Dispatches on the For The People Act (Edition #7)
The Little-Known Provision That Could Make Congress Compassionate
This week was, once again, a big week for the For The People Act! In this newsletter, we cover the latest updates as the bill gains momentum and discuss an often-overlooked provision — the Help America Run Act — that could change who runs for office. And as always, we will take you through the week’s best press hits and highlight a couple For The People Act cosponsors.
Make sure to subscribe and share if you haven’t already, and check out the action items at the bottom of the newsletter for ways that you can get involved in this critical fight for democracy.
New This Week:
Our very own Lawrence Lessig published a critically important piece in the Washington Post pushing back against those arguing that the For The People Act should be pared down. Lessig writes that calls to split up the For The People Act are "wholly misguided, both politically and morally," and that the breadth of the bill makes its passage more likely, not less. Check it out here.
The For The People Act also continues to gain momentum in Congress. Yesterday, the Senate started its hearings on the bill. And on Tuesday, When We All Vote released a letter in support of the For The People Act co-signed by Michelle Obama, Billie Eilish, Shaquille O’Neal, and over 60 other celebrities. You can read more about this in our In The News Section.
On the advocacy front, Represent.Us created cool graphics you can use to spread the word about the For the People Act. Check them out here!
And we have some exciting Equal Citizens events coming up in the next couple of weeks that we hope you will attend.
TODAY, March 25 at 7 pm: Join us on Facebook live for a conversation with Dr. Jennie Stephens, climate expert and author of Diversifying Power: Why We Need Antiracist, Feminist Leadership on Climate and Energy. We’ll ask her about how the climate movement intersects with the democracy movement, and about why it’s important to have diverse leadership in all of these fights. RSVP here and tune in on our Facebook page to catch the event!
(If you need something to hold you over until this exciting event, check out her feature in Forbes here.)
Got questions for Prof. Jennie Stephens? Send us an email at info@equalcitizens.us and we’ll ask them on the live!
On Friday at 12 pm, Lawrence Lessig will be doing a Reddit AMA with Elizabeth Hira of the Brennan Center about the For the People Act. It will take place here.
And next Wednesday, March 31st, at 6 pm Equal Citizens founder Lawrence Lessig will be moderating a discussion about voting rights with Professors Carol Anderson and Guy-Uriel Charles. The conversation, which is called The Fight For Voting Rights Reform: The Path to H.R. 1 and H.R. 4, will be available via Zoom and Facebook live. Read more about the event and RSVP here.
Finally, this week on the Another Way podcast, Lessig speaks to Sam Wang about the inequalities produced by gerrymandering and the Electoral College, the rise of minoritarianism in the US, and what Congress and the states can do to fight back.
Provision of the Week: The Help America Run Act (Title V, Subtitle D)
What is it?
The Personal Use Services as Authorized Campaign Expenditures provision of H.R. 1 (more commonly called the Help America Run Act) would make one simple, yet crucial change to our campaign finance system: it would allow candidates to use campaign funds to pay for childcare, elder care, dependent care, and health insurance premiums.
Currently, our system allows non-incumbent candidates to take a salary from their campaign funds, based on their previous earnings, but only when a candidate is officially on the ballot. Because most major campaigns begin long before the filing deadline, this leaves candidates without a salary for longer than many can afford. It is also often frowned upon to take money from your own campaign, so many candidates do not use this option at all.
The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) uses an “irrespective test” to decide whether campaign spending is authorized or personal. Basically, if a candidate would incur an expense whether or not they were running for Congress, like a mortgage or daycare, they would not be allowed to spend campaign funds on those expenses. However, if a candidate can show the FEC that an expense such as childcare is necessary because of the campaign, as Liuba Grechen Shirley did in 2018, a candidate can use campaign funds to cover those expenses.
The Help America Run Act would build on the progress Grechen Shirley made with her petition, by expanding authorized campaign funds to cover all types of dependent care “if the services are necessary to enable the participation of the candidate in campaign-connected activities.” And if a candidate decides to take a salary from the campaign, the cost of dependent care would be deducted from the amount they can make in campaign salary. So, candidates who have children or family that need care will not be financially penalized for running for office.
Why does it matter?
While the current and previous Congresses were the most diverse Congressional bodies in U.S. history, we still have a long way to go in terms of representation. In 2019, the New York Times reported that less than 5 percent of representatives had worked in a blue collar job before coming to Congress. Part of this disparity comes from the fact that running for office is an expensive endeavor. Candidates must take time off from work to run the campaign, a practice that deeply disadvantages those who must work for a living. And, because women today still take on the majority of the child and elder care responsibilities in a family, the burden of paying for childcare disproportionately affects women who aspire to office.
Representation in Congress matters. One study, for example, showed that Americans place greater faith in government decisions about women when women have a seat at the table. And the more our Congress looks like, and shares experiences with, everyday Americans, the better they will be at fighting for the issues that matter to us. As the For The People Act itself says, “The consequence [of our current system] is that everyday Americans who have firsthand knowledge of the importance of stable childcare, a safety net or great public schools are less likely to get a seat at the table.” In order to give a seat at the table to the Americans who have personal experience with the policies we debate, we have to change the current system.
Don’t believe us? Take it from Liuba Grechen Shirley, the trailblazer who petitioned the FEC to let her use campaign funds for childcare. She writes, “Running for office takes a huge toll on a family’s budget, especially while raising children. Campaign funds for child care will remove a major financial obstacle for working families and mothers at a time when women are increasingly considering elected office. [...] We desperately need working women in office who understand family needs firsthand.”
We need a Congress that looks like us, and this provision will help us get there.
In the News:
The Brennan Center for Justice explains how public financing of elections empowers women and people of color to run for office. Through in-depth interviews, the Brennan Center chronicles the success stories of small-dollar public financing programs around the United States. And, of course, they make the case for the For the People Act, which would create a system of public financing for Congressional elections and revamp the Presidential public financing system.
Interested in learning more about public financing? Check out our week 3 Substack on Congressional public financing here and check our our week 6 Substack on Presidential public financing here!
The Atlantic explains the irrationality of the Republican assault on voting rights. In this piece, David Graham illustrates why the GOP’s state-level attack on democracy will make it harder to vote for both traditionally Republican and Democratic demographics. Additionally, Graham reiterates the fact that, despite Trump’s lies, there is no evidence of widespread voter fraud.
The Hill recounts the contentious Senate Rules Committee hearings on the For the People Act Wednesday. Senators clashed on the merits of the For the People Act along party lines. As we know, the Republicans are staunchly against expanding voting rights. Democrats did an excellent job defending the bill and making the case why the For The People Act is essential to our democracy.
USA Today covers celebrity endorsements of the For The People Act. When We All Vote — an organization comprised of high-profile individuals, activists, and celebrities — published an open letter voicing their support for the For the People Act. Signers include Michelle Obama, Lin Manuel-Miranda, Tom Hanks, Megan Rapinoe, Billie Eilish and 60 others.
And now, a word from our (co)sponsors:
Now that the fight for H.R. 1 has become the fight for S. 1, we want to highlight and thank some key supporters in the Senate. Their advocacy for the For The People Act is crucial to its passage - and here we want to share their own words about why they support the bill!
“We need to take immediate concrete steps to repair our battered democracy. I urge all my colleagues to join in this mission and support the For the People Act.” - Senator Dick Durbin
“If we want to protect against the dysfunction that’s poisoning Washington, then we have to root out corruption in government. That's why I've co-sponsored the #ForThePeople Act. It's time to put our democracy back where it belongs—in the hands of the American people.” - Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (via twitter)
Social Media Roundup:
Let’s be frank: there are A LOT of tweets, posts, and general conversation about the For The People Act. In this section, we give you an overview of the tweets and media you really need to see.
Former President Barack Obama endorses the For The People Act:
Senator Warnock explains on Meet the Press why we need voting rights legislation:
Senate Democrats make the case for the For the People Act on the Senate floor:
Danielle Lang artfully uses a Twitter thread to show the nuances between H.R. 1 and H.R. 4 and why we need both:
The Jonas Brothers, as members of When We All Vote, tweeted their support for the For the People Act:
How you can help:
H.R. 1 is the most important democracy reform bill in half a century, but to get it through the Senate, we need your help. That’s why we’ll end this newsletter every week with a few quick and easy ways to join the fight for H.R. 1. This week, you can:
Call your Senators at (202) 224-3121 and tell them why they should do everything in their power to pass the For The People Act (S. 1) in the Senate, including getting rid of the filibuster.
Write a letter to the editor in your local paper sharing your support of H.R. 1 and urging your Senators to pass it. Not sure how to write a letter to the editor? Reach out to us at info@equalcitizens.us and we can help!
Share our newsletter, our podcast, the articles included above, and the resources on H.R. 1 below on social media and tell your friends why you support #ForThePeopleAct
If you have questions about H.R. 1 you want us to answer in our Substack, tweet at us with #HR1Substack!
Extra, Extra:
If, after reading our newsletter, you still want to know more about the For The People Act, Equal Citizens, or the two of us, you can find more information here!
Relevant Resources:
Here are a few resources on the “For the People Act” if you have questions:
The Brennan Center for Justice created a wonderful guide to H.R. 1. Check it out here.
Here is the link to the House website on the For the People Act.
Flood social media with these awesome graphics about the For the People Act!
There is a lot of misinformation about H.R. 1, and the amount of misinformation will only grow as the fight heats up. That’s why it’s more important than ever to make sure everyone has all the facts on the bill - here is an article from Media Matters that can help you fact check.
More about us:
Kate Travis is a fellow at Equal Citizens and a junior at Harvard studying History and Literature with a minor in Government. When she’s not fighting for democracy, you can find her running, playing the cello, and drinking copious amounts of coffee (maybe even all at once). Follow her on Twitter at @mkht930.
Kevin Rissmiller is a fellow at Equal Citizens and a Goodwin-Niering Scholar at Connecticut College majoring in Government and exploring sociology, economics, and applied statistics. In his free time, you will find him at Dunkins or (pre-pandemic) playing ultimate frisbee. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
If you want more updates on H.R. 1 from Kate and Kevin, then subscribe here!