Blog Policies

The purpose of the FEC's Data blog is to discuss how we provide and you can use federal campaign finance information. We hope this site will help all of us work together to build the next generation of campaign finance disclosure.

We're going to limit the focus of the blog to disclosure and data questions. This isn't the place to ask questions about the law or the Commission's regulations or how those are applied. It's also not the place for questions about your own committees' filings. We hope you'll call us with those questions at (800) 424-9530 so your question can be directed to the people who are in the best position to answer.

Comment Policy

This is a moderated blog. That means all comments will be reviewed before posting. In addition, we expect that participants will treat each other, as well as our agency and our employees, with respect. We will not post comments that contain vulgar or abusive language; personal attacks of any kind; or offensive terms that target specific ethnic or racial groups. We will not post comments that are spam, are clearly "off topic" or that promote services or products. Comments that make unsupported accusations will also not be posted.

We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above.

Any references to commercial entities, products, services, or other nongovernmental organizations or individuals that remain on the site are provided solely for the information of individuals using this blog. These references are not intended to reflect the opinion of the Federal Election Commission, the United States, or its officers or employees concerning the significance, priority, or importance to be given the referenced entity, product, service, or organization. Such references are not an official or personal endorsement of any product, person, or service, and may not be quoted or reproduced for the purpose of stating or implying FEC endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

We recognize that the Web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to manage federal resources, moderating and posting of comments will occur during regular business hours Monday through Friday. Comments submitted after hours or on weekends will be read and posted as early as possible; in most cases, this means the next business day.

To protect your own privacy and the privacy of others, please do not include personally identifiable information, such as name, Social Security number, phone numbers or email addresses in the body of your comment. If you do voluntarily include personally identifiable information in your comment, such as your name, you should know that that comment may be posted on the Blog. If your comment is posted, your name will not be redacted or removed. In no circumstances will comments be posted that contain Social Security numbers, addresses, email address or phone numbers. You have the option of posting comments anonymously, but if you opt not to, any information, including your login name, may be displayed on our site.

Communications made through the blog's e-mail and messaging system will in no way constitute a legal or official notice or comment to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) or any official or employee of the Commission for any purpose. So, for example, don't post a comment here if you want to file a comment on proposed regulations or communicate with your reports analyst.

Privacy

The Federal Election Commission will not share or sell any personal information obtained from users with any other organization or government agency except as required by law. Please view our complete Privacy and Security Policy.

We're unable to post comments from children under the age of 13 due to the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). If you are 12 years old or younger, you may email us rather than posting a comment on the blog.

Linking Policy and Disclaimer of Endorsement

The views expressed on the data blog are those of the individual bloggers. These views and posted comments do not necessarily reflect those of the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC), or the federal government.

The blog includes useful hypertext links or pointers to information created and maintained by other public and private organizations and individuals' blogs. We provide these links and pointers solely for our users' information and convenience.

When you select a link to an outside website, you are leaving the FEC data blog and are subject to the privacy and security policies of the owners/sponsors of the outside website.

The Commission does not control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness or completeness of information contained on a linked website.

The Commission does not endorse the organizations sponsoring linked websites, and we do not endorse the views they express or the products/services they offer.

The Commission cannot authorize the use of copyrighted materials contained in linked websites. Users must request such authorization from the sponsor of the linked website. Those who provide comments are responsible for the copyright of the text they provide.

The Commission is not responsible for transmissions users receive from linked websites.

The Commission does not guarantee that outside websites comply with Section 508 (Accessibility Requirements) of the Rehabilitation Act.