[ad_1]
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — Will this be the year Oregon enacts campaign contribution limits?
In Oregon, a bill is moving through the Legislature that would cap the amount donors can give to candidates.
Lawmakers are scheduled to vote Monday night on whether to bring forward a bill that would cap contributions, but this is not the first time they have tried to pass it.
“As many in this room know, members of Congress have been trying to find a path forward on campaign finance reform for years. We have convened countless workgroups. But we were never able to put together a proposal,” said Rep. Julie Fahey (D-Eugene), sponsor of House Bill 4024.
Voters have also attempted to overcome these restrictions through voting measures, but those measures have been overturned by the Oregon Supreme Court. But in 2020, the court moved to uphold campaign finance limits, paving the way for future voting initiatives to succeed.
Signature campaigns have already begun for two new initiatives. Fahey said these are the main reasons HB 4024, which enacts less restrictive restrictions than the proposed ballot measure, is gaining support.
“For the first time in history, we have bipartisan agreement on a broad outline, and we have a willingness to compromise that I have not seen in my seven years in this building,” she said.
Oregon is one of five states that does not place limits on the amount that individual donors, political organizations, businesses, and labor unions can donate to candidates.
Fahey said too much regulation risks creating invisible or dark money donors.
“We don’t have restrictions, so we don’t push donors into less transparent underground finance, but in return we see shockingly large donations.Here in Oregon, this proposal “is a major step toward reasonable limits that prevent these spectacular contributions while still allowing for meaningful campaign contributions,” she said.
The bill would cap contributions from a single donor at $3,300.
[ad_2]
Source link
