A Donald Trump-nominated Federal Election Commission leader wants to make it easier for political donors to hide their identities — a major impediment to post-Watergate interpretations of political transparency that allow anyone to see where politicians are getting their money.
The proposed directive, titled “Requests to Withhold, Redact, or Modify Identifying Information,” was submitted today by Commissioner Allen J. Dickerson for possible consideration at the commission’s public May 16 meeting. Raw Story obtained a copy.
Dickerson’s memorandum says that the Federal Election Campaign Act’s disclosure requirements “are not absolute” and subject to exceptions.
“Where a person or group can show ‘a reasonable probability’ that compelled disclosure ‘will subject them to threats, harassment, or reprisals from either Government officials or private parties,’ they must be excused from disclosing the information that will put them at risk,“ Dickerson’s memorandum says.
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The memorandum notes the FEC has granted “several” private requests to redact information in the past.
“But many individuals may not have been intrepid or connected enough to file a request,” the letter says. “Given the importance of the rights involved, the country’s charged political atmosphere, and basic principles of fairness, the Commission has an obligation to adopt a formal process providing for ‘a fair consideration’ of particular contributors’ situations,” the letter says.
Stuart McPhail, director of campaign finance litigation at Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, criticized the potential change.
“The proposal contravenes the FEC's purpose: to guard Americans' trust in elections by ensuring transparency into who is funding them," McPhail said. "It would open to the biggest donors and most powerful parties a protection previously afforded to only minor parties lacking any power.
"The Constitution however does not permit the FEC to censor Americans' right to that information, even if a tiny minority regrettably abuses that information to engage in unlawful harassment. There are laws against threats and intimidation, as even Justice Scalia recognized. The solution isn't censorship.“
The proposal says its directive would serve as a “stopgap measure” until the FEC can “begin the process of drafting and adopting a regulation that will bring its procedures into compliance with the Constitution and relevant case law.”
The proposal would create a “standardized form whereby an individual contributor, or an organization acting on behalf of one or more of its contributors, may seek relief from the reporting requirements of the Act,” Dickerson wrote.
The proposal further limits transparency regarding applications to the FEC — a six-member, bipartisan regulatory body where no more than three members may come from one political party — to keep information hidden.
The FEC is charged with regulating and enforcing the nation’s campaign finance laws and can issue civil penalties to those who violate them. FEC commissioners, however, are often at philosophical odds amid high-profile cases and often deadlock or otherwise fail to find common ground.
“In all cases, regardless of outcome, the applications submitted pursuant to this Directive shall be kept confidential and shall not be placed on the public record,” it says.
Trump nominated Dickerson to the FEC in 2020, and the U.S. Senate confirmed him in December of that year. Dickerson served as FEC chairman — a one-year, rotating posting — in 2022.
Prior to joining the FEC, Dickerson worked as legal director for the Institute for Free Speech, a nonprofit think tank that advocates against most campaign finance regulations.
In 2023, Dickerson advocated making it more difficult for the FEC to investigate alleged campaign finance violations, The Intercept reported.
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