NYC CFB Releases 2013 Post-Election Report

The New York City Campaign Finance Board (NYC CFB) has released its 2013 Post-Election Report. The report looks at how money was raised and spent in the city’s recent election cycle, and offers legislative recommendations for improving the city’s Campaign Finance Act.

The 2013 general election were the most competitive in the city since 2001, which was most likely the result of the city’s term limit law.

Among the report’s findings are:

• More than two-thirds of the total amount of individual contributions collected by participating candidates came from New York City residents;
• More than two-thirds of all New York City contributors gave $175 or less;
• More than 90 percent of the total raised came from individual contributors, rather than from PACs or unions; and
• Outside groups spent $15.9 million to influence the outcome of elections, but the city’s “strong disclosure rules” ensured that the public could find out how those groups raised and spent their money.

CFB recommends, among other things:

• Requiring greater disclosure of independent expenditures;
• Prohibiting anonymous campaign communications;
• Adopting instant runoff voting (IRV) for city elections; and
• Prohibiting candidates from accepting contributions from political committees and unions (contributions from businesses are already prohibited).

Read the full report here.