Kentucky Judge Issues Restraining Order Baring Restoring America PAC From Running Ads Against Steve Beshear For Violating Campaign Finance Laws.
Judge bars group from running ads against Beshear
By Beth Musgrave
FRANKFORT — A Franklin Circuit Judge issued a restraining order Monday to stop a group from airing attack ads against Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear after finding that the organization violated Kentucky's campaign finance laws.
The Kentucky Democratic Party filed a lawsuit against Restoring America, a third party campaign committee, after the group failed to disclose its donors in a report to the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance in recent days.
The group, known as a 527 because of the section of the Internal Revenue Service code under which it is organized, must report the source of its contributions, according to state campaign finance laws. But the group's finance report listed Restoring America Inc. as its only contributor. Both Restoring America and Restoring America Inc. were started on the same day and use the same mailing address.
Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate issued the restraining order after a hearing Monday morning. His order bars Restoring America from running any advertisements during the 2011 general election that advocate for or against a candidate or a slate of candidates.
"By hiding the contributors to the 527 from the public, respondents have immediately and irreparably harmed the petitioner and the public of their right to have a transparent campaign finance system whereby all contributors are disclosed publicly," Wingate wrote.
Wingate's ruling came on the same day that the group unveiled four new television advertisements attacking Beshear or touting Republican Senate President David Williams, Beshear's chief rival in the Nov. 8 general election.
Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/10/17/1924781/judge-bars-group-from-running.html#ixzz1b4y0rRNv
By Beth Musgrave
FRANKFORT — A Franklin Circuit Judge issued a restraining order Monday to stop a group from airing attack ads against Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear after finding that the organization violated Kentucky's campaign finance laws.
The Kentucky Democratic Party filed a lawsuit against Restoring America, a third party campaign committee, after the group failed to disclose its donors in a report to the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance in recent days.
The group, known as a 527 because of the section of the Internal Revenue Service code under which it is organized, must report the source of its contributions, according to state campaign finance laws. But the group's finance report listed Restoring America Inc. as its only contributor. Both Restoring America and Restoring America Inc. were started on the same day and use the same mailing address.
Franklin Circuit Court Judge Thomas Wingate issued the restraining order after a hearing Monday morning. His order bars Restoring America from running any advertisements during the 2011 general election that advocate for or against a candidate or a slate of candidates.
"By hiding the contributors to the 527 from the public, respondents have immediately and irreparably harmed the petitioner and the public of their right to have a transparent campaign finance system whereby all contributors are disclosed publicly," Wingate wrote.
Wingate's ruling came on the same day that the group unveiled four new television advertisements attacking Beshear or touting Republican Senate President David Williams, Beshear's chief rival in the Nov. 8 general election.
Read more: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/10/17/1924781/judge-bars-group-from-running.html#ixzz1b4y0rRNv
Labels: Keeping them honest, Kentucky politics
posted by KYJurisDoctor at 5:05 PM
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