Help America Run Act

IIB 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1623 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES OCTOBER 30, 2019 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration AN ACT To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to provide for the treatment of payments for child care and other personal use services as an authorized cam- paign expenditure, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 HR 1623 RFS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; FINDINGS; PURPOSE. 1 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 2 ‘‘Help America Run Act’’. 3 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 4 (1) Everyday Americans experience barriers to 5 entry before they can consider running for office to 6 serve their communities. 7 (2) Current law states that campaign funds 8 cannot be spent on everyday expenses that would 9 exist whether or not a candidate were running for 10 office, like rent and food. While the law seems neu- 11 tral, its actual effect is to privilege the independently 12 wealthy who want to run, because given the de- 13 mands of running for office, candidates who must 14 work to pay for childcare or to afford health insur- 15 ance are effectively being left out of the process, 16 even if they have sufficient support to mount a via- 17 ble campaign. 18 (3) Thus current practice favors those prospec- 19 tive candidates who do not need to rely on a regular 20 paycheck to make ends meet. The consequence is 21 that everyday Americans who have firsthand knowl- 22 edge of the importance of stable childcare, a safety 23 net, or great public schools are less likely to get a 24 seat at the table. This governance by the few is anti- 25 thetical to the democratic experiment, but most im- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 HR 1623 RFS portantly, when lawmakers do not share the con- 1 cerns of everyday Americans, their policies reflect 2 that. 3 (4) These circumstances have contributed to a 4 Congress that does not always reflect everyday 5 Americans. The New York Times reported in 2019 6 that fewer than 5 percent of representatives cite 7 blue-collar or service jobs in their biographies. A 8 2015 survey by the Center for Responsive Politics 9 showed that the median net worth of lawmakers was 10 just over $1 million in 2013, or 18 times the wealth 11 of the typical American household. 12 (5) These circumstances have also contributed 13 to a governing body that does not reflect the nation 14 it serves. For instance, women are 51% of the 15 American population. Yet even with a record number 16 of women serving in the One Hundred Sixteenth 17 Congress, the Pew Research Center notes that more 18 than three out of four Members of this Congress are 19 male. The Center for American Women And Politics 20 found that one third of women legislators surveyed 21 had been actively discouraged from running for of- 22 fice, often by political professionals. This type of dis- 23 couragement, combined with the prohibitions on 24 using campaign funds for domestic needs like 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 HR 1623 RFS childcare, burdens that still fall disproportionately 1 on American women, particularly disadvantages 2 working mothers. These barriers may explain why 3 only 10 women in history have given birth while 4 serving in Congress, in spite of the prevalence of 5 working parents in other professions. Yet working 6 mothers and fathers are best positioned to create 7 policy that reflects the lived experience of most 8 Americans. 9 (6) Working mothers, those caring for their el- 10 derly parents, and young professionals who rely on 11 their jobs for health insurance should have the free- 12 dom to run to serve the people of the United States. 13 Their networks and net worth are simply not the 14 best indicators of their strength as prospective pub- 15 lic servants. In fact, helping ordinary Americans to 16 run may create better policy for all Americans. 17 (c) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of this Act to ensure 18 that all Americans who are otherwise qualified to serve 19 this Nation are able to run for office, regardless of their 20 economic status. By expanding permissible uses of cam- 21 paign funds and providing modest assurance that testing 22 a run for office will not cost one’s livelihood, the Help 23 America Run Act will facilitate the candidacy of represent- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 HR 1623 RFS atives who more accurately reflect the experiences, chal- 1 lenges, and ideals of everyday Americans. 2 SEC. 2. TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILD CARE AND 3 OTHER PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AU- 4 THORIZED CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE. 5 (a) PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AUTHORIZED CAM- 6 PAIGN EXPENDITURE.—Section 313 of the Federal Elec- 7 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114) is amended 8 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 9 ‘‘(d) TREATMENT OF PAYMENTS FOR CHILD CARE 10 AND OTHER PERSONAL USE SERVICES AS AUTHORIZED 11 CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE.— 12 ‘‘(1) AUTHORIZED EXPENDITURES.—For pur- 13 poses of subsection (a), the payment by an author- 14 ized committee of a candidate for any of the per- 15 sonal use services described in paragraph (3) shall 16 be treated as an authorized expenditure if the serv- 17 ices are necessary to enable the participation of the 18 candidate in campaign-connected activities. 19 ‘‘(2) LIMITATIONS.— 20 ‘‘(A) LIMIT ON TOTAL AMOUNT OF PAY- 21 MENTS.—The total amount of payments made 22 by an authorized committee of a candidate for 23 personal use services described in paragraph (3) 24 may not exceed the limit which is applicable 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 HR 1623 RFS under any law, rule, or regulation on the 1 amount of payments which may be made by the 2 committee for the salary of the candidate (with- 3 out regard to whether or not the committee 4 makes payments to the candidate for that pur- 5 pose). 6 ‘‘(B) CORRESPONDING REDUCTION IN 7 AMOUNT OF SALARY PAID TO CANDIDATE.—To 8 the extent that an authorized committee of a 9 candidate makes payments for the salary of the 10 candidate, any limit on the amount of such pay- 11 ments which is applicable under any law, rule, 12 or regulation shall be reduced by the amount of 13 any payments made to or on behalf of the can- 14 didate for personal use services described in 15 paragraph (3), other than personal use services 16 described in subparagraph (D) of such para- 17 graph. 18 ‘‘(C) EXCLUSION OF CANDIDATES WHO 19 ARE OFFICEHOLDERS.—Paragraph (1) does not 20 apply with respect to an authorized committee 21 of a candidate who is a holder of Federal office. 22 ‘‘(3) PERSONAL USE SERVICES DESCRIBED.— 23 The personal use services described in this para- 24 graph are as follows: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 HR 1623 RFS ‘‘(A) Child care services. 1 ‘‘(B) Elder care services. 2 ‘‘(C) Services similar to the services de- 3 scribed in subparagraph (A) or subparagraph 4 (B) which are provided on behalf of any de- 5 pendent who is a qualifying relative under sec- 6 tion 152 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 7 ‘‘(D) Health insurance premiums.’’. 8 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 9 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 10 of this Act. 11 Passed the House of Representatives October 29, 2019. Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, Clerk. VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:20 Oct 30, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1623.RFS H1623 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS