The State - News from March 19, 1986

Some of California’s top business leaders joined two public interest organizations in launching an initiative campaign to limit what legislative candidates can raise and spend on election campaigns. The proposal provides for a “minimum amount” of public financing of legislative campaigns for those candidates who agree to limit their campaign spending, said Walter Gerken, chairman of Pacific Mutual Life Insurance Co. Joining Gerken in a Sacramento press conference in support of the measure were former Assembly Speaker Robert T. Monagan, now president of the California Economic Development Corp.; Walter Zelman, executive director of California Common Cause, a public interest lobby, and Margaret Herman, lobbyist for the California League of Women Voters. Under the proposal, Assembly candidates would be limited to spending $150,000 on primary elections and $225,000 in general election campaigns, while state Senate candidates would be limited to a total of $600,000.