public within 24 hours of receipt.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Campaign Finance Sunshine Act of 
1998''.

SEC. 2. FILING OF REPORTS USING COMPUTERS AND FACSIMILE MACHINES.

    Section 302(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 
U.S.C. 434(a)) is amended by striking paragraph (11) and inserting the 
following:
            ``(11)(A) The Commission shall promulgate a regulation 
        under which a person required to file a designation, statement, 
        or report under this Act--
                    ``(i) is required to maintain and file a 
                designation, statement, or report for any calendar year 
                in electronic form accessible by computers if the 
                person has, or has reason to expect to have, aggregate 
                contributions or expenditures in excess of a threshold 
                amount determined by the Commission; and
                    ``(ii) may maintain and file a designation, 
                statement, or report in electronic form or an 
                alternative form, including the use of a facsimile 
                machine, if not required to do so under the regulation 
                promulgated under clause (i).
            ``(B) The Commission shall make a designation, statement, 
        report, or notification that is filed electronically with the 
        Commission accessible to the public on the Internet not later 
        than 24 hours after the designation, statement, report, or 
        notification is received by the Commission.
            ``(C) In promulgating a regulation under this paragraph, 
        the Commission shall provide methods (other than requiring a 
        signature on the document being filed) for verifying 
        designations, statements, and reports covered by the 
        regulation. Any document verified under any of the methods 
        shall be treated for all purposes (including penalties for 
        perjury) in the same manner as a document verified by 
        signature.''.

SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this Act shall apply with respect to reports 
for periods beginning on or after January 1, 2000.

            Passed the House of Representatives October 9 (legislative 
      day, October 8), 1998.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.