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Tax-Financed Campaigns: A Speech-Chilling, Costly, and Failed Policy
January 1, 2018  •  By IFS Staff  •    •  

Tax-financed campaigns are government-operated programs that seek to replace or supplement private, voluntary campaign contributions with government grants of taxpayer dollars to candidates who meet certain requirements. These programs, often tagged with euphemistic names such as “democracy dollars” or “clean elections,” take many forms. Some provide tax dollars to candidates based on the donations they’ve received while other programs provide…

DC Residents May Be Forced to Pay for Jack Evans’ Next Campaign
January 31, 2020   •  By Tyler Martinez   •  ,

Taxpayer-financed campaigns are a bad idea. The latest evidence comes from the D.C. Council, where longtime incumbent Jack Evans recently “resigned in disgrace” from ...

Albuquerque Voters Say No to Subsidizing Political Candidates
December 12, 2019   •  By Tiffany Donnelly   •  , ,

On Election Day, Albuquerque residents registered their opinion on a ballot initiative that, if approved, would have forcibly used their tax dollars to finance ...

DNC Donor Requirement Displays Folly of Tinkering with Fundraising Incentives
June 12, 2019   •  By Alex Baiocco   •  , ,

For the 2020 election, the DNC has decided to try out a new requirement for its presidential primary contenders to qualify for the debates. ...

What Would H.R. 1 Mean for My Group?
March 6, 2019   •  By Eric Wang   •  , , , , , , ,

PDF available here By Eric Wang, Senior Fellow[1] One way to better understand how H.R. 1 would affect nonprofit civic and advocacy groups is ...

Letter to U.S. House of Representatives in Opposition to H.R. 1
March 6, 2019   •  By David Keating   •  , , , , , , ,

The Institute for Free Speech writes in strong opposition to H.R. 1, the “For the People Act.” More appropriately known as the “For the ...

H.R. 1 Resource Guide
March 6, 2019   •  By IFS Staff   •  , , , , , , , ,

H.R. 1, better known as the “For the Politicians Act,” would institute sweeping new limitations on speech about campaigns and public affairs. In response, ...

Democrats have campaign proposal that will create more Donald Trumps
March 6, 2019   •  By Scott Blackburn   •  ,

Ironically, the first bill introduced by Democrats could thus lead to more candidates like Trump.

Testimony of David Keating Before the U.S. House Committee on House Administration on H.R. 1
February 14, 2019   •  By David Keating   •  , , , , , , , ,

One way to understand how H.R. 1 would harm nonprofit civic and advocacy groups is to apply its provisions to common advocacy and operating ...

H.R. 1 Would Undo Watergate-Era Protections Against Government Interference in Election Campaigns
February 13, 2019   •  By David Keating   •  , ,

This portion of the bill will further enhance the role of the federal government in election campaigns. Tax-financing will increase the risk that partisan ...

Testimony of Bradley A. Smith Before the U.S. House Oversight and Reform Committee on H.R. 1
February 6, 2019   •  By Brad Smith   •  , , , , , , ,

Despite proponents’ insistence that H.R. 1 is “For the People,” the bill is anything but. More appropriately labeled the “For the Politicians Act,” H.R. ...

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