Institute For Free Speech
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Issue Advocacy: A Cornerstone of Democracy
January 1, 2018  •  By IFS Staff  •    •  

The First Amendment protects speech from burdensome government regulation. Until the 1970s, federal law largely did not regulate either campaign speech or issue speech by advocacy groups. That changed with the adoption of the Federal Election Campaign Act. The Act attempted to regulate any speech “relative to a clearly identified candidate.” This law, and the subsequent Supreme Court decision Buckley…

CCP Comments on Constitutional Issues with Utah House Bill 43
February 14, 2013   •  By Matt Nese   •  , , ,

I write to express concern about the proposed version of House Bill 43, scheduled for a hearing before the House Government Operations Committee on ...

Mowing Down the Grassroots: How Grassroots Lobbying Disclosure Suppresses Political Participation
April 1, 2010   •  By IFS staff   •  , ,

Grassroots lobbying is any effort to organize, coordinate or implore others to contact public officials in order to affect public policy. Through grassroots ...

Campaign Finance Reformer Doris Haddock, R.I.P.

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March 14, 2010   •  By Brad Smith   •  , ,

Last week Doris Haddock, aka "Granny D," passed away at the age of 100. Granny D gained some small measure of fame in 1999-2000 ...

Comments of CCP Vice President Steve Hoersting on Coordinated Communications Rulemaking
January 20, 2010   •  By Steve Hoersting   •  , , ,

"Before the FEC adopted a content standard in its coordination investigations, the specter of a coordination investigation served as a kind of Hobson's choice ...

Locking Up Political Speech: How Electioneering Communications Laws Stifle Free Speech and Civic Engagement
June 1, 2009   •  By IFS staff   •  , ,

Americans were once free to speak about politics without asking permission from the government or being forced to document their political activities for the authorities. But ...

Comments of the Center for Competitive Politics on Issue Advocacy Regulation in Wisconsin
August 21, 2008   •  By IFS staff   •  , ,

The Center for Competitive Politics comments to the Wisconsin Government Accountability Board in regards to its review of issue advocacy regulation.

Does Money Buy Power? Interest Group Resources and Policy Outcomes

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April 12, 2007   •  By IFS Staff   •  , ,

Abstract: Popular accounts of interest group influence in the policy process often focus on organizational budgets and campaign contributions, asserting that these resources lead ...

The Per Curiam Opinion of Steel: Buckley v. Valeo as Superprecedent? Clues from Wisconsin and Vermont
August 1, 2006   •  By Matt Nese   •  , ,

he rich tapestry of American campaign finance law continued to accumulate threads with the Court’s decisions this term in Randall v. Sorrell4 and Wisconsin Right to ...

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