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The State of Disclosure in Montana
As
one of only two states that does not currently
offer any online access to campaign data, Montana
can only earn an F in this assessment. Despite
the low overall grade in 2007, Montana’s
disclosure law is strong, and the state is
poised to debut electronic filing and online
access to records.
Candidates
in Montana are required to disclose details,
including occupation and employer data, about
contributors giving $35 or more. Last-minute
contributions are reported prior to Election
Day, but last-minute independent expenditures
are not. Expenditure disclosure includes
the name of the vendor and transaction date,
as well as accrued expenses. Subvendor details
are not disclosed for campaign consultant
expenditures. Other strengths in Montana’s
law include the filing schedule, reporting
of loan details, and enforcement provisions.
While Montana currently has no electronic filing
program, the office of the Commissioner of
Political Practices is planning to introduce
an electronic filing option for state-level
candidates in 2008.
As
noted above, Montana does not currently provide
online access to any campaign finance data,
resulting in the state’s poor performance
in the accessibility category. Fortunately,
the state is getting close to addressing this
issue. A letter posted on the Commissioner’s
site in January 2007 acknowledges that Montana
is “lacking when it comes to on-line
reporting and on-line disclosure of campaign
financing. It’s something we’re
working to change.” Evidence of this
work is apparent: Montana debuted an online
lobbyist disclosure program this year and searchable,
downloadable campaign data is scheduled to
come online in 2008 with the move to electronic
filing. At present, the Commissioner’s
office oversees an excellent program for making
copies of paper-filed campaign reports accessible
to the public.
Montana
received an F in the Online Contextual and
Technical Usability category due to the absence
of any campaign finance data on the state’s disclosure site. If the introduction
of electronic filing results in the availability
of data on its web site, the site’s usability
will improve. The Commissioner’s cleanly
designed and easily navigated site provides
information about campaign finance laws and
restrictions. To improve the site’s contextual
information, the public would benefit from
listings of candidates that include basic information
(name, office/district sought, and party affiliation)
as well as comparisons of total amounts raised
and spent by candidates. Once disclosure data
becomes available online, it is important that
the public is given a clear description of
the data available, as well as instructions
for using the site’s new features.
→ Quick
Fix: Provide a list of candidates
on the Commissioner’s site.
Currently, the site offers
a link to the Secretary of State’s
site where this information can
be found, but it would be more
helpful if this information were
featured on the disclosure site.
♦ Editor’s
Pick: The Commissioner’s
letter and the Office of Political
Practices’ “Goals and
Objectives” offer a clear,
honest assessment of the state of
disclosure in Montana View
image and the steps
being taken to bring disclosure data
online. View
image
 Disclosure Agency: Commissioner of Political Practices
Disclosure
Web Site: http://politicalpractices.mt.gov
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