Today Common Cause/NY was featured in a New York Times cover story that focused on a gaping loophole in New York State Campaign Finance law that allows large campaign contributors to circumvent New York's already sky-high contribution limits by funneling campaign contributions through Limited Liability Companies (L.L.C.'s). While corporations have a $5,000 contribution limit per year, L.L.C.'s are considered "individuals" under New York State Election Law and therefore can contribute up to $51,000 to a statewide candidate.
"It's yet another loophole that makes our already weak campaign finance laws meaningless," said Rachel Leon, executive director of Common Cause New York, which has prepared an analysis of these donations and shared its findings with The New York Times. "We have the highest contribution limits of any state that has limits, but even those laws you can get around with these loopholes."
Last week the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law School released a report highligting the numerous flaws in the NYS campaign finance system. From the press release:
The report finds that New York's contribution limits, which climb as high as $84,400, are the highest in the country for many categories of contributions. In fact, in some categories, New York's contribution limits would still rank among the nation's highest even if they were cut in half.
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