FEC upholds ad limits

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The Federal Election Commission on Tuesday upheld a ruling that prohibits labor unions, corporations and advocacy groups from running advertisements that identify issues or candidates by name in the weeks leading up to an election.

The 2002 Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act bans such ads but allows the FEC to allow exemptions. In a 3-3 ruling along party lines, the FEC commissioners voted to uphold enforcement of the rules, which prevent interest groups from airing campaign ads 60 days before a general election and 30 days before a primary election.

"My biggest reaction is disappointment. The FEC evaded its duty here," said Republican FEC Commissioner Hans A. von Spakovsky. "The right to petition the government is a fundamental right."

"I'm quite proud of the Democrats, and I can't say that very often," said Craig Holman, legislative representative for Public Citizen, a group that supports the FEC's decision. "I'm pretty sure this is going to settle the issue."

Mr. Holman added that interest groups can still run ads before an election, but that they must be paid for under current individual donor limits and that the groups must publicly disclose donor identities.

Other supporters of the FEC ruling said Mr. Spakovsky's proposal would have created too many loopholes allowing political interest groups to circumvent the campaign-finance law's intent.

"The von Spakovsky proposal itself would have opened a major campaign-finance loophole in BCRA and allowed corporations and labor unions to use their organizational funds to finance campaign ads in the guise of 'issue ads,'" said Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer.

A diverse mix of organizations opposes the 2002 restrictions, including the AFL-CIO and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Those two organizations, as well as 180 groups and individuals, signed on to a petition with the FEC asking for an exemption to the restrictions. The petition was brought forward by Mr. von Spakovsky.

"Under the current political climate, we weren't surprised with the failure to get four votes," said U.S. Chamber of Commerce Vice President Bill Miller. However, Mr. Miller said his group was still disappointed, considering that the alliance petitioning the FEC was "an ideological spectrum of interests that can't match anything I know of."

Under Mr. von Spakovsky's proposal, the petitioning groups could run television and radio advertisements calling for members of Congress to support specific legislation or could ask viewers to contact their elected representatives. The proposal would have limited advertisements to naming incumbents and could not specifically refer to upcoming elections.

"There were a whole series of requirements you'd have to meet," Mr. von Spakovsky said. "Critics of the proposal kept saying it would create a whole series of loopholes. Legally and substantively, that's just not true."

Mr. von Spakovsky said the FEC can revisit the issue if one of the six members changes position. He also said a pending federal campaign-finance case involving the group Wisconsin Right to Life could force the FEC to revise its ruling.