Campaign Reform Redux

California is one of a few states that have no restrictions on campaign donations, allowing corporations, labor unions or anyone else to write checks of hundreds of thousands of dollars at a time for favored candidates in state races. And they do. To think that these high-rolling donors do not enjoy favors because of their generosity is to ignore reality. The need for reform is obvious. The trick is in fashioning a plan that will not clash with constitutional guarantees of free speech.

Campaign finance reform initiatives have won voter approval twice in recent years, but both were struck down by the courts as too restrictive of donors’ free speech rights. Now comes Silicon Valley entrepreneur Ron K. Unz, the author of the initiative eliminating bilingual education in California, with his own proposed solution.

Unz is floating the idea of an omnibus “California Voters Bill of Rights” that not only would enact a complex campaign finance reform plan, but create a new commission to redraw legislative district lines after each census and place limits on salary increases for legislators and state officials.

The campaign finance section would ban corporate contributions altogether and limit individual campaign gifts to $5,000 per person. It contains a modest form of public financing for candidates agreeing to voluntary spending limits.

Actually, Unz is considering four different proposals, each a different combination of the campaign finance, redistricting and salary provisions. He will solicit opinions before deciding which elements to pursue in an initiative for the March 2000 primary election ballot.

In any event, Unz said, he will proceed with campaign finance reform.

The best course would be for Unz to pursue the campaign reform plan alone, uncluttered by the other issues. Before doing that, however, Unz should at least try to work with the Legislature, which could enact a reform law on its own in advance of the 2000 campaign. Unz indicated he might defer to the Legislature, but he was skeptical that lawmakers would support a strong reform law. His skepticism may be reasonable.

The Legislature did pass a comprehensive reform plan in 1994 only to have it vetoed by Republican Gov. Pete Wilson. A new version of that plan has been introduced by Sen. Debra Bowen (D-Marina del Rey). It is similar to the Unz plan in many respects, although it allows corporate contributions but limits them--and all campaign gifts--to a maximum $2,000.

Both plans would allow political action committees to donate $5,000 per candidate.

Unz says he’ll wait about 45 days before deciding which of his options to pursue. The Bowen measure is up for its first hearing April 21. That gives Unz time to work with Bowen and other reform-minded lawmakers on a possible compromise. The always-present threat of his ballot measure should help focus the Legislature on the need for a workable, effective campaign finance reform law.