Campaign Finance Reform
Campaign finance laws can be crafted to promote more open, honest, and accountable government and to bring the constitutional ideal of political equality closer to reality. The Brennan Center supports disclosure requirements that inform voters about potential influences on elected officials, contribution limits that help to mitigate the real and perceived influence of donors on those officials, and public funding that preserves the significance of voters' voices in the political process and levels the playing field among serious candidates, regardless of their wealth or wealthy connections. A combination of well-crafted reforms, including public funding of judicial, legislative, and executive elections, could enhance the speech of millions of Americans who today are locked out of true political participation The Brennan Center defends federal, state, and local campaign finance and public funding laws in courts across the country. We also give legal guidance and support to state and local campaign finance reformers through informative publications, direct counseling, legislative drafting, and testimony in support of reform proposals.
The Brennan Center is intervening to help defend the nation’s first voluntary full public financing program for judicial elections.
Green Party of Connecticut v. Jeffrey Garfield
In 2005, the Connecticut General Assembly became the first state legislature in the nation to pass a full public financing law that applies to its own campaigns. The Brennan Center is helping to defend this system and Connecticut’s ban on campaign contributions from lobbyists and state contractors.
Davis v. Federal Election Commission
This case challenges a provision of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA) known as the Millionaire’s Amendment that raises the limits on contributions to congressional candidates if their opponent spends above a threshold amount of $350,000 of personal funds on his or her campaign.
On Wednesday, professor and visionary Lawrence Lessig discussed his non-partisan reform initiative “Change Congress” at a Netroots Nation event....
Counting Heads, Not Dollars: A New Campaign Finance Context
Ever since the Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) first published an analysis of the Obama small donor numbers several weeks ago, the ink has been flowing....
The amount of political power that lawmakers wield has long been tied to their ability to make dollars rain down from political contributions....
Illustrations by Risko
Federal Court Upholds CT Pay-to-Play Ban
Law addressed in Connecticut scandal similar to Blagojevich’s in Illinois.
Advocates Urge Court to Dismiss Challenge to N. Carolina’s Successful Public Campaign Finance Law
The Center and the North Carolina Department of Justice submitted a brief urging the Supreme Court to refrain from reviewing a Fourth Circuit decision upholding North Carolina’s innovative program.
Reps. Larson and Jones Introduce Fair Elections Now Act
The House took a giant step today towards making elections about Main Street instead of Wall Street by introducing the Fair Elections Now Act (HR 7022).
On Clean Elections in New Jersey
Presented to the State Government Committee of the New Jersey Assembly. Highlights two important areas of the clean elections pilot program the Assembly should consider amending: Section 8 and Section 11.
Comments on FEC Notice 2007-16 Regarding Electioneering Communications
National campaign finance reform advocates urged the FEC to limit exemptions to funding restrictions and retain existing disclosure of electioneering communications.
Testimony to the New York City Council on Proposed “Pay-to-Play” Regulations
Ciara Torres-Spelliscy assessed the constitutionality of the city’s proposal to limit campaign contributions from lobbyists and city contractors.
The Impact of FEC v. WRTL II on State Regulation
The Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law repeatedly has been asked to explain what the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in FEC v. Wisconsin Right to Life, Inc., 127 S. Ct. 2652 (2007) (“WRTL II”), means for state regulation of electioneering communications.
On August 5, 2008, the Center for Competitive Politics (CCP) issued a 4-page attack on New Jersey’s Clean Elections system. This analysis by the Brennan Center shows that CCP’s conclusions are unscientific and unsupported.
Fixing Congress: Oil Companies Out, Voters In
In light of Sen. Ted Stevens, piece notes Congress should act quickly next spring to pass the Fair Elections Now Act.