SUPREMES REJECT CASE. The Republic. “The high court’s decision not to take the case ‘means that a political action committee must do more than create a separate bank account for independent expenditures to be exempt from the limits on contributions,’ said a statement from Sorrell’s office on Monday.”
ETHICS AFTER OFFICE. Gainesvilletimes.com. “House members are prohibited from using their congressional office funds for political purposes or to hire outside consultants.”
CT: STATE RESTS. CTNow. “Prosecutors rested their campaign finance fraud case against former Bridgeport state Sen. Ernest Newton Monday after hearing from two more witnesses who said they did not contribute to Newton’s 2012 campaign, but signed cards saying they did.”
MN: TOUGHENING DISCLOSURE. Twincities.com. “Voters whose mailboxes were swamped last fall with political ads from mysterious organizations would be able to find out who paid for the mailings under a bill introduced by three DFL legislators this week.”
MO: MCCASKILL PLEDGE. Stlpublicradio.com. “McCaskill is pledging to lead an effort to put on the 2016 ballot an initiative to reinstate campaign donation limits in the state and to curb lobbyists’ gifts to legislators.”
MO: ETHICS FINE. Missourian. “A former Missouri Democratic lawmaker faces a $100,000 fine from the Missouri Ethics Commission for violating campaign finance disclosure laws.”
NE: BILL DROPPED. Netnebraska.org. “Crawford’s bill, LB166, would require campaign committees to file year-end bank statements which auditors could check against what the committees say they have in campaign reports. It would also prohibit campaign committees from making loans. And it would allow the Accountability and Disclosure Commission to require committees to make restitution for funds that were used improperly.”
UT: LIMITS PROPOSED. UT Political Capitol. “If passed, HB 60 would limit contributions from political action committees, corporations, and other individuals. A maximum of $5,000 could be donated to a legislative, judicial, or school board candidate. Donations to a current state office-holder would be limited to $10,000.”
HAVE A GOOD DAY.