[EL] ELB News and Commentary 5/29/13
Rick Hasen
rhasen at law.uci.edu
Wed May 29 07:44:05 PDT 2013
Quote of the Day <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51075>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:41 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51075> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
"Obama's second-term window is closing."
Carrie Johnson
<http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2013/05/29/186952724/Senators-Tussle-Over-Unpacking-Key-D-C-Court>,
NPR, "Senators Tussle Over Proposal to 'Unpack' Key D.C. Court"
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Posted in legislation and legislatures
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=27> | Comments Off
Damning with Faint Praise Dept <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51072>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:38 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51072> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NYT
<http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/05/28/one-area-in-which-congress-excels-naming-post-offices/?ref=politics>:
"Pillory Congress all you want as do-nothing or dysfunctional, as its
critics often have. But in one respect, lawmakers in the Capitol are
remarkably productive: they name post offices like nobody's business. A
new report from the Congressional Research Service, the nonpartisan
research division of Congress, found that about 20 percent of laws
passed in recent years were for naming post offices."
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Posted in legislation and legislatures
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=27>, political parties
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=25>, political polarization
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=68> | Comments Off
"Political Battles Still Dog Redistricting In California"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51068>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:30 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51068> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NPR:
<http://www.npr.org/blogs/itsallpolitics/2013/05/29/186939613/political-battles-still-dog-redistricting-in-california>
In most states, the power to draw lines for political districts
rests with legislators. In recent years, California voters have
tried to make the process less political by taking it out of
lawmakers' hands. But not everyone is happy with how things are
turning out.
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Posted in citizen commissions <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=7>,
redistricting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=6> | Comments Off
"Study: Media Fact-Checker Says Republicans Lie More"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51064>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:24 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51064> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Center for Media and Public Affairs
<http://www.cmpa.com/media_room_press_05_28_13.html>at George Mason
University:
A leading media fact-checking organization rates Republicans as less
trustworthy than Democrats, according to a new study by the Center
for Media and Public Affairs (CMPA) at George Mason University. The
study finds that PolitiFact.com has rated Republican claims as false
three times as often as Democratic claims during President Obama's
second term. Republicans continue to get worse marks in recent
weeks, despite controversies over Obama administration statements on
Benghazi, the IRS and the AP.
Of course, such a study assumes that organizations such as Politifact
fairly choose statements to analyze, and analyze those statements
fairly. Both of these points are contested by some Republicans, as I
canvass in my recent article, A Constitutional Right to Lie in Campaigns
and Elections? <http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2151618>
UPDATE: John Sides
<http://themonkeycage.org/2013/05/29/is-politifact-biased-against-republicans/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+themonkeycagefeed+%28The+Monkey+Cage%29>
makes similar points.
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Posted in campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59> | Comments Off
"McDonnell to speed rights process for nonviolent felons"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51061>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:20 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51061> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Richmond Times-Dispatch
<http://www.timesdispatch.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/article_08d1b42c-c80c-11e2-8950-0019bb30f31a.html>:
Gov. Bob McDonnell today will announce that he is automatically
restoring the voting rights of nonviolent felons on an individual basis.
The sweeping administrative action -- while not an instantaneous
blanket restoration -- is as far as the governor can go within
current Virginia law, administration officials said....
McDonnell administration officials said the governor's action meshes
with the parameters Cuccinelli discussed
<http://blog.lib.umn.edu/cspg/electionacademy/2013/05/new_virginia_report_highlights.php>,
because the governor is not enacting a blanket restoration, but a
dramatically expedited process for individual nonviolent felons.
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Posted in felon voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=66> | Comments Off
"IRS higher-ups requested info on conservative groups, letters show'
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51058>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:16 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51058> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
NBC News
<http://openchannel.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/28/18563008-irs-higher-ups-requested-info-on-conservative-groups-letters-show?lite>:
Additional scrutiny of conservative organizations' activities by the
IRS did not solely originate in the agency's Cincinnati office, with
requests for information coming from other offices and often bearing
the signatures of higher-ups at the agency, according to attorneys
representing some of the targeted groups. At least one letter
requesting information about one of the groups bears the signature
of Lois Lerner, the suspended director of the IRS Exempt
Organizations department in Washington.
Jay Sekulow, an attorney representing 27 conservative political
advocacy organizations that applied to the Internal Revenue Service
for tax-exempt status, provided some of the letters to NBC News. He
said the groups' contacts with the IRS prove that the practices went
beyond a few "front line" employees in the Cincinnati office, as the
IRS has maintained.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22> | Comments Off
"War on Democracy in Wisconsin: Bill Would Enact Voter ID, End
Disclosure, Limit Early Voting, Expand Lobbyist Influence"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51056>
Posted on May 29, 2013 7:14 am <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51056> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Brendan Fischer blogs.
<http://www.prwatch.org/news/2013/05/12127/war-democracy-wisconsin-bill-would-enact-voter-id-end-disclosure-limit-early-voti>
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, lobbying
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=28>, The Voting Wars
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60> | Comments Off
"GOP stoking fire of IRS scandal with eye toward 2014?
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51053>
Posted on May 28, 2013 8:01 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51053> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
WaPo reports
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/gop-stoking-fire-of-irs-scandal-with-eye-toward-2014/2013/05/28/3248b314-c7d5-11e2-9245-773c0123c027_story.html>.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
campaigns <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=59>, tax law and election law
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22> | Comments Off
"GOP lawmaker pushes new voter ID legislation to address court
concerns" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51050>
Posted on May 28, 2013 7:51 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51050> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Gannett
<http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/viewart/20130528/GPG0101/305280318/GOP-lawmaker-pushes-new-voter-ID-legislation-address-court-concerns>:
"One of the chief authors of Wisconsin's voter photo identification plan
is shopping around a new bill designed to allay legal concerns that the
requirements are too burdensome by letting poor people opt out."
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Posted in election administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>,
The Voting Wars <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60>, voter id
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=9> | Comments Off
"Lack of Bright Line IRS Nonprofit Rules Provide Free Trips for
Members of Congress" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51047>
Posted on May 28, 2013 7:42 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51047> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Kent Cooper
<http://blogs.rollcall.com/moneyline/no-bright-line-irs-non-profit-rules-provide-free-trips-for-members/>:
Members of Congress have benefited from the lack of bright line IRS
rules for the close and intertwining relationships between 501(c)(3)
nonprofits and their 501(c)(4) lobbying arms. There is a distinction
but not much difference.
Five members of Congress have just returned from a free trip to
Israel paid for by the *American Israel Education
Foundation* (AIEF), an IRS Section 501(c)(3) nonprofit. AIEF's
website states it is "affiliated with AIPAC, America's pro-Israel
lobby." The *American Israel Public Affairs Committee* is an IRS
Section 501(c)(4) organization. AIPAC spent $2,761,388 on lobbying
in 2012. Senate and House rules state members may not accept gifts
of free travel from a lobbyist or entity that retains or employs
registered lobbyists.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>,
lobbying <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=28> | Comments Off
"501(c)(4)s & Campaign Activity: Analysis Under Tax & Campaign
Finance Laws" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51043>
Posted on May 28, 2013 7:31 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51043> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
New CRS report. <http://t.co/7MnSYe8HxK>
Here's the summary of the May 17, 2013 (timely!) report:
The campaign activities of tax-exempt 501(c)(4) social welfare
organizations continue to receive considerable attention. These
groups operate with less restriction after the Supreme Court's
decision in Citizens United v. FEC, which invalidated long-standing
prohibitions in the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) on
corporations and labor unions using their general treasury funds to
make independent expenditures and electioneering communications.
However, even after Citizens United, 501(c)(4) groups are still
subject to regulation under FECA and the Internal Revenue Code (IRC).
Under FECA, incorporated groups are prohibited from making political
contributions and are still required to establish a political action
committee (PAC) in order to do so. (In contrast to independent
expenditures and electioneering communications, contributions are
given to a candidate or political committee). Additionally, the
claim is sometimes made that 501(c)(4) groups should be required to
register as political committees under FECA. This is important
because political committees must raise and spend funds subject to
FECA contribution limits, source restrictions, and disclosure
requirements.
Under the IRC, a Treasury regulation requires that 501(c)(4)
organizations have the promotion of social welfare as their primary
purpose. This means two things: (1) campaign activity (along with
any other non-exempt purpose activity) cannot be the organization's
primary activity and (2) a group that primarily benefits private
partisan interests may jeopardize its 501(c)(4) status.
Questions abound about these two restrictions and how they are
applied (e.g., how is campaign activity measured?), and the IRS has
been criticized for failing to issue guidance in this area.
501(c)(4) organizations are required to report information to the
IRS and FEC. They are generally required to file an annual
information return (Form 990) with the IRS. Information about
campaign activity is reported on the form's Schedule C, which is
subject to public disclosure. While large donors are reported on the
form, no identifying information is required to be publicly
disclosed. Additionally, groups making independent expenditures and
electioneering communications must file reports with the FEC. Only
those donors giving more than $200 specifically "for the purpose of
furthering" an independent expenditure are disclosed. For
electioneering communications, FECA requires the disclosure of
donors who contributed at least $1,000; however, if the group
establishes a separate bank account, consisting only of donations
from U.S. citizens and legal resident aliens made directly to the
account, then only those donors who contributed at least $1,000 to
the account are disclosed. A Federal Election Commission (FEC)
regulation provides an exception to the donor disclosure requirement
for electioneering communications. The regulation permits
corporations---including incorporated 501(c)(4)
groups---and labor unions making disbursements for electioneering
communications to disclose only the identity of each person who made
a donation of at least $1,000 specifically "for the purpose of
furthering" an electioneering communication. This regulation has
been the topic of ongoing litigation, Center for Individual Freedom
v. Van Hollen, which is currently pending in the U.S. District Court
for the District of Columbia.
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Posted in campaign finance <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=10>, tax law
and election law <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=22> | Comments Off
"Va. panel announces findings on restoring voting rights of former
felons" <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51040>
Posted on May 28, 2013 7:22 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51040> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
WaPo
<http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/va-politics/cuccinelli-set-to-announce-findings-on-restoring-voting-rights-of-virginia-felons/2013/05/27/9f6819e0-c6e4-11e2-9245-773c0123c027_story.html?hpid=z9>:
A Virginia committee announced options Tuesday for streamlining the
restoration of former felons' voting rights, including actions the
governor and legislature could take now to advance the process.
The possibilities, the committee said, include recruiting ex-felons
who have not applied for restoration, partnering with private groups
to expedite applications and creating a state agency to speed up the
review and approval process.
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Posted in felon voting <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=66> | Comments Off
"Poll worker convicted of voting fraud"
<http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51037>
Posted on May 28, 2013 7:17 pm <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=51037> by
Rick Hasen <http://electionlawblog.org/?author=3>
Cincinnati Enquirer
<http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20130528/NEWS0107/305280074>:
A former Hamilton County poll worker was convicted Tuesday of
illegal voting and could go to prison for up to six years for it.
Melowese Richardson, 58, of Madisonville pleaded no contest to four
counts of illegal voting -- including voting three times for a
relative who has been in a coma since 2003 -- in exchange for
prosecutors dropping four other illegal voting charges. Common Pleas
Court Judge Robert Ruehlman immediately convicted her, making her a
felon.
A poll worker from 1998 until being fired this year, Richardson
admitted she voted illegally in the 2008, 2011 and 2012 elections.
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Posted in chicanery <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=12>, election
administration <http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=18>, The Voting Wars
<http://electionlawblog.org/?cat=60> | Comments Off
--
Rick Hasen
Chancellor's Professor of Law and Political Science
UC Irvine School of Law
401 E. Peltason Dr., Suite 1000
Irvine, CA 92697-8000
949.824.3072 - office
949.824.0495 - fax
rhasen at law.uci.edu
http://law.uci.edu/faculty/page1_r_hasen.html
http://electionlawblog.org
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