4. It requires the state treasurer to electronically transmit supplemental
grants to qualifying candidates who so request as soon as possible after the
candidates qualify to receive the supplemental grants, but in no case later than the
end of the third business day after the Government Accountability Board notifies the
treasurer that a candidate has qualified to receive a grant.

Currently, violators of the campaign finance law are subject to a forfeiture (civil
penalty) of not more than $500 for each violation, except that violators of
contribution limitations are subject to a forfeiture of not more than treble the amount
unlawfully contributed. In addition, currently, any person who is delinquent in filing
a report is subject to a forfeiture of not more than $50 or 1 percent of the annual salary
of the office for which a candidate is being supported or opposed, whichever is greater,
for each day of delinquency.

Currently, whoever intentionally violates certain provisions of the campaign
finance law, such as registration requirements, contribution limitations, the
prohibition against making contributions in the name of another person, the
prohibition against using contributions for most nonpolitical purposes, and the
prohibition against filing false reports and statements, may be fined not more than
$1,000 or imprisoned for not more than six months, or both, if the violation does not
exceed $100 in amount or value, and may be fined not more than $10,000 or

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imprisoned for not more than three years and six months, or both, if the violation
exceeds $100 in amount or value.

This bill provides that if any person, including a candidate or committee other
than a conduit, makes a disbursement to support or oppose a candidate for a major
state office (governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, state
treasurer, or state superintendent of public instruction) without first reporting to the
extent required under the bill, the offender is subject to a forfeiture (civil penalty) of
not more than $500 for each day of violation. The bill also provides that if any person,
including any of these candidates or committees, makes one or more disbursements
or other expenditures for such a purpose in an amount that is more or less than the
amount reported by that person:

l. By more than 5 percent but not more than 10 percent, the person must forfeit
four times the amount of the difference.

2. By more than 10 percent but not more than 15 percent, the person must
forfeit six times the amount of the difference.

3. By more than 15 percent, the person must forfeit eight times the amount of
the difference.

Current law requires that free time on public broadcasting television stations
and public access channels be provided to candidates for state office. Under current
law, the Federal Communications Commission grants licenses for the operation of
public broadcasting television stations. Also under current law, a city, village, or
town is authorized to grant a franchise to a person that allows that person to operate
a cable television system in the city, village, or town. Under the franchise, the person
may be required to provide cable television channels that the city, village, or town
may use for public, educational, or governmental purposes. A channel that is used
exclusively for public, rather than educational or governmental purposes, is
commonly referred to as a public access channel. A city, village, or town may operate
a public access channel, or a city, village, or town may allow another person to operate
the channel. Current law requires the Government Accountability Board to
promulgate rules that require licensees of public broadcasting stations and
operators of public access channels to provide a minimum amount of free time to
candidates for state office at general, spring, and special elections. The rules must
require the same amount of time for each candidate for a particular state office, but
may require different amounts of time for different offices.

This bill repeals these provisions.

This bill creates a nonrefundable individual income tax credit for contributions
to the Public Integrity Endowment. Under the bill, an individual may claim as an
income tax credit, up to the amount of the individual's income tax liability, any
amount that he or she contributes to the Public Integrity Endowment. If a married
couple files a joint return, each spouse may claim the credit.

This bill makes numerous changes in the campaign finance law affecting
campaigns for the office of justice of the supreme court. The bill limits the application

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of the Wisconsin election campaign fund, under which eligible candidates for certain
state offices (including justice of the supreme court) may currently receive public
grants from state general purpose revenues derived from designations made by
individuals filing state income tax returns, to state offices other than the office of
justice. To finance elections for the office of justice of the supreme court, the bill
creates a democracy trust fund, under which eligible candidates for this office may
receive public grants derived from general purpose revenues.

Under the bill, a candidate for the office of justice of the supreme court may
qualify for public financing from the democracy trust fund to finance a campaign in
a primary or election by receiving qualifying contributions from at least 1,000
separate contributors who are electors of this state in amounts of not less than $5 nor
more than $100 in an aggregate amount of at least $5,000 but not more than $15,000.
A candidate who accepts public financing may also accept "seed money"
contributions from electors of this state in amounts of $100 or less, subject to
aggregate limitations, and may contribute personal funds in specified amounts
during specified periods. In order to qualify for a public financing benefit for the
primary, a candidate at the spring primary must have an opponent who qualifies to
have his or her name appear on the ballot at the primary, and in order to qualify for
a public financing benefit for the spring election, a candidate at the election must
have an opponent who qualifies to have his or her name appear on the ballot at the
election. A candidate who accepts a public financing benefit may not accept any
contributions other than qualifying and seed money contributions and contributions
from personal funds within the limitations permitted. Public financing benefits for
eligible candidates are $100,000 in the spring primary and $300,000 in the spring
election. The benefits are subject to a biennial cost of living adjustment. A candidate
who accepts more than a specified amount of qualifying or seed money contributions
has the excess deducted from his or her public financing benefit. In addition, if a
candidate's opponent declines to accept a public financing benefit and makes
expenditures in a total amount that exceeds by more than 5 percent the amount
permitted for a candidate who accepts a public financing benefit, the candidate who
accepts a public financing benefit receives additional funding equivalent to the
excess expenditures made by his or her opponent, but may not receive more than
three times the amount of the public financing benefit for the office that the
candidate seeks. A candidate also receives additional public financing equivalent to
any independent expenditures made against the candidate or in support of his or her
opponents if those expenditures exceed by more than 20 percent the amount of the
public financing benefit for the office that the candidate seeks, but may not receive
more than three times the amount of that benefit.

The bill provides that if a candidate makes disbursements that exceed the total
amount of the public financing benefit allocated to the candidate and the total
qualifying and seed money contributions lawfully accepted by the candidate, the
candidate is subject to a forfeiture (civil penalty) of not more than ten times the
amount by which his or her disbursements exceed the allocation. In addition, the bill
provides that a candidate who accepts contributions in excess of any limitation
imposed under the bill is subject to a forfeiture of not more than ten times the amount

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by which the contributions exceed the applicable limitation. The bill also provides
that if any candidate or agent of a candidate knowingly accepts more contributions
than the candidate is entitled to receive, or makes disbursements exceeding the total
amount of the public financing benefit received by the candidate and the qualifying
and seed money contributions lawfully received by the candidate, the candidate or
agent may be fined not more than $25,000 or imprisoned for not more than ten years,
or both. Under the bill, any person who, in connection with the receipt or
disbursement of a public financing benefit, knowingly provides false information to
the Government Accountability Board, or knowingly conceals or withholds
information from the board, is subject to the same penalty.

Currently, a candidate for the office of justice of the supreme court may qualify
to receive a grant from the Wisconsin election campaign fund for use in an election
campaign only (no funding is provided for primary campaigns). In order to qualify
for a grant, a candidate must qualify to have his or her name appear on the spring
election ballot and must have an opponent who qualifies to have his or her name
appear on that ballot. The maximum amount of a grant that a candidate may receive
is $97,031. This amount is not subject to any cost of living adjustment. In addition,
this amount is reduced by the total amount of contributions received by a candidate
from special interest committees and this amount may not be fully funded in a
particular year if there are not sufficient moneys in the Wisconsin election campaign
fund to provide full financing for all qualifying candidates. A candidate must agree
to abide by spending and self-contribution limits in order to receive a grant, but this
agreement does not apply if the candidate has an opponent who could have qualified
for a grant but declines to do so and declines to file an affidavit of voluntary
compliance with spending and self-contribution limits.

Currently, individuals and committees making political contributions to
candidates for the office of justice of the supreme court are subject to limitations on
the amount or value of any contribution or contributions that may be made
cumulatively to any candidate in a campaign. The limitations are $10,000 in the case
of an individual making a contribution to a candidate and $8,625 in the case of a
committee making a contribution to a candidate. This bill replaces these limitations
with a contribution limitation of $1,000 applicable to an individual or committee
making any contribution or contributions cumulatively during a campaign period to
any candidate for the office of justice of the supreme court who is eligible to qualify
for a public financing benefit but who declines to accept one.

The changes take effect on June 1, 2010.

Currently, if any part of an act is found by a court to be invalid, those parts that
are valid are severed from the invalid part and the severed parts continue in force.
This bill provides that, if any of the following parts of the bill is unconstitutional, then
all of the following parts are void: 1) parts relating to the reporting of certain
expenditures and obligations by candidates and special interest committees; and 2)
parts relating to the provision of supplemental grants to candidates whose
opponents exceed disbursement limitations or who are opposed or whose opponents

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are supported by any reportable disbursements by candidates or independent
disbursements or obligations, including those that are reportable under current law.

All campaign finance changes under the bill apply to elections held on or after
December 1 following the date of publication of the act resulting from enactment of
the bill, except that the directive to incorporate a Public Integrity Endowment takes
effect on the day on which the bill becomes law. Under the bill, changes to the income
tax checkoff and the creation of an individual income tax credit for contributions to
the endowment apply to taxable years beginning on January 1 of the year in which
the bill becomes law, if the bill becomes law by July 31, in any year, or otherwise to
taxable years beginning on January 1 of the following year.