Rhode Island’s Top 25 Biggest Spending PACs
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
2011 may have been an off year in the election cycle, but that didn’t stop more than 200 unions, corporations and other special interest groups from spending nearly $1.5 million in the Ocean State, according to a GoLocalProv analysis of campaign finance reports.
Rhode Island’s top 25 biggest spending Political Action Committees (PACs) combined to shell out $925,768.72 in campaign contributions, consultant fees and other expenses during the year, with two out-of-state PACs leading the way.
According to Rhode Island College political communications professor Dr. Kay Israel, PACs seek to play a prominent role in the lives of elected officials, but also in convincing voters to support candidates who will in turn support their interests.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST“They donate with that in mind,” Israel said. “Candidates are smart enough to know which way the wind (or more accurately the money) is blowing and seek donations from sources that would find their potential votes in line with those sought by the funders.”
Biggest Spenders
In total, 16 of the top 25 biggest spenders were union PACs while the others included House and Senate leadership PACs as well as groups set up by other special interests, including realtors, medical groups, an insurance company and a law firm.
The Connecticut Health Care District 1199 PAC ($159,573.70) and the Connecticut Laborers Political League ($82,133.09) each sent their money to various union groups, advertising agencies and elected officials around southern New England and Washington, with local lawmakers receiving contributions ranging from $150 to $1,000.
Next on the list was the powerful National Education Association, which spent $80,830.68, mostly on political contributions to candidates and other PACs as well as just over $2,700 per month on rent and utilities.
The RI Laborer's Political League and the Realtors PAC of RI rounded out the top five, combining to dish out just over $125,000 in 2011. The Realtors PAC tops the list among non-union groups, having contributed thousands of dollars to local politicians on both sides of the aisle, including General Treasurer Gina Raimondo, House Speaker Gordon Fox, Senate President M. Teresa Paiva Weed Providence Mayor Angel Taveras and Cranston Mayor Allan Fung.
Israel said Rhode Island is by no means unique when it comes to PAC spending.
“On both the federal and state level, we see millions of dollars collected and disbursed to either get around the election finance limitations or, at minimum, the intent of those laws,” he said. “Locally, mayors and statehouse leadership raise monies and disburse them to secure their positions in government. At a higher level, governors, Congressmen and Senators spread the wealth around to colleagues and potential supporters. Corporations and labor frequently use their financial muscle to ensure that their desires are being considered (along with their clout).”
Tea Party Leader: An Uneven Playing Field
The amount spent by union PACs in particular has caught the eye of Susan Wynne, who was recently named the head of the Rhode Island Tea Party. Wynne said the ability to raise money from PACs has played a major role in local elections.
“It’s obvious that PACs play a major role in funding political campaigns,” she said. “In a heavily unionized state such as RI, the resources available from Union PACs to their selected candidates has been substantial and has allowed their candidates to wage formidable campaigns. Many believe this has created an uneven playing field as well as had significant effect on election outcomes.”
But Quest Research pollster Victor Profughi sees it differently. He said that because local elections tend to be inexpensive, local PACs are mostly involved to reward their friends and occasionally, punish their enemies.
“Labor unions, more recently business PACs, and for many years Leadership PACs helped with local campaigns, but I doubt that lawmakers are much affected in their decisions by PAC contributions as such. Rather, PACs select candidates who already agree with them on their issues,” Profughi said.
Legislation Would Increase Transparency
Still, others say PACs and Super PACs (which can spend unlimited money with very little disclosure) are likely to play in an important role in the 2012 election cycle. Israel said PACs and Super PACs are the result of the failure of government to control the process and the insertion of partisan need into what was once an area viewed as nonpolitical.
“So, yes, PACs play too large a role, but the issue often is the cost of running for office at all levels and staying there,” he said. “For many officeholders government has become an occupation and not a service with the price of admission reduced to seeking and listening to those who can most easily afford to be heard. It may not be as expensive in Rhode Island, but the situation is the same.”
In an effort to increase transparency in the Ocean State, State Rep. Chris Blazejewski and Sen. Juan Pichardo have introduced a bill that will require individuals and organizations that engage in “independent expenditures” and “electioneering communications” to report donors and expenditures to the Rhode Island State Board of Elections and to include disclaimers on media and Internet advertising.
The measure has garnered support from leadership in both chambers as well as Governor Chafee.
“Transparency is very important in all of government, and especially the election process,” Pichardo said. “Our constituents deserve to know who is making the contributions that fund campaigns designed to influence them at the ballot box, and I am proud to sponsor this legislation which provides this accountability in the campaign process.”
“This legislation is aimed at disclosing who is trying to exert influence over campaigns,” Blazejewski said. “In a small state like Rhode Island, the funding available to a super PAC could threaten to undermine our elections with unknown, undisclosed, and potentially limitless political spending. This act is about letting the public know who is behind the message, so Rhode Islanders can make informed judgments about what they’re being told.”
Common Cause: Too Much Fundraising During the Session
But the question of whether PACs have too much influence still remains. Common Cause executive director John Marion, who helped draft the Super PAC legislation, said a lot of corporate and union PACs are involved in politics that represent narrow interests trying to financially benefit those funding them.
“That's been a problem since the creation of PACs,” he said. “Yes, we think too much of that is occurring, especially in the legislative session when decisions that financially impact those PACs are being made. That is why in the past we have called for a moratorium on fundraisers during the session.”
Marion said that request has fallen on deaf ears.
“It is hard to ignore the fact that the General Assembly session is bookended by fundraisers where PACs and corporate and union lobbyists write campaign checks,” he said.
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