Advisory Opinion 2006-36: Green Senatorial Committee attains national party status

The Green Senatorial Campaign Committee (GSCC) qualifies as a national party committee, specifically as the national senatorial campaign committee of the Green Party of the United States.

Background

The Green National Committee (GNC) created the GSCC on June 18, 2006, to promote Green Party senatorial candidates and party building activities. In July 2006, the GNC named seven individuals to comprise the GSCC. The GSCC met by teleconference and began conducting business shortly thereafter. The GSCC filed a Statement of Organization with the Commission on September 8, 2006. The GSCC opened a bank account and deposited over $1,000 in contributions. The GSCC has an official web site to support its candidates and publicize the GSCC's policy priorities and has offices in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

In the 2006 elections, the Green Party's state affiliates placed 11 individuals on the ballot for U.S. Senate in 11 states. At least seven of these individuals qualified as candidates under the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act) and Commission regulations. See 2 U.S.C. 431(2) and 11 CFR 100.2(a). Two more individuals running for U.S. Senate received the sole endorsement of their state Green Party affiliates but appeared on the ballot as Independents, not Green Party candidates. Additionally, the Green party placed seven candidates for Senate on the ballot between 1998 and 2004 in five states.

The GSCC raised funds and made contributions to the 2006 Green Party candidates for Senate, in part, to support party building activities including ballot access, get-out-the-vote activity, voter registration and voter identification.

Members of the GSCC also participated in party building activities in three States where Green candidates were running for the Senate. Also several of the Green Party candidates conducted voter registration drives in their respective States to "register [new voters] as 'Green,'" and all 11 Green Party candidates engaged in voter identification and get-out-the-vote activities.

Analysis

The GSCC's request marks the first time that the Commission has been asked to recognize the national senatorial campaign committee of a political party as a national party committee.(1)

To determine whether a political committee is the national senatorial committee of a political party, the Commission employed the analysis that it used previously to determine whether a political committee was the national committee of a political party, but taking into account the GSCC's sole focus on electing U.S. Senate candidates.

First the Commission must determine whether the party itself qualifies as a "political party" under the Act and regulations. Secondly, the Commission must determine whether the committee has demonstrated that it has engaged in sufficient activity on a national level to be considered a national party committee. While activity includes supporting ongoing party building activities and establishing national offices, the most important component is the degree to which a party committee's successful ballot access efforts extend beyond the presidential and vice presidential level. The Commission has recognized the national party committee status of only those committees whose activities were broadly focused – such as on multiple races or offices in more than one State or geographical area. Finally, individuals running for federal office on a party's ticket must qualify as candidates under the Act and Commission regulations. See AO 1996-35 (Greens/Green Party USA). See also 2 U.S.C. 431(3) and 11 CFR 100.3(a).

For the initial portion of the analysis, the Commission previously recognized the Green Party as a national political party in Advisory Opinion 2001-13. Regarding the second part of the analysis, the GSCC and its Senate candidates participated in party building activities, including voter identification and registration and get-out-the-vote activities in several states. It also established a national office, held meetings, and maintains a web site promoting the Green Party and its candidates. As for ballot access, in the 2006 election eleven Green Party candidates (at least seven of whom qualified as candidates under the Act and Commission regulations) were on the ballot in different geographic parts of the country out of a total of 33 U.S. Senate races. The Commission concluded that the GSCC had demonstrated the requisite ability to gain ballot access in a number of states in different geographic areas.

Therefore, considering all the facts together, the Commission concludes that the GSCC qualifies as a national committee of a political party and as the national senatorial campaign committee of the Green Party.

Contribution limits

Under the Act, the national party committee and the senatorial campaign committee of a national party committee share one limit for contributions to candidates for the U.S. Senate. 2 U.S.C. 441a(h).(2) Therefore, the GSCC shares with the GNC the current $39,900 contribution limit to Senate candidates. 11 CFR 110.2(e)(1).

Once the GSCC qualifies as a multicandidate committee,(3) the GSCC will have a limit of $5,000 per election to federal candidates other than Senate candidates and $5,000 per calendar year to other political committees. 11 CFR 110.2(b)(1) and (d).

The GSCC may receive $15,000 per calendar year from multicandidate committees and $28,500 from all other contributors, including individuals. 11 CFR 110.1(c)(1) and 110.2(c)(1). Contributions to the GSCC do not count against limits on contributions to the GNC. See 11 CFR 110.3(b)(2)(ii).

National and state political party committees may make coordinated party expenditures on behalf of general election candidates. See 2 U.S.C. 441a(d) and 11 CFR 109.30.(4) Coordinated party expenditures are in addition to contributions that party committees may give to their candidates. The national and state committees may assign some or all of their respective coordinated party expenditure limit to other party committees, such as local party committees or the national senatorial campaign committee. See 11 CFR 109.33. Thus the GSCC may make coordinated party expenditures if the GNC or a state committee of the Green Party assigns in writing the authority to make coordinated expenditures to the GSCC.

As a national party committee, the GSCC will be required to file monthly reports with the Commission and comply with all other reporting requirements of 2 U.S.C. 434 and 11 CFR Part 104. See 2 U.S.C. 434(e)(1), 11 CFR 104.5(c)(4) and 105.2.

AO 2006-36; Date: February 8, 2007; length: 10 pages

1) Both the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the National Republican Senatorial Committee predate the Act and the Commission.

2) Both the Republican and Democratic senatorial committees (NRSC and DSCC, respectively) were named as national senatorial committees in 2 U.S.C. 441a(h). The Commission interpreted the Act's reference to the NRSC and the DSCC as merely historical and saw no Congressional intent to prohibit other bona fide national parties from establishing and maintaining senatorial campaign committees.

3) A multicandidate committee is a political committee with more than 50 contributors which has been registered with the FEC for at least six months and, with the exception of state party committees, has made contributions to five or more candidates for federal office. 11 CFR 100.5(e)(3).

4) See FEC v. DSCC, 454 U.S. 27 (1981) (senatorial campaign committees do not have the authority to make coordinated party expenditures under 2 U.S.C. 441a(d) unless they act as agents for the national or state party committee.)