Week of April 14 - April 18, 2014

Weekly Digest

Week of April 14 - 18

COMMISSION MEETINGS AND HEARINGS

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

ADVISORY OPINIONS

Advisory Opinion Issued

AO 2014-03 (Lindsey for Congress, Inc.). On April 17, the Commission issued Advisory Opinion 2014-03. The Commission concluded that Lindsey for Congress, Inc. may spend unlimited amounts of its campaign funds to make public communications that expressly advocate the election of both Edward Lindsey, a federal candidate, and candidates for state and local office.

Drafts

AO 2014-02 (Make Your Laws PAC). On April 16, the Commission made public a draft of Advisory Opinion 2014-02.  On April 17, the Commission made public a second draft of the Advisory Opinion.  Make Your Laws PAC asks several questions related to its receipt, purchase, and disbursement of Bitcoins. Public comments on the drafts are due by noon on April 22.

ADMINISTRATIVE FINES

The Commission made public two campaign finance enforcement matters that were resolved through its Administrative Fines (AF) program, as follows. For more information, see the case documents in the Enforcement Query System.

AF 2627 – Kansas Republican Party and T.C. Anderson, in his official capacity as treasurer. The Commission made a final determination and assessed a civil penalty of $3,300.

AF 2700 – Candace Duval for Congress and Kenneth Wesley Flippin, in his official capacity as treasurer. The Commission made a final determination and assessed a civil penalty of $250.

LITIGATION

Kuhn for Congress v. FEC (Case 2:13-cv-03337-PMD-BHH). On April 11, the plaintiff filed a Motion to Deny the Commission’s Motion to Dismiss in the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina.

Libertarian National Committee, Inc. v. FEC (Case 1:11-cv-00562). On April 10, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia received a mandate issued by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in matter number 13-5094.

EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

On April 15, the Commission has posted a presentation regarding committee treasurers to the E-Learning section of its website.

OUTREACH

On April 15, Vice Chair Ann M. Ravel discussed the role and work of the Commission with students from Stanford University.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REPORTS

April 15: April Quarterly Reports were due. For information on quarterly reporting dates, refer to the 2014 Quarterly Reporting page of the Commission website.

PRESS RELEASES

FEC Chairman Lee E. Goodman and Vice Chair Ann M. Ravel to Host Public Forum on Political Parties (issued April 16)

FEC Approves Advisory Opinion (issued April 18)

UPCOMING COMMISSION MEETINGS

April 22: The Commission is scheduled to hold an executive session.

April 23: The Commission is scheduled to hold an open meeting.

UPCOMING EVENTS

June 4: FEC Chairman Lee E. Goodman and Vice Chair Ann M. Ravel will host an informal public forum to discuss agency operations that affect local, state, and national political parties with Commissioners and senior staff.  If you would like to attend the forum in person, participate via webcast, or if you are unable to attend but would like to submit written comments, please email us at politicalpartyforum@fec.gov. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact either of our offices at 202-694-1000.

UPCOMING REPORTING DUE DATES

April 20: April Monthly Reports are due. For more information on monthly reporting dates, refer to the 2014 Monthly Reporting page of the Commission website.

UPCOMING EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS

April 30, Federal Election Commission, Washington, D.C. Seminar/Webinar for Corporations and their PACs. Additional information is available on the Educational Outreach page of the Commission website.

May 21, Federal Election Commission, Washington, D.C. Seminar/Webinar for Trade Associations, Labor Organizations, Membership Organizations and their PACs. Additional information is available on the Educational Outreach page of the Commission website.

OTHER RESOURCES

The 2014 edition of the Combined Federal State Disclosure and Election Directory is available in the Public Records section of the 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 2014 edition of Title 11 of the Code of Federal Regulations can be downloaded from the website.

The 2013 Legislative Recommendations are available on the Commission’s website.

The August 2013 edition of the Federal Election Commission Campaign Guide for Political Party Committees is available on the Commission’s website.

The Official 2012 Presidential General Election Results are available in the Library section of the website. This listing was compiled from the official election results published by state election offices.

An index to the Record news articles published in 2013 is available on the Commission website. The Record news page is available in the Publications section of the Commission website. Sign up to receive email notification when new articles are posted.

The FEC Annual Reports from 1975-2006 are now available on the website. Beginning in 2007, the Commission consolidated its Annual Report with its Performance and Accountability Report (PAR) to provide a single account of the agency''''s activities for each fiscal year.

Instructional videos are available on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/user/FECTube?feature=watch. These videos are also available on the Commission''''s E-Learning resources page at http://www.fec.gov/info/elearning.shtml.

Follow us on Twitter - http://twitter.com/fec

Users of smartphones and other mobile devices may access our mobile interface at http://www.fec.gov/mobile/