The FEC and Federal Campaign Finance Law Research Paper

The FEC and Federal Campaign Finance Law - Research Paper Example The FEC was created in 1971, but the need for this type of regulation was seen as early as 1905 by President Roosevelt. The idea behind this was to limit the influence that the wealthy would have over the outcome of a specific election, work on regulating the amount spent while campaigning for a federal office, and work to deter abuse of the system by requiring public disclosure of the funds that are spent, and where those funds are allocated. The question becomes since this system was implemented in the 1970s, how well has it worked? Is it an efficient system, and is it effective in accomplishing the goals that have been set for this particular government agency? The FEC has a system of checks and balances in place to where they not only review each report filed by federal candidates and committees, but also a system of enforcement and a system that allows third parties to file complaints if they believe a violation has occurred. The staff reviews each report that they receive, as f iled by a federal candidate or committee in order to make sure that they have complied fully with the disclosure requirements and limits that are imposed on political contributions. In addition, they may generate an enforcement action, referred to as an MUR, or Matter Under Review, during the course of reviewing these reports. If four of the six members that review each specific instance of possible violation of the law believe that a violation has occurred, the MUR will move to the next level of investigation. In the next level of investigation, the Commission uses a form of mediation between the parties who have submitted the report and those who believe the violation has occurred. The agreement reached as a result of these reviews may require a fine be paid, or other actions are taken. If an agreement cannot be reached, however, the Commission may file a suit against the appropriate persons in a U.S. District Court (FEC, 2013). A complaint may also be filed by any concerned third party, which would then go through the same steps as a typical MUR.