1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to elections; requiring notice of certain
1.3 	independent expenditures; releasing candidates
1.4 	attacked by certain independent expenditures from
1.5 	spending limit agreement; amending Minnesota Statutes
1.6 	2004, sections 10A.20, subdivision 6b; 10A.25, by
1.7 	adding a subdivision.
1.8 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.9 	Section 1. LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS; PURPOSE.
 1.10 		Subdivision 1.Legislative findings. The legislature
1.11 	finds that while this state has a system of partial public
1.12 	financing of campaigns, our current system still encourages
1.13 	large amounts of private money to be used to finance campaigns.
1.14 	This private money undermines democracy in the following ways:
1.15 	(a) It stifles the First Amendment, which was designed "to
1.16 	secure the widest possible dissemination of information from
1.17 	diverse and antagonistic sources," and "to assure the unfettered
1.18 	interchange of ideas for the bringing about of political and
1.19 	social changes desired by the people."  Instead, heavy funding
1.20 	of certain candidates and interests discourages other candidates
1.21 	from running and prevents many perspectives from receiving any
1.22 	dissemination whatsoever.  In addition, after a certain point,
1.23 	more spending does not create more speech but has the opposite
1.24 	impact, overwhelming the public and causing them to tune out
1.25 	speech from any candidate.
1.26 	(b) It undermines the First Amendment right of voters to
2.1 	hear speech from all candidates and all perspectives and
2.2 	undermines the core First Amendment value of open and robust
2.3 	debate in the political process.
2.4 	(c) It inhibits communication with the electorate by
2.5 	candidates without access to large sums of campaign money.
2.6 	(d) It burdens elected officials and candidates with
2.7 	endless hours of fundraising, thus decreasing the time available
2.8 	to carry out their public responsibilities.
2.9 	(e) It discourages people from participating in the
2.10 	political process.  A 1998 poll conducted by St. Cloud State
2.11 	University found that, because of their belief that contributors
2.12 	have more influence than noncontributors do, one-third of
2.13 	respondents are "less likely to vote or participate in politics."
2.14 	Over half of those who said that they did not vote in the 1996
2.15 	election said they were less likely to vote or participate
2.16 	because of this belief.
2.17 	(f) It violates the rights of citizens to equal and
2.18 	meaningful participation in the democratic process.
2.19 	(g) It creates a public perception of corruption and
2.20 	undermines public confidence in the democratic process and
2.21 	democratic institutions.  This perception is held by almost nine
2.22 	out of ten Minnesotans.  The 1998 St. Cloud State University
2.23 	poll showed that 88 percent of all Minnesotans believe elected
2.24 	officials are more responsive to contributors than to voters who
2.25 	do not contribute.
2.26 	(h) It not only creates a perception of corruption, but
2.27 	actually encourages elected officials to take money from private
2.28 	interests that are directly affected by governmental actions.
2.29 	(i) It diminishes the perceived, and perhaps the real,
2.30 	accountability of elected officials to their constituents by
2.31 	giving them incentives to be accountable to major campaign
2.32 	contributors instead.
2.33 	(j) It undermines the integrity of the election process by
2.34 	making it difficult for qualified candidates without access to
2.35 	large contributors or personal fortunes to mount competitive
2.36 	campaigns and discourages them from running.
3.1 	(k) It undermines the integrity of the election process by
3.2 	placing challengers at a disadvantage, because large campaign
3.3 	contributors tend to give their money to incumbents, thus
3.4 	causing elections to be less competitive.
3.5 	(l) It costs taxpayers millions of dollars for the
3.6 	legislative and regulatory decisions made by elected officials
3.7 	on behalf of major campaign contributors.
3.8 	The legislature finds each of these defects on its own has
3.9 	a corrosive impact on our democracy either by corrupting the
3.10 	political process or by creating the appearance of corruption.
3.11 	Accordingly, the state has a compelling interest in addressing
3.12 	them through this act.
3.13 		Subd. 2.Purpose. This act is intended to restore the
3.14 	First Amendment rights of nonwealthy candidates by enabling them
3.15 	to disseminate their views without being drowned out by heavily
3.16 	funded independent expenditures that they cannot respond to for
3.17 	lack of money.
3.18 	This act is designed to create benefits for participating
3.19 	candidates to compensate for the restrictions applied to them
3.20 	and to further the compelling state interest of encouraging
3.21 	participation in this system of financing campaigns without
3.22 	special interest money.

3.23 	Sec. 2. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 10A.20,
3.24 	subdivision 6b, is amended to read:
3.25 		Subd. 6b.Independent expenditures; notice.  (a) Within
3.26 	24 hours after an individual, political committee, ~~or~~ political
3.27 	fund, principal campaign committee, or party unit makes or
3.28 	becomes obligated by oral or written agreement to make an
3.29 	independent expenditure in excess of $100 in a legislative
3.30 	district election or $500 in a statewide election, other than an
3.31 	expenditure by an association targeted to inform solely its own
3.32 	dues-paying members of the association's position on a
3.33 	candidate, the individual, political committee, ~~or~~ political
3.34 	fund, principal campaign committee, or party unit must file with
3.35 	the board ~~an affidavit notifying the board~~ a notice of the
3.36 	intent to make the independent expenditure and ~~serve~~ provide a
4.1 	copy of the ~~affidavit on~~ notice to each candidate in the
4.2 	affected race and ~~on~~ to the treasurer of the candidate's
4.3 	principal campaign committee.  The ~~affidavit~~ notice must contain
4.4 	the information with respect to the expenditure that is required
4.5 	to be reported under subdivision 3, paragraph (g); except that
4.6 	if an expenditure is reported before it is made, the notice must
4.7 	include a reasonable estimate of the anticipated amount. The
4.8 	notice must include an affidavit, under penalty of perjury,
4.9 	signed and sworn to by the individual or by the treasurer of the
4.10 	committee, fund, or party unit identifying the candidate in
4.11 	support of or opposition to whom the expenditure is made and
4.12 	affirming that the expenditure was independent and involved no
4.13 	cooperation or coordination with a candidate or a political
4.14 	party.Each new expenditure requires a new notice.
4.15 	(b) An individual or association may file a complaint with
4.16 	the board that a required notice was not filed or that a notice
4.17 	filed under this subdivision is false.  The board must determine
4.18 	the complaint promptly.  If the board determines that a notice
4.19 	was false and the board has distributed a public subsidy to a
4.20 	candidate based on the false notice, the candidate must return
4.21 	the subsidy to the board.
4.22 	(c) An individual or the treasurer of a political committee
4.23 	~~or~~ ,political fund, principal campaign committee, or party unit 
4.24 	who fails to give notice as required by this subdivision, or who
4.25 	files a false ~~affidavit of~~ notice, is guilty of a gross
4.26 	misdemeanor and is subject to a civil fine of up to four times
4.27 	the amount of the independent expenditure stated in the notice
4.28 	or of which notice was required, whichever is greater.

4.29 	Sec. 3. Minnesota Statutes 2004, section 10A.25, is
4.30 	amended by adding a subdivision to read:
4.31 		Subd. 14.Effect of independent expenditures. When a
4.32 	candidate has agreed to be bound by the expenditure limits
4.33 	imposed by this section as a condition of receiving a public
4.34 	subsidy for the candidate's campaign, and the sum of independent
4.35 	expenditures made in opposition to the candidate plus
4.36 	independent expenditures made in support of the candidate's
5.1 	major political party opponents, as reported to the board under
5.2 	section 10A.20, subdivisions 2, 6, and 6b, exceeds $1,000 during
5.3 	an election cycle, the board shall notify the candidate that the
5.4 	candidate is released from the expenditure limits but remains
5.5 	eligible to receive a public subsidy.

5.6 	Sec. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.
 5.7 	This act is effective the day following final enactment.
5.8 	Section 2 applies to expenditures made on or after August 1,
5.9 	2005.  Section 3 applies to the sum of independent expenditures
5.10 	made on or after its effective date.