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Constitutional Conditions: Regulating Independent Political Expenditures By Government Contractors After Citizens United, Michael Boardman

Michael Boardman

A milestone in campaign finance jurisprudence, the Citizens United case sparked a political firestorm. Holding that all citizens and corporate entities are permitted to spend freely on elections, the Court overturned Austin v. Michigan Chamber of Commerce and parts of McConnell v. FEC, and mooted two other cases in the field. Only six months later, the House of Representatives passed the DISCLOSE Act in an overt attempt to counteract the Citizens United decision. The Act has received much attention for its heightened corporate disclosure requirements, but another of its lesser-debated provisions could prove more onerous for America’s wealthiest corporations and …