Color me not even slightly surprised:
According to an analysis of the campaigns most frequently fined by the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office, well-oiled political machines pass the campaign-finance reporting muster while smaller organizations tend to stumble through the process.“Our office did a study and looked at who pays campaign finance fines, who doesn’t, who violates the law a lot, things like that,” said Secretary of State Scott Gessler. “And the bottom line is this: Volunteers and grass-roots groups are far more likely to run afoul of the law because the law is so complex. Large, big-money groups are able to hire attorneys and accountants and pay very, very few fines.”
Gessler, who practiced election law before he was elected to office last year, acknowledged that more sophisticated political campaigns like the clients he represented in the private sector generally avoid fines because of the accountants and lawyers that guide them through the maze-like process of financial reporting.
The statistics support his observation.
See the article for the detailed statistics. I’m so glad that our Secretary of State Scott Gessler did the study! He’s done really well on this issue, I think, and I’m extremely grateful.
