Statement to Introduce the Bipartisan Reform Act of 1997 January 21, 1997 Mr. President, I rise today to introduce the proposed Senate Campaign Financing and Spending Reform Act of 1997, legislation that would provide public financing for Senate elections. The need for comprehensive campaign finance reform is unquestionable. Each election year continues to set new records for campaign spending by federal candidates, with 1996 campaign expenditures expected to surpass $1.6 billion. This explosion in campaign spending has alienated the American people from the election process, discouraged thousands of qualified yet underfunded candidates from seeking public office, and heightened public disgust with the ways of Washington to levels not seen since the dark days of Watergate. I have long believed that we need to sever the nexus between money and politics, and end as a prerequisite for elected office a candidate's ability to raise and spend millions of dollars. The most straight forward way to achieve that result is through a system of public financing. The legislation I am introducing today, which I also introduced at the outset of the 104th Congress, would provide qualified candidates with the means to run a credible, competitive and issue-based campaign without having to raise the average $5 million it takes to win a Senate election. This bill will establish voluntary spending limits based on each state's individual voting age population. With the cooperation of the candidates, this will finally curtail the skyrocketing spending that has plagued political campaigns in recent years. Just as important, these spending limits will allow members of Congress to focus on their duties and responsibilities as elected officials rather than spending substantial amounts of time raising money. For those candidates that do abide by the spending limits, there will be matching funds in the primary election for contributions under $250, once a candidate has raised 15 percent of that state's spending limit in contributions of $250 or less, half of which must come from within the candidate's state. There will be a 100 percent match for contributions under $100, and a 50 percent match for contributions between $101 and $250. These provisions, along with only providing matching funds for in-state contributions, will encourage candidates to focus on smaller contributions from their home states. I believe this focus upon raising money within our home states is critical. General election candidates will become eligible for public financing benefits equal to the general election spending limit for their state. In addition to agreeing to limit their overall campaign spending, candidates who receive the public benefits must agree to not spend more than $25,000 of their own money. Opponents of campaign finance reform have often suggested that voluntary spending limits are unconstitutional. That is unfounded. In fact, in the landmark Supreme Court decision in Buckley v. Valeo, the Court noted that `Congress may engage in public financing of election campaigns and may condition acceptance of public funds on an agreement by the candidate to abide by specified expenditure limitations. Just as a candidate may voluntarily limit the size of the contributions he chooses to accept, he may decide to forego private fundraising and accept public funding.' The legislation also bans so-called `soft money' that has allowed corporations, labor unions, and wealth individuals to contribute unlimited funds, up to millions of dollars, to the political parties outside the scope of Federal election law. The legislation restricts Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions to Federal candidates, prohibits lawmakers from sending out franked mass mailings during the calendar year of an election, bars lobbyists from contributing to elected officials they have lobbied in a 12-month period, and codifies a recent ruling by the Federal Election Commission that bars candidates from using campaign funds for personal purposes, such as mortgage payments, country club memberships, and vacations. Public financing of campaigns will give challengers a legitimate opportunity to run a competitive campaign, will allow incumbents to focus on their legislative responsibilities, and will help to extinguish public perceptions that the United States Congress is under the control of the Washington special interests. Public support for this sort of reform is strong. According to a recent poll by the Mellman Group, 59 percent of the American people--the highest level since Watergate--support full public financing for congressional campaigns. Just 29 percent of the American people oppose this proposal. The Mellman Group even found two out of every three self-described Republicans supported public financing. A Gallup poll found similar results, finding 64 percent overall support for a public financing system. And perhaps most revealing, a very recent Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll found 92 percent of the American people simply believe too much money is spent in Federal elections. I have no illusions that a public financing proposal would win approval in the 105th Congress. I believe that one day those who have opposed public financing will finally get the message the voters are trying to send us and there will be wider support within the Congress for this approach to cleaning up election campaigns. In the meantime, I do believe there are meaningful reforms that can be considered and enacted with bipartisan support. That is why I have joined with a number of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle, including Senators McCain, Thompson, Wellstone and others in co-authoring the first bipartisan campaign finance reform proposal offered in a decade. That legislation, strongly supported by President Clinton, Common Cause, and numerous grassroots organizations and newspapers nationwide, would begin the process of fundamentally changing and reducing the role of money in our political system. It also encourages candidates to limit their campaign spending, but instead of offering direct public financing it provides substantial discounts on broadcast media and postage rates to candidates who agree to limit their overall spending, who agree to limit their own personal spending, and who agree to raise 60 percent of their campaign funds from their home States. I look forward to working with my colleagues on passing such meaningful reform, and will press for action in the first 100 days of this new Congress. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

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