Comments sought regarding auditing procedures and policies
On January 9, 2023, the Commission published a notice of public hearing and request for public comments in the Federal Register at 88 Fed. Reg. 1228 that seeks public comment on its policies and procedures for auditing political committees that do not receive public funds.
When a non-publicly-funded political committee’s disclosure reports indicate it has not met the threshold requirements for substantial compliance with the requirements of the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act), the Commission may conduct an audit of the committee. The Commission is reexamining its policies and procedures for auditing these committees and asks the regulated community and representatives of the public to provide feedback on the audit process. The Commission will use the comments received to help determine whether internal directives or practices should be adjusted and if so, how.
The Commission is particularly interested in hearing from committees that have participated in the audit process, and their counsel, on how the Commission’s audit policies and procedures have facilitated or hindered committees’ productive interaction with the agency and substantial compliance with the Act. For example, are committees being given sufficient opportunity to be heard by the Commission during the audit process? Has the audit process become more complex, costly, or inefficient since the most recent changes to the process were made in 2009-11? What can the Commission do to improve the audit process?
A public hearing will be held on a later date. The Commission will publish a notification of hearing in the Federal Register announcing the date and time of the hearing. Anyone seeking to testify at the hearing must file written comments by the due date and must include in the written comments a request to testify.
Comments must be submitted by February 8, 2023. Commenters may submit comments by email to audit2023@fec.gov