FEC Complaint Filed Against Senate Majority PAC Seeking Investigation of Apparent Illegal Contribution to Braley Campaign

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Democracy 21 joined with the Campaign Legal Center in filing a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) urging the Commission to investigate an apparent illegal in-kind contribution made by the Senate Majority PAC, a Super PAC which supports Democratic candidates, to Braley for Iowa, the campaign committee of U.S. Senate candidate Bruce L. Braley. 

According to Democracy 21 President Fred Wertheimer:

An illegal practice is exploding in the 2014 congressional elections whereby outside spending groups are using “B-Roll” footage paid for by candidate campaigns in ads to support the candidates.

Our groups raised our concern about this practice last week in a letter to Kentucky Opportunity Coalition, a 501(c)(4) organization running ads to support Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell. Today, we are raising the same concern regarding Senate Majority PAC, a Super PAC running ads to support the Senate race of House Democratic Representative Bruce Braley.

The failure of the FEC to address this blatantly illegal practice will result in massive, widespread violations of the statutory prohibition on outside groups republishing materials paid for by candidate campaigns.

According to multiple press reports, Senate Majority PAC, which is prohibited from contributing to candidates, is paying to air television advertisements that include “b-roll” video footage originally produced by Rep. Braley and/or his campaign.  Such republication of Braley campaign materials would constitute a violation of the law by the Senate Majority PAC.

Federal law treats any money spent to republish candidate campaign materials as an in-kind contribution by the group paying for the republication to the candidate who prepared the materials. 

According to media reports, in late January, Senate Majority PAC spent more than $240,000 to air an ad entitled “Oil Billionaires” to boost Braley’s candidacy.  The “Oil Billionaires” ad contains b-roll video footage that has been posted by the Braley campaign to its YouTube page and that was also used in a YouTube-available video produced by Rep. Braley’s re-election campaign in 2012.  The Braley campaign b-roll footage is on screen for approximately 16 seconds of Senate Majority PAC’s 30-second “Oil Billionaires” ad.

Although the FEC regulation contains an exception for a “brief quote” of campaign materials used to “demonstrate a candidate’s position as part of the spender’s expression of its own views,” Senate Majority PAC’s “Oil Billionaires” ad does not qualify for the exemption for two reasons. 

First, 16 seconds of material in a 30-second ad is not a “brief quote.”  Second, the b-roll footage used in “Oil Billionaires” does not demonstrate Rep. Braley’s position on any issue.