Federal Election Commission Main Page
December 18, 1986
CERTIFIED MAIL
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
ADVISORY OPINION 1986-40
John R. Raese, Chairman
West Virginia Republican State
Executive Committee
113 Washington Street West
P.O. Box A
Charleston, West Virginia 25362
Dear Mr. Raese:
This responds to your letters of September 23, 1986, and
October 24, 1986, requesting an advisory opinion concerning
application of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as
amended ("the Act"), and Commission regulations to the
solicitation and acceptance of corporate donations by a building
fund.
According to your request, the West Virginia Republican
State Executive Committee maintains both a federal and a state
account. The party committee plans to construct or purchase a
building to house the-party's offices. You indicate that the
federal account, which is called the West Virginia Republican
State Executive Committee ("the Committee"), will establish
another account, called the West Virginia Republican Building
Fund ("the Building Fund"), for the purpose of accepting
donations. You explain that all donations solicited and expended
for the building will be channeled only through this new fund.
You ask whether the Building Fund may solicit and accept
corporate donations.
Under the Act and Commission regulations, donations to a
national or a state committee of a political party that are
specifically designated to defray the costs of construction or
purchase of an office facility are not considered to be
contributions or expenditures, provided that the facility is not
acquired for the purpose of influencing the election of any
candidate in any particular election for Federal office.
2 U.S.C. SS 431(8)(B)(viii); 11 CFR 100.7(b)(12) and 100.8(b)(13).
Thus, the Commission concludes that so long as the proposed
office building is not acquired for the purpose of influencing
the election of any candidate in any particular election for
Federal office, corporate donations to the Building Fund would
not constitute contributions or expenditures under the Act, and
therefore would not be prohibited. See 11 CFR 114.1(a)(2)(ix).
Any donations received for the Building Fund from
corporations would have to be deposited in an account separate
from the Committee (the federal account from which expenditures
in connection with federal elections are made), as you have
indicated will be done. Pursuant to 11 CFR 102.5(a)(2), only
contributions that are designated for the federal account (the
Committee), that result from a solicitation which expressly
states the contributions will be used in connection with a
federal election, and that are made by contributors who are
informed that all contributions are subject to the prohibitions
and limitations of the Act may be deposited in the Committee.
Donations solicited or designated for the Building Fund do not
meet any of the foregoing conditions and, therefore, must be kept
out of the Committee's account.
Any donations deposited in the Building Fund would not have
to be reported under federal law. Commission regulations state
that building fund donations "made to a committee which is not a
political committee under 11 CFR 100.5" need not be reported.
11 CFR 100.7(b)(12). Because the Building Fund is not itself a
"Political committee" for purposes of the Act (see 11 CFR 100.5),
donations it receives need not be disclosed under the Act or
Commission regulations.
The final issue raised by your request is whether the Act
and Commission regulations would supersede and preempt any West
Virginia statute that prohibited or limited the Building Fund's
acceptance of corporate donations. Because the Act specifically
addresses building fund donations and clearly permits them, the
Commission concludes that any such West Virginia statute would be
superseded and preempted.*/ See 2 U.S.C. SS 453 and 11 CFR 108.7.
*/ The Commission notes that this request includes a letter from
Mr. Ken Hechler, the West Virginia Secretary of State.
Mr. Hechler advises you that West Virginia statutes appear to
prohibit the proposed corporate donations, but that in his
opinion Federal law preempts the application of such statutes as
to building fund donations.
This response constitutes an advisory opinion concerning
application of the Act, or regulations prescribed by the
Commission, to the specific transaction or activity set forth in
your request. See 2 U.S.C. SS 437f.
P.S. Commission Josefiak voted against approval of this opinion and will
file a dissenting opinion at a later date.