Senator Kate Brown's Campaign Finance Disclosure Law Brings Oregon to Top Three in the Country

The non-profit watchdog group Democracy Reform Oregon announced today that Oregon has moved to number three in the nation in campaign finance reporting, with the implementation of ORESTAR.

In 2005, then Senate Majority Leader Kate Brown sponsored and championed HB 3458 which required all contributions and expenditures to be reported to the Secretary of State's office within a rolling 30 day time period and created the ORESTAR system. Democracy for Oregon explains in today's press release: "The study highlights ORESTAR's continuous reporting feature, unique in the country, that requires disclosure of any transaction seven days rather than waiting for a reporting deadline. Oregonians recently saw the value of continuous reporting when fundraising by measure 50 opponents set a new record for contributions to a ballot measure." (Big Tobacco Contributions Smash State Ballot Measure Fundraising Records [pdf])

"I believe that every citizen should be able to see the money in politics. Now, whether you are in Pendleton, Portland or Seaside, you can simply go online and see how campaign contributions are being raised and spent. I'm proud of moving Oregon forward in transparent campaign finance reporting, and I look forward to continuing to improve this system as Oregon's next Secretary of State," states Senator Kate Brown.

Serving as chair of the Senate Elections and Rules committee for the last two sessions, Senator Brown has worked to preserve the integrity of our elections system. In 2007, Senator Brown led the charge in the Senate on Oregon's new Initiative Reform and Modernization Act, cracking down on fraud and abuse.