Legislation giving the Department of State an additional tool against those they believe violate campaign finance laws passed the House this week.
Key Points:
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- House Bill 5583 was introduced by Representative Erin Byrnes (D-Dearborn).
- The legislation allows a person to file a complaint with the secretary of state if they believe the Campaign Finance Act is being violated.
- The secretary of state must inform the person of the complaint, allow them to respond, and offer a rebuttal.
- If the secretary of state feels the act is being violated, they may ask the circuit court for injunctive relief.
- The bill passed the House by a vote of 56-53.
- The legislation is part of the Bringing Reforms in Integrity, Transparency, and Ethics (BRITE) Act seven-bill package introduced earlier this term.
Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson spoke in favor of the proposal, “The citizens of Michigan deserve transparent, ethical leaders and a government that works for them. Today’s passage of an important component of the BRITE Act will strengthen Michigan’s standards of good governance. With real-time campaign finance enforcement authority, the Bureau of Elections could ask the court to immediately stop criminal behavior, rather than wait for a months-long process to play out. I will proudly continue my work with Attorney General Nessel and our partners in the Legislature to pass the other provisions of the BRITE Act to further improve the ethics and transparency laws in our state.”
Next Steps:
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- The bill will be sent to the Senate for consideration.
