Campaign Finance Reform

Compiled by Joanna Arlow, September 1999

Campaign Finance Reform: A Sourcebook. Anthony Corrado, et.al. eds. Brookings Institution, 1997. (325.52/ B79) Comprehensive work on history of campaign finance reforms and a repository of indispensable primary sources and scholarly articles. This essential reference includes chapters on PACs, the First Amendment and CFR, Soft Money, and the FEC. www.brook.edu/gs/campaign/sourcebook.htm

Campaign Finance Law ‘98: A Summary of State Campaign Finance Laws. Edward D. Feigenbaum and James A. Palmer. U.S. Federal Election Commission, 1998. (325.52/ X6 1998) Latest publication on states’ Campaign Finance laws. Charts detail filing and other requirements. Includes a full reproduction of Wisconsin’s current laws.

Campaign Finance, Lobbying and Ethics Legislation, 1998. National Conference of State Legislatures. January, 1999. (325.52/N211c) Booklet offers detailed summaries of legislation passed in the 50 states. Highlights ten important court decisions of 1998. Includes 1998 Wis. Laws, Act 186 and Act 230.

"Campaign Finance Reform: The Debate Over Money and Politics." Congressional Digest. Oct. 1998, Vol. 77 No. 10. (325.52/ C762e pt. 2) An independent monthly featuring controversies in Congress. Provides information on Congressional actions concerning CFR in 1998, glossary of terms, an explanation of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), and detailed analysis of the Shays-Meehan Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 1998 (H.R. 3526).

"Campaign Finance Reform: Are Tighter Laws Needed to Police the System?" Sandra Stencil, ed., Congressional Quarterly Inc., CQ Researcher. Vol. 6, No. 6 (February 9, 1996): 121-144. (325.52/C761d) The general answer is "yes," though the magazine presents both sides of the debate over whether campaign finance laws inhibit or promote the involvement of multiple candidates. Most useful: graphs on the cost of campaigning, commentary on the FEC; data on 1979-94 PAC spending; and a two-page bibliography.

"Campaign Finance Reform." The Council of State Governments. State Trends and Forecasts Vol. 2, No. 1, April 1993. (325.52 /C831c) Publication’s goal is to alert state leaders about institutional changes in state governments, and to offer policy options based on recent trends and expert forecasts. Booklet lists five policy options to improve CFR at the state level.

Enforcing the Campaign Finance Law: An Agency Model. Carol Mallory and Elizabeth Hedlund eds. Center for Responsive Politics, FEC Watch Project, June, 1993. (325.52/C33a) The CRP, founded in 1983, is a self-described "leading institution studying the role of money in American politics." Booklet presents an agency model based on collective research of agencies at all levels of government. Information should be used as a guide for how a state agency might be structured to develop and administer campaign finance reforms.

Financing Politics: Money, Elections and Political Reform. Herbert Alexander. 4th ed. Congressional Quarterly Press, 1992. (325.52 C761b) Author is widely considered the authority on the relationship between money and politics. Argues that post-Watergate reforms have failed to prevent money from "cascading" into politics and instead has led to an "institutionalization of the special interests." Research based on the statistics available on money and campaign finance reform through 1988. Advocates a closer look at whether CFR will actually move us towards more a democratic ideal.

Informational Paper #85: State Election Campaign Fund. Wisconsin Legislative Fiscal Bureau . (January 1999)

(325.52 /W7L 1999) Provides history of State Election Campaign Fund, a fund created to help finance the election campaigns of candidates for State Senate or Assembly, Supreme Court, Governor, et.al. Details financing of fund, how to apply for a grant, and participation and disbursement levels for the last fifteen years. Goal of fund was to ease candidates’ needs for contributions from single, wealthy donors and PAC’s.

The Price of Free Speech: Campaign Finance in the Midwest. Midwestern Legislative Conference of the Council of State Governments. December 1997. (325.52 /C831d) National, nonpartisan organization created to assist the institutions of state governments and provide national services including research and reference services for state legislative branches. Publication comprised of articles reporting on the status of reform efforts in mid-west states.

Reform and Reality: The Financing of State and Local Campaigns. Herbert Alexander. Twentieth Century Fund Press, 1991. (325.52 /AL21b) Professor of political science at University of Southern California discusses how campaign finance reforms and other attempts at disseminating information to voters are working in WI, MI, and CA, among others. Paper is an attempt to provide information and analysis on the professionalization of state legislatures’ and local councils’ campaign finance problems and reforms.

Report of the Wisconsin Governor’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Campaign Finance Reform. May, 1997. (325.52/W7e2) (Pt. 1 Report; Pt. 2 Supporting Information). Commission urges revision of current practice, including suggestions for "full disclosure," electronic filing, and making elections "party centered." Supplement volume contains comments by commissioners; comprehensive Supporting Information volume includes useful commission meeting minutes, background papers, polls, testimony.

"Symposium on Campaign Finance Reform," Columbia Law Review Vol. 94 No. 4 (May, 1994). (325.52/ C72) A collection of articles by academics and policy makers. Examines both policy and First Amendment considerations surrounding campaign finance reform. Proposes solutions for reform.

Clippings: (Non-circulating; available for use in the Library. Clippings prior to 1981 are on microfiche).

Elections—Campaign Finance in Wisconsin, 1981-present, 325.52 /W7z, pt. 20-37.

Elections—Campaign Finance, 1981-present, 325.52/ Z, pt. 13-19.

Related Web Sites:

http://www.policy.com Policy and news organization. Search topic of "Campaign Finance Reform," and get links to disparate groups: Heritage Foundation, Common Cause, CNN, offices of various Congress People. Good repository of recent articles, fully reproduced.

http://www.congresslink.org Dirksen Congressional Center. Primarily a resource for students and teachers to "improve civic understanding of Congress." Includes "political" and "scholarly" site links.

http://www.lafollette.wisc.edu/reform/ University of Wisconsin’s La Follette Institute of Public Affairs. Links to FEC, CFR bibliography, Blue Ribbon Report.

http://www.brook.edu/gs/campaign/cfr_hp.htm Home page for the Brookings Institution, Washington, D.C. Various links including full text documents of recent legislation and court cases.

http://www.fec.gov/finance/finmenu.htm FEC site providing information on parties, candidates, and committees.

http://www.student.mckenna.edu/dduran/cfr.htm Provides links to variety of official and non-official sites of a mostly partisan nature, as well as official federal resources.

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