To PAC or not to PAC?

[kaleagal]

Earlier I posted an announcement about a group of Democrats in Madison County, who call themselves Downstate Democrats for Change, and their participation in the 50-State Canvass.

Now, they're focused on putting together a fundraiser for Dan Stover, who is running for US Congress in Shimkus's IL-19th district.

From what I understand Dan doesn't want everyone attending to write checks directly to his campaign. Rather he would prefer a lump sum from the organization. So, the DD4C is trying to decide if they want or need to form a PAC. Or can they just be a loosely formed club-type organization that limits the donation to his campaign to whatever keeps them legal? And then, the thought has been kicked around that any remaining money could be kept and used to work on other candidate campaigns, primary forums, etc..

Any words of wisdom that I can pass on?

[kaleagal]

1. I think I just found a satisfactory answer.

But for anyone who is interested, I read this page.
http://www.elections.il.gov/Downloads/CampaignDisclosure/PDF/areyourequiredtofile.pdf
Then, I talked to the Madison County Clerk. It would seem the group doesn't have to do anything until we collect $3000. Then, because it's a countywide-concentrated group, the County Clerk can help with filing as a committee and filling out whatever forms necessary.

[kevsand]

2. You're right about the $3,000 trigger.

They need to keep detailed records of everything anyway, however, just to be safe. If they pass the $3,000 mark and become obligated to file and report, the paperwork involved in forming the committee will ask for the total cash on hand at the time the committee is created (i.e., the day they sign the papers).

I'm more interested in why the candidate doesn't want individual checks. Most candidates like to boast about the number of individual small donors they have, as opposed to large organizational support (i.e., PACs). I can't think of a single strategic reason to go the other way. What am I missing?

[kevsand]

3. I just reread the OP, and realized you're talking about a

Congressional candidate. Illinois state law does not apply at all in this case; federal law does. The $3,000 trigger is only for state and local committees, not federal ones. They will need separate structures/organizations for donations to federal vs. state/local candidates, and the monies may not be commingled in any way. The county clerk doesn't handle federal committees; the FEC does.

[bscottsmith]

4. Dan Stover

I just talked to Zach with the Stover campaign. He told me that because this group was being so helpful to The Stover For Congress Campaign that they thought this would be helpful to the Downstate Democrats For Change. (as in any remaining money beng used for other candidates ect.)

[kaleagal]

5. I think they're effectively a countwide Democratic club.

Actually, when I think about it, Scott, what Zach told you makes sense. When we were in a conference call with Zach we were probably not making everything clear to each other. We were thinking in terms of Dan getting all the money from that particular fundraiser. But, the overall intention of the group is to be non-candidate affiliated. They were that way when they held a public forum before the Illinois Primary. And they intend to do the same for the '08 Primary and support whatever Democratic candidates they can during the general election campaign season. Some will likely be local and one will be federal. What I want to assume is that regardless of the level(county, state, or federal) of the candidates we are donating to, the County Clerk should be able to guide us through whatever paperwork is involved on our part. Make sense?

[kevsand]

6. County clerks can not necessarily be counted on to have

any particular expertise in federal reporting requirements, since it doesn't fall at all anywhere within their normal purview. St. Clair's is probably a little more savvy than most, but in general, it's not something they automatically know how to deal with, since it has nothing to do with them.

You must be extremely careful to separate federal activity from state/local activity. It requires two separate committees for reporting purposes.

[kaleagal]

7. Ok, I'll call him again just to be sure.

He's Mark Von Ida in Madison County, not St. Clair. If anything I think he's even more savvy. And he knows we're collecting for a US Congressman. But, better to be safe than sorry and make sure we both understood each other.