Proposal would end Presidential matching funds for primary season in favor of party conventions

From the Ballot Access News article, ‘Some Members of Congress Want to Eliminate Primary Season Matching Funds and Use the Money to Pay for Major Party Conventions’:

According to this Democracy 21 press release, some members of Congress are working to change the public funding system for presidential elections. Apparently primary season matching funds would be abolished, and the money would be used to pay for the major party presidential conventions. This idea might appeal to Democrats, because the Democratic National Committee is low in funds that are needed to pay for costs of the 2016 Philadelphia convention.

The only minor party or independent presidential candidate who is currently seeking to qualify for primary season matching funds is Jill Stein. She must raise $5,000 in small donations from each of 20 states. She recently crossed the threshold in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, so is up to eleven or twelve states now.

The change in the law would be brought about by inserting provisions into the omnibus spending bill, which is expected to pass by the end of the year.

From Democracy 21:

Reforms groups sent a letter today enclosed below to President Barack Obama, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid urging them to block any last minute efforts to kill the presidential tax check off system in the Omnibus spending bill.

The reform groups include Campaign Legal Center, Common Cause, CREW, Demand Progress, Democracy 21, Every Voice, League of Women Voters, Issue One, People For the American Way, Public Citizen and U.S. PIRG.

Dear President Barack Obama, House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi & Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid,

It is our understanding that last minute efforts may be pursued in the Omnibus bill to restore public financing for the presidential nominating conventions in return for taking away the funds currently in the presidential tax checkoff system.

House Republicans have tried to kill the presidential tax checkoff system in the past and take away its funds. These efforts have been opposed by President Obama and blocked by congressional Democrats.

We strongly urge you to block this last minute effort which would put the final nail in the coffin of the presidential public financing system rather than leave in place the opportunity to repair the system. This would also undermine the essential efforts being pursued to create a small donor, public matching funds system for congressional races.

The Super PAC financing of the 2016 presidential election clearly demonstrates the need to fix the presidential public financing the system, not destroy it. A repaired presidential funding system would engage millions of ordinary Americans in financing our presidential election rather than having presidential financing dominated by the Super Rich.

We strongly urge you to block any effort to kill the presidential tax checkoff system or to take away the money currently in the presidential tax checkoff fund.