On Oct. 20 the Federal Election Commission (FEC) heard testimony on its reconsideration of a rule on treatment of grassroots broadcasts by charities and religious organizations in campaign finance regulations. OMB Watch testified in support of an exemption for grassroots lobbying from the "electioneering communications" rule, which bans corporations, including nonprofits, from referring to federal candidates in broadcasts made 60 days before a general election or 30 days before a primary. In 2003 the FEC approved an exemption for 501(c)(3) organizations from the "electioneering communications" rule. The new rulemaking is a response to a federal court order to reconsider the exemption because the court found the FEC did not provide adequate justification for it. The FEC appealed the ruling, but on Oct. 24 the U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Columbia turned down the FEC's request for full court review of that decision. FEC Commissioners have said they do not plan to pursue appeal to the Supreme Court but will move forward with revisions on this and over a dozen other rules rejected by the court. At the same time, the Supreme Court recently accepted a case involving application of the "electioneering communications" rule to grassroots lobbying by a 501(c)(4) organization, Wisconsin Right to Life. At the FEC hearing Robert Bauer, an election law expert of the firm Perkins Coie, testified that the FEC should wait to approve a new rule until after the Supreme Court's decision, which is expected early next year. OMB Watch's testimony, delivered by former FEC Commissioner Karl Sandstrom, supported a nonprofit grassroots lobbying exemption to the electioneering communications rule. He emphasized the right of nonprofits to petition the government for redress of grievances, noting that next fall's appropriations legislation will be under consideration during the 60 day period prior to the general election, saying, "And the question is, will they have an exemption under your regulations to use television or radio to put forth to the public what is at stake, to encourage the public to contact their legislators to tell them that something matters here?" Other nonprofits, such as the Alliance for Justice and Independent Sector supported continuation of the 501(c)(3) exemption. The American Cancer Society's testimony supported the idea of a grassroots lobbying exemption, saying, "We certainly believe that legitimate lobbying communications for or against specific legislative proposals should be able to continue throughout the year, even if they include a call to action that mentions a lawmaker." They also noted that unpaid broadcasts, such as public service announcements, can be covered by the "electioneering communications" rule. Since broadcasters often repeat public service announcements on a schedule that is not under the control of the nonprofit that produced it, inadvertent violations could occur without some kind of FEC action. Campaign reform think tanks, such as the Campaign Legal Center, Democracy 21 and the Center for Responsive Politics testified that they oppose any exemptions to the "electioneering communications" rule in order to prevent potential abuse by those wishing to avoid campaign finance regulations.