Posted by Phil Lee (216.250.238.88) on October 29, 2000 at 08:45:
Arundel senators open a loophole
As a slate, Dems can skirt disclosure rules
Josh Kurtz, Staff Writer, Oct. 27, 2000
The Gazette, page A-1
More than two years before the next General Assembly elections, Anne Arundel County's five state senators -- all Democrats -- have banded together to form a campaign fund-raising committee.
The Anne Arundel Democratic Senatorial Committee, which has two fund-raisers scheduled next month, is the latest example of the elasticity of the state's campaign finance laws.
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Political candidates can share campaign finances in several ways. They can receive money from their political parties, which have federal, state and local fund-raising committees. They can contribute to each other's campaigns. But in Maryland, transfers between political committees are limited to $6,000 per candidate each election cycle. And they must all be disclosed on campaign finance reports.
Like certain other political committees, campaign contributions for slates are raised collectively. So the five Anne Arundel senators -- Miller, John C. Astle (D-Dist. 30) of Annapolis, James E. DeGrange Sr. (D-Dist. 32) of Glen Burnie, Phillip C. Jimeno (D-Dist. 31) of Brooklyn Park and Robert R. Neall (D-Dist. 33) of Davidsonville -- all will, presumably, raise money for the slate.
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"If you carry this to its logical conclusion, it absolutely eviscerates all of the campaign finance reforms of the past 20 years," Skullney said.
For the past two years, Republicans in the legislature have introduced legislation to outlaw political slates in Maryland, but those bills have been defeated. Republican legislators did launch a political action committee for GOP legislative candidates last year in response to Miller's slate, but as a PAC it must adhere to the state campaign finance disclosure rules and limits on transfers between campaign accounts.
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