US Election Commission Delays Decision on Bitcoin Campaign Contributions
The US Federal Election Commission (FEC) has delayed a formal decision on whether to allow bitcoin-denominated campaign contributions, widely expected to be announced today. However, a senior official suggested that limited contributions may be acceptable in the future. As reported by The Hill, the commission was considering a petition to allow bitcoin campaign contributions in amounts up to $100. The petition was submitted by Make Your Laws (MYL) PAC. During the meeting, Commission Vice Chairwoman Anne Ravel reportedly gave voice to potential issues regarding the anonymity associated with....
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The long-awaited decision by the US Federal Election Commission (FEC) to allow political candidates to solicit campaign contributions in bitcoin was issued earlier this May, effectively giving campaigns the green-light to accept up to $100 per donor. The decision, an advisory opinion, treats bitcoin as cash when establishing limits on donations, though they must be reported as in-kind contributions. As a result of this announcement, a number of federal candidates have rushed to begin accepting the digital currency, joining an already strong number of local and state politicians. However,....
The Bitcoin Foundation has sent a letter to the US Federal Election Commission, supporting calls for bitcoin campaign contributions to be officially allowed. The letter broadly supports a letter issued by the Conservative Action Fund PAC (CAF) earlier this month. The foundation calls for bitcoin-based contributions to be allowed, and points to FinCEN's 18th March guidance on virtual currencies as evidence that the government is already recognizing the currency as having an equivalent value in 'real' currency. The foundation's letter argues that Internet-based payments are already an....
On the heels of Tuesday's news that the Federal Election Commission (FEC) would be considering allowing bitcoin donations to campaigns comes the news that the oversight group has delayed a formal vote. The consideration comes following a request submitted by non-partisan political group Make Your Laws, who aimed to get FED approval to allow citizens to donate a maximum of $100 worth of bitcoin per candidate. "I have serious concerns about allowing unlimited bitcoin political contributions," said Ann Ravel, Vice Chairwoman at the FEC, according to The Hill. Idea of allowing for unlimited....
The US Federal Election Commission (FEC) has determined that political campaigns and political action committees (PACs) may accept bitcoin as a form of in-kind donation under current federal election laws. The FEC previously delayed a decision on a request for clarification from Make Your Laws (MYL) - an organisation that facilitates political contributions - which sought guidance on how it could go about accepting and using bitcoin donations, as well as general rules for handling digital currencies. In its draft report, the FEC tracks closely with comments made previously by the....
The Federal Election Commission has released a draft of what could best be described as the ability to collect Bitcoin donations to political campaigns. The caveat? Campaigns would be require to convert the Bitcoin to fiat in order to spend it. This means campaigns will need to bring their Bitcoin donations to an exchange and convert to the U. S. Dollar, and would be required to count any fee charged by the exchange as part of the initial donation. "Bitcoin contributions should be valued as in-kind contributions. The amount of 2 an in-kind contribution is the usual and normal value of the....