Terminating Presidential Election Campaign Fund and Election Assistance Commission

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. RICHARDSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to H.R. 3463, which simply combines two bills, H.R. 672 and H.R. 359, previously considered during this Congress. I opposed those bills then and I oppose them now. Terminating the Election Assistance commission and the Presidential Election Campaign Fund, is a worse idea and a greater waste of precious legislative time today than they were when the Republican majority first brought these bills to the floor earlier this year.

Mr. Speaker, since its creation, the Federal Election Commission has served the valuable purpose of preserving the voting and civil rights of our citizens which was born out of the scandal know as Watergate. The Presidential Election Campaign Fund succeeds in its purpose of leveling the playing field when it comes to corporate versus public funding of campaigns. By terminating taxpayer financing of presidential election campaigns and party conventions, the Republican majority seeks to permanently tilt the playing field in favor of special interest groups and corporate money at the expense of the public interest.

Presidential campaigns are currently funded through the voluntary $3 check-off on income tax returns. Given the size of the deficit and the national debt, the amount of money saving by terminating taxpayer financing is de minimis--less than $1 billion--but will achieve a goal long sought by conservatives who have never believed that public financing of campaigns is a permissible use of federal revenues.

The Election Assistance Commission is charged with developing standards for voting systems, advising and counseling on best voting practices, assuring that every American has the right to vote, as well as to facilitate such vote, and to make sure that every single vote is counted. The precedent-setting work of the Election Assistance Commission has been recognized by nations around the world. The Election Assistance Commission has also played a central role in improving the accessibility of voting for the country's more than 37 million voters with disabilities.

Let us not forget that the Election Assistance Commission was borne out of the 2000 presidential election fiasco with its unforgettable contributions to the political lexicon: ``hanging'' chads, ``pregnant'' chads, ``dimpled'' chads; ``butterfly ballots''; and ``voter intent.''

In response to the 2000 debacle, the Election Assistance Commission has performed valuable work to ensure the reliability and trustworthiness of our nation's election systems. It has played a central role in collecting accurate and comparable election data. With our nation's complex and diversified election administration system, central data collection is essential if we are going to improve our citizens' trust and confidence in election results. The Election Assistance Commission develops and fosters the training and organization of our nation's more than 8,000 election administrators.

Mr. Speaker, every vote counts--and every vote should be counted--and that is why we must preserve the Election Assistance Commission and oppose this legislation.

It is also important to note that abolishing the Election Assistance Commission will not save taxpayers money, but rather simply shift costs to the Federal Election Commission, FEC, and local governments. The FEC is not an agency that can make decisions in a timely and responsive fashion due to its partisan divisions. Consequently, transferring the functions performed by the Election Assistance Commission to the FEC is inconsistent with the national interest in ensuring election integrity, improving voter access to the polls, and enhancing the quality of election systems.

Mr. Speaker, the American people elected us to work on their priorities and real problems, like the lack of jobs. They do not want us to waste time on inconsequential matters of interest only to the Tea Party. H.R. 3463 is unnecessary and a diversion from addressing the real challenge facing our country. Therefore, I strongly oppose H.R. 3463 and I would urge my colleagues to join me in defeating this misguided and reckless legislation that puts the integrity of our election systems, and public confidence in campaign financing at risk.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source