SJR 1 - This constitutional amendment, if approved by the voters, modifies and creates provisions relating to campaign finance. Under current law, it is unlawful for a corporation or labor organization to make contributions to a campaign committee. This amendment removes that provision.
Current law prohibits corporations and labor organizations from contributing to any candidate committee, exploratory committee, political party committee, or political party. This amendment extends that prohibition to limited liability companies, partnerships, proprietorships, and joint ventures. Such entities may nevertheless form a continuing committee.
Under this amendment, only individuals and federal political action committees are permitted to contribute to continuing committees. Continuing committees are prohibited from receiving contributions from labor organizations, business entities, continuing committees, candidate committees, political party committees, campaign committees, exploratory committees, or debt service committees.
Contributions may not be made or accepted with the intent to circumvent the contribution limits established under current law. The Missouri Ethics Commission is required to promulgate rules for the purpose of determining whether or not contributions or expenditures of a particular entity should be aggregated with those of another entity.
Under this amendment, no campaign committee, candidate committee, continuing committee, exploratory committee, political party committee, or political party shall knowingly accept contributions from any foreign business entity that is not authorized to do business in Missouri.
The amendment removes all reference to "political action committees" and replaces each such reference with "continuing committee". The amendment modifies the definition of "continuing committee" so that exploratory committees, debt service committees, and political party committees are not considered continuing committees.
The definition of "contribution" is modified to include the following:
• Any expenditure by any person other than a candidate or a candidate committee made in connection with the nomination for election or election of any candidate, that is authorized, requested, suggested, or fostered by or made in cooperation with a candidate, candidate committee, or agents of the candidate or candidate committee;
• Any expenditure for any communication which republishes, disseminates, or distributes in whole or in part, any broadcast or any written, graphic, or other form of campaign material prepared by the candidate or candidate committee or agents of the candidate or candidate committee, other than a photograph obtained from a public source; and
• Certain expenditures for covered communications, such as an expenditure for a covered communication made by a person who is a coordinated spender. However, the determination that such expenditures are a contribution may be rebutted.
SCOTT SVAGERA