First Amendment Protection Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Elections.
First Amendment Protection Act
This bill makes various changes related to campaign finance.
Specifically, the bill repeals limits on coordinated party expenditures. It also provides statutory authority for the Supreme Court's holding in McCutcheon v. FEC , which invalidated limits on aggregate contributions by individuals.
Additionally, the bill
raises contribution limits for state political party committees to match those contribution limits for national political party committees,
allows two or more political committees to participate in joint fundraising activities in accordance with specified criteria,
provides statutory authority for certain privacy protections of donors to tax-exempt organizations,
prohibits federal funds from being used to make payments in support of a congressional election campaign, and
revises certain registration and reporting requirements.
The bill prohibits the Securities and Exchange Commission from finalizing, issuing, or implementing any rule, regulation, or order regarding the disclosure of political contributions, contributions to tax-exempt organizations, or dues paid to trade associations.
The bill also makes changes to the Federal Election Commission (FEC), including by (1) allowing the FEC to refuse to defend an action brought against the FEC pursuant to the unanimous vote of its members, and (2) increasing the annual rate of member pay.
Further, the bill (1) permanently extends the statutory authorization for the FEC's Administrative Fine Program, and (2) establishes a five-year statute of limitations for all proceedings to enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
The FEC must, within 120 days, publish proposed regulations to carry out this bill.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 6, 2023. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 12, 2023: Referred to the Subcommittee on Elections.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 118th Congress (2023-24), 274 of the 16,565 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 1.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Kelly Armstrong (R-ND) introduced it on July 6, 2023. No cosponsors are recorded.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on July 6, 2023, 1162 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1094 days ago, on September 12, 2023.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 118th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2025 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers