Litigation

Advocate: WI Disclosure Loophole Needs Closing

By Peter Hardin

Wisconsin’s recently adopted Impartial Justice Act for public financing of state Supreme Court candidates represents a major advance, but a  loophole in state law must be closed for the new law to be more effective, writes Mike McCabe of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign.

In a commentary in the Janesville Gazette, McCabe advocates closing the “issue ad” loophole that allows special-interest groups to spend large sums to influence state elections–all in secret. If the legislature closes the loophole, McCabe writes, these special-interest groups would have to disclose their activity and comply with limits on campaign contributions. Moreover, under the Impartial Justice Act, state Supreme Court candidates who qualify for public financing would get taxpayer dollars to fight the special-interest attacks.

Wisconsin Democracy Campaign is a partner of Justice at Stake. You can learn more about disclosure laws for “third-party” campaigns, which have poured millions of dollars into judicial elections, from Justice at Stake’s issue page on the topic.

Full post as published by The Gavel on December 23, 2009 (boomark / email).