The New York State Public Campaign Financing Commission is tasked with Devising a Voluntary System of Public Funding for State Elections.
The Commission has inspired a Measure of Optimism among Government Reformers that it will Limit the Influence of Money in State Elections and Reduce Pay-to-Play Politics that have long defined State Government.
The Commission, which was named in July, was Created in this year’s State Budget as a Compromise between Legislative Leaders and Governor Andrew Cuomo when they could Not come to an Agreement on the Specifics of a Public Campaign Finance system for State Elections.
Seven of the Commission’s Nine Members were Appointed by Cuomo, Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-35th District) and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie (D-83rd District) each Selecting Two Commissioners and Jointly Appointing another. Minority Leaders, Senator John Flanagan (R-2nd District) and Assembly Member Brian Kolb (R-131st District) each had One Appointment.
The Goal of the Commission is to Reduce the sway of Large-Dollar Political Donors in Elections by Incentivizing Candidates to seek Smaller Contributions that can be Matched with Public Funds. It would be Modelled after the Program Administered in New York City’s Municipal Elections by the Campaign Finance Board (CFB), which Matches Small Dollar Contributions at a 6-to-1 or New 8-to-1 Ratio depending on what Restrictions Candidates opt to Operate under.
The State Commission is Charged with Developing a Plan to Distribute up to $100 Million in Public Funding Annually to Candidates Running for Legislative and Statewide Office. In order to Participate in the Program, Candidates will have to adhere to Spending Limits, Lower Contribution Limits, and Stricter Disclosure Requirements.
The Commission’s Mandate also Includes Examining the State’s Fusion Voting system, which Allows Candidates to Run on Ballot Lines for Multiple Parties at the Same Time. The system gives Third Parties such as the Working Families Party, Conservative Party, and Independence Party, a Measure of Influence in State Elections as Candidates seek their Endorsement and Ballot Line. In order to Maintain their Place on the Ballot for Four years, the Parties must Receive at least 50,000 Votes in a Gubernatorial Election, which would be Threatened if the State Commission moved to End Fusion Voting.
But Richard Winger of Ballot Access News reminds us, New York State Courts have Ruled Three Times: in 1910, 1911, and 1973, that the State Constitution does Not Allow the State to Outlaw Fusion, unless the State Constitution is Changed. So the Commission can’t Ban Fusion without Changing the State Constitution.
The Commission will hold Five Sessions to solicit Input from Members of the Public, with the Fifth Meeting reserved for Testimony from Invited Experts. Its Final Report is due December 1st and will become Binding if Legislators do Not Return from Break to Modify it within 20 days.
At the First Meeting, John Nonna, the Westchester County Attorney Appointed to the Commission by Stewart-Cousins, asked whether the Commission had the Authority to Lower Contribution Limits for Candidates who Opt-Out of a Public Matching Program, “because there’s a relationship there that needs to be taken into account.”
“That’s one of the issues that we’ll have to discuss and see where we go on that. I think that’s an issue before us,” replied Henry Berger, a Well-Known Election Lawyer Appointed to the Commission jointly by Cuomo, Stewart-Cousins, and Heastie.
Another Issue raised by Commissioners was whether the Final Plan had to be Approved in a Single Vote of the Commission at the End of it’s roughly Three-Month Timeline. Commissioner Jay Jacobs, a Cuomo Appointee and the Chair of the State Democratic Party, who Submitted a Resolution that aspects of the Ultimate Proposal Cannot be Separated into Multiple Votes, explained his reasoning: “The idea being that this is a package and we have to all agree on the components of the package and we can’t pick it apart à la carte.”
“We’re going to vote on it as a single piece of legislation, and that piece of legislation will probably include a severability clause, they usually do,” Berger later added.
The Two Commissioners Appointed by Republican Leaders, David Previtte, Selected by Senator Flanagan, and Kimberly Galvin, chosen by Assembly Member Kolb, Voted against the Resolution, which Carried.
The Commissioners also touched on the need to consider the Administrative Costs of Implementing a State Public Matching System and Methods for Receiving and considering Public Testimony, including Public Hearing Procedures and Electronic Submissions. In a Closed Executive Session, which came at the End of the Hour-Long Meeting, Galvin said the Commission considered the Issue of Staffing, or a Lack thereof. “[W]e just all talked about it and tried to figure out some way to [staff the commission], and I don’t think that’s been resolved yet,” Galvin said.
Reinvent Albany, a Good Government Watchdog and Member of Fair Elections, issued a List of 18 Recommendations for the Commission, which include establishing Clear and Granular Expenditure Guidelines, and Lower contribution Limits for Party Committees and Entities with Business Interests before the State.
The Overriding Goal of Reformers is to Limit Opportunities for Pay-to-Play Politics, which has only Worsened in the Decade since the Citizens United Decision, where the U.S. Supreme Court Ruled that Political Contributions are a Form of Constitutionally Protected Speech. New York State also had Lax Campaign Finance Laws until they were Amended earlier this year, and has seen years of Unending Corruption Scandals with Lawmakers regularly going to Prison.
“We’re here today to let the Commission and the leaders who appointed them know that New Yorkers are paying attention and expect them to craft a model for the nation to lessen the influence of big money and give power back to constituents,” said Laura Friedenbach, Deputy Campaign Manager for the Fair Elections Coalition.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
