As a national model for campaign finance reform, Arizona has a responsibility to continue to improve the state’s Clean Elections system. When Arizona citizens initiated and approved the Citizens Clean Elections Act in 1998, they authorized a nonpartisan commission to administer and enforce the initiative, which was designed to decrease the importance of special interests in elections by creating a publicly financed campaign alternative for candidates.

With another election behind us, the Citizens Clean Elections Commission has recognized areas to help improve fairness, efficiency, accountability and clarity of the system. The Commission has determined that it will seek legislative solutions to at least four key issues during the upcoming session.

First, the Commission hopes to remedy the situation in which a participating candidate receives more money than a privately funded candidate who is unopposed in the primary. The proposed solution would allow for the mathematical equation that determines general election matching funds to include the deduction of the opposing participating candidates initial primary funding. The change will ensure that privately and publicly funded candidates are on equal footing, a primary tenet of the act that the Commission is committed to protecting.

Second, the Commission will request that the Legislature address the involvement of independent organizations, or 527s, in the political funding process. Now more than ever, it is difficult for voters to understand where a candidate receives financial support because of the influence of these organizations. In addition to ensuring full public disclosure in campaign financing by these groups, the Commission believes it is critical that independent organizations are held accountable for reporting expenditures immediately and abiding by campaign finance laws. The Commission would like to see enhanced penalties for violations made by independent organizations. Independent expenditures should be matched under not just the spirit, but the letter of the law.

Third, the Commission will seek a change to the deadline for participating candidates to apply for funding. Candidates can receive initial funding at any point during the qualifying period. However, because many candidates have waited until the end of the filing period to turn in their application for funding, they are unable to receive funding until just days before the primary election. Candidates must receive funding with sufficient time left in the primary election period in order to mount a credible campaign. The Commission will ask the Legislature to move the filing deadline earlier by a few weeks to avoid this problem in future elections.

Finally, the Commission believes that portions of the Act that the courts have deemed unconstitutional should be removed from the law. It is crucial that statutes be cleaned up in order to streamline the law and diffuse confusion.

In Arizona, we are among the first states in the nation to develop a citizen-driven public financing system that places democracy above special interests. Being a leader means that there will be risks as well as rewards. We will experience growing pains and often learn through experience how to make the system better. To remain a national model for other states to follow, we must embrace the opportunity to recognize shortcomings and fix them. We look forward to working with the Legislature to strengthen the voice of citizens and champion integrity in our political process.

Autumn Southard is Voter Education Manager with the Citizens Clean Elections Commission.