Week of November 27 – December 1, 2017

Commission meetings and hearings

No Commission open meetings or executive sessions were scheduled this week.

Enforcement

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

MUR 7080

• COMPLAINANT: Public Integrity Alliance, Inc.
  
• RESPONDENTS: Paul Babeu; Paul Babeu for Congress and Chris Marston, in his official capacity as treasurer (the Committee); and Pinal County Sheriff’s Office (PCSO)
  
• SUBJECT: The complaint alleged that PCSO made and Babeu and the Committee accepted excessive and unreported in-kind contributions in the form of a coordinated mailer and coordinated Facebook posts. Babeu, the Sheriff of Pinal County, Arizona, was a 2016 candidate for Arizona’s 1st Congressional District.
  
• DISPOSITION: The Commission found that the mailer did not meet the content prong of the coordinated communications test, and that there is no reason to believe PCSO made and the Committee accepted an unreported, excessive contribution in the form of a coordinated mailer. The Commission closed the file in connection with the remaining allegations.
  

MUR 7161

• COMPLAINANT: Bart Bundesen
  
• RESPONDENTS: Rodini for Supervisor 2016 (the Committee)
  
• SUBJECT: The complaint alleged that the Committee failed to (1) register with the Commission as a political committee and (2) file a report of an independent expenditure to fund a mailing that advocated the election of two federal candidates.
  
• DISPOSITION: The Commission found no reason to believe the Committee failed to register because available information indicates the Committee did not have as a major purpose the nomination or election of federal candidates. Further, the Commission observed that any allocable costs in connection with the mailer were modest, and exercised its prosecutorial discretion to dismiss the reporting allegation in consideration of Commission priorities.
  

MUR 7114

• Casperson for Congress and Judi Skradski, in her official capacity as treasurer; Tom Casperson; and Tom Casperson for State Senate. On November 27, Vice Chair Caroline C. Hunter and Commissioners Lee E. Goodman and Matthew S. Petersen issued a Statement of Reasons.
  

Alternative dispute resolution

The Commission made public one campaign finance enforcement matter that was resolved through its Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) program, as follows. For more information, see the case documents in the Enforcement Query System.

ADR 827

• COMPLAINANT: FEC-Initiated
  
• RESPONDENT: Kaisar Ahmed for US Congress 2016 and Kaisar Ahmed, in his official capacity as treasurer
  
• SUBJECT:  The respondent failed to file a Statement of Candidacy and disclosure reports.
  
• DISPOSITION: The respondent agreed to (1) participate in a training regarding basic reporting requirements and procedures; and (2) file reports disclosing all campaign activity for the 2016 election cycle and continue to file disclosure reports until a termination report is approved.
  

Litigation

• FEC v. Jeremy Johnson and John Swallow (Case 2:15-cv-00439-DB). On November 20, the Commission filed its Cross-Motion for Partial Judgment on the Pleadings and Memorandum in Opposition to Defendant John Swallow's Motion to Dismiss and for Judgment on the Pleadings and in Support of Cross-Motion for Partial Judgment on the Pleadings.
  
• FEC v. Rivera (Case 1:17-cv-22643-RNS). On November 22, the Defendant filed a Motion to Dismiss Complaint in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida
  
• Holmes, et. al v. FEC (USCA Case 16-5194). On November 28, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, sitting en banc, unanimously rejected a First Amendment challenge and issued an opinion  and judgment upholding the separate limits on individual contributions to candidates for each election, including primary and general elections, under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended.
  
• Pursuing America’s Greatness v. FEC (Case 1:15-cv-01217-TSC). On November 27, the Plaintiff filed a Memorandum in Opposition to Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment and Reply in Support of Plaintiff's Motion for Summary Judgment.
  

Rulemaking and agency procedures

• REG 2011-02: Internet Communication Disclaimers. The Commission has published on its website comments from 149,772 commenters and signatories.
  

Outreach

• On December 1, Rosa Marshall, Assistant Branch Chief of the Reports Analysis Division’s Party/Non-Party Committee Branch, discussed best practices at a compliance training conference for Democratic state party staff in Washington, D.C.
  

Press releases

• Appeals Court upholds per-election contribution limit in Holmes, et. al v. FEC (issued November 28)
  

Upcoming Commission meetings and hearings

• December 5:  The Commission is scheduled to hold an executive session.
• December 7: The Commission is scheduled to hold an open meeting and executive session.
• December 12: The Commission is scheduled to hold an executive session.
  
• December 14: The Commission is scheduled to hold an open meeting and executive session.
  

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

Upcoming educational programs

• December 6: Nonconnected PAC Webinar. Additional information is available on the Educational Outreach page of the Commission website.
  

Upcoming reporting due dates

• December 20: December Monthly Reports are due. For more information on monthly reporting dates, refer to the 2017 Monthly Reporting page of the Commission website.
  

Additional research materials

The Official 2016 Presidential General Election Results are available in the Library section of the website. This listing was compiled from the official vote totals published by state election offices.

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

The 2017 edition of the Combined Federal State Disclosure and Election Directory is available on the new Commission website. 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.

The 2017 edition of Title 11 of the Code of Federal Regulations can be downloaded from the website.  To order printed copies, call (800) 424-9530 (press 6) or send an email to info@fec.gov.

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 mediums has not been authorized by the FEC.