LOS ANGELES, Aug. 20 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Minnesota's public
campaign financing program has long led the nation in limiting big money's
power in state elections, but large private donors have played a ballooning
role in the state's elections since the mid-1990s. The legislature should
implement specific reforms to mitigate big money's influence in elections,
concludes a new report, Public Campaign Financing in Minnesota: Damming Big
Money in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, issued today by the Center for Governmental
Studies (CGS).
For nearly 35 years, Minnesota has provided public funding to candidates
who agree to limit their campaign spending. In 2006, for example, only 16
percent of contributions to participating candidates came from political
parties, PACs and lobbyists.
Minnesota's public campaign financing system is still considered one of
the finest in the country. While seventeen other states have similar programs,
no other state program enjoys higher participation rates than Minnesota, where
well over 90 percent of candidates have opted into the program since 1990.
Minnesota also provides candidates with about one third of the total money
they receive per general election, which is more public funding than they
would receive in almost any other state with a similar program.
Despite these successes, Minnesota's public campaign financing program
faces a serious and growing challenge: independent expenditures by political
parties and other non-candidate groups. Independent expenditures by political
parties have escalated from 0.1 percent of total campaign spending in 1996 to
59 percent of total campaign spending in 2006. The high spending by political
parties undermines the public financing program's ability to reduce the
influence of private money in campaigns -- and that produces serious
consequences for the public's trust in government.
"If Minnesota does not change its laws to keep up with these new
developments, its law will become less and less effective," commented Tracy
Westen, CEO of the Center for Governmental Studies.
The report, based on two years of study, recommends that Minnesota:
-- Provide additional public financing ("rescue funds") for participating
candidates facing heavy opposition spending.
-- Place contribution limits on grants to political committees, political
parties and political party units.
-- Subject all advertisements meant to influence elections to the same
disclosure rules that apply to candidate committees.
-- Offer public financing to candidates in the primary elections and
increase the number of $50 contributions candidates must collect to qualify
for the program.
-- Require all candidates to disclose their contributions and expenditures
electronically and display all of this information in the state's online
searchable database.
Damming Big Money and other CGS reports are available on the CGS website,
www.cgs.org. The JEHT Foundation provided funding for this report, but it is
not responsible for the statements or views expressed in the report.
The Center for Governmental Studies is a non-profit, national non-partisan
organization that creates innovative political and media solutions to help
individuals participate more effectively in their communities and governments.
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