Cummings to Present PAC Reform Legislation

AUGUSTA– Speaker of the House Glenn Cummings will present legislation at a public hearing on Monday, February 26th to limit donations to political action committees by capping contributions at $7,500.

Under the proposed law, PACs could accept no more than $7,500 in one two-year election cycle from a single source. This would apply to donations from individuals, corporations and unions, political parties, and all other political action committees.

Like all legislative leaders, Cummings says he operates a leadership PAC, but he hopes that passing new limits on PAC contributions would make such PACs less important, and limit the influence of individual contributors in politics.

The states that do place caps on contributions to PACs vary widely in their limits, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Louisiana puts a cap at $100,000 over four years, while Massachusetts limits contributions to a PAC made by registered lobbyists to just $200 in a calendar year, prohibits contributions made by corporations and unions and limits donations to $500 for all others. New Hampshire limits contributions to PACs by individuals, corporations and unions to $5,000 per election while contributions by political parties to PACs are unlimited. Vermont limits contributions to PACs to $2,000 per two-year cycle in all instances.

The Legal and Veterans Affairs Committee will take up LD 348, An Act To Limit Contributions to Political Action Committees at a public hearing on Monday, February 26, 2007 at 1:00.