Federal Election Commission

E20072

The Federal Election Commission is an independent U.S. regulatory agency responsible for enforcing federal campaign finance laws, including overseeing the disclosure and limits of contributions and expenditures in national elections.


Statements (49)
Predicate Object
instanceOf federal agency of the United States government
independent regulatory agency
abbreviation FEC
appointmentProcess commissioners appointed by the President of the United States
commissioners confirmed by the U.S. Senate
canImpose civil penalties for campaign finance violations
canTakeActionWith affirmative vote of at least four commissioners
conducts audits of certain political committees
country United States
dateFormed 1975
effectiveDate 1975-04-14
enforces disclaimer and disclosure requirements for political advertising
federal campaign finance laws
limits on contributions to federal candidates
limits on contributions to political committees
prohibitions on foreign national contributions in federal elections
public financing rules for presidential elections
formedBy Federal Election Campaign Act
governedBy six-member bipartisan commission
hasHeadquartersIn Washington, D.C.
investigates alleged violations of federal campaign finance law
issues regulations implementing federal campaign finance statutes
jurisdiction United States federal government
legalBasis 1974 amendments to the Federal Election Campaign Act
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971
monitors electioneering communications in federal elections
independent expenditures in federal elections
numberOfCommissioners 6
oversees disclosure of campaign finance information
presidential public funding program
parentAgency none (independent agency)
partyBalanceRule no more than three commissioners from the same political party
predecessor Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives (campaign finance disclosure functions)
Comptroller General of the United States (certain campaign finance functions)
Secretary of the U.S. Senate (campaign finance disclosure functions)
provides guidance to campaigns and committees on compliance with campaign finance law
publishes advisory opinions
campaign finance data
regulates campaign contributions in federal elections
campaign expenditures in federal elections
candidate committees for federal office
federal campaign finance
party committees at the federal level
political action committees
shortName FEC
subjectOf judicial review in U.S. federal courts
supervises reporting of receipts and disbursements by federal campaigns
termLength 6-year staggered terms for commissioners
website https://www.fec.gov/


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