This entry contains information applicable to United States law only. The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent agency established by the 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (88 Stat. § 1280 [2 U.S.C.A. § 431 et seq.]). The 1974 amendments — passed in the wake of President Richard M. Nixon's resignation because of the Watergate scandals, which included charges of abuse of power and obstruction of justice involving campaign contributions — set out financial rules governing campaigns for federal office. The FEC was designed to act both as a clearinghouse for information on federal campaign laws and as the enforcer of campaign laws.
The FEC is composed of six commissioners appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate. The act also provides for three statutory officers — the staff director, the general counsel, and the inspector general— who are appointed by the commission.
The FEC's main responsibility is to enforce federal campaign financing laws. Thus, its scope is limited to overseeing the financing of congressional, senatorial, and presidential election campaigns. The Federal Election Campaign Act, as amended in 1974, was intended to limit severely the amount of financial contributions made by wealthy individuals, and to place limits on how much candidates could spend on their campaign. In addition, the law required public disclosure of all campaign contributions and established public financing for presidential campaigns.
Since the law was enacted, the FEC has been faced with lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the law's campaign financing provisions. The U.S. Supreme Court, in Buckley v. Valeo, 424 U.S. 1, 96 S. Ct. 612, 46 L. Ed. 2d 659 (1976), complicated the work of the FEC when it ruled that the 1974 act's limitation on campaign expenditures was unconstitutional. The Court did uphold the limit of $1,000 for individual contributions, but ruled that candidates could spend as much as they wished of their personal fortune on their campaign.
Because of loopholes in the law and the Buckley decision, there has been a tremendous growth in political action committees (PACs) as vehicles for major campaign spending. PACs are special organizations formed by labor, industry, the professions, and other interest groups that are not identified with individual candidates. PACs are not bound by the individual-contribution restriction; therefore, their political influence has risen with their large contributions.
The FEC administers and enforces the law with respect to limits and prohibitions on contributions and expenditures made to influence federal elections. In addition, it enforces the requirement that candidates must disclose where campaign money comes from and how it is spent. This requirement has created a complex set of rules that the FEC must administer. The FEC places reports on the public record within forty-eight hours after they have been received and computerizes the data contained in the reports.
If the FEC discovers irregularities or violations of the law, either through its own internal audits or through a complaint filed by the public, it has the authority to seek civil enforcement of the law. The FEC first seeks compliance through conciliation, but it has brought lawsuits when conciliation fails.
The FEC administers the public funding of presidential elections. It certifies federal payments to primary candidates, general election nominees, and national nominating conventions. It also audits recipients of federal funds and may require repayment to the U.S. Treasury if a candidate makes nonqualified campaign expenditures.
Because of the complexity of the disclosure requirements and the concern that these requirements discourage some individuals from running for federal office, the FEC provides information through a toll-free telephone line; publications; seminars; regulations, which clarify the law; and advisory opinions, which interpret the law in specific, factual situations.
