| Date | September 10, 2012 (112th Congress, 2nd Session) |
| Staff Contact | Lisa Collins |
On Monday, September 10, 2012, the House is scheduled to consider H.R. 406, a bill to amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, under a suspension of the rules, requiring a two-thirds majority vote for passage. The bill was introduced by Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) on January 24, 2011, and referred to the Committee on House Administration, which held a mark-up and reported the bill by voice vote on July 19, 2012.
H.R. 406 would amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1972 to permit candidates for election to federal office to designate an individual who will be authorized to disburse funds of the committee in the event of the death of the candidate. In addition, the bill would prescribe procedures for filing and revoking such a designation, and permit the filing to contain the candidate’s instructions regarding the disbursement of funds. The bill would also allow the candidate to designate a second individual to perform those functions in the event of the death or incapacity of the first designated individual or the designated individual’s unwillingness to carry out the responsibilities.
Under current law, the responsibility of disbursing campaign funds in the event of the candidate’s death lies with the campaign treasurer.
According to CBO, implementing H.R. 406 would cost the FEC about $500,000 in 2013, subject to the availability of appropriated funds. While enacting H.R. 406 could affect federal revenues by increasing collections of fines for violations of campaign finance law, CBO estimates that any additional revenues and direct spending under H.R. 406 would be insignificant due to the small number of anticipated violations.