AO 2024-01: Canvassing literature and scripts are not public communications, coordinated communications or coordinated expenditures
Texas Majority PAC’s (TMP) proposed canvassing activities are not public communications, coordinated communications or coordinated expenditures under Commission regulations. However, any data acquired from TMP’s canvassing efforts and shared with a federal candidate or party committee at less than its fair market value would result in an in-kind contribution.
Background
TMP is a nonfederal general-purpose committee registered with the Texas Ethics Commission.
TMP plans to pay vendors to design, produce and execute a canvassing program. The canvassing literature and scripts will refer to federal political candidates and parties, and may include express advocacy or its functional equivalent, but will not disseminate, distribute or republish federal candidate campaign materials. TMP will consult with federal candidates, parties and their agents on the program and will incur production costs, distribution costs and data costs.
The paid canvassers will disseminate the canvassing literature and scripts to more than 500 homes within a 30-day period, and within pre-election timeframes.
Analysis
The Commission concluded that the canvassing literature and scripts are not public communications under Commission regulations. As a result, the canvassing literature and scripts would not satisfy the content prong of the Commission’s coordinated communications regulations.
While TMP’s canvassing activities are not the type of mass communication contemplated by the definition of public communication, they do qualify as communications. Since the Commission’s coordinated expenditure regulation excludes payments made solely to produce and distribute communications, TMP’s disbursements would not constitute coordinated expenditures. However, if TMP provides data collected during the canvassing to a federal candidate or party committee for less than the usual and normal charge, it would result in an in-kind contribution.
Date issued: March 20, 2024; Length: 9 pages
Citations
Regulations
11 C.F.R. § 100.26
Public Communications
11 C.F.R. § 100.27
Mass mailing
11 C.F.R. § 100.28
Telephone bank
11 C.F.R. § 100.29
Electioneering communication
11 C.F.R. § 100.52
Gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money
11 C.F.R. § 109.20
What does “coordinated” mean?
11 C.F.R. § 109.21
What is a “coordinated communication”?
11 C.F.R. § 109.23
Dissemination, distribution, or republication of candidate campaign materials
Advisory opinions
Advisory Opinion 2011-14
Utah Bankers Association
Advisory Opinion 2022-20
Maggie for NH