This law was enacted in 1936 amid growing concerns that large retail firms were using their market power to exact special deals from manufacturers not made available to small, independent businesses. In recent decades, federal antitrust authorities have largely ceased enforcing Robinson-Patman. Continue reading
A growing number of cities and towns are enacting policies that restrict the proliferation of “formula businesses” — stores and restaurants that have standardized services, décor, methods of operation, and other features that make them virtually identical to businesses elsewhere. Having saturated malls and other shopping areas, many formula retailers and restaurants are increasingly locating… Continue reading
Over the last twenty years, cities and counties have provided massive public subsidies to finance the construction of big-box stores, shopping malls, and, most recently, Amazon.com warehouses. Continue reading
The US Supreme Court’s 1976 decision in Buckley v. Valeo constitutes a central obstacle to effective campaign finace reform. The ruling does this in two ways: First, equating money with speech, the decision prohibited governments from imposing spending limits on candidates. Continue reading
Nixon v. Shrink Missouri Government PAC is the first Supreme Court ruling on contribution limits since since 1976, when in the landmark decision Buckley vs. Valeo , 424 U.S. 1 it said free-speech rights trump any attempt to limit a candidate’s spending. Continue reading
Over 80 local governments have passed some form of campaign finance legislation. The National Civic League has compiled an Inventory of Local Reforms of those it knows about. Over half of those reforms have been enacted since 1990 and it is likely that there are more reforms out there yet to be discovered. Continue reading
Oregon’s 1994 Ballot Measure 6 amended the state constitution to allow candidates to "use or direct only contributions which originate from individuals who at the time of their donation were residents of the electoral district of the public office sought by the candidate."(Oregon Constitution Art. II, § 22) It imposed a 10 percent cap on the total amount of money a candidate could accept from contributors residing outside the district. Continue reading
In 1996 the Alaska Legislature adopted a campaign finance reform law that banned contributions from business and unions and capped campaign contributions at $500 per individual. The new law also put a cap on the contributions that a candidate for governor, lieutenant governor or state legislator could receive from individuals not living in Alaska. Continue reading
In 2002, Colorado voters approved Amendment 27 by a 2-to-1 margin to enact comprehensive campaign finance reform for state-level political campaigns. A coalition of groups, including the League of Women Voters of Colorado, Colorado Common Cause, Reclaim Democracy, and Voter Revolt helped develop and supported the grassroots reform measure under the campaign slogan "Get Big Money Out of Politics". Continue reading
This organization is dedicated to helping enact sweeping campaign finance reform and reduce the role of special interest money in elections. This is their model rule for clean election reform. Continue reading
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