Congresswoman Scanlon Reintroduces Bill to Bring Transparency to Presidential Inaugural Fundraising

Congresswoman Scanlon Reintroduces Bill to Bring Transparency to Presidential Inaugural Fundraising

Washington, D.C. - Congresswoman Mary Gay Scanlon (PA-05) today reintroduced the Inaugural Fund Integrity Act, her bill that would establish limits on donations to presidential inaugural funds and require the disclosure of donations and disbursements to those funds. Congresswoman Scanlon has introduced the Inaugural Fund Integrity Act in every Congress since she was sworn into the 115th Congress - regardless of which party occupies the White House. The bill previously passed the House in the 116th and 117th Congress as part of H.R. 1, the For the People Act.

While federal campaign committees have specific rules about donors, contribution limits, and reporting requirements, inaugural funds do not, though some presidents-elect have voluntarily established such limits in the past. The Inaugural Fund Integrity Act will close several loopholes in the current inaugural fund regulations that permit the abuse of funds by;

• Requiring full and rapid disclosure of contributions that aggregate over $1,000,
• Establishing a contribution limit of $50,000,
• Completely banning "straw man" donations,
• Prohibiting donations from foreign nationals,
• Requiring full disclosure of expenditures, and
• Banning corporate and Super-PAC contributions.

"The absence of limits on contributions to inaugural funds and requirements to disclose donors and expenditures creates an open invitation for deep-pocketed donors to buy influence and ingratiate themselves with an incoming administration," said Rep. Scanlon. "The American people deserve to know who is donating to an incoming administration, and how those funds are spent. $200 million dollars is far more than is needed for even the most lavish inaugural balls and festivities, particularly when the federal government already picks up the tab for the inauguration itself. Holding our leaders to high standards of ethical conduct is a critical part of maintaining faith in our democratic institutions. It's past time we address the lack of oversight of inaugural committees and finally require transparency in presidential inaugural fundraising."

The need for this common sense legislation has become more apparent, as President-elect Trump's inaugural committee is expected to raise more than $200 million, shattering the record set with his first inaugural fund in 2017 and exponentially surpassing the inaugural fund donations raised by every other president. In recent weeks, media reports have identified donations from billionaires and the biggest names in the tech, auto, banking, health care, and fossil fuel industries, with donations being described as overt attempts to curry favor with the incoming administration. Politico reports that the world's five biggest tech firms each gave at least $1 million, either directly or through their chief executives. So did the CEOs of Uber and OpenAI. The auto giants Toyota, Ford, and General Motors each gave over $1 million, as did the drugmaker Pfizer.

Original cosponsors of Scanlon's bill include Rep. Jamie Raskin (MD-08), the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, and Rep. Joseph D. Morelle (NY-25), the top Democrat on the Committee on House Administration. Also supporting Rep. Scanlon's bill as original cosponsors are Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14), Eleanor Holmes Norton (DC-AL), Rashida Tlaib (MI-12), Paul Tonko (NY-20), Kevin Mullin (CA-15), Hank Johnson (GA-04), André Carson (IN-07), Jasmine Crockett (TX-30), and Becca Balint (VT-AL).

The bill is endorsed by Public Citizen and Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics (CREW).

"When corporations and billionaires are allowed to pour millions of dollars into inaugural funds to brazenly attempt to curry favor with the incoming administration, it creates conflicts of interest for the presidency," said Debra Perlin, Policy Director for Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). "The Inaugural Fund Integrity Act would set up urgently needed guardrails to prohibit these massive donations and increase transparency by requiring disclosure of expenditures. CREW enthusiastically endorses this bill and urges Congress to pass it swiftly."

"This year's Presidential Inauguration is breaking all records in terms of total cost and special-interest donations," said Craig Holman, Ph.D., Public Citizen. "The Inaugural committee is expected to spend $200 million for parties and balls, many of which are reserved exclusively for major donors. Sadly, there are no limits on donations, no restrictions against government contractors making donations, and no disclosure of how the funds are spent or even how surplus funds are dispensed. The opportunities for influence peddling and scandals are limitless. Rep. Scanlon's "Inaugural Fund Integrity Act" is essential to rein in influence-buying by corporate Inaugural donors and open up the books on Inaugural financing for all to see."

Find the full text of the bill here.

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