Friday marks an interesting turning point in Florida politics. November 1 is when candidates can raise even more money for campaigns.
The higher ceiling in fundraising is only one of the biggest changes in an extensive campaign-finance bill, approved by the Legislature last session.
The most notable change is higher contribution limits, writes Brandon Larrabee of The News Service of Florida. Both candidates for statewide office — such as the race for governor — and Supreme Court retention efforts can now accept $3,000 from individual contributors. Legislative candidates and other campaigns the limit is now $1,000.
The old limit for all campaigns was $500.
Candidates now can also roll up to $20,000 in unspent funds into re-election campaigns.
The new limits are already having an impact on the 2014 governor’s race.
On Monday, three days after the new rules take effect, former Gov. Charlie Crist will launch an attempt to win back his old job.
The intent of the bill was to shut down “committees of continuous existence,” a kind of grey area in fundraising. A ban on CCEs is already in place, but many CCEs just moved functions over to a “political committee.”
Candidates will have the ability to control their messages, say supporters, especially in an era when the U.S. Supreme Court is opening the door for outside groups to invest enormous amounts of money in elections — federal, state and local.
Of course, money will always move into the political system, say the bill’s backers. With these changes, they expect funds will go to candidates who stand on principles.
“What this law does is begin to allow candidates themselves to accept more of those existing funds through their own accounts to be more accountable for how that money is raised and spent,” Dan Krassner told theNews Service of Florida.
Krassner is executive director of the non-partisan Integrity Florida. He also emphasized that the bill will increase the frequency of financial reports filed from campaigns and committees required by state elections officials.
Opponents of the law disagree. They see increasing floods of money from special interests as further unbalancing the voices in politics. The $20,000 rollover requirement will also scare off potential rivals in races, they say.
According to Deirdre Macnab, the president of the League of Women Voters of Florida, research shows states with higher contribution limits see fewer people donating to candidates and lower voter turnout.
“It reduces the public’s confidence in the political system,” Macnab said.
