Federal Election Commission – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Federal Election Commission (``Commission'' or ``FEC''), with the concurrence of the Office of Government Ethics (``OGE''), is revising the Commission's ``Standards of Conduct,'' which are the FEC rules that govern the conduct of Commissioners and Commission employees. The new rules update the Commission's regulations to reflect statutory changes enacted after the Standards of Conduct were originally promulgated in 1986, and to conform them to regulations issued by OGE and the Office of Personnel Management (``OPM''). In addition to the revisions to the FEC's Standards of Conduct, the Commission, with OGE's concurrence, is issuing regulations that supplement the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch issued by OGE. These supplemental regulations address outside employment of Commissioners and Commission employees. The new rules are unchanged from the rules presented in the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking.

The Federal Election Commission requests comments on whether to begin a rulemaking to revise its regulations concerning disclaimers on certain Internet communications and, if so, what changes should be made to those rules. The Commission intends to review the comments received as it decides what revisions, if any, it will propose making to these rules.

Oregon has scheduled elections on November 8, 2011, and January 31, 2012, to fill the U.S. House seat in the 1st Congressional District vacated by Representative David Wu. Committees required to file reports in connection with the Special Primary Election on November 8, 2011, shall file a 12-day Pre-Primary Report. Committees required to file reports in connection with both the Special Primary and Special General Election on January 31, 2012, shall file a 12-day Pre-Primary Report, a consolidated 12-day Pre-General Report and Year-End Report, and a 30-day Post-General Report.

The Federal Election Commission (``Commission'') is adopting a program providing for a means by which persons and entities may have a legal question considered by the Commission earlier in both the report review process and the audit process.

On January 26, 2010, the James Madison Center for Free Speech submitted to the Commission a Petition for Rulemaking. The Petition urges the Commission to conform its regulations regarding independent expenditures and electioneering communications made by corporations, membership organizations, and labor organizations to the decision of the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. FEC. The Petition is available for inspection in the Commission's Public Records Office, on its Web site, https://www.fec.gov/fosers/, and through its Faxline service.

On May 19, 2011, a Nevada state court ruled in Nevada Republican Party v. State of Nevada, case no. 11 OC 001471B, that Nevada's Secretary of State may not place members of major or minor political parties on the special general election ballot until candidates are designated by their respective political parties. The Nevada Republican and Democratic state central committees will select their parties' nominees at Special Party Caucuses on June 18, 2011, and June 25, 2011, respectively. Due to this development, the Commission is issuing filing dates for these caucuses.\1\ Committees required to file reports in connection with the Republican and Democratic caucuses shall file a 12-day Pre-Caucus report.

Nevada has scheduled a Special General Election on September 13, 2011, to fill the U.S. House seat in the 2nd Congressional District formerly held by Senator Dean Heller. Committees required to file reports in connection with the Special General Election on September 13, 2011, shall file a 12-day Pre-General Report, and a 30-day Post-General Report.

California has scheduled a special general election on May 17, 2011, to fill the U.S. House of Representatives seat in the Thirty- Sixth Congressional District vacated by Representative Jane Harman. Under California law, a majority winner in a special election is declared elected. Should no candidate achieve a majority vote, a special runoff election will be held on July 12, 2011, between the top two vote-getters. Political committees participating in the California special elections are required to file pre- and post-election reports. Filing deadlines for these reports are affected by whether one or two elections are held.

Commission regulations require that a contributor's redesignation of a contribution for another election be in writing and signed by the contributor. The Commission construes the requirements of 11 CFR 110.1(b)(5) and 110.2(b)(5) to encompass a certain method of electronic redesignation. The method of electronic redesignation is described in the supplementary information below.