FEC Approves Audit Division Recommendation Memorandum, Legislative Recommendations and Amendments to Agency Circulation Vote Procedures

WASHINGTON – The Federal Election Commission today approved 13 legislative recommendations for 2016, an Audit Division recommendation memorandum, and amendments to agency circulation vote procedures.

Advisory Opinion Request 2016-20 (Mlinarchik) 

The Commission considered two drafts in response to a request from Christoph Mlinarchik, the sole member of a limited liability company that is a federal contractor, but was unable to reach agreement by the required four affirmative votes. The requestor asked whether, as the sole member of a limited liability company that is treated as a disregarded entity by the Internal Revenue Service for federal income tax purposes and that is negotiating a contract with the federal government, he may make contributions using his personal funds.

Advisory Opinion 2016-21 (Great America PAC)

The Commission held over discussion of an advisory opinion request from Great America PAC, a non-connected hybrid political committee, until the next open meeting. The requestor asks several questions about the applicability of the former employee conduct standard of the Commission’s coordinated communications regulations.

Proposed Amendments to Directive 52

The Commission approved amendments to Directive 52, which governs the agency’s circulation vote procedures. Specifically, the Commission approved amending the directive to no longer circulate administrative fines matters on no-objection ballots.

Proposed Final Audit Report on the Utah Republican Party

The Commission considered the Proposed Final Audit Report covering campaign finance activity between January 1, 2011 and December 31, 2012 and reopened consideration of the Audit Division Recommendation Memorandum on the Utah Republican Party. The Commission approved findings related to the receipt of prohibited contributions, receipt of contributions that exceed limits, misstatement of financial activity, recordkeeping for employees, reporting of debts and obligations, and apparent excessive contribution in the form of staff advances. The Commission did not approve a portion of the proposed finding addressing recordkeeping for employees related to logs for monthly payroll paid exclusively with non-federal funds and instructed the Audit Division to include a discussion of the issue in the Additional Issues section of the Proposed Final Audit Report.

2016 Legislative Recommendations

The Commission unanimously approved 13 legislative recommendations for 2016 to be submitted for consideration to Congress: 

1. Electronic Filing of Senate Reports 
   
2. Electronic Filing of Electioneering Communication Reports 
   
3. Authority to Create Senior Executive Service Positions 
4. Fraudulent Misrepresentation of Campaign Authority 
5. Making Permanent the Administrative Fine Program for Reporting Violations
6. Increasing and Indexing for Inflation Registration and Reporting Thresholds 
7. Authority to Accept Gifts 
8. Conversion of Campaign Funds 
9. Permitting Political Committees to Make Disbursements by Methods Other than Check 
10. Increasing the In-Home Event Exemption and Unreimbursed Travel Expense Exemption for Candidates and Political Parties 
11. Prohibiting Fraudulent PAC Practices 
12. Updating Citations to Reflect the Recodification of FECA; and 
13. Repeal of Convention Funding Provisions Rendered Non-Operational by the Gabriella Miller Kids First Research Act.