Reflective Democracy

Today, Common Cause filed comments with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in support of a petition for rulemaking filed by former congressional candidate Nabilah Islam to allow candidates to utilize their campaign accounts to pay for health insurance and include a living-wage floor as part of the salary formula to make the funds available from the beginning of a candidate’s campaign.

“The rules really have been stacked against working people running for office or people who might have been caregivers or those in between employment,” said Stephen Spaulding, senior counsel for public policy and government affairs at Common Cause. “If you were unemployed, a care-taker and your income was zero, you’re not entitled to a salary.”

Today Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) introduced the Census FACTS Act to ensure that future censuses do not see the unprecedented level of political malfeasance and politicalization that plagued the 2020 Census count.  The Census Federal Advisory Committee on Transparency and Standards (Census FACTS) Act charges Congress and President Biden to create an expert, nonpartisan committee to identify the specific problems encountered during the 2020 Census -- including political interference by the Trump Administration; the COVID-19 pandemic; and the level of transparency, public participation, and responsiveness on the part of the Census Bureau in making its policy decisions. In highlighting these problems and making recommendations to fix them, the committee established by the Census FACTS Act would help to restore the public confidence in the Census Bureau. Separately, the bill also clarifies the Reapportionment Act of 1929 to ensure that total population is used in Congressional redistricting.