Week of June 24 - 28, 2019

Commission meetings and hearings

On June 25, the Commission met in executive session. No open meetings were scheduled.

Advisory Opinions

Advisory Opinion Request 2019-12 (Area 1 Security, Inc. II)

On June 26, the Commission made public a draft of AO 2019-12. The requestor, a technology corporation, which asks whether it may offer low-cost cybersecurity services to federal candidates and political committees. On June 25, the Commission received a comment on AOR 2019-12.

Advisory Opinion Request 2019-11 (Pro-Life Democratic Candidate PAC)

On June 21, the Commission received a comment on AOR 2019-11. The requestor, a non-connected political committee, asks whether and under what conditions it may accept contributions earmarked for a Democratic candidate for U.S. president who is pro-life.

Enforcement

The Commission made public two closed cases, as follows. For more information, see the case documents in the Enforcement Query System.

MUR 7287

• COMPLAINANT: American Democracy Legal Fund
• RESPONDENTS: Russell C. Fagg; and Russ Fagg Senate Committee f/k/a Russ Fagg 18 Senate Exploratory Committee and Lorna Kuney, in her official capacity as treasurer (the Committee)
• SUBJECT: The complaint alleged that the Committee violated the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (the Act), by failing to register and report with the Commission after Fagg became a candidate. The complaint asserted that Fagg engaged in extensive campaign activities and made public statements that indicated that he became a candidate before October 14, 2017, when he officially announced his 2018 candidacy for Montana’s United States Senate seat.
• DISPOSITION: The Commission closed the file.

MUR 7505

• COMPLAINANT: Kyle Whatley
• RESPONDENTS: End Citizens United and Kimberly Coleman, in her official capacity as treasurer; and Beto for Texas and Gwendolyn Pulido, in her official capacity as treasurer (the Committee)
• SUBJECT: The complaint alleged that End Citizens United paid for a Facebook solicitation advertisement supporting the Committee but failed to report the expenditure as either an in-kind contribution to or an independent expenditure on behalf of the Committee. Robert (Beto) O’Rourke was a 2018 candidate for Texas’s United States Senate seat.
• DISPOSITION: The Commission closed the file.

Administrative Fines

The Commission made public four closed cases, as follows. For more information, see the case documents in the Enforcement Query System.

AF 3519

Friends of Brenda Jones and Stephen Grady, in his official capacity as treasurer. The Commission made a final determination and assessed a civil penalty of $3,255.

AF 3574

David Trone for Congress, Inc. and June Trone, in her official capacity as treasurer. The Commission made a final determination and assessed a civil penalty of $10,146.

AF 3588

Concordia Political Action Committee and Daniel T. King, in his official capacity as treasurer. The Commission voted to terminate the proceedings and closed the file.

AF 3645

Pipefitters Local Union #524 and Patrick Dolan, in his official capacity as treasurer. The Commission made a final determination and assessed no civil penalty.

Litigation

• Lieu, et al. v. FEC (USCA Case #19-5072). On June 21, Appellants filed a Petition for Initial Hearing en Banc, and on June 24 Appellants filed a Reply in Support of Request to Hold Federal Election Commission’s Motion in Abeyance in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

Regulations and agency procedures

• Internet Ad Disclaimers Rulemaking Proposal for REG 2011-02. The Commission encourages members of the public to submit comments on two rulemaking proposals under consideration through the online commenting system at https://sers.fec.gov/fosers/.

Outreach

• On June 26, Chair Ellen L. Weintraub discussed the role and work of the Commission with a delegation from Ethiopia visiting the U.S. as part of the State Department’s International Visitor Leadership Program.
• On June 26, Commission staff hosted reporting and FECFile webinars for candidate committees.

Upcoming Commission meetings and hearings

• July 9: The Commission is scheduled to meet in executive session.
• July 11: The Commission is scheduled to hold an open meeting.

Meeting dates are subject to change. Please contact the Press Office the week of the scheduled meeting for confirmation.

Upcoming reporting due dates

• July 15: July Quarterly reports are due. For more information on quarterly reporting dates, refer to the 2019 Quarterly Reporting page of the Commission website.
• July 20: July Monthly reports are due. For more information on monthly reporting dates, refer to the 2019 Monthly Reporting page of the Commission website.
• July 31: Mid-Year reports are due. For more information on semi-annual reporting dates, refer to the 2019 Semi-Annual Reporting page of the Commission website.

Upcoming educational programs

On July 10, Commission staff will host reporting and FECFile webinars for PACs and party committees.

Additional research materials

FEC Notify: Want to be notified by email when campaign finance reports are received by the agency? Sign up here.

Additional research materials about the agency, campaign finance information, and election results are available through the Library section of the Commission website.

Printed copies of the 2018 edition of Title 11 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) are available. Contact the Commission's Information Division at (202) 694-1100 or (800) 424-9530 (press 6, when prompted) to order printed copies of the CFR at no charge. You may also email the Information Division to place an order at info@fec.gov.

The 2017 Campaign Guide for Corporations and Labor Organizations is available. Other Campaign Guides are available, as well.

Federal Elections 2016: Election Results for the U.S. President, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives is available. The data was compiled from the official vote totals published by state election offices. To order a printed copy, please contact the FEC’s Public Records Office at 800/424-9530 (option 2) or 202/694-1120, or send an email to pubrec@fec.gov.

The Combined Federal State Disclosure and Election Directory is available. This publication identifies the federal and state agencies responsible for the disclosure of campaign finances, lobbying, personal finances, public financing, candidates on the ballot, election results, spending on state initiatives and other financial filings.

The FEC Record is available as a continuously updated online news source.

Join the FEC on Twitter and YouTube

Follow @FEC on Twitter to receive the latest information on agency updates, news releases, and weekly activity. Subscribe to our YouTube channel, FECTube: FECConnect on Demand, to watch instructional videos that have been designed to help candidates and committees comply with federal campaign finance laws. Note that the FEC is not currently available through other social media platforms at this time. The use of the agency’s logo, name, and likeness on other media has not been authorized by the FEC.