{news} Very Positive Editorial Today in Bridgeport Post on Campaign Suit

Sat Jul 8 00:22:28 EDT 2006

Article Created: 7/07/2006 04:44 AM	
Very Positive Editorial Today in Bridgeport Post on Campaign Finance Suit:

Lawsuit challenges new campaign law	

Connecticut Post Online	

As expected, Connecticut's landmark campaign public financing law is being
challenged in federal court — and for good reason. 

Last minute alterations made to the law in this year's General Assembly
session simply did not go far enough. The legislation, first approved in
late fall of 2005, still harshly discriminates against third-party and
petitioning candidates in sharing in a voluntary public funding system. 

In addition, the new law's outright ban on campaign contributions from
lobbyists and state contractors and their families may be flirting with
unconstitutionality, if recent court decisions in the campaign finance arena
are any barometer. 

Don't get us wrong — the reform law is an adequate start to decreasing the
influence of special interest money in state elections, if the voluntary
funds can be raised. 

But, it must also be a tool for encouraging more participation in elections,
a factor the state's two major political parties are not enthusiastic about
for obvious reasons. 

The law — which doesn't go into effect until Jan. 1, 2007, the start of the
2008 election cycle — was approved with major procedural flaws that weren't
discovered until after it was signed into law. 

The Assembly remedied those flaws in its last session, but lawmakers did not
budge on the overly strict ban on contributions or the nearly insurmountable
obstacles placed in the way of third party and petitioning candidates. 

For example, under the law, Democratic and Republican candidates for state
offices must meet minimum fund-raising levels to qualify for public funds. 

However, third party and petitioning candidates must not only raise those
funding levels but also collect signatures of eligible voters equal to 20
percent of the turnout in the most recent election for the office. A third
party gubernatorial candidate, for example, would have to collect some
200,000 petition signatures to qualify for public funding. 

The American Civil Liberties Union, two third-party entities and a lobbyist
are among those who have filed the lawsuit challenging the new law. Perhaps
through their efforts, the federal courts will make a good law even better.

This story appeared on the Boston Globe website:

ACLU files lawsuit challenging campaign finance law

By Pat Eaton-Robb, Associated Press Writer  |  July 6, 2006

HARTFORD, Conn. --A group including third-party candidates, lobbyists and
the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Thursday seeking
to block Connecticut's new campaign financing system.

The law, which Gov. M. Jodi Rell signed on Dec. 7, 2005, includes a
voluntary public financing system for campaigns beginning with the 2008
election cycle.

It also bans campaign contributions from lobbyists, state contractors and
their families in an effort to eliminate incentives for corruption and
contract steering.

The bans apply to employees who spend as little as 10 percent of their time
lobbying the General Assembly, and would even include a worker at a
child-care center who manages a contract that is even partly funded by the
state, said Renee Redman, the legal director of the ACLU's Connecticut
chapter.

"These limitations severely impinge the freedoms of speech and association,
and we know of no justification for such severe limitations," she said.

Lobbyist Betty Gallo, a plaintiff, said that under the law she won't even be
able to answer questions about lawmakers from friends who are considering
making campaign donations.

"I can no longer serve as a campaign manager for a state race. I cannot even
give a $25 contribution to a friend running for office," she said. "I do not
think prohibiting these activities makes the political process better or
somehow takes corruption out of government. It does violate my rights."

The plaintiffs also argue that the new public financing system unfairly
benefits major party candidates.

Candidates would qualify for public financing of $25,000 for a House race,
$85,000 for a Senate contest and $3 million to seek the governor's office if
they meet private fundraising thresholds of $5,000 for a House campaign,
$15,000 for a Senate race and $250,000 for governor.

To obtain the same money given to Democrats and Republicans, minor-party and
petitioning candidates must not only raise that money, but also collect
signatures from eligible voters equal to 20 percent of the turnout in the
most recent election for the office.

Based on a turnout of more than 1 million voters statewide in 2002, a minor
party candidate for governor would have to collect more than 200,000
signatures to qualify for full funding.

"The Connecticut legislators who drafted this law in the dead of night knew
that they were creating a system that would perpetuate two classes of
political parties that are separate and unequal," said S. Michael Derosa, a
plaintiff in the lawsuit and the Green Party's candidate for secretary of
the state. "Some of us in the Green Party call this the 'No Incumbent Left
Behind System.'"

Andy Sauer, executive director of Connecticut Common Cause, which fought for
the legislation, said similar challenges to the federal presidential public
financing program were rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court 30 years ago.

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said he will vigorously
defend the law.

"The legislature rightfully believed that public financing was critical to
eliminating abuses in the present system, and these public policy goals are
entitled to respect," he said. "Minor party candidates continue to have
access to public funding if they meet the threshold established by the
legislature."  HYPERLINK
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The AP story was also in today's New Haven Register.

HYPERLINK "http://www.nhregister.com/site/News.cfm?brd=1281"	

07/07/2006	
Group seeks to block election finance law 	
Associated Press 	

-HARTFORD — A group including third-party candidates, lobbyists and the
American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit Thursday seeking to
block Connecticut’s new campaign-financing system. 
The law, which Gov. M. Jodi Rell signed Dec. 7, includes a voluntary
public-financing system for campaigns beginning with the 2008 election
cycle.

HYPERLINK
"http://bannerads.zwire.com/bannerads/redirect.cfm?ADLOCATION=4000&PAG=791&B
RD=1281"Click Here! 
It also bans campaign contributions from lobbyists, state contractors and
their families in an effort to eliminate incentives for corruption and
contract steering.

The bans apply to employees who spend as little as 10 percent of their time
lobbying the General Assembly, and would even include a worker at a
child-care center who manages a contract that is even partly funded by the
state, said Renee Redman, the legal director of the ACLU’s Connecticut
chapter.

"These limitations severely impinge the freedoms of speech and association,
and we know of no justification for such severe limitations," she said.

Lobbyist Betty Gallo, a plaintiff, said that under the law she won’t even be
able to answer questions about lawmakers from friends who are considering
making campaign donations.

"I can no longer serve as a campaign manager for a state race. I cannot even
give a $25 contribution to a friend running for office," she said. "I do not
think prohibiting these activities makes the political process better or
somehow takes corruption out of government. It does violate my rights."

The plaintiffs also argue that the new public-financing system unfairly
benefits major-party candidates.

Candidates would qualify for public financing of $25,000 for a House race,
$85,000 for a Senate contest and $3 million to seek the governor’s office if
they meet private fund-raising thresholds of $5,000 for a House campaign,
$15,000 for a Senate race and $250,000 for governor.

To obtain the same money given to Democrats and Republicans, minor-party and
petitioning candidates must not only raise that money, but also collect
signatures from eligible voters equal to 20 percent of the turnout in the
most recent election for the office.

Based on a turnout of more than 1 million voters statewide in 2002, a
minor-party candidate for governor would have to collect more than 200,000
signatures to qualify for full funding.

"The Connecticut legislators who drafted this law in the dead of night knew
that they were creating a system that would perpetuate two classes of
political parties that are separate and unequal," said S. Michael Derosa, a
plaintiff in the lawsuit and the Green Party’s candidate for secretary of
the state. "Some of us in the Green Party call this the ‘No Incumbent Left
Behind system.’"

Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said he will vigorously
defend the law.

Andy Sauer, executive director of Connecticut Common Cause, which fought for
the legislation, said similar challenges to the federal presidential public
financing program were rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court 30 years ago.

"The legislature rightfully believed that public financing was critical to
eliminating abuses in the present system, and these public policy goals are
entitled to respect," he said. "Minor party candidates continue to have
access to public funding if they meet the threshold established by the
legislature." 

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Sent: Friday, July 07, 2006 11:25 PM
Subject: {news} Associated Press story on Campaign Reforms
Challenged-Wentout on AP wire

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   _____  

ACLU Files Campaign Finance Lawsuit 

By PAT EATON-ROBB
The Associated Press

July 6 2006, 2:41 PM EDT

HARTFORD, Conn. -- A group including third-party candidates, lobbyists and
the American Civil Liberties Union filed a federal lawsuit today seeking to
block Connecticut's new campaign financing system.