Second Circuit Court of Appeals Rules on the Citizens' Election Program
On July 13th, 2010, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued its long-awaited decision on the constitutionality of the Connecticut's Citizens' Election Program.
First the good news: The Court upheld the majority of Connecticut's campaign finance system -- including its groundbreaking public financing system, the Citizens' Election Program -- against a sweeping constitutional challenge. The Court also upheld the state contractor contribution ban on contributions to statewide political campaigns.
The bad news is that, although the Citizens' Election Program was largely upheld, the Second Circuit struck down the so-called "trigger provisions" that provide additional public funds in unusually expensive races when nonparticipating candidates or third parties spend over a certain threshold. The Court also struck down the lobbyist contribution and solicitation ban. The law has been returned to the District Court to determine if those provisions are severable.
In order to protect the Citizens' Election Program, which we know worked well in 2008, for this year's election, we need to have the Connecticut legislature come back for a special session and move quickly to pass legislation that will address the Court's concerns.
Common Cause is urging Senate President Donald Williams and Speaker of the House Chris Donovan to call immediately for a special session!
With your help, we can protect the Citizens' Election Program for the 2010 elections and beyond. Send a message today -- and double your impact by following up your email with a phone call: 1-800-842-1420.
Legislating Under the Influence
Common Cause released a report today about the influence of Big Oil money on our government. This must read piece shows the overwhelming amount of money which flows from the energy industry into influencing our government. What happened to a government run by the people? It is more important than ever that we separate money from politics.
"Long before BP’s Deepwater Horizon well began belching oil into the Gulf of Mexico, BP and the rest of the energy industry had turned loose a gusher of cash in Washington, saturating Congress and the federal government’s regulatory apparatus.
In the last decade alone, big energy has pumped more than $2.9 billion into electing and lobbying federal officials and candidates, according to campaign finance and lobbying disclosure reports.
That’s about $5.5 million for each of the 535 seats in the House and Senate."
Read the whole report and join Common Cause's efforts to halt the flood of special interest money to Congress!
Governor Rell signs 5471, An Act Concerning Independent Expenditures
In this photo: Rep. Joan Lewis, Rep. Andrew Fleischmann, SEEC Executive Director Albert P. Lenge, Rep. James Spallone, Governor M. Jodi Rell, Common Cause VP for State Operations Karen Hobert Flynn, LWV VP of Public Issues Christine Horrigan, Common Cause CT Executive Director Cheri Quickmire, and LWV member Gene Horrigan
In January, the Supreme Court put democracy up for sale to the highest bidder with the Citizens United decision. In one fell swoop, Citizens United vs FEC overturned decades of settled campaign finance law and offered multi-billion dollar corporations and unions the opportunity for unlimited spending to influence our elections.
At the end of the 2010 legislative session, the Connecticut General Assembly fought back and passed House Bill 5471 An Act Concerning Independent Expenditures. This bill is the most comprehensive disclosure law passed in any state so far.
Today Common Cause in Connecticut applauds Governor M. Jodi Rell for signing House Bill 5471, An Act Concerning Independent Expenditures into law.
Moving Closer: Protecting Campaign Finance Reform
On June 9th, 2010, Governor M. Jodi Rell signed H.B. 5471, An Act Concerning Independent Expenditures, into law. The bill was passed by the Connecticut General Assembly to try and reduce the undue influence of special interests that the Citizens United decision has enabled. Common Cause in Connecticut sees this bill as promising to help mitigate the recent Supreme Court decision in the Citizens United case. The court's decision overturned decades of campaign finance law to remove any limits on independent expenditures by corporations and unions. Connecticut's bill requires corporations or unions to disclose what advertising they purchased and requires CEOs to publically approve ads that their company funds. While Connecticut's General Assembly cannot override a Supreme Court decision, this requirement of transparency in ad spending lets the public to see who is behind the candidate and issue ads for the 2010 election cycle.
On May 6 the Connecticut General Assembly passed an emergency bill which allows for a special session to be called from May 6 - November 3 to amend the Citizens’ Election program or other election bills. A bill was passed and signed into law by Governor Rell last month which extends the time for amending the Citizens’ Election Program from seven to 30 days after a ruling is handed down from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals. Lawmakers are waiting for a court decision before voting on a fix for the Citizen's Election Program.
Representation Without Population
Common Cause in Connecticut held a joint press conference on April 14th with A Better Way Foundation and other community partners to highlight the problem of felony disenfranchisement in Connecticut. Featured guest speaker Peter Wagner, Executive Director of The Prison Policy Initiative spoke to the distortion of the democratic process which occurs when people who are incarcerated are counted by the U.S. Census in the towns in which they are incarcerated instead of their home communities.
House Bill 5207 is on the Connecticut House of Representatives calendar. This bill addresses finding employment after being incarcerated. State Representative Gary Holder Winfield (D – New Haven) and State Senator Edwin Gomes (D-Bridgeport) spoke alongside former convicted felons about the problem of felony conviction standing in the way of employment for ex-offenders for life. “Banning the Box” (removing the question, “Have you been convicted of a felony?”) from employment applications to jobs with the State of Connecticut and contractors with the state, and delaying background checks until a job is offered would remove the first roadblock to gainful employment after re-entry.
Talk about “penny-wise, pound-foolish”!
Bid-rigging, influence-peddling and pay-to-play scandals cost the taxpayers of this state hundreds of millions of dollars in the bad old days of “Corrupticut.”
That ended with the Citizens’ Election reform we adopted in 2005.
But now some in the state legislature are trying to use a negative court decision and the state’s budget crisis to jeopardize our Citizens Election Program (CEP) and return to the corrupt days of the past.
We need your help! Please take a minute right now to call your state senator and state representative. Tell them to say NO to more funding cuts and YES to updating the Citizens’ Election Program!
We Can't Go Back to Corrupticut
DO WE REALLY WANT TO GO BACK THERE?
The Citizens' Election Program brought us out of Corrupticut and back to Connecticut. Click here to help put our new ad in the news and protect public financing in Connecticut. Because we can't go back.
Republican Leadership Guts Citizens’ Election Fund
It is unacceptable that Republican Leadership is planning to gut the landmark Citizens’ Election Program by taking the remaining $30 million left in fund. . In its first year, it was an unparalleled success – nearly 80% of current members – Republican and Democrat - of the General Assembly ran as Citizens’ Election candidates.
It is the League of Women Voters, Connecticut Citizen Action Group and Common Cause’s belief that we must act now to fix the law and that we cannot wait for the outcome of the appeal. We believe that candidates who want to run for statewide office under the program need to know the program is viable and that the funds are available. The Citizens’ Election Fund cannot sustain another attack on funding. We cannot afford to return to the days of “Corrupticut”.
We applaud Governor Rell’s leadership on this issue – and for calling a special session to amend the Citizens’ Election Program to ensure it is available for 2010 and beyond. We need to act before the legislative session begins. Statewide and legislative candidates need to know that this program is available for them now.
We look forward to working with the Governor and Legislative Leadership on this critical good government reform initiative and to ensuring that there are adequate resources to run this program.
Rallying to Save Connecticut's Citizens' Election Program
Recently, Judge Stefan R. Underhill, a U.S. District Court Judge in Bridgeport ruled several provisions of Connecticut's Citizen's Election program unconstitutional, completely ignoring years of legal precedent regarding public financing programs which have been consistently upheld by other federal courts and the Supreme Court as constitutional. This blow against fair elections comes at a particularly bad time, as the financial crisis in Connecticut has already tempted Governor Rell and the General Assembly to slash funds the Citizens' Election Program to help fill the gap in the budget deficit.
Common Cause in Connecticut has been acting with the help of members and coalition partners to urge leadership in the Connecticut House and Senate to enact a fix to the law in a Special Legislative Session in order to preserve and protect the program for the 2010 elections and beyond. Connecticut newspapers have recently chimed in and have amplified the rallying cry to protect and save the Citizens' Election Program in a series of editorials published around the state.
Read the articles here...
Poll shows 79% support the Citizens’ Election Program
A Strong Majority of Voters Want Governor and General Assembly to Amend Citizens’ Election Program Due to Court Ruling
Common Cause in Connecticut released a poll by Zogby Internationaltoday. The poll found that Connecticut voters overwhelmingly support the Citizens’ Election Program—79 percent of respondents supported the program as described. When asked if the Governor and state legislature should act now to amend Connecticut’s landmark Citizens’ Election program to comply with a district court ruling, 58 percent support the Governor and Legislature acting so that the program can be available to candidates in the 2010 elections.
Nearly 8 in 10 respondents indicated their support for public financing of elections—this is a message that the Governor and legislators can’t ignore. Voters want elections to be about them and not big money donors. Our state leaders must act now to amend the Citizens’ Election program so it is available to candidates for the 2010 election cycle and beyond.
As the state grapples with a continuing state budget deficit, the Governor and the General Assembly have cut more than $38 million from the Citizens’ Election Program in the last 14 months. But when presented with a statement that the state can’t afford the Citizens’ Election program because of the state deficit, only 21% respondents agreed while 68% wants the Clean Elections’ Program to blunt the special deals that lobbyists and state contractors used to receive in exchange for political contributions.
The poll found that support for the Citizens’ Election program crosses all traditional demographic groups. The specific question about support for the Citizens’ Election Program garnered strong support among Republicans (84.4%), Independents (80.9%), and Democrats (74.2%).
When asked “If you knew your State legislator voted against fixing the Citizens Election Program, would it make you more or less likely to vote for him or her for re-election this year, or does it make no difference to your vote?,” 41 percent indicated they would be less likely to vote for a politician who voted against updating the popular program.
The Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United could unleash a flood of corporate money into state elections, but a strong Citizens’ Election Program that allows candidates to magnify the impact of small donations will help candidates to compete and get their message out.
Poll shows 79% support the Citizens’ Election Program
A Strong Majority of Voters Want Governor and General Assembly to Amend Citizens’ Election Program Due to Court Ruling
Common Cause in Connecticut released a poll by Zogby Internationaltoday. The poll found that Connecticut voters overwhelmingly support the Citizens’ Election Program—79 percent of respondents supported the program as described. When asked if the Governor and state legislature should act now to amend Connecticut’s landmark Citizens’ Election program to comply with a district court ruling, 58 percent support the Governor and Legislature acting so that the program can be available to candidates in the 2010 elections.
Nearly 8 in 10 respondents indicated their support for public financing of elections—this is a message that the Governor and legislators can’t ignore. Voters want elections to be about them and not big money donors. Our state leaders must act now to amend the Citizens’ Election program so it is available to candidates for the 2010 election cycle and beyond.
As the state grapples with a continuing state budget deficit, the Governor and the General Assembly have cut more than $38 million from the Citizens’ Election Program in the last 14 months. But when presented with a statement that the state can’t afford the Citizens’ Election program because of the state deficit, only 21% respondents agreed while 68% wants the Clean Elections’ Program to blunt the special deals that lobbyists and state contractors used to receive in exchange for political contributions.
The poll found that support for the Citizens’ Election program crosses all traditional demographic groups. The specific question about support for the Citizens’ Election Program garnered strong support among Republicans (84.4%), Independents (80.9%), and Democrats (74.2%).
When asked “If you knew your State legislator voted against fixing the Citizens Election Program, would it make you more or less likely to vote for him or her for re-election this year, or does it make no difference to your vote?,” 41 percent indicated they would be less likely to vote for a politician who voted against updating the popular program.
The Supreme Court ruling in Citizens United could unleash a flood of corporate money into state elections, but a strong Citizens’ Election Program that allows candidates to magnify the impact of small donations will help candidates to compete and get their message out.
Common Cause fights to save Citizens Election Fund
On April 23, 2009, Common Cause Vice President of State Operations Karen Hobert Flynn joined Connecticut state lawmakers in urging Gov. Rell not to eliminate funding for the Citizens Election Program in this year's state budget.
Watch the press conference below:
Common Cause Connecticut Congratulates the Entire Connecticut Congressional Delegation for Co-Sponsoring the Fair Elections Now Act
Connecticut's Congressional Delegation not only support the Fair Elections Now Act, they intend to co-sponsor the bill. The bill would allow federal candidates to choose to run for office without relying on large contributions, big money bundlers, or donations from lobbyists, and would be freed from the constant fundraising in order to focus on what people in their communities want.
On Monday, May 11th, Congressman John Larson (D-East Hartford), was joined by The President of Common Cause, Bob Edgar, and fellow U.S. Representatives Chris Murphy (D-Chesire) and Joe Courtney (D-Vernon) at a press conference to promote the Fair Elections Now Act. Joining them were Cheri Quickmire, Executive Director or Common Cause in Connecticut, President Pro tem of the state senate Don Williams, Speaker of the House Chris Donovan, Majority Leader Denise Merrill, as well as other state senators and representatives, and spokespersons for a variety of advocacy groups which promote good government issues. Watch the press conference here!
Connecticut Blogger, CT Bob interviewed Congressman Himes about the bill. You can see the interview here:
http://www.myleftnutmeg.com/diary/11268/a-conversation-with-jim-himes
Common Cause in Connecticut thanks Congressmen John Larson (who introduced the bill), Joe Courtney, Rosa DeLauro, Jim Himes and Chris Murphy for standing up for Fair Elections!
Read more about the bill here:
http://www.commoncause.org/fairelectionsnow
The Citizens' Election Program is big news!
On March 13th, citizens and elected officials testified to the Government Administration and Elections Committee on the importance of the Citizens' Election Program
Thanks to everyone who is standing up for the Citizens Election Program and against Governor Rell's attempt to raid the Citizens Election Fund!
Representative Gary Holder-Winfield testifies in favor of the program:
Editorial pusblished December 31, 2008: "In Connecticut: The A.C.L.U. vs. Common Cause"
Advocates for clean government in Connecticut got a year-end bonus. In a welcome decision, U.S. District Court Judge Stefan R. Underhill upheld a state ban on campaign contributions by lobbyists, state contractors, and their families.
The state legislature passed the ban in 2006 as an important part of campaign finance reform after a series of scandals toppled mayors, a state senator, and former Gov. John G. Rowland, who went to prison for corruption in 2005.
Not surprisingly, the Association of Connecticut Lobbyists fought the ban and is expected to appeal. The lobbyists have had an ally in this fight — the American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut. The civil liberties group sees the prohibition on contributions as an infringement on free expression.
The ACLU’s opposition to the ban has set up a civil war within the public interest community.
Common Cause, the good-government group, was a key advocate for the campaign finance law several years ago, and it worked non-stop to get Connecticut’s General Assembly to pass the nation’s third system of state public campaign financing –- after Maine and Arizona.
Common Cause felt strongly that without the ban on contributions, any reforms would be mere window dressing. Common Cause and its allies won in the legislature, and the lawsuit challenging the ban’s constitutionality was filed soon after.
In this battle between the ACLU and Common Cause, we come down firmly on Common Cause’s side. We have never agreed with the ACLU that campaign contributions should have the same kind of protection as speech. And we share Common Cause’s concern about the way in which money of this sort corrupts politics and government.
In his decision, Judge Underhill pointed out that banning cash contributions is not a “severe” deprivation because of the myriad other ways lobbyists, contractors, and family members can contribute to a campaign. They can volunteer and make phone calls; they can host “meet and greets” that are not fundraisers; they can even run for office themselves.
“The rights of political expression,” he rightly noted, “remain robust.”
Urging the Senate to pass the DISCLOSE Act
Common Cause in Connecticut applauds the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the DISCLOSE Act which, if passed, will impose financial disclosure regulations on political ad buys by corporations and some special interest groups.
The DISCLOSE Act, sponsored by Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), is Congress’ response to the Supreme Court’s decision in Citizens United v. FEC that overturned decades of common sense restrictions on corporate and union spending in elections. The transparency measures and restrictions on foreign companies and government contractors are important to ensure our elections are fully transparent.
The DISCLOSE Act, S. 3295, faces a tough battle for passage in the Senate, and a possible filibuster. Will our Connecticut Senators co-sponsor this bill which is vital to counter the Citizens United Supreme Court decision? Senator Lieberman co-sponsored the DISCLOSE Act in May, but Senator Chris Dodd has not signed on to co-sponsor the bill as of yet. He needs to hear from YOU now! Please take a moment and email Senator Dodd and tell him to co-sponsor the DISCLOSE Act.
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