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In the 2007 legislative session, Representative
Pam Jochum (D-Dubuque) introduced the
Iowa 'Clean Elections' Act. This bill would establish a 'Voter-Owned
Elections' system in Iowa. Senator Mike Connolly (D-Dubuque)
introduced a companion bill in the Senate. *Clean Elections
and Voter Owned are two names for the same thing.
Below is a summary of House File 805 and
Senate File 553 from the 2007 legislative session. Both passed
out of committee, a historic step for Iowa! We expect to see even
more progress in the next legislative session.
Eligibility
for candidates - candidates must agree not to accept or spend
private contributions, including their own money. Candidates are
required to gain grassroots support of their candidacy by collecting
signatures and qualifying contributions from residents.
Qualifying
Contributions - a participating candidate is required to
collect a specified number of $5 qualifying contributions and signatures
from legal adult residents in the district where they are running
for office.
- Governor:
$5 donations and signatures from 500 voters in each of Iowa's
5 Congressional Districts.
- Statewide
candidates other than Governor: $5 donations and signatures
from 250 voters in each of Iowa's 5 Congressional Districts.
- State
Senate: $5 donations and signatures from 200 voters in
their Senate District.
- State
House: $5 donations and signatures from 100 voters in their
House District.
Donations are collected from candidates and deposited into the
Voter-Owned Elections Fund.
Seed Money
- A limited amount of “seed money” donations can be
raised and spent by candidates during the “exploratory period”
where candidates work to collect the required signatures and qualifying
contributions. Seed money donations cannot exceed $100.
Funding
for participating candidates - Participating candidates receive
a designated amount of funding to use for direct campaign purposes.
Candidates can also receive additional funds to match any excess
expenditure amount spent by a nonparticipating opposing candidate
or independent target, including PAC and 527 spending.
Fundraising
- a participating candidate is prohibited from soliciting or receiving
political contributions for any other candidate, political party,
or other political committee.
Voter Information
Program - The board overseeing the system shall establish
and administer a voter information program that would educate voters
about candidates, even those not participating in the Voter-Owned
System.
The full text of HF 805 is available on
the web. You can check it by clicking
here. For the full text of SF 553, click
here.
Your
thoughts on this bill are welcome.
Email them to:
adam@iowacci.org
Learn
about the Arizona bill:
http://www.azclean.org
Learn
about the Maine bill:
http://janus.state.me.us/legis/statutes/21-A/title21-Ach14sec0.html
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