The state Ethics Commission has ruled four to one that the conservative public policy group Maine Leads is not a Political Action Committee, but should have registered as a Ballot Question Committee when it channeled more than $235,000 toward campaigns that placed two tax relief initiatives on this fall's ballot.
Reporting requirements for Ballot Question Committees are far less stringent than they are for PACS, says Dan Billings, an attorney active in Republican politics who represents Maine Leads.
"The distinction between the two levels of reporting is that when an organization is deemed to be a PAC, it must report every dollar that it raises and spends," Billings told MPBN. "When an organization is a Ballot Question Committee, it only has to disclose contributions and expenditures related to the ballot questions."
Billings says he considers today's ethics commission ruling a victory. The question of possible penalties against Maine Leads for not registering as a Ballot Question Committee will be discussed by the Ethics Commission at its meeting next month.