Regulating 527 Organizations

36 Pages Posted: 17 Jun 2005

See all articles by Gregg D. Polsky

Gregg D. Polsky

University of Georgia School of Law

Guy-Uriel E. Charles

Harvard University - Harvard Law School

Abstract

In this Essay, we consider whether the Federal Election Commission (FEC) has the authority to regulate independent 527 organizations (e.g., Swiftboat Veterans for Truth, Moveon.org, etc.) as political committees under the Federal Election Campaign Act. This issue, which was hotly debated during the last election cycle when it was considered and ultimately tabled by the FEC, is an extremely complex one that requires a deep understanding of election, tax, administrative, and constitutional law. After considering how these areas of law intersect, we conclude that the FEC lacks the authority to regulate independent 527 organizations as political committees.

Keywords: 527 organizations, FEC, Buckley, MCFL

Suggested Citation

Polsky, Gregg D. and Charles, Guy-Uriel, Regulating 527 Organizations. George Washington Law Review, Forthcoming, Minnesota Legal Studies Research Paper No. 05-21, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=745330

Gregg D. Polsky

University of Georgia School of Law ( email )

225 Herty Drive
Athens, GA 30602
United States

Guy-Uriel Charles (Contact Author)

Harvard University - Harvard Law School ( email )

1563 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

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