House and Senate Dems Can’t Yet Agree on “Fixes” for Campaign Finance, so Rell Offers Her Own

Remember how majority Senate Democrats decided it was OK to create huge obstacles for minor parties to gain access to the ballot? It was nestled in that 2005 law that everyone patted themselves on the back about and was thrown out last year by US District ourt Judge Stefan Underhill in Bridgeport. Anyway, it’s on appeal now. Meanwhile, House and Senate Democrats still haven’t been able to get together a compromise fix. Supposedly, it will be announced in the Government Administration & Elections Committee tomorrow. Meanwhile, Gov Rell just announced her own proposal.

Including:

  • “Eliminate additional qualifying criteria for candidates of minor parties and petitioning candidates.
  • Provide grants in same amounts to all candidates – major party, minor party and petitioning.
  • Defer the increase in grant amounts based upon consumer price index until 2014.
  • Contributions from client lobbyists shall not be considered qualifying contributions for purposes of CEP.  (Currently, only contributions from communicator lobbyists do not count.)
  • To the extent that provisions concerning excess and independent expenditures are found to be unconstitutional, temporarily suspend their operation until the issue is finally resolved.
  • Reduce amounts of grants in response to a judge’s labeling of grant amounts as “windfall.”  The proposed reductions are as follows:

 

  •  
    • Governor’s primary from $1.25 million to 1 million
    • Governor’s general from $3 million to $2.5 million

 

  •  
    • Other statewide primary from $375,000 to $200,000
    • Other statewide general from $750,000 to $400,000

 

  •  
    • State Senate primary from $35,000 to $25,000
    • State Senate primary dominant district from $75,000 to $50,000
    • State Senate general from $85,000 to $70,000

 

  •  
    • State Rep. primary from $10,000 to $7500
    • State Rep. primary dominant district from $25,000 to $15,000
    • State Rep. general from $25,000 to $20,000″