[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 976 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 976

             To reform the financing of Federal elections.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 27, 1997

 Mr. Brownback introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
         referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
             To reform the financing of Federal elections.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Common Sense 
Campaign Reform Act of 1997''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
            TITLE I--REFORMS TO POLITICAL PARTY FUNDRAISING

Sec. 101. Soft money of political party committees.
Sec. 102. State party grassroots funds.
Sec. 103. Reporting requirements.
Sec. 104. Raising limits on contributions.
Sec. 105. Elimination of limit on coordinated spending.
      TITLE II--LIMITS ON FRANKING PRIVILEGE; PAYCHECK PROTECTIONS

Sec. 201. Limit on congressional use of the franking privilege.
Sec. 202. Political activity of corporations, national banks, and labor 
                            organizations.
                     TITLE III--EXPANDED DISCLOSURE

Sec. 301. Required reporting for contributions received within 20 days 
                            of election.
 TITLE IV--SEVERABILITY; CONSTITUTIONALITY; EFFECTIVE DATE; REGULATIONS

Sec. 401. Severability.
Sec. 402. Review of constitutional issues.
Sec. 403. Effective date.
Sec. 404. Regulations.

            TITLE I--REFORMS TO POLITICAL PARTY FUNDRAISING

SEC. 101. SOFT MONEY OF POLITICAL PARTY COMMITTEES.

    Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
431 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 324. SOFT MONEY OF PARTY COMMITTEES.

    ``(a) National Committees.--A national committee of a political 
party (including a national congressional campaign committee of a 
political party), an entity that is directly or indirectly established, 
financed, maintained, or controlled by a national committee or its 
agent, an entity acting on behalf of a national committee, and an 
officer or agent acting on behalf of any such committee or entity (but 
not including an entity regulated under subsection (b)) shall not 
solicit or receive any contributions, donations, or transfers of funds, 
or spend any funds, that are not subject to the limitations, 
prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this Act.
    ``(b) State, District, and Local Committees.--
            ``(1) In general.--Any amount that is expended or disbursed 
        by a State, district, or local committee of a political party 
        (including an entity that is directly or indirectly 
        established, financed, maintained, or controlled by a State, 
        district, or local committee of a political party and an 
        officer or agent acting on behalf of any such committee or 
        entity) during a calendar year in which a Federal election is 
        held, for any activity that might affect the outcome of a 
        Federal election, including any voter registration or get-out-
        the-vote activity, any generic campaign activity, and any 
        communication that refers to a candidate (regardless of whether 
        a candidate for State or local office is also mentioned 
or identified) shall be made from funds subject to the limitations, 
prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this Act.
            ``(2) Activity excluded from paragraph (1).--
                    ``(A) In general.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to 
                an expenditure or disbursement made by a State, 
                district, or local committee of a political party for--
                            ``(i) a contribution to a candidate for 
                        State or local office if the contribution is 
                        not designated or otherwise earmarked to pay 
                        for an activity described in paragraph (1);
                            ``(ii) the costs of a State, district, or 
                        local political convention;
                            ``(iii) the non-Federal share of a State, 
                        district, or local party committee's 
                        administrative and overhead expenses (but not 
                        including the compensation in any month of any 
                        individual who spends more than 20 percent of 
                        the individual's time on activity during the 
                        month that may affect the outcome of a Federal 
                        election) except that for purposes of this 
                        paragraph, the non-Federal share of a party 
                        committee's administrative and overhead 
                        expenses shall be determined by applying the 
                        ratio of the non-Federal disbursements to the 
                        total Federal expenditures and non-Federal 
                        disbursements made by the committee during the 
                        previous presidential election year to the 
committee's administrative and overhead expenses in the election year 
in question;
                            ``(iv) the costs of grassroots campaign 
                        materials, including buttons, bumper stickers, 
                        and yard signs that name or depict only a 
                        candidate for State or local office; and
                            ``(v) the cost of any campaign activity 
                        conducted solely on behalf of a clearly 
                        identified candidate for State or local office, 
                        if the candidate activity is not an activity 
                        described in paragraph (1).
                    ``(B) Fundraising costs.--Any amount spent by a 
                national, State, district, or local committee, by an 
                entity that is established, financed, maintained, or 
                controlled by a State, district, or local committee of 
                a political party, or by an agent or officer of any 
                such committee or entity to raise funds that are used, 
                in whole or in part, to pay the costs of an activity 
                described in paragraph (1) shall be made from funds 
                subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting 
                requirements of this Act.''.

SEC. 102. STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUNDS.

    (a) Individual Contributions.--Section 315(a)(1) of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)(1)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (B) by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (2) by redesignating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph (D); 
        and
            (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following:
            ``(C) to--
                    ``(i) a State Party Grassroots Fund established and 
                maintained by a State committee of a political party in 
                any calendar year which, in the aggregate, exceed 
                $20,000;
                    ``(ii) any other political committee established 
                and maintained by a State committee of a political 
                party in any calendar year which, in the aggregate, 
                exceed $5,000;
        except that the aggregate contributions described in this 
        subparagraph that may be made by a person to the State Party 
        Grassroots Fund and all committees of a State Committee of a 
        political party in any State in any calendar year shall not 
        exceed $20,000; or''.
    (b) Limits.--Section 315(a)(3) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(3) Overall limits.--
                    ``(A) Individual limit.--No individual shall make 
                contributions during any calendar year that, in the 
                aggregate, exceed $25,000.
                    ``(B) Calendar year.--No individual shall make 
                contributions during any calendar year--
                            ``(i) to all candidates and their 
                        authorized political committees that, in the 
                        aggregate, exceed $25,000; or
                            ``(ii) to all political committees 
                        established and maintained by State committees 
                        of a political party that, in the aggregate, 
                        exceed $20,000.
                    ``(C) Nonelection years.--For purposes of 
                subparagraph (B)(i), any contribution made to a 
                candidate or the candidate's authorized political 
                committees in a year other than the calendar year in 
                which the election is held with respect to which the 
                contribution is made shall be treated as being made 
                during the calendar year in which the election is 
                held.''.
    (c) Definitions.--Section 301 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1970 (2 U.S.C. 431) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(20) The term `generic campaign activity' means a 
        campaign activity that promotes a political party and does not 
        refer to any particular Federal or non-Federal candidate.
            ``(21) The term `State Party Grassroots Fund' means a 
        separate segregated fund established and maintained by a State 
        committee of a political party solely for purposes of making 
        expenditures and other disbursements described in section 
        325(d).''.
    (d) State Party Grassroots Funds.--Title III of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) (as amended by 
section 101) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 325. STATE PARTY GRASSROOTS FUNDS.

    ``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `State or local 
candidate committee' means a committee established, financed, 
maintained, or controlled by a candidate for other than Federal office.
    ``(b) Transfers.--Notwithstanding section 315(a)(4), no funds may 
be transferred by a State committee of a political party from its State 
Party Grassroots Fund to any other State Party Grassroots Fund or to 
any other political committee, except a transfer may be made to a 
district or local committee of the same political party in the same 
State if the district or local committee--
            ``(1) has established a separate segregated fund for the 
        purposes described in subsection (d); and
            ``(2) uses the transferred funds solely for those purposes.
    ``(c) Amounts Received by Grassroots Funds From State and Local 
Candidate Committees.--
            ``(1) In general.--Any amount received by a State Party 
        Grassroots Fund from a State or local candidate committee for 
        expenditures described in subsection (d) that are for the 
        benefit of that candidate shall be treated as meeting the 
        requirements of 324(b)(1) and section 304(e) if--
                    ``(A) the amount is derived from funds which meet 
                the requirements of this Act with respect to any 
                limitation or prohibition as to source or dollar amount 
                specified in paragraphs (1)(A) and (2)(A) of section 
                315(a); and
                    ``(B) the State or local candidate committee--
                            ``(i) maintains, in the account from which 
                        payment is made, records of the sources and 
                        amounts of funds for purposes of determining 
                        whether those requirements are met; and
                            ``(ii) certifies that the requirements were 
                        met.
            ``(2) Determination of compliance.--For purposes of 
        paragraph (1)(A), in determining whether the funds transferred 
        meet the requirements of this Act described in paragraph 
        (1)(A)--
                    ``(A) a State or local candidate committee's cash 
                on hand shall be treated as consisting of the funds 
                most recently received by the committee; and
                    ``(B) the committee must be able to demonstrate 
                that its cash on hand contains funds meeting those 
                requirements sufficient to cover the transferred funds.
            ``(3) Reporting.--Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any State 
        Party Grassroots Fund that receives a transfer described in 
        paragraph (1) from a State or local candidate committee shall 
        be required to meet the reporting requirements of this Act, and 
        shall submit to the Commission all certifications received, 
        with respect to receipt of the transfer from the candidate 
        committee.
    ``(d) Disbursements and Expenditures.--A State committee of a 
political party may make disbursements and expenditures from its State 
Party Grassroots Fund only for--
            ``(1) any generic campaign activity;
            ``(2) payments described in clauses (v), (ix), and (xi) of 
        paragraph (8)(B) and clauses (iv), (viii), and (ix) of 
        paragraph (9)(B) of section 301;
            ``(3) subject to the limitations of section 315(d), 
        payments described in clause (xii) of paragraph (8)(B), and 
        clause (ix) of paragraph (9)(B), of section 301 on behalf of 
        candidates other than for President and Vice President;
            ``(4) voter registration; and
            ``(5) development and maintenance of voter files during an 
        even-numbered calendar year.''.

SEC. 103. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) Reporting Requirements.--Section 304 of the Federal Election 
Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(d) Political Committees.--
            ``(1) National and congressional political committees.--The 
        national committee of a political party, any congressional 
        campaign committee of a political party, and any subordinate 
        committee of either, shall report all receipts and 
        disbursements during the reporting period, whether or not in 
connection with an election for Federal office.
            ``(2) Other political committees to which section 324 
        applies.--A political committee (not described in paragraph 
        (1)) to which section 324(b)(1) applies shall report all 
        receipts and disbursements made for activities described in 
        paragraphs (1) and (2)(A)(iii) of section 324(b).
            ``(3) Other political committees.--Any political committee 
        to which paragraph (1) or (2) does not apply shall report any 
        receipts or disbursements that are used in connection with a 
        Federal election.
            ``(4) Itemization.--If a political committee has receipts 
        or disbursements to which this subsection applies from any 
        person aggregating in excess of $200 for any calendar year, the 
        political committee shall separately itemize its reporting for 
        such person in the same manner as required in paragraphs 
        (3)(A), (5), and (6) of subsection (b).
            ``(5) Reporting periods.--Reports required to be filed 
        under this subsection shall be filed for the same time periods 
        required for political committees under subsection (a).''.
    (b) Building Fund Exception to the Definition of Contribution.--
Section 301(8)(B) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 
U.S.C. 431(8)(B)) is amended--
            (1) by striking clause (viii); and
            (2) by redesignating clauses (ix) through (xiv) as clauses 
        (viii) through (xiii), respectively.
    (c) Reports by State Committees.--Section 304 of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434) (as amended by subsection 
(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Filing of State Reports.--In lieu of any report required to 
be filed by this Act, the Commission may allow a State committee of a 
political party to file with the Commission a report required to be 
filed under State law if the Commission determines such reports contain 
substantially the same information.''.
    (d) Other Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) Authorized committees.--Section 304(b)(4) of the 
        Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(4)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
                (H);
                    (B) by inserting ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
                (I); and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(J) in the case of an authorized committee, 
                disbursements for the primary election, the general 
                election, and any other election in which the candidate 
                participates;''.
            (2) Names and addresses.--Section 304(b)(5)(A) of the 
        Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(b)(5)(A)) 
        is amended by inserting ``, and the election to which the 
        operating expenditure relates'' after ``operating 
        expenditure''.

SEC. 104. RAISING LIMITS ON CONTRIBUTIONS.

    (a) Contributions to Political Party; Individual Aggregate 
Contribution Limit.--Section 315(a) of the Federal Election Campaign 
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``$20,000'' and 
        inserting ``$60,000'';
            (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``$15,000'' and 
        inserting ``$45,000''; and
            (3) in paragraph (3)(A) (as redesignated by section 
        102(b)), by striking ``$25,000'' and inserting ``$75,000''.
    (b) Indexing.--Section 315(c) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(c)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking the second and third sentences;
                    (B) by inserting before ``At the beginning'' the 
                following: ``(A)''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(B) A limitation established by subsection (a) or (b) shall be 
increased by the percent difference determined under subparagraph (A).
    ``(C) Each amount increased under subparagraph (B) shall remain in 
effect for the calendar year in which the amount is increased.''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``means the calendar 
        year 1974.'' and inserting ``means--
                    ``(i) for purposes of subsection (b), calendar year 
                1974; and
                    ``(ii) for purposes of subsection (a), calendar 
                year 1997.''.

SEC. 105. ELIMINATION OF LIMIT ON COORDINATED SPENDING.

    Section 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 
U.S.C. 441a(d)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(d) Political Party Expenditures.--Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law with respect to limitations on expenditures or 
limitations on contributions, the national committee of a political 
party and a State committee of a political party, including any 
subordinate committee of a State committee, may make expenditures in 
connection with the general election campaign of candidates for Federal 
office in any amount.''.

      TITLE II--LIMITS ON FRANKING PRIVILEGE; PAYCHECK PROTECTIONS

SEC. 201. LIMIT ON CONGRESSIONAL USE OF THE FRANKING PRIVILEGE.

    Section 3210(a)(6)(A) of title 39, United States Code, is amended 
to read as follows:
                    ``(A) Mass mailing.--A Member of Congress shall not 
                mail any mass mailing as franked mail during a year in 
                which there will be an election for the seat held by 
                the Member during the period between January 1 of that 
                year and the date of the general election for that 
                Office, unless the Member has made a public 
                announcement that the Member will not be a candidate in 
                that year for reelection to that seat or for election 
                to any other Federal office.''.

SEC. 202. POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF CORPORATIONS, NATIONAL BANKS, AND LABOR 
              ORGANIZATIONS.

    Section 316 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
441b) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(c) Use of Funds for Political Activity.--
            ``(1) Authorization required.--Except with the prior, 
        written, voluntary authorization of each member, stockholder, 
        or employee--
                    ``(A) a national bank or corporation described in 
                this section shall not collect from or assess its 
                stockholders or employees any dues, initiation fee, or 
                other payment as a condition of employment or ownership 
                if any part of the dues, fee, or payment will be used 
                for political activities in which the national bank or 
                corporation, as the case may be, is engaged; and
                    ``(B) a labor organization described in this 
                section shall not collect from or assess its members or 
                nonmembers any dues, initiation fee, or other payment 
                if any part of the dues, fee, or payment will be used 
                for political activities.
            ``(2) Length of authorization.--An authorization under 
        paragraph (1) shall cease to be effective on the date that it 
        is revoked by the individual that gave the authorization.
            ``(3) Form of authorization.--An authorization under 
        paragraph (1) shall be presented to the individual as a 
        separate document, clearly explaining the purpose and effect of 
        the authorization.
            ``(4) Definition of political activity.--In this 
        subsection, the term `political activity' means a communication 
        or other activity that involves carrying on propaganda, 
        attempting to influence legislation, or participating or 
        intervening in a political campaign or political party.''.

                     TITLE III--EXPANDED DISCLOSURE

SEC. 301. REQUIRED REPORTING FOR CONTRIBUTIONS RECEIVED WITHIN 20 DAYS 
              OF ELECTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 304(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 
Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(6)) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(6) Notification of contributions received within 20 days of an 
election.--
            ``(A) In general.--Not later than 48 hours after the 
        acceptance of a contribution in connection with an election, 
        during the period that begins on the date that is 20 days 
        before the date of such election and ends on the date that is 1 
        day after such election, a political committee shall file a 
        notification with the Secretary of the Commission and the 
        Secretary of State, as appropriate.
            ``(B) Contents of notification.--A notification under this 
        paragraph shall be in writing and contain the following 
        information:
                    ``(i) The amount of the contribution.
                    ``(ii) The name of the candidate to whom the 
                contribution is given and the office the candidate is 
                seeking (as appropriate).
                    ``(iii) The identification of the contributor.
                    ``(iv) The date of receipt of the contribution.
            ``(C) In addition to other reporting requirements.--The 
        notification required under this paragraph shall be in addition 
        to all other reporting requirements under this Act.''.
    (b) Availability of Information on the Internet.--Section 304(a)(6) 
of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(6)) (as 
amended by subsection (a)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(C) Information availability.--
            ``(i) In general.--The Commission shall make the 
        information contained in a notification submitted under this 
        paragraph available on the Internet and publicly available at 
        the offices of the Commission as soon as practicable (but in no 
        case later than 24 hours) after the information is received by 
        the Commission.
            ``(ii) Internet defined.--In this subparagraph, the term 
        `Internet' means the international computer network of both 
        Federal and non-Federal interoperable packet-switched data 
        networks.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply with respect to elections occurring after December 31, 1998.

 TITLE IV--SEVERABILITY; CONSTITUTIONALITY; EFFECTIVE DATE; REGULATIONS

SEC. 401. SEVERABILITY.

    If any amendment made by this Act, or the application of an 
amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to be 
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act and amendments made by this 
Act, and the application of the amendment to any person or 
circumstance, shall not be affected by the holding.

SEC. 402. REVIEW OF CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES.

    An appeal may be taken directly to the Supreme Court of the United 
States from any final judgment, decree, or order issued by any court 
ruling on the constitutionality of any provision of this Act or 
amendment made by this Act.

SEC. 403. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    Except as otherwise provided, the amendments made by this Act take 
effect on the date that is 60 days after the date of enactment of this 
Act.

SEC. 404. REGULATIONS.

    The Federal Election Commission shall prescribe any regulations 
required to carry out this Act and the amendments made by this Act not 
later than 270 days after the effective date of this Act.
                                 <all>