[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2788 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2788

   To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit a 
candidate for election to the office of Senator or Member of the House 
 of Representatives from making campaign expenditures for the election 
 from amounts that were not raised during the election cycle for that 
                    office, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 1, 2011

  Mr. Woodall (for himself and Mr. Bartlett) introduced the following 
   bill; which was referred to the Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to prohibit a 
candidate for election to the office of Senator or Member of the House 
 of Representatives from making campaign expenditures for the election 
 from amounts that were not raised during the election cycle for that 
                    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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Competitive Elections Act of 2011''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITING CANDIDATES FROM MAKING EXPENDITURES OF CAMPAIGN 
              FUNDS NOT RAISED DURING ELECTION CYCLE.

    (a) Prohibition.--Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 
1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 315A 
the following new section:

``SEC. 315B. PROHIBITING CANDIDATES FROM MAKING EXPENDITURES OF FUNDS 
              NOT RAISED DURING ELECTION CYCLE.

    ``(a) Restriction on Expenditures.--An authorized committee of a 
candidate for election for the office of Senator or the office of 
Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the 
Congress may not make any expenditure of funds in support of the 
candidate's campaign for election that were not deposited in the 
account of the committee during the election cycle for the office 
involved.
    ``(b) Exception for Candidates Facing Certain Opponents.--
            ``(1) Statements of expenditures from personal funds.--
                    ``(A) Initial notification.--Not later than 24 
                hours after a candidate for election for the office of 
                Senator or the office of Representative in, or Delegate 
                or Resident Commissioner to, the Congress makes 
                expenditures from personal funds during the election 
                cycle in an aggregate amount that exceeds $100,000, the 
                candidate shall file a statement with the Commission 
                and each other candidate in the same election that sets 
                forth the amount by which expenditures from personal 
                funds made by the candidate during the cycle exceeds 
                $100,000.
                    ``(B) Additional notifications.--After a candidate 
                files an initial statement under subparagraph (A), the 
                candidate shall file an additional statement each time 
                the candidate makes or obligates to make expenditures 
                from personal funds during the election cycle in an 
                aggregate amount that exceeds $50,000. Such additional 
                statement shall be filed not later than 24 hours after 
                the expenditure is made, and shall set forth the amount 
                of expenditures from personal funds made by the 
                candidate since the most recent statement filed under 
                this paragraph.
            ``(2) Permitting use of previously raised funds based on 
        statements from opponents.--Notwithstanding subsection (a), an 
        authorized committee of a candidate who receives a statement 
        under paragraph (1) from another candidate in the election may 
        make expenditures of funds that were deposited in the account 
        of the committee prior to the election cycle for the office 
        involved in an amount equal to the sum of--
                    ``(A) $100,000; plus
                    ``(B) an amount equal to the product of--
                            ``(i) the number of statements the 
                        candidate receives under paragraph (1) during 
                        the election cycle; and
                            ``(ii) $50,000.
            ``(3) Expenditure from personal funds defined.--In this 
        subsection, the term `expenditure from personal funds' means--
                    ``(A) an expenditure made by a candidate using 
                personal funds; and
                    ``(B) a contribution or loan made by a candidate 
                using personal funds or a loan secured using such funds 
                to an authorized committee of the candidate.
    ``(c) Election Cycle Defined.--In this section, the term `election 
cycle' means--
            ``(1) with respect to a candidate for election for the 
        office of Senator, the period beginning on the day after the 
        date of the most recent regularly scheduled general election 
        for that office and ending on the date of the next regularly 
        scheduled general election for that office; and
            ``(2) with respect to a candidate for election for the 
        office of Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 
        Commissioner to, the Congress, the period beginning on the day 
        after the most recent regularly scheduled general election for 
        Federal office and ending on the date of the next regularly 
        scheduled general election for Federal office.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to each election cycle that begins after the date of 
the enactment of this Act. For purposes of this subsection, the term 
``election cycle'' has the meaning given such term in section 315B(c) 
of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by subsection 
(a)).
                                 <all>