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33-541: The tax credit for qualifying productions equals a 25% reduction in Personal Income Tax, Corporate Net Income, Capital Stock/Foreign Franchise Tax. However, because most productions filming in Pennsylvania do not incur a tax liability in the state, the credits are fully transferable, which means they can be sold to a company or individual in the state who does have a tax liability. In order to qualify for

66-469: A constitutional convention could conceivably overturn the controversial Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC and limit the role of money in politics (as advocated by groups such as Wolf PAC ), Common Cause suggests that the risk of a runaway convention is too great because "state legislatures, the majority of which are controlled by Republicans, would likely control the agenda at

99-569: A constitutional convention" and as a result it is extremely unlikely "that a convention controlled by those legislatures would really do anything productive on money in politics, on voting rights, on democracy in general". Any amendments would need to be ratified by three-quarters of the states. Common Cause lobbied Congress to pass the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, requiring government officials to disclose their finances and restricting

132-662: A lawsuit in North Carolina challenging the constitutionality of district maps. The organization's North Carolina chapter has led a campaign to create a nonpartisan redistricting process, which has bipartisan support in the state. Common Cause is also challenging redistricting in Democratic-controlled states, such as Maryland. Common Cause advocates a voter-verified paper audit trail for election machines in all states. The organization has documented complaints about electronic voting machines . Common Cause

165-431: A third classification, independent expenditure-only committees, which are colloquially known as "super PACs". Most of the 4,600 active, registered PACs, named "connected PACs", sometimes also called "corporate PACs", are established by businesses, non-profits, labor unions, trade groups, or health organizations. These PACs receive and raise money from a "restricted class", generally consisting of managers and shareholders in

198-838: A way dominant parties can capture seats from other parties. A leadership PAC sponsored by an elected official cannot use funds to support that official's own campaign. However, it may fund travel, administrative expenses, consultants, polling, and other non-campaign expenses. In the 2018 election cycle, leadership PACs donated more than $ 67 million to federal candidates. Super PACs, officially known as "independent expenditure-only political action committees," are unlike traditional PACs in that they may raise unlimited amounts from individuals, corporations, unions, and other groups to spend on, for example, ads overtly advocating for or against political candidates. However, they are not allowed to either coordinate with or contribute directly to candidate campaigns or political parties. Super PACs are subject to

231-454: Is identified with the reformist " good government " movement and is often described as a watchdog group . The organization's tagline is "holding power accountable" and its stated mission is "upholding the core values of American democracy. We work to create open, honest, and accountable government that serves the public interest; promote equal rights, opportunity, and representation for all; and empower all people to make their voices heard in

264-550: Is in favor of establishing a national popular vote for presidential elections to replace the current electoral college system. Following the November 2016 U.S. presidential election, Common Cause called for the National Popular Vote Compact to counteract what it called the "anti-democratic" outcome in that election. Common Cause is partner organization of VoteRiders . Karen Hobert Flynn became

297-578: The 2016 presidential election . The organization has been outspoken about the potential conflicts of interest from Trump's businesses and called for Trump to put his assets into a blind trust instead of handing over control of his businesses to his children. In 1972, Common Cause sued President Richard Nixon 's re-election campaign, the Committee for the Re-Election of the President , under

330-455: The 2018 election , the top ten PACs donated a total of $ 29,349,895 (directly, and via their affiliates and subsidiaries) to federal candidates: In the 2020 election , the top ten PACs donated a total of $ 28,276,448 (directly, and via their affiliates and subsidiaries) to federal candidates: In the 2022 election , the top ten PACs donated a total of $ 28,051,395 (directly, and via their affiliates and subsidiaries) to federal candidates: In

363-737: The Federal Corrupt Practices Act in an attempt to force Nixon's campaign to report early campaign contributions. The lawsuit forced the disclosure of the names of several Nixon donors. In 1974, Common Cause supported passage of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA), encompassing public financing of presidential campaigns and oversight of campaign ethics through the Federal Election Commission . Common Cause has advocated public financing of elections in order to decrease

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396-683: The Federal Election Campaign Act as amended by the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (also known as the McCain–Feingold Act). At the state level, an organization becomes a PAC according to the state's election laws . Contributions to PACs from corporate or labor union treasuries are illegal, though these entities may sponsor a PAC and provide financial support for its administration and fundraising. Union-affiliated PACs may solicit contributions only from union members. Independent PACs may solicit contributions from

429-426: The " revolving door " between government and business. In 1989, they lobbied for passage of a new Ethics in Government Act, which ended special-interest honoraria for members of Congress and closed a loophole that allowed members to convert campaign funds to personal use. The organization's efforts led to ethics probes and the resignations of House Speakers Jim Wright in 1988 and Newt Gingrich in 1995. During

462-551: The 2016 presidential elections, Common Cause suggested that the Clinton Foundation would create ethics and conflict of interest challenges for Hillary Clinton should she become president. They criticized Hillary Clinton's plan to give Chelsea Clinton control of the foundation and called for an independent audit and full disclosure of the foundation's donors. The public interest group also criticized Donald Trump for his refusal to release his tax returns during

495-733: The Common Cause Educational Fund. Common Cause is organized as a 501(c)(4) organization , and its sister organization, the Common Cause Educational Fund , is a 501(c)(3) organization . Political action committee In the United States, a political action committee ( PAC ) is a tax-exempt 527 organization that pools campaign contributions from members and donates those funds to campaigns for or against candidates, ballot initiatives , or legislation . The legal term PAC

528-678: The Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) created rules for disclosure, which made it so all donations received by PACs must go through a central committee maintained by said PAC. Furthermore, it required PACs to file regular reports with the Federal Election Commission(FEC) disclosing anyone who has donated at least $ 200. The Supreme Court has declared unconstitutional limits imposed on PACs by the legislature under First Amendment grounds in many cases, starting with Buckley v. Valeo . Throughout

561-529: The case of a corporation or members in the case of a non-profit organization, labor union or other interest group. As of January 2009, there were 1,598 registered corporate PACs, 272 related to labor unions and 995 to trade organizations. Groups with an ideological mission, single-issue groups, and members of Congress and other political leaders may form "non-connected PACs". These organizations may accept funds from any individual, connected PAC, or organization. As of January 2009, there were 1,594 non-connected PACs,

594-586: The conservative advocacy group Citizens for Self-Governance 's "Convention of the States" initiative, which is backed by some Republican politicians. In a May 2016 report entitled The Dangerous Path: Big Money's Plan to Shred the Constitution , Common Cause wrote that "There is nothing to prevent the convention, once convened, from proposing additional changes that could limit or eliminate fundamental rights or upend our entire system of government." While

627-620: The fastest-growing category. Elected officials and political parties cannot give more than the federal limit directly to candidates. However, they can set up a leadership PAC that makes independent expenditures . Provided the expenditure is not coordinated with the other candidate, this type of spending is not limited. Under the FEC (Federal Election Commission) rules, leadership PACs are non-connected PACs, and can accept donations from individuals and other PACs. Since current officeholders have an easier time attracting contributions, Leadership PACs are

660-585: The general public and must pay their own costs from those funds. Federal multi-candidate PACs may contribute to candidates as follows: In its 2010 case Citizens United v. FEC , the Supreme Court of the United States overturned sections of the Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (also known as the McCain–Feingold Act) that had prohibited corporate and union political independent expenditures in political campaigns. Citizens United declared it

693-472: The greater Pittsburgh area in 2010 due to the tax credit. This filmmaking article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This Pennsylvania -related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Common Cause Common Cause is a watchdog group based in Washington, D.C. , with chapters in 35 states. It was founded in 1970 by John W. Gardner , a Republican, who

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726-498: The influence of special-interest contributions. The group's most successful campaign finance reform efforts have been in New York City in 1999; Connecticut in 2005; Montgomery County, Maryland in 2014; Portland, Oregon in 2016; Howard County, Maryland in 2017; Prince George's County, Maryland in 2018; and California. The organization has sought to end the practice of gerrymandering in several states. In 2016, it filed

759-501: The next year. The tax credit was expanded again during the state budget negotiations in summer 2016. $ 65 million will be available for fiscal year 2017-18. The tax credit brought the production of Zack and Miri Make a Porno , The Road , Shelter , Shannon's Rainbow , Sorority Row , and She's Out of My League to the Pittsburgh region in 2008 and 2009. The majority of filming for I Am Number Four also took place in

792-585: The organization's president in June 2016. She served in this role until her death in March 2023. Virginia Kase Solomón was named as the tenth President of Common Cause on December 14, 2023. The following individuals have served as president of Common Cause: The following are three of the most prominent individuals who have served as chairs of Common Cause's board: Common Cause has an annual combined budget of around $ 18 million. This includes its sister organization,

825-457: The past 30 years, campaign donations from PACs have been increasingly growing, with $ 333 million being raised in 1990 to $ 482 million in 2022. Even with the major growth, PAC contributions only made up 23% of the money raised by House candidates and only 10% for senate candidates, despite media coverage which tends to exaggerate contributions. Federal law formally allows for two types of PACs: connected and non-connected. Judicial decisions added

858-617: The political process." The organization's stated issue areas are "money in politics", "voting and elections", "ethics", "a fair economy", and "media and democracy". Common Cause opposes and actively lobbies against modern-day efforts to call an Article V convention to propose amendments to the United States Constitution by both progressive and conservative groups, such as that by the progressive political action committee Wolf PAC to limit large monetary donations to political candidates parties and groups, and by

891-529: The same organizational, reporting, and public disclosure requirements of traditional PACs. A hybrid PAC (sometimes called a Carey Committee) is similar to a super PAC, but can give limited amounts of money directly to campaigns and committees, while still making independent expenditures in unlimited amounts. OpenSecrets maintains a list of the largest PACs by election cycle on its website OpenSecrets.org. Their list can be filtered by receipts or different types of expenses, political party, and type of PAC. In

924-496: The tax credit, the production must incur 60% of its total production expenses within Pennsylvania. The credit also applies to individual television shows that are 15 minutes or longer and intended for a national audience. Watchdogs, including the Pennsylvania Common Cause criticized lobbyist Leslie McCombs for failing to properly register as a lobbyist for Lions Gate Entertainment while lobbying on behalf of

957-580: The tax credit. A 2009 report from the Legislative Budget and Finance Committee in the Pennsylvania General Assembly found that the tax credit supported 4,000 jobs and produced $ 4.5 million between 2007 and 2008. During the 2009 Pennsylvania budget impasse , the tax credit was in danger of being repealed. Instead, its total amount was reduced from $ 75 million to $ 42 million, with that number increasing to $ 60 million

990-448: Was created in pursuit of campaign finance reform in the United States . Democracies of other countries use different terms for the units of campaign spending or spending on political competition (see political finance ). At the U.S. federal level, an organization becomes a PAC when it receives or spends more than $ 1,000 for the purpose of influencing a federal election, and registers with the Federal Election Commission (FEC), according to

1023-527: Was established after the U.S. Congress prohibited unions from giving direct contributions to political candidates. This restriction was initially imposed in 1907 on corporations through the Tillman Act . The Smith–Connally Act extended its coverage to labor unions in 1943. A series of campaign reform laws enacted during the 1970s facilitated the growth of PACs after these laws allowed corporations, trade associations, and labor unions to form PACs. In 1971

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1056-679: Was the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the administration of President Lyndon Johnson as well as chair of the National Urban Coalition, an advocacy group for minorities and the working poor in urban areas. In its early days, Common Cause focused its efforts on ending the Vietnam War and lowering the voting age from 21 to 18. Sometimes identified as liberal-leaning, Common Cause has also been identified as nonpartisan and advocates government reform. It

1089-588: Was unconstitutional to prohibit corporations and unions from spending from their general treasuries to promote candidates or from contributing to PACs. It left intact these laws' prohibitions on corporations or unions contributing directly to a candidate or candidate committee. The political action committee emerged from the labor movement of 1943. The first PAC was the CIO-PAC , formed in July 1943 under CIO president Philip Murray and headed by Sidney Hillman . It

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