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Summary of Question 1

This proposed law would limit the way in which business and certain nonprofit corporations could contribute to and spend money on campaigns involving an initiative, referendum or other question submitted to the voters at a state or local elecion. The proposed law would require ballot committees organized to support or oppose any question submitted to the voters to disclose promptly certain contributions made late in the campaign; would establish procedures that business and certain nonprofit corporations would have to follow in orderto spend money on ballot question campaigns; and would establish voluntary spending limits for ballot committees.

The proposed law would require a ballot committee to report to the state Office of Campaign and Political Finance, within one business day of receipt, the name, address, occupation and employer of any person or organization making a contribution of $1,000 or more, if the contribution was made before the date of the election but after the closing date of the last official campaign contribution report.

Under the proposed law, business and certain nonprofit corporations would be prohibited from making contributions or expenditures to support or oppose a ballot question, but would be permitted to create and solicit contributions to a separate fund to be used to support or oppose a ballot question. A separate fund would be required for each ballot question on which the corporation intended to solicit contributions. The corporation would be required to report all amounts spent to establish and administer the fund to the Office of Campaign and Political Finance, and to a city or town if the fund were established to influence the vote on a local ballot question.

Contributions to the separate fund could be solicited only from members or stockholders, officers and directors, and employees at a policymaking, managerial or professional level. Corecion, job discrimination and financial reprisals as methods of soliciting contributions would be prohibited. Nonprofit corporations that are formed for the purpose of promoting political ideas, do not engage in business activities, have no shareholders, and do not have business corporations as members or accept more than one percent of their revenues from such corporations would be exempt from these provisions. A business organization that violated these requirements could be fined up to $50,000, and any director or agent of a business organization who violates or authorizes the violation of these requirments could be fined up to $10,000 and/or imprisoned for up to one year.

The proposed law would establish voluntary spending limits for ballot committees at $1,000,000 in the year of an election, and $250,000 in the years immediately before and after an erection. Ballot committees agreeing to observe these voluntary limits would be permitted to announce their compliance on advertisements and campaign materials. Ballot committees that agreed to observe the spending limits and later exceeded the limits could be fined up to $10,000.

The proposed law states that if any of its provisions were declared invalid, the other provisions would remain in effect.

1994 - Hampden County - Question 1Do you approve of a law summarized below, on which no vote was taken by the Senate or the House of Representatives before May 4, 1994?

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Hampden County Results
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City/Town Ward Pct Blanks Total Votes Cast
Totals
54,983
81,591
14,757 151,331
Agawam
 
4,495
6,045
926
11,466
Blandford
 
191
297
17
505
Brimfield
 
462
743
65
1,270
Chester
 
210
251
24
485
Chicopee
 
7,221
10,948
1,304
19,473
E. Longmeadow
 
2,536
3,517
332
6,385
Granville
 
243
289
36
568
Hampden
 
804
1,242
110
2,156
Holland
 
328
448
40
816
Holyoke
 
3,657
6,474
1,673
11,804
Longmeadow
 
2,569
4,728
412
7,709
Ludlow
 
2,424
3,839
785
7,048
Monson
 
1,215
1,599
224
3,038
Montgomery
 
139
202
15
356
Palmer
 
1,730
2,349
511
4,590
Russell
 
195
314
22
531
Southwick
 
1,263
1,503
175
2,941
Springfield
 
13,978
19,393
5,869
39,240
Tolland
 
72
69
8
149
Wales
 
240
304
29
573
W. Springfield
 
3,730
5,607
857
10,194
Westfield
 
5,144
7,699
897
13,740
Wilbraham
 
2,137
3,731
426
6,294
County Totals
54,983
81,591
14,757 151,331