Small-dollar donors sue FEC over disclosure rules

(CN) — A married couple sued the Federal Election Commission in Toledo Thursday, arguing in their federal complaint that the commission’s small donor disclosure rules violate their First Amendment rights.

Colleen and Steve Oliver specifically protest that, per election rules, political donations under $200 are disclosed publicly when candidates accept them through conduit fundraising platforms like WinRed or ActBlue — even though direct donations under $200 are allowed to remain confidential.

That the law lists no cutoff amount beneath which platform-mediated donations can remain private is unconstitutional, the couple claims.

“It defies comprehension why the identity of a donor who gives $3 to a candidate through digital platforms like WinRed or ActBlue must be publicly reported to the FEC, while a donor who physically hands a $175 check to a congressman at a fundraiser gets to keep his information private,” the Olivers wrote in the 12-page lawsuit. “The $3 digital donor is treated worse not because of the amount, or concerns of transparency, but merely because of the mechanism of the donation.”

The couple said they wished to keep their donations private for reasons related to Steve Oliver’s business, which bids for government contracts. Colleen Oliver, a Republican voter, said she wanted to keep her political donations from reflecting on that business. Steve Oliver said he fears the possibility of being pressured to financially support candidates and of facing “adverse treatment” from clients who don’t approve of how he donates.

“Thus, both Colleen and Steve have been chilled in their ability to express their political views through donations to their chosen political candidates.” the couple wrote. “Rather than freely voicing support for candidates and policy through monetary donations, Colleen and Steve have been forced to choose between that and having their identities exposed and potentially subjecting themselves to discrimination and harassment,”

The couple also pointed out that some FEC commissioners themselves have criticized the disclosure discrepancy between direct and mediated donations, including Allen Dickerson and James Trainor III, both Republicans, and Dara Lindenbaum, a Democrat.

Dickerson framed his comments as part of a larger argument against current regulations on political donation reporting.

ActBlue and WinRed “raise billions of dollars from millions of Americans, many of them contributing far below the $200 threshold Congress believed relevant,” he said in a statement. “It is simply inaccurate, and dishonest, to suggest that the FEC’s disclosure burdens fall mainly on the wealthy and the powerful.”

Lindenbaum’s criticism was part of her recommendation to end the disclosure of small donors’ street addresses. She expressed worry for small donors over both personal security and increased state scrutiny.

“Most everyday Americans will not be aware that reporting their home address when making political contributions might subject them to security concerns until some future time, well after the relevant contributions were made and long after their personal information is already accessible on disclosure reports filed with the Commission,” she said in her own statement.

Despite the commissioners’ concerns, no bill challenging current small donor disclosure rules has yet been filed in either the House or Senate.

The couple are represented in their suit by Charles Miller, an attorney for the conservative Institute for Free Speech.

“The FEC admits there’s a problem, but Congress hasn’t acted,” Miller said in a prepared statement. “Meanwhile, millions of Americans are having their personal information needlessly exposed. It’s time for the courts to step in and protect the rights of small-dollar donors.”

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