Group Wins Round on Political Ads

A federal judge Tuesday dealt a setback to the government’s effort to enforce the nation’s new campaign finance law, ruling that the law’s restrictions on political advertising did not apply to a Hawaii antiabortion group.

Without ruling on the broader constitutionality of the law, U.S. District Judge Henry Kennedy granted a temporary injunction clearing the way for Hawaii Right to Life to air ads in special congressional elections scheduled for Saturday and Jan. 4.

The group hailed the victory and said it will begin airing the ads today.

Though the group contends that the new restrictions on political ads are unconstitutional and would have prevented it from expressing its views on the elections, it won the injunction by focusing on a narrower issue.

Kennedy, who was appointed by former President Clinton, agreed with Hawaii Right to Life and ruled that it was a “qualified nonprofit corporation” that by law should be exempt from the government’s new political ad restrictions. In doing so, he concluded that the Federal Election Commission’s definition for such nonprofit groups was too narrow and wrongly excluded the Hawaii group.

He said the antiabortion group qualified for the exemption because it had received only $50 in corporate contributions.

The judge said the issue of constitutionality should be saved “for another day.”

The FEC had argued that Hawaii Right to Life should be treated as a political issue advocacy group covered by the new advertising limitations.

The ruling is a setback for the FEC’s effort to begin implementing the campaign finance law Congress passed earlier this year. The law, which took effect Nov. 6, puts new limits on campaign donations and ads.

The Hawaii elections are to fill a vacancy created by the death of Democratic Rep. Patsy T. Mink and are the first conducted under the new law.

James Bopp Jr., the Hawaii Right to Life lawyer, said, “This is an important issue to advocacy groups and their role in the political process.”