Three bills introduced to rein in role of big money in politics; increase transparency, accountability in elections
End Citizens United Executive Director Tiffany Muller released the following statement praising Senator Jon Tester’s package of campaign finance reform bills.
“Corporations and special interests are taking every opportunity to dismantle our campaign finance system and exploit loopholes in the laws designed to safeguard our democracy. They’ve created a rigged system that’s leaving families in Montana and across the country behind.
“In the best tradition of Montana reformers, Senator Tester has led the fight to ensure every-day Americans have a voice in our democracy. These bills would bring arcane Senate rules into the 21st century and add much needed transparency to campaign finance reporting. They would give the public the ability to learn who is trying to buy influence in our elections. And they would undercut a key element of the disastrous Citizens United decision by establishing that corporations are not afforded the same rights as real people.
“End Citizens United thanks Senator Tester for standing up for hard-working Americans against corporate special interests. We will fight vigorously to help pass these reforms.”
A summary of each piece of legislation:
Constitutional Amendment Declaring Corporations are Not People:
This Constitutional Amendment strikes at the heart of the Citizens United ruling. It would declare that corporations are not people — an assertion obvious to a majority of Americans. However, due to Citizens United, legal basis was established for the idea that “corporations are people.”
Sunlight for Unaccountable Non-Profits (SUN) Act:
This act would rein in the role of so-called “dark money” groups by requiring them to disclose the identity of donors who contribute more than $5,000.
Senate Campaign Disclosure Parity Act:
This bill would require Senate candidates to electronically file campaign finance reports, which would save taxpayers’ money and make disclosures more quickly available to the public.
End Citizens United, a grassroots-funded political action committee (PAC) with 3 million members nationwide, was established in March 2015 to counter the disastrous effects ofCitizens United and reform our campaign finance system.
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