May 22, 2014
It is absolutely unconscionable that the Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped the rule requiring publicly traded corporations to disclose their political spending from the unified agenda.
The rule must be returned to the unified agenda and completed in 2014.
Bringing corporate “dark money” into the light should be a high priority for an agency charged with looking out for the interests of investors. Clearly the Supreme Court's passions lie elsewhere - witness the Citizens United and McCutcheon decisions, and the flood of "dark money" that they've released into our electoral politics. The SEC can and MUST hold the line!
Just as a small business owner knows how his or her company's money is being used, so should shareholders. Both shareholders and the public have a right and a NEED to be fully informed as to how much corporations spend on politics, and which candidates are being promoted or attacked. Such disclosures should be posted promptly on the SEC’s web site.
Thank you for considering my comment.
Patrick Almonrode