WyLiberty Attorney Testifies for Changes to Wyoming Campaign Finance Law

SHERIDAN, WY – Wyoming Liberty Group attorney Steve Klein testified before the Joint Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee today, his second appearance before the committee in their two-day meeting. Klein testified in favor of amending the Wyoming Election Code to comply with the recent United States Supreme Court decision McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission, eliminating aggregate contribution limits to Wyoming candidates.

"Wyoming law currently limits contributions to candidates for state offices to $1,000, and further limits an individual from contributing more than $25,000 across-the-board," said Klein. "Following the McCutcheon decision, across-the-board–or aggregate–limits are unconstitutional."

The Supreme Court's decision, released in early April, ruled that aggregate contribution limits under federal law "intrude without justification on a citizen's ability to exercise 'the most fundamental of First Amendment activities.'"

"State law must comply with the First Amendment, just like federal law," said Klein. "States have tried resisting free speech decisions before and have lost almost every time. Wyoming should bring the Election Code up to date and eliminate aggregate limits."

Although campaign finance laws and related judicial opinions are often controversial, Klein emphasized the importance of perspective.

"Some uniformly claim that money corrupts politics, but it's an integral part of campaigning. If an officeholder can be corrupted not by receiving a contribution, but merely by other officeholders receiving a contribution, there's no law that will solve the problem. Removing aggregate limits will simply increase the amount of money all candidates can access and allow them to spend more time campaigning instead of fundraising."

Following Klein's testimony yesterday, the Secretary of State, Legislative Service Office and Attorney General will include his recommended changes to ballot measure laws in a comprehensive review that may become a committee bill. The Corporations Committee will next meet on September 24 and 25 in Lander.