Indiana Campaign Finance Law Under Fire
In federal elections, campaign contributions are limited to $2,000 (per individual, per race$2k for the primaries and $2K for the main). Obviously, there are many ways around this limit, but at least you have to try.
Indiana has its own campaign contribution limits (IC 3-9-2-4, 5 & 6). These regulations provide for a number of limitations, like a corporation may not contribute more than $2,000.00 towards a candidate for state office, or to a political party.
Indiana’s limits come into ridicule today in a column by Kevin Leininger in the Forte Wayne News-Sentinel. Mr. Leininger follows the plight of a businessman who gave $5,000.00 to the Allen County GOP in 2004. As he used his corporation to make the contribution, this was a violation of the law. The GOP gave the money back, but the county Democrats want blood.
The column points out the lunacy in the law: If the businessman had just made the contribution out of his personal money, it would have been legal, as there is no limit on individual’s contributions to campaings for state office.
Not only that, but if the businessman had simply chosen to form his business as an LLC (limited liability company), the contribution would have been legal, as the Indiana statute limits contributions from “corporations,” not from other business types. The craziness in the law can be seen by the following:
Mike Gouloff, whose architectural firm just won a $1.3 million city contract to design the police/fire training academy at the former Southtown Mall site, donated about $29,000 to Mayor Graham Richard’s campaign. And the TM1 LLC, for which Gouloff acts as agent, donated another $23,000 in office space and other in-kind services.
So $5,000 from a corporation an illegal violation, but a total of $52,000 to 1 candidate for mayor from essentially the same source is completely above board. I agree with Mr. Leininger, this is ridiculous.
