[EL] CFI will become part of the National Institute on Money in Politics (Election Law List)

[Michael Malbin]

Big news. Wanted you all to know about it.
Michael Malbin



*For Immediate Release May 8, 2018*
[image: Campaign Finance Institute]
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-r/>
[image:
NIMP]
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-y/>
*Contacts:*
Edwin Bender
*(406) 449-2480*
Michael J. Malbin

*(202) 969-8890 ext. 221*

Good News for Democracy Watchers: The Campaign Finance Institute Is Moving
to the National Institute on Money in State Politics

Follow CFI on Twitter: [image: Follow cfinst_org on Twitter]
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-j/>

The National Institute on Money in State Politics (National Institute) and
the Campaign Finance Institute (CFI) jointly announced today that they have
reached an agreement that will strengthen our democracy's infrastructure.

CFI will go out of business as a separate organization in early July and
reemerge as a division within the National Institute.1 The National
Institute will drop the word "State" from its name to become known as the
"National Institute on Money in Politics" (NIMP). Edwin Bender will remain
NIMP's executive director. Michael J. Malbin, currently the executive
director of CFI, will be director of the CFI division within NIMP.

"Years ago, we recognized CFI as a unique leader in producing high-quality
analyses of our campaign-finance systems. They excel at using data to
ground the reform debates in reality," Bender said. "CFI's Citizens Policy
Analyst tool was visionary in how it lets everyday citizens see how
small-dollar donor policies can shift the incentives to encourage more
candidate-to-voter interactions. We're excited and humbled that CFI is
joining us as we work to increase transparency in our elections and public
policy processes, and to build a strong data-focused foundation for the
healthy evolution of our democracy."

Malbin, who is also a professor of political science at the University at
Albany (SUNY), added: "CFI has been collaborating with NIMP for years,
starting with CFI's groundbreaking research on small donors, which was
often built up from NIMP's data. During that time we both realized how much
more we could do if we integrated our data, experience, knowledge, and
skills. The synergies are obvious to those of us who have worked together.
CFI's becoming part of NIMP offers huge opportunities for advancing the
field - well beyond anything we at CFI could have imagined if we continued
trying to do it all on our own."

NIMP has been promoting an accountable democracy for nearly two decades by
compiling and standardizing comprehensive campaign-donor, lobbyist, and
other information from all fifty states and the federal government. CFI has
also been at work for nearly two decades, earning a reputation as the
nation's preeminent think tank on money in politics.

Nesting CFI within NIMP raises this collaboration to a new level. Each
organization has done valuable work separately by using the differences
among states to help understand the effects of federal, state, and local
campaign laws. The expanded NIMP will have the resources and skills not
only to continue, but to look at more jurisdictions and more programs more
deeply. It will bring new data and new research to produce new insights.
The results will continue to inform scholars and journalists. It will also
guide agencies, lawmakers, activists, and others to develop more effective
policies. Our democracy will be the better for it.


1 NOTE: CFI will maintain its separate website (www.cfinst.org
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-t/>)
through 2018.


To learn more about NIMP and CFI:

WEB: www.followthemoney.org
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-i/>
www.cfinst.org
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-d/>
Twitter: @FollowTheMoney.org
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-h/>
@cfinst_org
<http://campaignfinanceinstitute.cmail20.com/t/i-l-biiujkk-ikdduuurr-k/>




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