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Showing posts with label Texas PACs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Texas PACs. Show all posts
Saturday, September 25, 2021
The Top Dogs: 196 Donors Gave $259 Million in 2020 State Elections
Tuesday, February 23, 2016
Record $159 Million in Texas PAC Spending in 2014 Cycle
An unrivalled 1,421 general purpose political committees
spent a record $159 million in the 2014 election cycle, according to a new
edition of TPJ’s biennial “Texas PACs” report. The 31-page report analyzes PAC spending by major economic and ideological interest groups. It also includes sections
on dark money, new PACs, fast-growth PACs, shrinking PACs, extinct PACs and the
specific-purpose PACs that promoted ballot initiatives for water and road
projects. The appendix ranks the 262 top PACs that spent more than $100,000
apiece. Read the media release and the full Texas PACs report.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
PAC Spending Jumps 12% in 2010 Elections
Read the media release and the full report.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Associated Press: Report: Texas PAC spending jumps
A record number of Texas political action committees spent about $120 million in the 2008 election cycle, up 21 percent from the preceding two-year election period, a report released Monday shows. Read the article at the Associated Press
April 27, 2009
AUSTIN, Texas — A record number of Texas political action committees spent about $120 million in the 2008 election cycle, up 21 percent from the preceding two-year election period, a report released Monday shows.
Texas political action committee spending for the 2006 election cycle was $99 million, according to the report by the nonprofit Texans for Public Justice, which tracks money in politics.
The Texas Democratic Trust, funded heavily by plaintiff lawyer money, and Texas Democratic Party spent close to $6 million each in the 2008 cycle, increasing their combined spending 211 percent to become the two largest political committees in Texas, the report said.
The organization based its findings on disclosure reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission.
Texas' two biggest new PACs, First Tuesday and Blue Texas, spent more than $900,000 apiece promoting Democrats. The ActBlue Texas PAC spent more than $800,000, and the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund surpassed $300,000.
Meanwhile, the Republican Party and GOP-leaning Texans for Lawsuit Reform collectively spent $8.7 million, ranking as the state's No. 3 and No. 4 PACs.
Although ideological and single-issue committees led the dramatic increase in 2008 spending, they accounted for a smaller share of total spending than business political action committees.
Report: Texas PAC spending jumps
© 2009 The Associated PressApril 27, 2009
AUSTIN, Texas — A record number of Texas political action committees spent about $120 million in the 2008 election cycle, up 21 percent from the preceding two-year election period, a report released Monday shows.
Texas political action committee spending for the 2006 election cycle was $99 million, according to the report by the nonprofit Texans for Public Justice, which tracks money in politics.
The Texas Democratic Trust, funded heavily by plaintiff lawyer money, and Texas Democratic Party spent close to $6 million each in the 2008 cycle, increasing their combined spending 211 percent to become the two largest political committees in Texas, the report said.
The organization based its findings on disclosure reports filed with the Texas Ethics Commission.
Texas' two biggest new PACs, First Tuesday and Blue Texas, spent more than $900,000 apiece promoting Democrats. The ActBlue Texas PAC spent more than $800,000, and the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund surpassed $300,000.
Meanwhile, the Republican Party and GOP-leaning Texans for Lawsuit Reform collectively spent $8.7 million, ranking as the state's No. 3 and No. 4 PACs.
Although ideological and single-issue committees led the dramatic increase in 2008 spending, they accounted for a smaller share of total spending than business political action committees.
Texas PACs Set Spending Record in 2008 Races
A record number of political action committees (PACs) spent almost $120 million in Texas' two-year 2008 election cycle, a 21 percent increase over the preceding cycle. This jump is remarkable for a non-gubernatorial election year. Ideological PACs led the expansion, pouring money into close races that affected the partisan make-up of the Texas House.
Read the media release and the full report.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Texas PACs: 2006 Election Cycle Spending
Fueled by an election headlined by four well-funded gubernatorial candidates, an unprecedented 1,132 Texas political action committees (PACs) spent a record $99 million on the 2006 Texas elections. This spending marked a 16 percent increase over the preceding gubernatorial election in 2002.Read the media release and the full report.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Texas PACs Set New Spending Record
Business interests dominated the $69 million spent by Texas PACs in the 2004-election cycle, a record amount in a non-gubernatorial year. Texans for Lawsuit Reform overtook the Texas Democratic Party as the state's largest PAC. TPJ's biennial analysis of Texas PAC spending, including a list of the 100 biggest PACs, is now available.Read the media release and the full report.
Monday, November 15, 2004
Texas PACs: 2002 Election Cycle PAC Spending
During the two-year election cycle ending in December 2002, 964 general-purpose PACs reported spending a total of $85.3 million. Texas PAC spending almost doubled from $43 million in the 1996 cycle to more than $85 million in the 2002 cycle. The greatest growth spurt (58 percent) occurred from 2000 to 2002.Read the full report.
Wednesday, October 6, 2004
Dallas Morning News: Corporate gifts still pouring into PACs
A 21-month grand jury investigation that led to 32 recent indictments has done little to stem the flow of corporate money into Texas political action committees, which have reported at least $3.5 million in such "soft dollar" contributions during the first six months of 2004.
By CHRISTY HOPPE / Dallas Morning News
October 6, 2004
AUSTIN _ A 21-month grand jury investigation that led to 32 recent indictments has done little to stem the flow of corporate money into Texas political action committees, which have reported at least $3.5 million in such "soft dollar" contributions during the first six months of 2004.
Finance reports examined by The Dallas Morning News show that corporations and unions still provide significant money for political groups. Such donations are legally confined to covering "administrative expenses" of political committees and cannot be used for individual candidates.
This is the first year political action committees must report their corporate and union contributions in Texas. Almost all of the 88 groups that reported raising corporate donations did so exclusively from among their constituents _ such as Realtors giving to the Texas Association of Realtors Issues Mobilization Political Action Committee.
In almost two-thirds of the reports, the political committees raised less than $10,000 in corporate money, and most said they used the money to cover expenses such as utilities and rent.
A handful of political groups _ most of them with Republican affiliation _ continued to raise money from nonconstituent corporations.
The biggest beneficiary during the first half of 2004 was the Republican Party of Texas, which collected $1.3 million in corporate money through June 30, spending most of it on state and national convention expenses.
The Democrats raised $585,000 in corporate and union gifts, also used to cover convention costs, a spokesman said.
During all of 2002, the Republican Party raised $6.1 million in corporate donations; the Democrats $399,000.
"In 2004, there's not much political action in Texas," said Craig McDonald, executive director of Texans for Public Justice, a campaign finance reform group that filed criminal complaints prompting the grand jury investigations leading to the indictments.
Apart from a handful of statewide races this year, Mr. McDonald noted that the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, limiting "soft money" donations to national campaigns, has taken root. He said fluctuations in corporate giving are hard to gauge.
But regardless of whether Texas is at a tipping point, "I do think from now on that corporations are going to be much more cautious," Mr. McDonald said.
Travis County grand juries are looking into two efforts in 2002 fueled with corporate money. Three fund-raisers and eight businesses associated with Texans for a Republican Majority (TRMPAC) are accused of illegally donating and using more than $400,000 in corporate money for political purposes. The political action committee has maintained that the "administrative expenses" it paid for with corporate money could include fund-raising, polling, political consultants and phone banks as long as it benefited Republicans in general and not a specific candidate.
The second effort drawing grand jury scrutiny involves $1.9 million in corporate money used by the Texas Association of Business for an ad campaign in the 2002 elections.
The association's effort bombarded 22 House districts and two from the Senate with mail sharply criticizing Democratic candidates while praising Republicans as pro-business and pro-education. The business group argues these were "issue ads" and not advocating for a specific candidate.
Fred Lewis, president of the reform group Campaigns for People, said it is too early in the campaign season to gauge whether corporate money is waning in Texas.
He pointed out that in 2002, most of corporate spending by the Texas Association of Business and Texans for a Republican Majority wasn't discovered until reports were filed after the election.
"It appears people are being much more cautious about corporate money, but it's hard to say if we're going to end up with sham "issue ads" or find that people are hiding corporate money," he said.
"We're just not yet seeing the TV ads, the mailers or out-of-state interests engaging in electioneering when they attack candidates right before the election. These are always to disguise soft money contributions," Mr. Lewis said.
PAC DONATIONS
" Associated Republicans of Texas raised $148,000, which it has used to pay the legal costs of congressional redistricting that benefited the GOP last year. Pat Robbins of Associated Republicans said that legal fees are a permissible expenditure and that the group has been involved "in the legislative process of helping Republicans get elected for 30 years."
" Texans for a Republican Majority raised $10,000 and is using the money to cover the legal expenses of defending its members against civil lawsuits arising from the 2002 campaign.
" Stars Over Texas, a committee started by House Speaker Tom Craddick to raise money for supportive House members, took in more than $100,000 in corporate contributions and returned all of them because of the legal questions raised by the grand juries.
Corporate gifts still pouring into PACs
$3.5 million reported donated in '04 despite 32 indictmentsBy CHRISTY HOPPE / Dallas Morning News
October 6, 2004
AUSTIN _ A 21-month grand jury investigation that led to 32 recent indictments has done little to stem the flow of corporate money into Texas political action committees, which have reported at least $3.5 million in such "soft dollar" contributions during the first six months of 2004.
Finance reports examined by The Dallas Morning News show that corporations and unions still provide significant money for political groups. Such donations are legally confined to covering "administrative expenses" of political committees and cannot be used for individual candidates.
This is the first year political action committees must report their corporate and union contributions in Texas. Almost all of the 88 groups that reported raising corporate donations did so exclusively from among their constituents _ such as Realtors giving to the Texas Association of Realtors Issues Mobilization Political Action Committee.
In almost two-thirds of the reports, the political committees raised less than $10,000 in corporate money, and most said they used the money to cover expenses such as utilities and rent.
A handful of political groups _ most of them with Republican affiliation _ continued to raise money from nonconstituent corporations.
The biggest beneficiary during the first half of 2004 was the Republican Party of Texas, which collected $1.3 million in corporate money through June 30, spending most of it on state and national convention expenses.
The Democrats raised $585,000 in corporate and union gifts, also used to cover convention costs, a spokesman said.
During all of 2002, the Republican Party raised $6.1 million in corporate donations; the Democrats $399,000.
"In 2004, there's not much political action in Texas," said Craig McDonald, executive director of Texans for Public Justice, a campaign finance reform group that filed criminal complaints prompting the grand jury investigations leading to the indictments.
Apart from a handful of statewide races this year, Mr. McDonald noted that the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, limiting "soft money" donations to national campaigns, has taken root. He said fluctuations in corporate giving are hard to gauge.
But regardless of whether Texas is at a tipping point, "I do think from now on that corporations are going to be much more cautious," Mr. McDonald said.
Travis County grand juries are looking into two efforts in 2002 fueled with corporate money. Three fund-raisers and eight businesses associated with Texans for a Republican Majority (TRMPAC) are accused of illegally donating and using more than $400,000 in corporate money for political purposes. The political action committee has maintained that the "administrative expenses" it paid for with corporate money could include fund-raising, polling, political consultants and phone banks as long as it benefited Republicans in general and not a specific candidate.
The second effort drawing grand jury scrutiny involves $1.9 million in corporate money used by the Texas Association of Business for an ad campaign in the 2002 elections.
The association's effort bombarded 22 House districts and two from the Senate with mail sharply criticizing Democratic candidates while praising Republicans as pro-business and pro-education. The business group argues these were "issue ads" and not advocating for a specific candidate.
Fred Lewis, president of the reform group Campaigns for People, said it is too early in the campaign season to gauge whether corporate money is waning in Texas.
He pointed out that in 2002, most of corporate spending by the Texas Association of Business and Texans for a Republican Majority wasn't discovered until reports were filed after the election.
"It appears people are being much more cautious about corporate money, but it's hard to say if we're going to end up with sham "issue ads" or find that people are hiding corporate money," he said.
"We're just not yet seeing the TV ads, the mailers or out-of-state interests engaging in electioneering when they attack candidates right before the election. These are always to disguise soft money contributions," Mr. Lewis said.
PAC DONATIONS
" Associated Republicans of Texas raised $148,000, which it has used to pay the legal costs of congressional redistricting that benefited the GOP last year. Pat Robbins of Associated Republicans said that legal fees are a permissible expenditure and that the group has been involved "in the legislative process of helping Republicans get elected for 30 years."
" Texans for a Republican Majority raised $10,000 and is using the money to cover the legal expenses of defending its members against civil lawsuits arising from the 2002 campaign.
" Stars Over Texas, a committee started by House Speaker Tom Craddick to raise money for supportive House members, took in more than $100,000 in corporate contributions and returned all of them because of the legal questions raised by the grand juries.
Tuesday, October 30, 2001
Texas’ 2000 PAC Spending Exceeds 1998 Gubernatorial Election Cycle
The new report, Texas PACs: 2000 Election Cycle, identifies the biggest PACs in Texas and classifies PACs by their economic and ideological interests. A shrinking number of Texas political action committees (PACs) set a new record by spending $54 million in the 2000 election cycle, the new study reports. This spending was up $2 million over what PACs spent in the 1998 gubernatorial election cycle and increased $11 million over the previous non-gubernatorial cycle in 1996.Read the media release and the full report.
Tuesday, June 29, 1999
Texas PAC Spending Leaps 20%
The number of general-purpose political action committees (PACs) active in Texas declined from 910 in the 1996 election cycle to 892 in the 1998 cycle. Despite diminishing numbers of PACs, total PAC expenditures increased 20 percent over the same period, from $43 million in the 1996 cycle to $52 million in the most recent election cycle, Texas PACs: 1998 Election Cycle Spending has found.Read the media release and the full report.
Thursday, October 1, 1998
Texas PACs: A Roundup of the Special Interests Driving Texas' Political Action Committees
Political Action Committees (PACs) play a huge role in shaping politics in Texas. Texas imposes no limits on how much money an individual or unincorporated business can contribute to a PAC or how much a PAC can contribute to a state political candidate. A study analyzing the $14.6 million that Texas House members raised in the 1996 election cycle found that 62 percent of this money came from PACs and businesses rather than individual Texans.Read the full report.
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