AB303: Bill Text

LRB-1518/1

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2001 - 2002 LEGISLATURE

2001 Assembly BILL 303

April 6, 2001 - Introduced by Representatives Bock, Musser, Ainsworth, Young, Pocan, Gunderson, Carpenter, Berceau, Reynolds, Ryba, Richards, Black, Plouff, Meyerhofer, Cullen, Coggs, Balow, Turner, J. Lehman, Shilling, Morris-Tatum, Travis, Kreuser, Hebl, Schooff, Riley, Huber, Krug, Miller, Lassa and Sinicki, cosponsored by Senators George, Risser, Robson, Grobschmidt, Rosenzweig, Darling, Burke, Plache, Baumgart, Wirch and Shibilski. Referred to Committee on Campaigns and Elections.

AB303,1,7 An Act to repeal 11.50 (3) (a) 2.; to amend 5.05 (1) (e), 8.35 (4) (b), 11.16 (2), 11.26 (1) (a), 11.26 (2) (a), 11.26 (9) (a), 11.26 (9) (b), 11.26 (13), 11.27 (1), 11.31 (1) (d), 11.50 (1) (a) 1., 11.50 (3) (b) and 12.05; and to create 11.001 (2m), 11.26 (1) (am), 11.26 (2) (am), 11.26 (9) (ba), 11.501 to 11.518, 20.510 (1) (r), 20.585 (1) (q), 20.585 (1) (r), 20.855 (4) (bb), 25.17 (1) (cm) and 25.421 of the statutes; relating to: campaign financing with respect to the office of justice of the supreme court, making appropriations, and providing penalties.

Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau

This bill makes numerous changes in the campaign finance law affecting campaigns for the office of justice of the supreme court. The bill removes candidates for the office of justice from eligibility for grants under the Wisconsin election campaign fund, under which eligible candidates for state offices (except district attorney, court of appeals judge, and circuit judge) may receive public grants from state general purpose revenues derived from designations made by individuals filing state income tax returns. To finance elections for the office of justice, the bill instead creates a democracy trust fund, under which eligible candidates for this office may receive public financing benefits derived from general purpose revenues without regard to designations made by individuals filing state income tax returns.

Currently, a candidate for the office of justice of the supreme court may qualify to receive a grant from the Wisconsin election campaign fund for use in only an election campaign. No funding is provided for primary campaigns. To qualify for a grant, a candidate must qualify to have his or her name appear on the spring election ballot and must have an opponent who qualifies to have his or her name appear on that ballot. The maximum amount of a grant that a candidate may receive is $97,031. This amount is not subject to any cost of living adjustment. In addition, this amount is reduced by the total amount of contributions received by a candidate from special interest and personal campaign committees, and this amount may not be fully funded in a particular year if there are not sufficient moneys in the Wisconsin election campaign fund to provide full financing for all qualifying candidates. A candidate must agree to abide by spending and self-contribution limits to receive a grant, but this agreement does not apply if the candidate has an opponent who could have qualified for a grant but declines to do so and declines to file an affidavit of voluntary compliance with spending and self-contribution limits.

Under this bill, a candidate for the office of justice of the supreme court may qualify for a public financing benefit from the democracy trust fund to finance a campaign in a primary or election by receiving qualifying contributions from at least 500 residents of this state in amounts of not less than $10 nor more than $100. A candidate who accepts a public financing benefit may accept "seed money" contributions in amounts of $100 or less and may contribute personal funds in an aggregate amount not exceeding $5,000 during specified periods. With limited exceptions, a candidate who accepts a public financing benefit may not accept any contributions other than qualifying and seed money contributions, including contributions from personal funds. Disbursements (expenditures) made by a candidate from qualifying and seed money contributions may not exceed $25,000. If a candidate who accepts a public financing benefit receives qualifying and seed money contributions in a total amount greater than $25,000, the candidate must remit the excess contributions to the elections board for deposit in the democracy trust fund. Initial public financing benefits for eligible candidates are $100,000 in the spring primary and $300,000 in the spring election. The benefits are subject to a biennial cost of living adjustment, beginning in 2004, in accordance with the rate of increase or decrease in the "consumer price index," as determined by the U.S. department of labor, with the result in turn adjusted by the rate of increase or decrease in the voting age population of this state, as determined by the federal election commission. The bill provides that if a candidate for the office of justice has an unencumbered balance in his or her campaign depository account on the day the bill becomes law, that candidate may make disbursements from that balance for his or her campaign, but an amount equal to the balance is deducted from the candidate's public financing benefit.

In addition, if a candidate's opponent declines to accept a public financing benefit and accepts contributions or makes disbursements in a total amount that exceeds the amount of the initial public financing benefit for a candidate who accepts a public financing benefit, the candidate who accepts a public financing benefit receives additional funding equivalent to the excess contributions accepted or disbursements made by his or her opponent. The funding is determined on the basis of information provided by candidates who decline to accept public financing benefits. Under the bill, these candidates must file reports with the board disclosing their total contributions accepted and disbursements made. A candidate who receives a public financing benefit also receives additional funding equivalent to independent expenditures for communications exceeding $2,000 cumulatively for certain communications made against the candidate or in support of his or her opponents if those expenditures exceed 20% of the amount of the public financing benefit for the office of justice. The bill defines "independent expenditure" to include only those expenditures made independently of a candidate for the office of justice for communications that contain a reference to such a candidate and that are made during the period beginning 30 days before the spring primary and ending on the date of the spring election (or during the last 60 days before the spring election if no primary is held). The bill requires persons who make communications financed with independent expenditures to file reports with the board disclosing the amounts expended for those expenditures. Under the bill, additional funding may not exceed three times the amount of the initial public financing benefit.

Currently, individuals and committees making political contributions to candidates for the office of justice of the supreme court are subject to limitations on the amount or value of any contribution or contributions that may be made cumulatively to any candidate in a campaign. The limitations are $10,000 in the case of an individual making any contribution or contributions to a candidate and $8,625 in the case of a committee making any contribution or contributions to a candidate. This bill replaces these limitations with a contribution limitation of $5,000 applicable to an individual or committee making any contribution or contributions to a candidate for the office of justice. Because, under the bill, a candidate who accepts a public financing benefit is subject to more restrictive provisions in most cases, the limitations generally apply only to contributions made to a candidate who declines to accept a public financing benefit.

For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as an appendix to this bill.

The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do enact as follows:

AB303, s. 1 Section 1. 5.05 (1) (e) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,4,5 5.05 (1) (e) Delegate to its executive director the authority to issue a subpoena under par. (b), apply for a search warrant under par. (b), commence an action under par. (d), intervene in an action or proceeding under sub. (9), issue an order under s. 5.06, exempt a polling place from accessibility requirements under s. 5.25 (4) (a), exempt a municipality from the requirement to use voting machines or an electronic voting system under s. 5.40 (5m), approve an electronic data recording system for maintaining poll lists under s. 6.79, or authorize nonappointment of an individual who is nominated to serve as an election official under s. 7.30 (4) (e), or make a determination concerning the nature of an independent expenditure under s. 11.513 (4), subject to such limitations as the board deems appropriate.

AB303, s. 2 Section 2. 8.35 (4) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,4,16 8.35 (4) (b) Notwithstanding par. (a), any unspent and unencumbered moneys received by a candidate from the Wisconsin election campaign fund shall be immediately transferred to any candidate who is appointed to replace such candidate, upon filing of a proper application therefor under s. 11.50 (2). If there is no candidate appointed or if no proper application is filed within 7 days of the date on which the vacancy occurs, such moneys shall revert to the state as provided in s. 11.50 (8). Notwithstanding par. (a), any unspent and unencumbered moneys received by a candidate from the democracy trust fund shall be immediately transferred to any candidate who is appointed to replace such candidate. If there is no candidate appointed, the moneys shall revert to the state.

AB303, s. 3 Section 3. 11.001 (2m) of the statutes is created to read:

AB303,5,13 11.001 (2m) The declarations of policy and intent in this section have particular application in elections for the office of justice. The legislature finds that an independent, elected judiciary is an indispensable part of state government, and it is essential that the public have confidence in the absolute integrity of the nonpartisan judiciary in general and the supreme court in particular, which has supervisory authority over the judiciary. To the extent consistent with the state and federal constitutions, judicial elections should be free from both partisan and financial influence, including even the suggestion that a judicial candidate is associated with a committee, group, or cause other than the candidate's own personal campaign committee. Ethical constraints may limit the ability of judicial candidates to engage in fund raising, and candidates who are incumbent judges may have limited ability to discuss cases in which they have been involved. The legislature finds, therefore, that there is a compelling justification for public financing of campaigns for the office of justice, to help remove even the appearance of impropriety from the electoral process. The legislature further finds a compelling justification for minimal disclosure of all communications made near the time of an election that include the name or likeness of a candidate for the office of justice to allow increased funding for such candidates based upon independent expenditures. This minimal disclosure burden is outweighed by the need to establish an effective funding mechanism for candidates for the office of justice to effectively respond to independent expenditures that may impact an election for that office.

AB303, s. 4 Section 4. 11.16 (2) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,5,21 11.16 (2) Limitation on cash contributions. Every Except as provided in s. 11.506 (6), every contribution of money exceeding $50 shall be made by negotiable instrument or evidenced by an itemized credit card receipt bearing on the face the name of the remitter. No treasurer may accept a contribution made in violation of this subsection. The treasurer shall promptly return the contribution, or donate it to the common school fund or to a charitable organization in the event that the donor cannot be identified.

AB303, s. 5 Section 5. 11.26 (1) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,5,24 11.26 (1) (a) Candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, or state superintendent or justice, $10,000.

AB303, s. 6 Section 6. 11.26 (1) (am) of the statutes is created to read:

AB303,6,1 11.26 (1) (am) Candidates for justice, $5,000.

AB303, s. 7 Section 7. 11.26 (2) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,6,5 11.26 (2) (a) Candidates for governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, state treasurer, attorney general, or state superintendent or justice, 4% of the value of the disbursement level specified in the schedule under s. 11.31 (1).

AB303, s. 8 Section 8. 11.26 (2) (am) of the statutes is created to read:

AB303,6,7 11.26 (2) (am) Candidates for justice, $5,000.

AB303, s. 9 Section 9. 11.26 (9) (a) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,6,14 11.26 (9) (a) No Except as provided in par. (ba), no individual who is a candidate for state or local office may receive and accept more than 65% of the value of the total disbursement level determined under s. 11.31 for the office for which he or she is a candidate during any primary and election campaign combined from all committees subject to a filing requirement, including political party and legislative campaign committees.

AB303, s. 10 Section 10. 11.26 (9) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,6,21 11.26 (9) (b) No Except as provided in par. (ba), no individual who is a candidate for state or local office may receive and accept more than 45% of the value of the total disbursement level determined under s. 11.31 for the office for which he or she is a candidate during any primary and election campaign combined from all committees other than political party and legislative campaign committees subject to a filing requirement.

AB303, s. 11 Section 11. 11.26 (9) (ba) of the statutes is created to read:

AB303,6,24 11.26 (9) (ba) Paragraphs (a) and (b) do not apply to a candidate who receives a public financing benefit from the democracy trust fund.

AB303, s. 12 Section 12. 11.26 (13) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,7,3 11.26 (13) Except Public financing benefits received from the democracy trust fund and, except as provided in sub. (9), contributions received from the Wisconsin election campaign fund are not subject to limitation by this section.

AB303, s. 13 Section 13. 11.27 (1) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,7,8 11.27 (1) No person may prepare or submit a false report or statement to a filing officer under this chapter. This subsection does not apply to any information reported by a person making an independent expenditure, as defined in s. 11.501 (10), under s. 11.513 (2) (b).

AB303, s. 14 Section 14. 11.31 (1) (d) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,7,11 11.31 (1) (d) Candidates for secretary of state, state treasurer, justice or state superintendent, $215,625.

AB303, s. 15 Section 15. 11.50 (1) (a) 1. of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,7,20 11.50 (1) (a) 1. With respect to a spring or general election, any individual who is certified under s. 7.08 (2) (a) as a candidate in the spring election for justice or state superintendent, or an individual who receives at least 6% of the vote cast for all candidates on all ballots for any state office, except district attorney, for which the individual is a candidate at the September primary and who is certified under s. 7.08 (2) (a) as a candidate for that office in the general election, or an individual who has been lawfully appointed and certified to replace either such individual on the ballot at the spring or general election; and who has qualified for a grant under sub. (2).

AB303, s. 16 Section 16. 11.50 (3) (a) 2. of the statutes is repealed.

AB303, s. 17 Section 17. 11.50 (3) (b) of the statutes is amended to read:

AB303,8,4 11.50 (3) (b) If a vacancy occurs in the office of state superintendent or justice after August 15 in any year, and an election is scheduled to fill the vacancy at the spring election in the following year, the state treasurer shall transfer an amount not exceeding 8% of the moneys transferred to the fund on the preceding August 15 to the superintendency account for the office in which the vacancy occurs, such moneys to be drawn from any account within the accounts created under sub. (4) in the amount or amounts specified by the board.

AB303, s. 18 Section 18. 11.501 to 11.518 of the statutes are created to read:

AB303,8,6 11.501 Definitions. In ss. 11.501 to 11.518: