Three years after the landmark Citizens United decision that dramatically changed campaign finance laws, the Supreme Court announced Tuesday it will take up another campaign finance case challenging how much donors can give to campaigns and committees. The court will hear McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, which deals with the constitutionality of aggregate contribution limits, in October. Shaun McCutcheon, an Alabama resident, contributed a total of $33,088 to 16 different candidates during the 2012 election cycle and thousands more to party committees. He wanted his contributions for the cycle to total $75,000 to party committees and $54,400 to candidates but was barred from giving at that level by federal aggregate limits. The Republican National Committee and McCutcheon challenged the FEC’s contribution limits under the First Amendment, saying the $46,200 aggregate limit for candidates and $70,800 limit for committees was “unsupported by any cognizable government interest … at any level of review.” The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld the limits.
Rick Hasen, a campaign finance expert, told POLITICO that said although the ability to give unlimited amounts to super PACs and nonprofits has made federal aggregate limits to campaigns and committees less important, the court taking up the case is still notable.
“The ability to get around it does undermine the case for limits,” Hasen said. “But the case could have broader implications. It will be the first time since Citizens United that the court decides how to judge campaign finance laws.”
In a blog post on the issue, Hasen also signaled that the case could open the doors for abolishing all contribution limits. “It is possible in this case, for example, that the conservative five justices in [Citizens United] set out a general standard for reviewing contribution limits which makes them harder to sustain against constitutional challenge.”
Full Article: Supreme Court will hear appeal of campaign donation limits – Tarini Parti – POLITICO.com.