[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2473 Introduced in House (IH)]







107th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2473

   To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to reform the 
 financing of campaigns for election for Federal office, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 11, 2001

    Mr. Rogers of Michigan introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to 
    the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to reform the 
 financing of campaigns for election for Federal office, and for other 
                               purposes.

    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 ``Federal Campaign 
Financing Reform Act of 2001''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
              TITLE I--PROMOTING DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

Sec. 101. Additional monthly and quarterly disclosure reports.
Sec. 102. Internet availability of all reports.
Sec. 103. Disclosure of transfers of funds by national political 
                            parties.
Sec. 104. Disclosure of electioneering communications.
                  TITLE II--RESTRICTIONS ON SOFT MONEY

Sec. 201. Restrictions on soft money of national political parties.
Sec. 202. Prohibition fundraising of any campaign funds on Federal 
                            property.
Sec. 203. Limit on amount of funds provided by corporations and labor 
                            organizations to certain organizations.
                 TITLE III--TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS

Sec. 301. Indexing of contribution limits.
Sec. 302. Limitation on amount of personal funds of candidate which may 
                            be reimbursed by campaign committees.
                    TITLE IV--PROMOTING ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 401. Indexing of penalty amounts.
                         TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 501. Expedited judicial review.
Sec. 502. Nonseverability of provisions.
Sec. 503. Effective date.

              TITLE I--PROMOTING DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION

SEC. 101. ADDITIONAL MONTHLY AND QUARTERLY DISCLOSURE REPORTS.

    (a) Principal Campaign Committees.--
            (1) Monthly reports.--Section 304(a)(2)(A) of the Federal 
        Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(2)(A)) is 
        amended by striking clause (iii) and inserting the following:
                    ``(iii) additional monthly reports, which shall be 
                filed not later than the 20th day after the last day of 
                the month and shall be complete as of the last day of 
                the month, except that monthly reports shall not be 
                required under this clause in November and December and 
                a year end report shall be filed not later than January 
                31 of the following calendar year.''.
            (2) Quarterly reports.--Section 304(a)(2)(B) of such Act is 
        amended by striking ``the following reports'' and all that 
        follows through the period and inserting ``the treasurer shall 
        file quarterly reports, which shall be filed not later than the 
        15th day after the last day of each calendar quarter, and which 
        shall be complete as of the last day of each calendar quarter, 
        except that the report for the quarter ending December 31 shall 
        be filed not later than January 31 of the following calendar 
        year.''.
    (b) National Committee of a Political Party.--Section 304(a)(4) of 
such Act (2 U.S.C. 434(a)(4)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following flush sentence: ``Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, a 
national committee of a political party shall file the reports required 
under subparagraph (B).''.
    (c) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 304.--Section 304(a) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 
        434(a)) is amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (3)(A)(ii), by striking 
                ``quarterly reports'' and inserting ``monthly 
                reports''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (8), by striking ``quarterly 
                report under paragraph (2)(A)(iii) or paragraph 
                (4)(A)(i)'' and inserting ``monthly report under 
                paragraph (2)(A)(iii) or paragraph (4)(A)''.
            (2) Section 309.--Section 309(b) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 
        437g(b)) is amended by striking ``calendar quarter'' and 
        inserting ``month''.

SEC. 102. INTERNET AVAILABILITY OF ALL REPORTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 434), as amended by section 502(a) of the Department 
of Transportation and Related Agencies Act, 2001 (as enacted into law 
by reference under section 101(a) of Public Law 106-346), is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) Internet Availability.--The Commission shall make the 
information contained in the designations, statements, and reports 
filed with the Commission under this Act 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.''.
    (b) Requiring Senate Reports To Be Filed With the Commission.--
            (1) Section 302 amendment.--Section 302 of such Act (2 
        U.S.C. 432) is amended by striking subsection (g) and inserting 
        the following:
    ``(g) Place of Filing.--All designations, statements, and reports 
required to be filed under this Act shall be filed with the 
Commission.''.
            (2) Conforming amendments.--Title III of the Federal 
        Election Campaign Act of 1971 is amended--
                    (A) in section 304 (2 U.S.C. 434)--
                            (i) in subsection (a)(6)(A), by striking 
                        ``Secretary or the Commission'' through ``as 
                        appropriate'' and inserting ``Commission and 
                        Secretary of State'',
                            (ii) in the third sentence of subsection 
                        (c)(2), by striking ``the Secretary or'', and
                            (iii) in the fourth sentence of subsection 
                        (c)(2), by striking ``the Secretary, the 
Commission,'' and inserting ``the Commission''; and
                    (B) in section 311(a)(4) (2 U.S.C. 438(a)(4)), by 
                striking ``Secretary or the''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 304(a)(11) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 
434(a)(11)) is amended by striking subparagraph (B).

SEC. 103. DISCLOSURE OF TRANSFERS OF FUNDS BY NATIONAL POLITICAL 
              PARTIES.

    Section 304(b)(4) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 
U.S.C. 434(b)(4)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (H);
            (2) by adding ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (I); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(J) in the case of a political committee of a 
                national political party, all funds transferred to any 
                political committee of a State or local political 
                party, without regard to whether or not the funds are 
                otherwise treated as contributions or expenditures 
                under this title;''.

SEC. 104. DISCLOSURE OF ELECTIONEERING COMMUNICATIONS.

    Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
434), as amended by section 102(a), is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection:
    ``(f) Additional Statements on Electioneering Communications.--
            ``(1) Statement required.--Every person who makes a 
        disbursement for electioneering communications in an aggregate 
        amount in excess of $10,000 during any calendar year shall, 
        within 24 hours of each disclosure date, file with the 
        Commission a statement containing the information described in 
        paragraph (2).
            ``(2) Contents of statement.--Each statement required to be 
        filed under this subsection shall be made under penalty of 
        perjury and shall contain the following information:
                    ``(A) The identification of the person making the 
                disbursement, of any entity sharing or exercising 
                direction or control over the activities of such 
                person, and of the custodian of the books and accounts 
                of the person making the disbursement.
                    ``(B) The principal place of business of the person 
                making the disbursement, if not an individual.
                    ``(C) The amount of each disbursement of more than 
                $200 during the period covered by the statement and the 
                identification of the person to whom the disbursement 
                was made.
                    ``(D) The elections to which the electioneering 
                communications pertain and the names (if known) of the 
                candidates identified or to be identified.
                    ``(E) If the disbursements were paid out of a 
                segregated bank account which consists of funds 
                contributed solely by individuals directly to this 
                account for electioneering communications, the names 
                and addresses of all contributors who contributed an 
                aggregate amount of $1,000 or more to that account 
                during the period beginning on the first day of the 
                preceding calendar year and ending on the disclosure 
                date. Nothing in this subparagraph is to be construed 
                as a prohibition on the use of funds in such a 
                segregated account for a purpose other than 
                electioneering communications.
                    ``(F) If the disbursements were paid out of funds 
                not described in subparagraph (E), the names and 
                addresses of all contributors who contributed an 
                aggregate amount of $1,000 or more to the organization 
                during the period beginning on the first day of the 
                preceding calendar year and ending on the disclosure 
                date.
            ``(3) Electioneering communication.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `electioneering 
                communication' means any broadcast, cable, or satellite 
                communication which--
                            ``(i) refers to a clearly identified 
                        candidate for Federal office; and
                            ``(ii) is made to an audience that includes 
                        members of the electorate for the election for 
                        such office.
                    ``(B) Exceptions.--The term `electioneering 
                communication' does not include--
                            ``(i) a communication appearing in a news 
                        story, commentary, or editorial distributed 
                        through the facilities of any broadcasting 
                        station, unless such facilities are owned or 
                        controlled by any political party, political 
                        committee, or candidate; or
                            ``(ii) a communication which constitutes an 
                        expenditure or an independent expenditure under 
                        this Act.
            ``(4) Disclosure date.--For purposes of this subsection, 
        the term `disclosure date' means--
                    ``(A) the first date during any calendar year by 
                which a person has made disbursements for 
                electioneering communications aggregating in excess of 
                $10,000; and
                    ``(B) any other date during such calendar year by 
                which a person has made disbursements for 
                electioneering communications aggregating in excess of 
                $10,000 since the most recent disclosure date for such 
                calendar year.
            ``(5) Contracts to disburse.--For purposes of this 
        subsection, a person shall be treated as having made a 
        disbursement if the person has executed a contract to make the 
        disbursement.
            ``(6) Coordination with other requirements.--Any 
        requirement to report under this subsection shall be in 
        addition to any other reporting requirement under this Act.''.

                  TITLE II--RESTRICTIONS ON SOFT MONEY

SEC. 201. RESTRICTIONS ON SOFT MONEY OF NATIONAL POLITICAL PARTIES.

    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 new section:

      ``limit on soft money of national political party committees

    ``Sec. 323. (a) Prohibiting Use of Soft Money for Federal Election 
Activity.--A national committee of a political party (including a 
national congressional campaign committee of a political party) may not 
solicit, receive, or direct to another person a contribution, donation, 
or transfer of funds or any other thing of value for Federal election 
activity, or spend any funds for Federal election activity, that are 
not subject to the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting 
requirements of this Act.
    ``(b) Limit on Amount of Nonfederal Funds Provided to Party by Any 
Person for Any Purpose.--No person shall make contributions, donations, 
or transfers of funds which are not subject to the limitations and 
prohibitions of this Act to a political committee established and 
maintained by a national political party in any calendar year in an 
aggregate amount equal to or greater than $75,000.
    ``(c) Applicability.-- This subsection shall apply to any political 
committee established and maintained by a national political party, any 
officer or agent of such a committee acting on behalf of the committee, 
and any entity that is directly or indirectly established, maintained, 
or controlled by such a national committee.
    ``(d) Definitions.--
            ``(1) Federal election activity.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `Federal election 
                activity' means--
                            ``(i) voter registration activity during 
                        the period that begins on the date that is 120 
                        days before the date a regularly scheduled 
                        Federal election is held and ends on the date 
                        of the election, unless the activity 
                        constitutes generic campaign activity;
                            ``(ii) voter identification or get-out-the-
                        vote activity conducted in connection with an 
                        election in which a candidate for Federal 
                        office appears on the ballot (regardless of 
                        whether a candidate for State or local office 
                        also appears on the ballot), unless the 
                        activity constitutes generic campaign activity;
                            ``(iii) any public communication that 
                        refers to or depicts a clearly identified 
                        candidate for Federal office (regardless of 
                        whether a candidate for State or local office 
                        is also mentioned or identified) and that 
                        promotes or supports a candidate for that 
                        office, or attacks or opposes a candidate for 
                        that office (regardless of whether the 
                        communication expressly advocates a vote for or 
                        against a candidate); or
                            ``(iv) any public communication made by 
                        means of any broadcast, cable, or satellite 
                        communication.
                    ``(B) Exception for certain administrative 
                activities.--The term `Federal election activity' does 
                not include any activity relating to establishment, 
                administration, or solicitation costs of a political 
                committee established and maintained by a national 
                political party, so long as the funds used to carry out 
                the activity are derived from funds or payments made to 
                the committee which are segregated and used exclusively 
                to defray the costs of such activities.
            ``(2) Generic campaign activity.--The term `generic 
        campaign activity' means any activity that does not mention, 
        depict, or otherwise promote a clearly identified Federal 
        candidate.
            ``(3) Public communication.--The term `public 
        communication' means a communication by means of any broadcast, 
        cable, or satellite communication, newspaper, magazine, outdoor 
        advertising facility, or direct mail.
            ``(4) Direct mail.--The term `direct mail' means a mailing 
        by a commercial vendor or any mailing made from a commercial 
        list.''.

SEC. 202. PROHIBITION FUNDRAISING OF ANY CAMPAIGN FUNDS ON FEDERAL 
              PROPERTY.

    Section 607 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the following:
    ``(a) Prohibition.--
            ``(1) In general.--It shall be unlawful for any person to 
        solicit or receive a donation of money or other thing of value 
        in connection with a Federal, State, or local election from a 
        person who is located in a room or building occupied in the 
        discharge of official duties by an officer or employee of the 
        United States. It shall be unlawful for an individual who is an 
        officer or employee of the Federal Government, including the 
        President, Vice President, and Members of Congress, to solicit 
        or receive a donation of money or other thing of value in 
        connection with a Federal, State, or local election, while in 
        any room or building occupied in the discharge of official 
        duties by an officer or employee of the United States, from any 
        person.
            ``(2) Penalty.--A person who violates this section shall be 
        fined not more than $5,000, imprisoned more than 3 years, or 
        both.''; and
            (2) in subsection (b), by inserting ``or Executive Office 
        of the President'' after ``Congress'' .

SEC. 203. LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF FUNDS PROVIDED BY CORPORATIONS AND LABOR 
              ORGANIZATIONS TO CERTAIN 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 new subsection:
    ``(c) It shall be unlawful for any corporation or labor 
organization described in this section to provide funds in an aggregate 
amount which exceeds $20,000 during any calendar year to--
            ``(1) any organization that is described in section 
        501(c)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from 
        taxation under section 501(a) of such Code and that makes 
        expenditures or disbursements in connection with an election 
        for Federal office; or
            ``(2) any organization described in section 527 of such 
        Code (other than a political committee, a State, district, or 
        local committee of a political party, or the authorized 
        campaign committee of a candidate for State or local 
        office).''.

                 TITLE III--TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS

SEC. 301. INDEXING OF CONTRIBUTION LIMITS.

    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 ``(A)'' before ``At the 
                beginning''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(B) Except as provided in subparagraph (C), in any calendar year 
after 2002--
            ``(i) a limitation established by subsection (a), (b), (d), 
        or (h) shall be increased by the percent difference determined 
        under subparagraph (A); and
            ``(ii) each amount so increased shall remain in effect for 
        the calendar year.
    ``(C) In the case of limitations under subsection (a), each amount 
increased under subparagraph (B) shall remain in effect for the 2-year 
period beginning on the first day following the date of the last 
general election in the year preceding the year in which the amount is 
increased and ending on the date of the next general election.''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ``means the calendar 
        year 1974'' and inserting ``means--
                    ``(i) for purposes of subsections (b) and (d), 
                calendar year 1974; and
                    ``(ii) for purposes of subsections (a) and (h), 
                calendar year 2001''.

SEC. 302. LIMITATION ON AMOUNT OF PERSONAL FUNDS OF CANDIDATE WHICH MAY 
              BE REIMBURSED BY CAMPAIGN COMMITTEES.

    (a) In General.--Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 
1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.), as amended by section 201, is further 
amended by adding at the end the following new section:

  ``limitation on amount of candidate's personal funds reimbursed by 
                        committees of candidate

    ``Sec. 324. (a) In General.--The aggregate amount of contributions 
consisting of personal funds of a candidate which may be reimbursed by 
authorized committees of the candidate with respect to an election 
cycle may not exceed--
            ``(1) $100,000, in the case of a candidate for 
        Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the 
        House of Representatives; or
            ``(2) $250,000, in the case of a candidate for Senator.
    ``(b) Indexing.--In the case of any calendar year after 2001--
            ``(1) each amount specified under subsection (a) shall be 
        increased based on the increase in the price index determined 
        under section 315(c), except that the base period shall be 
        calendar year 2001;
            ``(2) each amount so increased shall be the amount in 
        effect for the calendar year; and
            ``(3) the amount applicable under this section with respect 
        to an election cycle shall be the amount in effect for the 
        final calendar year occurring within the cycle.
    ``(c) Personal Funds of a Candidate Defined.--In this section, 
`personal funds of a candidate' includes any funds derived from 
personal funds of the candidate or any member of the candidate's 
immediate family (including personal loans by the candidate or any 
member of the candidate's immediate family).''.

                    TITLE IV--PROMOTING ENFORCEMENT

SEC. 401. INDEXING OF PENALTY AMOUNTS.

    Section 309 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 
437g) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) Adjustment of Dollar Amounts for Inflation.--In the case of 
any calendar year after 2001--
            ``(1) each amount specified under subsection (a) or the 
        second sentence of subsection (d)(1)(A) shall be increased 
        based on the increase in the price index determined under 
        section 315(c), except that the base period shall be calendar 
        year 2001; and
            ``(2) each amount so increased shall be the amount in 
        effect for the calendar year.''.

                         TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS

SEC. 501. EXPEDITED JUDICIAL REVIEW.

    If any person who is aggrieved by any of the provisions of this Act 
or any amendment made by this Act (or who would be aggrieved by any 
such provision or amendment when the provision or amendment becomes 
effective) brings an action which names the United States as the 
defendant for declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge the 
constitutionality of the provision or amendment within the 90-day 
period which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
following rules shall apply:
            (1) The action shall be filed in the United States District 
        Court for the District of Columbia and shall be heard by a 3-
        judge court convened pursuant to section 2284 of title 28, 
        United States Code.
            (2) A copy of the complaint shall be delivered promptly to 
        the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary of 
        the Senate.
            (3) A final decision in the action shall be reviewable only 
        by appeal directly to the United States Supreme Court. Such 
        appeal shall be taken by the filing of a notice of appeal 
        within 10 days, and the filing of a jurisdictional statement 
        within 30 days, of the entry of the final decision.
            (4) It shall be the duty of the United States District 
        Court for the District of Columbia and the Supreme Court of the 
        United States to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 
        greatest possible extent the disposition of the action and 
        appeal.

SEC. 502. NONSEVERABILITY OF PROVISIONS.

    If any provision of this Act or any amendment made by this Act, or 
the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, 
the remaining provisions of this Act or any amendment made by this Act 
shall be treated as invalid.

SEC. 503. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this Act shall take effect January 1, 2003.
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