Lawmakers Add Transparency Element To Campaign Spending By Corporations

If corporations put money into political campaigns in Tennessee, the individuals in the corporations must be identified – that according to a bill passed by the state House Wednesday.

The U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that corporations cannot be barred from spending money in campaigns. Tennessee was one of the states that barred such spending. State lawmakers moved quickly to change the law in response to the high court ruling.

Also in Tennessee, a corporation can be established at the Secretary of State’s office, without disclosing the identity of the owners. Representative Gerald McCormick, a Chattanooga Republican, said that could lead to potential abuse of political spending by an anonymous corporation.

“A number of us could get together, and set up a corporation, specifically so that you could go after a candidate you didn’t like. You could put all the money you wanted to into that, spend all the money you wanted to, and never have to tell anybody who you were.”

Tennessee campaign finance law rests heavily on identifying the persons who are financing campaigns. The new bill passed with rare bipartisan support, 95-0.

The bill is HB 3182 Mike Turner/SB 3198 Lowe Finney.

The bill is in the “General subcommittee” of the Senate State and Local Government Committee, but House sponsors say the Senate version is likely to advance after Monday’s House action.