HR-8738-119
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.
Sponsored by Joseph Morelle (D-NY)
What it does
This bill would make two changes to the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. First, it would require any person who makes electioneering communications — broadcast ads that mention a federal candidate close to an election — to file their disclosure reports electronically with the FEC, the same requirement that already applies to those making independent expenditures. Second, it would allow political committees to make payments from their official accounts by any method (such as electronic transfer or debit card), removing the existing requirement that all disbursements be made by check.
Who benefits
Political committees (including candidate committees, party committees, and PACs) that would gain flexibility to pay vendors and staff using modern payment methods such as wire transfers, ACH transfers, or debit cards. Vendors and contractors who work with political committees and prefer electronic payment. The FEC and the public, who would gain faster and more consistent access to electioneering communication disclosure data. Researchers, journalists, and watchdog organizations that rely on timely, machine-readable FEC filings.
Who is hurt
Organizations that currently file electioneering communication disclosures on paper and would face new compliance costs to transition to electronic filing systems. Smaller nonprofit advocacy groups and trade associations that run electioneering communications infrequently and may lack the technical infrastructure for electronic filing. Potentially, auditors or oversight bodies that rely on paper check records as a clear paper trail for disbursement verification.
Supporters argue
Supporters argue that requiring electronic filing for electioneering communications closes a disclosure gap — organizations spending money on ads that name federal candidates near elections can currently file on paper, making their disclosures slower and harder to search than those of other political spenders. They contend that modernizing disbursement rules simply aligns political committee payment practices with how virtually all other organizations conduct financial transactions today, reducing administrative burden without weakening any substantive campaign finance rule.
Opponents argue
Opponents argue that removing the check requirement for political committee disbursements could weaken the auditability of campaign spending, since checks create a clear, bank-verified paper trail that electronic transfers may obscure or complicate. They contend that the electronic filing mandate, while modest in scope, imposes real compliance costs on smaller advocacy organizations and nonprofits that make occasional electioneering communications, potentially chilling participation by less-resourced groups in the political process.