AO 2012-18: Committee's costs deemed to be contributions

Payments from the National Right to Life Committee, Inc. (“NRLC”) for the establishment, administration or solicitation costs of its independent expenditure-only political committee are contributions under campaign finance law and must be disclosed.

Background

The NRLC is an incorporated non-profit social welfare 501(c)(4) organization that maintains a separate segregated fund, National Right to Life PAC, and recently established an independent expenditure-only political committee called the Victory Fund.

The NRLC plans to finance the Victory Fund’s establishment, administration and solicitation costs, and has asked the Commission whether these payments would be considered contributions under the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act) and require disclosure.

Analysis

Under the Act and Commission regulations, a corporation’s payments for the costs of establishing, administering or soliciting contributions to its SSF are exempt from the definition of contribution or expenditure and are generally not subject to reporting requirements. 11 CFR 114.5(b).

A corporation’s payment for the costs of establishing, administering or soliciting contributions to an independent expenditure-only political committee are not exempt from the definition of contribution or expenditure because such a committee is not an SSF. See AO 2010-09 (Club for Growth). Therefore, NRLC’s payments of the Victory Fund’s establishment, administration and solicitation costs are not exempt from the definition of “contribution” or “expenditure” and any such payments by NRLC must be reported as contributions to the Victory Fund.

Date issued: June 7, 2012; 3 pages.

Resources:

• Advisory opinion 2012-18 [PDF; 2 pages]
• Commission discussion of AOR 2012-18