The recent scandals of the 109th Congress have certainly put government at all levels under the microscope. Despite some expectaions of a decrease in the frequency of such embarassments, the opposite seems true. One cannot even glance at a paper without catching a story depicting the latest government shortcoming. In New York, the papers don't look much different. State laws in New York have set regulations that only permit corporations to contribute a certain amount per year to political candidates. However, at least one company, American International Group Inc, has discovered and exploited the law's loopholes. AIG has been using subsidiaries to give many times more the $5,000 limit. Rachael Leon of Common Cause New York had this to say:

"This happens all the time. It's just one of the many loopholes that make our campaign finance laws meaningless. We might as well not have any limits, because in the real world, they don't apply."

Additionally, limited liability corporations have exploited further problems with the state laws. Their LLC status allows such places to give the individual limit, which is ten times greater than that of a corporation's. Government needs to pass and enforce comprehensive laws that would put an end to these current embarassing practices.

For more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/19/AR2006091900849.html