THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION 1325 K Street N.W., Washington, D.C. 20463 September 1979 Volume 5, Number 9 tribution limitations and the public financing of Presidential elections. Finally, the Chairman sug­ LEGISlATION gested changes to eliminate cumbersome pro­ cedures and reduce delays in administration of the law. One of the recommended changes, for example, FEC TESTIFIES ON would allow any person subject to the provisions of AMENDMENTS TO ACT the Act to have standing to request an advisory Testifying before the Senate Rules committee on opinion. July 13, 1979, FEC Chairman Robert 0 . Tiernan, ac­ companied by Vice Chairman Max L. Friedersdorf, The Chairman concluded by stating that the proposed recommended several revisions to the Federal Election revisions are designed to make the Act more effective Campaign Act (the Act). Since 1975, the Commission and less burdensome on those required to comply with has made annual recommendations for legislative revi­ it. (The FEC Annual Report 1978 contains a complete sions to the Act, which was last amended in 1976. In his discussion of previous legislative recommendations.) testimony, Chairman Tiernan reiterated Commission support of the previous recommendations and em­ phasized three areas of particular concern: COMMISSIONERS 1. Simplification The Commission recommended that reporting re­ NEW COMMISSIONER quirements be simplified to the greatest extent possi­ On July 31, 1979, Frank P. Reiche of Princeton, New ble. The FEC's recommendations would reduce the Jersey, was sworn into office as an FEC Commissioner number of required reports by up to 60 percent per by Supreme Court Justice William R. Rehnquist. The election cycle, substantially alleviating the burden on ceremony took place at the FEC. Mr. Reiche replaces candidates and their committees. Chairman Tiernan Commissioner Vernon W . Thomson whose term has ex­ pointed out that fewer reports would promote fuller pired. Mr. Reiche, who will be the tenth Commissioner compliance and would probably result in fewer er­ since the FEC's founding in 1975, joins two fellow rors. Such simplification, he emphasized, is not only Republicans and three Democrats on the bipartisan consistent with full disclosure, but would actually im­ prove it. Commission. The new Commissioner was born in Hartford, Connec­ 2. Encourage Party and Grass Roots Activity ticut. He received his A.B. from Williams College in In response to the concern that the Act has had a 1951 and an M.A. in Foreign Affairs from George restrictive effect on party and grass roots political ac­ Washington University in 1959. An attorney specializing tivity, the Commission recommended "vitally need­ in taxation, Mr. Reiche graduated from Columbia Law ed" changes to encourage local volunteer efforts and School in 1959, and received a Master of Laws degree in to give State and local party committees greater flex­ Taxation from New York University in 1966. Mr. Reiche ibility in their campaign activity. The Commission was with the Princeton firm of Smith, Stratton, Wise recommended that State parties be permitted to and Heher from 1962 until his appointment to the Com­ make coordinated expenditures (2 U.S.C. §441a(d)) mission. on behalf of Presidential candidates. These expend­ itures would be in addition to those now made by the Mr. Reiche was a member of New Jersey Governor national party. William T. Cahill's Tax Policy Committee from 1970 to 1972. Governor Cahill appointed Mr. Reiche Chairman 3. Clarification of the first New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Com­ The Chairman also recommended several changes mission in 1973; he was reappointed as Chairman by which would clarify the Act's requirements on con- Governor Brendan Byrne in 1975. The Commission is continued responsible for the administration and enforcement of AO 1979-24: Sale of Campaign the New Jersey ca mpaign finance disclosure act. Prior Materials to that, Mr. Reiche served in a variety of Republican A State political action committee (State PAC) may party positions, including eight years as a Republican purchase unused ca mpaign materials from Ronald county committeeman. Mr. Reiche's term as an FEC Hein's Federal campaign committee (the Committee). Commissioner will expire on April 30, 1985. Although the State PAC is permitted, under State law, to accept corporate contributions, no prohibited con­ tribution to the Committee would resu lt provided the materials are purchased at no more than the usual and normal cha rg e for those materials in the market from OPINIONS which they would ordinarily be purchased . In addition, Mr. Hein's State Senate Committee may purchase the materials at the usual and normal charge ADVISORY OPINION REQU ESTS without making a prohibited contribution. The Commis­ The following chart lists recently received Advisory sion offered no guidance as to whether the State PAC Opinion Requests (AOR's), with a brief description of could purchase the materials from the Committee and, the subject matter, the date the requests were made in turn, donate them to Mr. Hein's State Senate Com­ public and the number of pages of each request. The mittee. That issue is beyond Commission jurisdiction. full text of each AOR is available to the public in the (Date Issued: July 13, 1979; Length: 3 pages) Commission's Office of Public Records. AO 1979-28: Contribution From Date N o. of Unincorporated Association AOR Subject Made Public Pages The Treasury Employees Political Action Committee (TEPAC), the separate segregated fund of the National 1979-39 Treatment of fundraising com- 7/ 18/79 2 Treasury Employees Union (NTEU), may accept a missions by Presidential can- political contribution from an unincorporated recreation didate committee. association of Federal employees (the Association) 1979-40 Activities of unauthorized 7/20/79 5 represented by NTEU. draft committee for Presiden- tial candidate. The Association maintains vending machines in Federal 1979-41 Status and reporting obliga- 8/ 3/79 2 facilities, and the proposed contribution is comprised of tions of political committee. profits derived from those machines. The contribution did not result from a TEPAC or NTEU solicitation. Since 1979-42 Administrative expenses of 8/ 8/79 2 the Association is not a corporation, and assuming it is national bank's separate not a government contractor, TEPAC may accept the segregated fund. unsolicited contribution subject to the contribution 1979-43 Definition of "primary elec- 8/ 8/79 limits. (Date Issued: July 19, 1979; Length: 2 pages) tion" as applied to Vice Presidential candidate. AO 1979-30 Transfers Among Subordinate Committees of State Party Committee ADVISORY OPINIONS: SUMMARIES The Jefferson-Jackson Day Committee (JJDCl, an Designated as AO's, Advisory Opinions discuss the unregistered fundraising committee of the Democratic application of the Act or Commission Regulations to Party, may make coordinated party expenditures to specific factual situations. Any qualified person re­ retire the debts of the Miller for Senate Committee (the questing an Advisory Opinion who in good faith acts in Miller Committee) and the 1978 Virginia Democratic accordance with the opinion will not be subject to any Campaign Committee (VDCC), provided it reg isters sa nctions under the Act. The opinion may also be relied with the Commission, segregates its funds and upon by any other person involved in a specific transac­ organizes its operations in accordance with Commission tion which is indistinguishable in all material aspects Regulations. from the activity discussed in the Advisory Opinion. Those seeking guidance for their own activity should The JJ DC has cash-on-hand w hich includes union and consult the full text of an Advisory Opinion and not rely corporate funds. The Miller Committee and the VDCC only on the summary given here. have outstanding debts. The JJDC may transfer its The RECORD is published by the Federal Election Commission, 7325 K Street, N. W., Washington, D.C. 20463. Commissioners are: Robert 0 . Tiernan, Chairman; Max L. Friedersdorf, Vice Chairman; Joan D. Aikens; Thomas E. Harris; John W. McGarry; Frank P. Reiche; J. S. Kim mitt, Secretary of the Senate, Ex Officio; Edmund L. Henshaw, Jr., Clerk of the House of Representatives, Ex Officio. For more information, call 202/ 523-4068 or toll-free 800/424-9530. 2 surplus funds to help these committees retire their debts AO 1979-34: Public Financing Payments provided it: for New Party Candidate Mr. Morris Woods, the Presidential candidate of the 1. Establishes a separate Federal campaign committee Freedom Party, is not entitled to receive preelection which registers as a "political committee" affiliated public financing payments from the Presidential Elec­ with the Virginia Democratic Party; tion Campaign Fund. A new party Presidential can­ 2. Discloses, with regard to this "political committee," didate is eligible only for "retroactive" public financing the source of any cash-on-hand at the time of payments (i.e., postelection), and then only if the can­ registration, and excludes from its cash any contribu­ didate receives five percent or more of the total number tions not permissible under the Act. of popular votes cast for the office of President in the election. 11 CFR 142.3(a). (Date Issued: July 19, 1979; The JJDC may then make coordinated ex~<>enditures on Length: 2 pages) behalf of the Miller Committee in either of the alter­ native methods it has proposed: AO 1979-36: Direct Mail 1. Directly to the creditors of the Miller Committee; or Agreement Amounts expended in accord with a direct mail agree­ 2. As a transfer to the VDCC for payment to the Miller ment by Working Names, Inc. during the initial stages creditors. of a direct mail fundraising program which it is conduct­ ing on behalf of the Committee for Fauntroy (the Com­ The JJDC may also transfer additional funds to the mittee) would not be considered campaign contribu­ VDCC to retire its' debts, since Commission Regula­ tions provided that the proposed agreement, described tions permit unlimited transfers between committees of below, conforms with ordinary business practice in the the same political party.