Independent expenditures nearly $12 million for June primary

The California Fair Political Practices Commission released a report Thursday showing that independent expenditures on state races since 2001 have nearly topped $100 million, with more than $11 million being spent in the June 2008 primary campaign.

An FPPC report on independent expenditures noted that state laws that took effect on Jan. 1, 2001, limited direct contributions to legislative candidates, and similar laws took effect for statewide office candidates on Nov. 6, 2002.

The commission's chairman, in a press release, noted that such independent expenditures would seem to thwart the will of the voters, who enacted those contribution limits by passing Proposition 34 in November 2000.

"What is most disturbing is the alarming emergence of new techniques identified in the report where candidate-specific independent expenditure committees are created that may signal candidates in advance of elections that there will be independent expenditures on their behalf," said Chairman Ross Johnson, a former state legislator.

The commission also released a report on the top 10 campaigns with the most independent expenditures for the June 2008 primary.

In California, the top race for such expenditures was the 25th State Senatorial District race between assemblymen Rod Wright and Mervyn Dymally, where more than $1.78 million was spent, most of it on Wright's behalf.

Second was the three-way race for the 3rd State Senatorial District seat between Sen. Carole Migden, Assemblyman Mark Leno and former Assemblyman Joe Nation, with $1.44 million spent, most of it for Nation. Third was the 8th Assembly District race between Supervisor Mariko Yamada and West Sacramento Mayor Chris Cabaldon, where $1.15 million was spent, most of it for Cabaldon.

The FPPC's report noted that the top 10 races for independent expenditures constituted about 78 percent of all independent group spending during the June 2008 primary.

However, in only four of those races were most of the independent expenditures spent on behalf of the candidate who eventually won.

The report also lists the top 10 groups that made the most independent expenditures. Leading that list was the Alliance for California's Tomorrow, which spent most of its $1.2 million in the Wright/Dymally race.

Opportunity PAC - A Coalition of Educators, Health Care Givers, Faculty Members and Other School

Employees, was the second-biggest spender, with about $973,000 spent in two races.

A recent trend the FPPC documented in the report was the rise of candidate-specific independent committees that were sometimes created before the election, signaling to candidates that they could expect additional outside spending for or against them.

The report also included several recommendations for blunting the effects of independent expenditures, such as stronger accountability for independent committee directors to follow the Political Reform Act and the possibility of requiring such committees to disclose their financial backers on mass mailings and advertisements.

The full report can be seen here.