Stop Special Interest Money Now Campaign Turns in More Than 900,000 Signatures
Former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz joins Californians from around the state to say “yes” to real campaign finance reform.
The Stop Special Interest Money Now campaign, which will enact real campaign finance reform in California, submitted more than 900,000 signatures in support of the initiative, well over the 505,000 needed to qualify the measure for the ballot. Signatures are currently being verified by the California Secretary of State’s office.
Long-time Californian and former U.S. Secretary of State George Shultz has 
joined a growing grassroots coalition of taxpayers, good government advocates and business leaders in support of this initiative that will fundamentally reform the state’s campaign finance system—a system that is at the root of Sacramento’s dysfunction.
“The Stop Special Interest Money Now Act is a vital step toward reforming California’s dysfunctional political system. This initiative gets to the heart of one of the most corrosive elements in politics: campaign contributions,” said former Secretary of State Shultz. “For too long, special interest money has dominated our politics, muting the voice of average Californians. So often a law is passed not because it’s good for California, but because it will benefit one well-heeled campaign contributor or another. Politicians have become less responsive to the people and far too concerned with their contributors. Stop Special Interests will reform corrupt pay-for-play politics in our state.”
According to the nonpartisan Fair Political Practices Commission, the top 15 special interest groups have spent more than $1 billion on influencing the political process in the past ten years while the state’s fiscal and economic climate has reached historic lows. At the same time, more than 40 percent of the legislation introduced in Sacramento is written by special interest lobbyists, and these bills are much more likely to become law.
“Campaign finance reform is the first step. Stop Special Interests will go a long way toward returning balance to our politics. This reform will weaken the grip of special interests on our government. When we curb that power, we’ll help to free legislators to do their jobs – dealing with problems that have plagued Californians for decades,” continued Shultz.
The Stop Special Interest Money Now Act will fundamentally dilute the corrosive nature of this system by altering the relationship between politicians and their campaign contributors. Specifically, the initiative accomplishes this by:
1. Banning both corporate and labor union contributions to candidates;
2. Prohibiting government contractors from contributing money to government officials who award them contracts;
3. Prohibiting corporations and labor unions from using the inherently coercive means of payroll deduction to collect political funds from employees and union members; and
4. Making all employee political contributions by any other means strictly voluntary.
Proponents have already raised $1.7 million to qualify the measure. The Stop Special Interest Money Now Act would have been scheduled to be on the June 5, 2012 ballot. However, with Governor Brown’s approval of SB 202 to defer ballot measures until the General Election, the measure will go before voters in November 2012.
For more information on the initiative, please visit www.stopspecialinterestmoney.org.