In the near future, we intend to introduce legislation to increase transparency of investment in political candidates by strengthening the penalty for late filing political campaign finance reports.
 
According to the Pennsylvania Department of State, 66 candidates for state legislative seats — including 22 incumbents — missed the October 25th deadline for filing the final campaign finance report ahead of election day. These reports are required by law to be filed by all candidates on a regular basis. These reports are the primary means by which the public sees how candidates are being funded. While the deadlines for filing these reports are made clear to all candidates, some circumvent the system in place by opting to pay a small fine instead of disclosing their donors to the public.
 
In the final weeks of an election, depriving voters of this vital information is unacceptable. The current penalty for late filing is set at a maximum $250 – an insignificant and inadequate deterrent. Our legislation would set the up-front penalty at $250, with an additional fine of $20 per day past the filing deadline. Additionally, this legislation would align reporting requirements for all candidates statewide.
 
Please join us in supporting this legislation.