FEC enters election season without quorum

Published: Jan. 9, 2008 at 1:43 PM

WASHINGTON, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- As the U.S. 2008 primaries begin, the Federal Election Commission has effectively shut down, without enough members for a quorum.

Only two members remain on the commission. U.S. President George Bush's picks for the open seats have not been approved by the U.S. Senate.

The 2008 presidential election with wide-open contests in both major parties seems likely to break spending records. But the FEC, with four vacancies, is unable to take any action, including suing or issuing binding opinions or regulations, The Christian Science Monitor reported.

That is also likely to delay the implementation of the Honest Leadership and Open Government Law, which requires more information from lobbyists who arrange bundled campaign contributions. Bush signed the bill last September but it takes effect 90 days after the FEC approves regulations to implement it.

"Everyone is running around Iowa and New Hampshire and no one noticed that the FEC closed for business last week," Anthony Corrado, a campaign-finance expert at Colby College in Maine, told the Monitor.

© 2008 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Order reprints



Additional News Stories
London police explode illegally parked car (7 min)
Chinese drywall linked to corrosion (17 min)
Police: Teen broke window to find snacks (19 min)
Last STS-129 spacewalk is completed (29 min)
Insulin and core body temperature linked (34 min)
Feds seize Florida attorney's assets (55 min)
Baby born in truck en route to hospital (57 min)
fark
Today's most incoherent actual headline: "Trooper fired after hat fib wants back in"
Photoshop this held horse
How the Resale Subculture drives Black Friday, why Cyber Monday is a hoax, and some of Fark's favorite...
Under the new administration, sex slavery for the mentally handicapped is no longer on the list...
Van carrying cheerleaders flips, twirls, spins and splits on the interstate
Doctors say rarely-performed "hemicorporectomy" procedure can add years to life of those who need...