Atlanta Journal-Constitution: One election, two sets of rules with new campaign finance law
Atlanta Journal-Constitution: One election, two sets of rules with new campaign finance law
The bills signed quietly are always the ones you should read twice.
So take out your readers for Senate Bill 221, the new campaign finance law that passed in the closing days of the Georgia General Assembly’s legislative session and was signed without notice by Gov. Brian Kemp. It goes into effect five weeks from now.
As the AJC’s James Salzer has reported, the measure lets a governor, lieutenant governor, the party nominees for those positions, and Republican and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate create “leadership committees” for campaign fundraising.
Those committees can raise unlimited sums of money from corporations or individuals and then plan their spending with the campaigns of the incumbents or nominees they were raised for. The funds can also be spent on other state contests.
Crucially, the new law won’t apply to everybody. Primary challengers in the governor’s race and in state legislative contests will still operate under the previous campaign finance laws, which prevent campaigns from coordinating with outside groups and keep donation limits in place. …
“This bill will enable security for incumbency,” Aunna Dennis, the executive director of Common Cause Georgia, told me. “It really tramples the person who wants to be the community change agent from becoming an elected official through the legislature, because it’s allowing big donors to create war chests for incumbents.”