Ethics Commission again rewrites campaign finance laws

Ignorance of the law is no defense, unless you happen to be a person who makes the laws.

The Alabama Ethics Commission on Wednesday voted unanimously to — for the third time — wipe away the fees levied against politicians, donors and political action committees who violated campaign finance laws by filing reports late.

In some cases, the filings — which show the public the sources of candidates’ campaign contributions — were nearly a month late. An attorney for the Alabama Secretary of State’s office, which issued the more than 700 fines, told the Commission that it was more than enough time to conceal from the public the source of funds until after an election was over.

The Commission didn’t care.

Citing the fact that the handful of entities and candidates who appealed had “no intent to break the law,” and falling back — for the third time — on the fact that this is the first election cycle since the new filing deadlines were implemented, the commissioners voted to give the violators a pass. The laws in question were passed in 2015.

Read more: http://www.alreporter.com/2018/06/07/ethics-commission-again-rewrites-campaign-finance-laws/