[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 30 (Thursday, March 7, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E311-E312]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   CITIZEN REPRESENTATIVE ACT OF 1996

                                 ______


                         HON. EDWARD J. MARKEY

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 7, 1996

  Mr. MARKEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the Citizen 
Representative Act of 1996.
  For years, it has been widely recognized that deep flaws and gaping 
loopholes in the way campaigns are paid for in America have amplified 
the importance of well-heeled special interest groups, reduced the 
clout of small individual contributors, and favored wealthy candidates 
while effectively silencing the voices of citizens unable to raise the 
large sums of money needed to mount a campaign for Congress.
  Citizens across the country and many here in Congress understand that 
our system for financing campaigns in this country is broken and needs 
to be fixed. Skyrocketing campaign costs discourage everyday Americans 
from running for public office. Small, individual campaign 
contributions are crowded out by big money contributions from political 
action committees [PAC's]

[[Page E312]]

  I believe the best way to accomplish meaningful campaign finance 
reform and make Congress more accountable to the public is to encourage 
congressional candidates to raise more of their campaign funds from 
small contributions from individual donors.
  The bill I am introducing today motivates candidates to rely on small 
contributions in two primary ways: funds from a voluntary checkoff of 
Federal tax returns will go toward a Citizen Representative Fund 
established at the Treasury Department to finance voter communications 
vouchers for candidates agreeing to observe the bills spending limits; 
and ceilings imposed on campaign spending from PAC's and large 
contributions will increase the importance of small donations.
  Enacting lobby reform legislation and tightening gift rules have 
generated momentum we now should harness to pass real, comprehensive 
campaign finance reform. We have a unique opportunity to invigorate our 
democratic process, return power to voters across the country, and 
restore faith in the Congress. We must not let this moment pass.
  If we fail to act, we will be preserving a system stacked in favor of 
wealthy individuals while preventing many potential candidates from 
getting a seat at the campaign table. Last month, press reports 
indicated that 11 House candidates each have used at least $100,000 of 
their own money to finance their 1996 campaigns, and 26 candidates have 
put at least $50,000 of their personal funds toward their races.
  A hefty bank account should not be a prerequisite for running for 
Congress. That's why the bill I am introducing today restricts to 
$25,000 personal contributions a candidate can make to his own campaign 
if the candidate wants to be eligible to receive the benefits provided 
in the bill.
  The bill also tames the powerful influence of PAC's. Last summer, the 
public interest watchdog group Common Cause released a study indicating 
that in the first half of the 1995 contributions from PAC's accounted 
for large chunks of House candidates' total campaign funds. The 
legislation I am introducing today requires candidates agreeing to the 
bill's spending caps to limit their expenditures from PAC's to 15 
percent of their total spending. That's a maximum of $90,000 from 
PAC's.
  To ensure that voters get the facts about candidates running for 
House seats, the bill makes participation in two nonpartisan debates a 
requirement for receiving communications vouchers. Our democracy is 
fueled by full and open discussions of the important issues facing our 
Nation, and all candidates should communicate their positions to the 
voters so that well-informed decisions can be made.
  I have long believed that individual citizens should have more of a 
voice in campaigns for Congress. My bill expands the participation of 
everyday Americans in political campaigns through the voluntary 
checkoff and the emphasis on small contributions. I am hopeful that the 
House Oversight Committee will act on this legislation.
  As people around the world strive to build democracies in States 
where ballots once listed only one choice for seats in a bureaucracy 
unconcerned with the needs of its own citizens, we need to increase 
participation in the electoral process here at home to maintain a 
healthy democratic system that is responsive to all Americans.

                          ____________________