Campaign finance reform – ART Policy

Nov 18, 2024

The current problem 

Money is a significant influence on the democratic process of contesting elections so it is vital that the public interest is not put aside for political advantage gained from donors with vested interests. To achieve this, federal legislation must address the following:

  • The quantum of funding. There are currently no restrictions on money raised and spent on election campaigns. This allows companies and individuals to advantage their interests.
  • The sources of funding. Political donations made by organisations can only be justified if they are seeking special treatment by elected politicians and governments. This is contrary to the proper working of a democracy in which government decisions should reflect the interests of the electorate as a whole[h1] .
  • The fairness of funds availability. Incumbents have a number of advantages over new entrants. They have offices and staff to support their campaign and can direct campaigns funds to particular electorates like those that are marginal. Small, emergent parties and independents are denied public funding unless they poll more than 4 percent of the vote in an electorate.

In all respects the present system of regulation in Australia and the reforms recently tabled by the government are seriously deficient. The Accountability Round Table’s policy proposals are designed to counter these deficiencies. 

We call for:

  • Real-time disclosure of all donations over $1,000
    Voters must know who’s backing candidates before they cast their votes. This includes:
    • Real-time Disclosure.
      Disclosure should be submitted promptly to the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) via an online platform. For regions lacking technological capacity (e.g., Tasmania), submissions may be made by phone to the AEC. A maximum 48-hour deadline from the time of donation applies.
    • Disclosure by affidavit to the AEC. 
      For donations above $25,000, donors must provide a sworn affidavit detailing their relationship with the candidate. This includes disclosing any personal connection, such as a family relationship, or revealing any expectation that the election of the candidate or party would result in personal or institutional economic benefits for the donor.
    • Heavy penalties for non-disclosure or deception.
      If a donor fails to disclose this information or intentionally misrepresents the nature of their relationship or interest, they should face significant penalties. This ensures transparency and deters dishonest practices.
    • In-kind contributions must also be disclosed and accurately valued.
    • All financial donations must go through an independent central repository.
  • Donations only from eligible voters or organisations
    Only voters or organisations whose members have participated in a democratic vote (e.g., companies through AGMs, unions at congresses) may make donations.
  • Caps on donations
    Our donation cap policy is designed to prevent any single entity or donor from exerting disproportionate influence, promoting fairness and ensuring that candidates rely on broad-based community support. To eliminate big money and vested interests in politics, donation caps will apply to all large contributions. 
    • Limiting Large Contributions
      Strict caps are applied to donations above a set amount to prevent undue influence from large donors. By capping these contributions, we ensure that campaigns rely more on community support than on big backers.
    • Encouraging Community Matching Funds
      Donations should reflect genuine, community-driven support. Donation caps do not apply to funds raised locally and matched by individuals or organisations. This allows community-backed candidates to receive additional support without facing limits meant to restrict large, external influences.
    • Transparent, Real-Time Disclosure
      All donations over $1,000 must be disclosed in real time, allowing voters to see who supports each candidate and ensuring no hidden influence affects the political process.
    • Universal Cap with No Exemptions
      All donations over $1,000 fall within these restrictions—without exemptions for entities such as Nominated Entities in Victoria. This ensures consistency and prevents any single source from skirting transparency or fairness requirements.
  • Caps on spending 
    A sophisticated mix of determinants is needed to ensure fair competition in spending on elections, recognising:
    • the diversity and competition that a robust democracy needs
    • the unequal starting points between established parties and new parties and candidates 
    • the legitimate roles of political parties
    • clear distinctions between campaign communications and spending by incumbent MPs on the representation they were elected to provide ie. expenses related to an MP’s regular duties, such as engaging with the electorate or fulfilling their elected responsibilities to be clearly separated from campaign funds.
  • Abolish public funding
    Candidates should raise their funds from supporters rather than rely on taxpayer dollars, which only benefit incumbents and entrenched parties.

Sources Consulted in the Preparation of this Policy.

A full description of the sources relevant to this policy is contained in the article Setting Caps on Campaign Funding and Expenditure published by the Accountability Round Table on 17 March 2022: https://www.accountabilityrt.org/setting-caps-on-campaign-funding-and-expenditure/

Here we list the principal sources of information consulted for this updated policy statement.

General:

Accountability Round Table Submission of the Accountability Round Table to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters Inquiry into the Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns. 11 July 2011. https://www.accountabilityrt.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/ART-JSCEM-Funding-Inquiry-Submission-11-July-2011-final-3.pdf

Accountability Round Table Further Material from the Accountability Round Table to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters Inquiry into the Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns. 9 August 2011 https://www.accountabilityrt.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/ART-Further-submission-09082011-final.pdf

Accountability Round Table Second Supplementary Submission of the Accountability Round Table to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters Inquiry into the Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns. 30 August 2011. https://www.accountabilityrt.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/JSCEM-ART-2nd-supplementary-submission-funding-No-cover-letter.pdf

Adams, Phillip. The Australian Republic Mark 22. Late Night Live. ABC Radio National, 25 January 2022. https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/the-australian-republic-mark-22/13727860

Brenton Holmes. Electoral and Political Financing: The Commonwealth Regime and Its Reforms. Research Publications. Canberra ACT: Australian Parliamentary Library, 30 March 2012. Australia. https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/library/prspub/1533953/upload_binary/1533953.pdf

 Dassonneville, Ruth and Ian McAllister. Explaining the Decline of Political Trust in Australia. Australian Journal of Political Science 56, no. 3 (3 July 2021): 280–97. https://doi.org/10.1080/10361146.2021.1960272

Australian Government. Electoral Reform Green Paper: Donations Funding and Expenditure. Canberra ACT: Commonwealth of Australia, 2008. http://www.dpmc.gov.au/consultation/elect_reform/docs/electoral_reform_green_paper.pdf  

Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters. Inquiry into the Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns. Canberra ACT:2011 Parliament of Australia House of Representatives Committees https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/Completed_Inquiries/em/resolution-inquiryfunding

Reid, Madeline (2018). Ch. 13 Campaign Finance Laws: Controlling the Risks of Corruption and Public Cynicism. In Ferguson, G. Global Corruption: Law, Theory and Practice pp. 1072-1156.

Public Funding: 

Australian Electoral Commission: Election Funding Rateshttps://www.aec.gov.au/parties_and_representatives/public_funding/current_funding_rate.htm

Damon Muller (July 2019). Political Finance Briefing Book

Sources of Funds/Disclosure:

Australian Electoral Commission Transparency Register available from https://www.aec.gov.au/parties_and_representatives/financial_disclosure/transparency-register/

Australian Electoral Commission. Financial Disclosure Guidance. 20 February 2023. https://www.aec.gov.au/Parties_and_Representatives/financial_disclosure/guides/

Australian Taxation Office. December 2024. Financial disclosure Reporting of financial information relating to entities in the political arena such as political parties. https://www.aec.gov.au/parties_and_representatives/financial_disclosure/

BBC (2022). US election 2020: How much did it cost and who paid for it? Available from https://www.bbc.com/news/av/election-us-2020-54696386

Centre for Public Integrity (2022). $68 million in political funding hidden from public view. Formerly available from https://publicintegrity.org.au/media-release-68-million-in-political-funding-hidden-from-public-view/

Commonwealth Electoral Act (1918). Volume 2 Part XX, Division 4 –Disclosure of donations, Section 305A Gifts to candidates etc, Subsection 4 (b) Gifts to trust funds. https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdb/au/legis/cth/consol_act/cea1918233/

NSW Electoral Commission (2014) Election Funding, Expenditure and Disclosure in NSW. Strengthening Accountability and Transparency. https://elections.nsw.gov.au/candidate-handbook-nsw-local-government-elections/funding-and-disclosure/disclosing-political-donations-and-electoral-expenditure#:~:text=Electoral%20expenditure%20incurred%20must%20be,all%20electoral%20expenditure%20incurred%20annually

Orr, Graeme. Political Disclosure Regulation in Australia: Lackadaisical Law. Election Law Journal: Rules, Politics, and Policy 6, no. 1 (1 March 2007): 72–88. https://doi.org/10.1089/elj.2006.6006. p 87

Wood, Danielle, Kate Griffiths, and Tom Crowley, (Grattan Institute; 2021). More than Half of Funding for the Major Parties Remains Secret — and This Is How They Want It. The Conversation, 1 February 2021. http://theconversation.com/more-than-half-of-funding-for-the-major-parties-remains-secret-and-this-is-how-they-want-it-154364

Fairness between candidates: 

Australian Associated Press (2019). Victorian Labor MPs exonerated in ‘red shirts’ election rorts scheme. In The Guardian, 14 Feb 2019. Available from https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/feb/14/victorian-labor-mps-exonerated-in-red-shirts-election-rorts-scheme

Basford Canales, Sarah (2021). “Arrogant”: Pork-Barrelling Concern over $16b MYEFO Item. The 

Canberra Times, 16 December 2021. https://www.canberratimes.com.au/story/7554847/arrogant-pork-barrelling-concern-over-16b-myefo-item/

Hawkins, John. $16 billion of the MYEFO Budget Update Is “Decisions Taken but Not yet Announced”. Why Budget for the Unannounced? The Conversation. Accessed 6 January 2022. http://theconversation.com/16-billion-of-the-myefo-budget-update-is-decisions-taken-but-not-yet-announced-why-budget-for-the-unannounced-173654

Melville-Rea, Hannah, Robyn Seth-Purdie, and Bill Browne (2021). Grants with Ministerial Discretion: Distribution Analysis. Discussion Paper. Canberra ACT: The Australia Institute, November 2021. https://australiainstitute.org.au/report/grants-with-ministerial-discretion/

Murphy, Yvonne (2016). Who Gets What, When and How: The Politics of Resource Allocation to Parliamentary Parties.In Party Rules: Dilemmas of Political Party Regulation in Australia, edited by Gauja, Anika and Marion Sawer. Canberra ACT: ANU Press, https://press- files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/n2109/pdf/book.pdf/

Rayner, Jennifer (2016). More regulated, more level? Assessing the impact of spending and donation caps on Australian State elections, Chapter in Party Rules? Dilemmas of political party regulation in Australia, Australian National University Press p. 163. Available from https://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/n2109/pdf/book.pdf

Tune, David and John Conde. An Independent Parliamentary Entitlements System. Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, 11 March 2016. https://www.finance.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-11/independent-parliamentary-entitlements-system-review-feb-2016.pdf

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