Independent Expenditures Tough to Track in Hawaii Elections

Want to know who's for or against a candidate's campaign or how much they're spending to help or hinder it? Good luck.

Spending by so-called independent-expenditure-only committees in Hawaii is nearly impossible to track. But that could change this year if the state's campaign finance watchdog agency gets its way.

The political groups — which must operate independently of campaigns — do not have to identify candidates being supported or opposed in advertising or mailings when reporting expenses to the Hawaii Campaign Spending Commission. The special political action committees, or PACs, only disclose such information as the name and address of a vendor, a description of the expense and the amount.

This election, three independent-expenditure-only PACs have so far been registered with the commission. Officials said it's unclear how many were registered last election because its website did not flag these special PACs back then.

Now, with a new form in place that requires committees to identify as independent-expenditure-only groups, the commission has begun listing these committees separately, allowing the public to easily access reports of contributions and expenses.

The commission wants to take transparency a step further.

Citizens United Impact

Under a proposal introduced by the commission this legislative session, reporting of independent expenditures would need to include the name of the candidate and whether the expense was used to support or oppose that candidate.

House Bill 1756 cleared the House Judiciary Committee and has been referred to the Finance Committee.

Another bill, HB 2174, addresses the same issue, and would require that independent expenditures "include the name of any candidate referenced." The bill was co-sponsored by Rep. Gilbert Keith-Agaran, who passed it out of his Judiciary Committee recently.

Gary Kam, general counsel for the Campaign Spending Commission, said transparency surrounding these expenses is especially critical in light of the federal Citizen's United ruling. The 2010 Supreme Court decision now allows corporations and unions to mount independent expenditure campaigns, too, in addition to individuals.

"You tend to want to see who these expenditures are benefiting or being used against," Kam said.

Good government groups, including Common Cause Hawaii, support the measures.

"I think many people have seen commercials or postal mail pieces that are paid for by 'Committee for XYZ,' and most regular citizens wouldn't know who is actually behind that committee," Common Cause Hawaii Executive Director Nikki Love said in an email to Civil Beat. "That's why better disclosure is so important. Also, generally, regarding independent expenditure only committees — this is a new world after Citizens United and other court decisions."

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