House GOP moves to ease campaign finance rules

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Republican leadership in the House of Representatives decided late Tuesday to immediately take up a controversial measure that opponents said would create a loophole in the recently enacted law overhauling federal campaign finance rules.

The language was to be debated Wednesday during the day but was pushed to Tuesday evening. GOP leaders feared it would generate "bad press" if debated during the day, according to a Republican leadership aide.

The language that would ease reporting requirements is tacked onto an unrelated "taxpayer protection" bill popular on both sides of the aisle. That explains in part why the measure passed out of committee last month with broad support.

Advocates of the recently enacted campaign finance law said the language in the new measure would substantially lessen financial reporting requirements for organizations once labeled "stealth PACs."

Before Congress changed the law in 2000, these groups -- also called "527s" for the section of IRS code under which they are organized -- were not required to disclose the sources of their funding. Advocates of campaign finance reform said secret funding could return if the bill becomes law.

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Bill proponents denied the measure would create a loophole in campaign finance law.

They said the law needs to be relaxed because many state and local campaign organizations are overwhelmed by complicated, costly and often redundant reporting requirements Congress mandated in it.

The bill has generated criticism elsewhere, too. The New York Times and Washington Post both wrote editorials this week blasting the bill. A series of news conferences and other events were planned by campaign finance reform advocates who hoped to defeat the language on a procedural vote.

"Presumably, the Republican leadership was concerned that considering the bill tomorrow [Wednesday] as originally planned would jeopardize its support as more members became aware of the Section 527 provision and the Campaign Finance Reform coalitions view on it," said Dan Maffei, a Democratic spokesman.