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Lawmakers wave off caps on donations from inactive candidates • South Dakota Searchlight [1]
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Date: 2025-02
South Dakota legislators shot down a bill Wednesday that would have capped contributions from inactive candidates’ campaign committees to other political committees.
Sen. Michael Rohl, R-Aberdeen, sponsored the bill. Current law allows former candidates to take in and distribute unlimited campaign funds, a “loophole” he said undermines fairness in campaign finance.
“If I chose not to seek office in two years, I could keep this account open, and 15 years down the line, I could still be making donations to people, and I could still be putting money in,” Rohl said. “I don’t think that’s necessarily right.”
The bill failed on a 9-3 vote in the House State Affairs Committee on Wednesday in Pierre. It would have capped annual donations from inactive candidate committees to statewide candidates at $4,000, donations from legislative or county candidates at $1,000, and from political parties and action committees at $10,000. Violations would have been misdemeanors.
Opponents said the bill created more problems than it solved.
Rep. Jon Hansen, R-Dell Rapids, questioned the bill’s language, particularly its definition of an “inactive” committee. He said the definition could apply to sitting lawmakers.
The bill defines an inactive committee as “not actively pursuing nomination for or election to a public office, has failed to secure the nomination for a public office, or has lost the election for that office.”
“I think we all fall under that definition,” Hansen said.
Rohl said the state’s Legislative Research Council, which helps lawmakers craft bills, reassured him that the bill did not impact sitting lawmakers.
Hansen seconded a motion to kill the bill, but Rep. Tim Reisch, R-Howard, introduced an amendment before the committee made that call. Reisch’s amendment sought to clarify that sitting lawmakers would not be considered inactive candidates.
Reisch’s amendment passed without Hansen’s support, but lawmakers ultimately rejected the bill.
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