Cuomo Finally Gets in the Campaign Finance Reform Game

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo spent his career cultivating the image of a man who gets what he wants. In 2011, he rammed same-sex marriage legislation through the legislature, even with a Republican-controlled Senate. In 2012, when he wanted New York to be the first state to pass gun-control laws after the Newtown shooting, he was similarly productive. This year, Cuomo has said he wants to make state elections fairer, by lowering contribution limits and supplementing small donations with public dollars to give them more weight. The governor was unabashedly critical of the state legislature’s history of corruption and pointed to campaign finance reform as a key solution. But as it looks increasingly unlikely such a measure will pass before the Assembly adjourns on June 20, it’s Cuomo who stands to face the blame. 

After weeks of mounting pressure from activists and donors, Cuomo finally unveiled his plan for campaign reform on Tuesday, but he was already backpedaling. According toThe New York Times, Cuomo “acknowledged that the measure was a long shot in the waning days of the legislative session.” “I would not say that I see an especially easy glide path to passage for this bill,” the governor told reporters. [...]

Given that he’s already framing it as a long-shot, Cuomo’s new proposal doesn’t seem likely to cut through the gridlock. His proposal joins two others—one from the IDC, the other from assembly Democrats—and in some ways finds middle ground between the two. All three measures would give six public dollars for every dollar of small donations, a system based on New York City’s public match system. But Cuomo also offered some middle ground on several key points. For instance, the IDC proposal banned corporate contributions, closing a loophole for limited liability corporations (LLCs) and eliminated party “housekeeping” accounts, which are used to pay for campaign expenses and currently can accept unlimited contributions. The assembly bill was silent on both issues. Cuomo proposed lower corporate contribution limits and contributions limits to housekeeping accounts.  As Demos’ Mijin Cha writes, Cuomo’s proposal “also includes the most aggressive disclosure law that would require any contributions to a PAC, lobbying 501 (c)(3), other 501 (c) organization, political committee, or political party over $500 will be disclosed within 48 hours and within 24 hours near Election Day. Current law requires disclosure every six months to a year, if disclosure is required, at all.”