Tampa Bay Times: FEC plans crackdown on zombie campaigns
The federal agency that oversees elections has announced a crackdown on former lawmakers who continue to spend leftover campaign donations long after leaving office.
The Federal Election Commission announced Wednesday that it will start scrutinizing the spending of what it called "dormant" campaigns — those maintained by former lawmakers who took advantage of a loophole that allowed them to hoard unspent campaign donations for years.
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"I think this is great, a really positive step the FEC is taking," said Adav Noti, a former FEC attorney who is now a senior director for the Campaign Legal Center, a Washington D.C. watchdog group. "For them to do this in the middle of an election cycle is highly unusual."
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"Some commissioners may now say we've already stepped up enforcement in this area so we don't need to strengthen the rules," Noti said. "That would be disappointing and concerning."