The Federal Election Commission

The Federal Election Commission Synopsis

Over 40 years ago, Congress created the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to administer the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) and related amendments. Today, the FEC is responsible for administering disclosure of millions of campaign finance transactions; interpretation and civil enforcement of FECA and agency regulations; and administering the presidential public financing program. This book provides selected information about the FECs history and ongoing issues that are likely to be of interest to Congress for appropriations, legislative, or oversight activities.

It also provides Congress with a resource for understanding the FECs enforcement process and context for why enforcement is consequential; discusses deadlocked votes among members of the FEC; discusses current Supreme Court and other case law evaluating the constitutionality of limits on contributions and expenditures; and examines recent developments of the state of campaign finance policy.