ČSSD campaign finance proposal draws criticism

As the government and opposition spar over proposed campaign finance reform, the Council of Europe has released a report that finds the financing of Czech political parties in need of "more substantial and proactive supervision."

Social Democrat (ČSSD) lawmakers say they hope to place an 80 million Kč cap on campaign spending in general elections, but the Civic Democrats (ODS) are already sending signals that they plan to put up roadblocks should a proposal come before Parliament.

The Third Round Evaluation Report on the Czech Republic, issued April 29 by the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO), found the Czech political system lacking proper supervisory mechanisms to police party financing, including the funding of campaigns.

The Council of Europe is a body with 49 members, including the Czech Republic, which monitors corruption among EU countries. GRECO is part of the Council of Europe.

ČSSD Chairman Bohuslav Sobotka said the way political campaigns are funded are a black eye for the country in the international community.

"Insufficient rules for political parties' expenses in election campaigns are a serious problem, which is now pointed to by the European Council," he said. "[We are] convinced that the implementation of regulations for election expenses and increased transparency of their funding are necessary as soon as possible."

In addition to the 80 million Kč cap, the ČSSD proposes that gifts from individual donors to a party be capped at 2 million Kč annually and 4 million Kč for companies. All parties would have to submit reports on all campaign funds to the lower house control committee within two months of a general election.

Exempted from the cap would be campaign employee wages and the renting of facilities for campaign events. The proposal also calls for a limit to the number of billboard ads a party can purchase.

Sobotka said a draft of the proposal has been submitted to the chairmen of all of the other political parties.

Critics have blasted the ČSSD's proposal, however, claiming the 80 million Kč cap would only apply to the ČSSD and the ODS as they are the only parties capable of raising that kind of money. The ČSSD officially spent 184 million Kč in the last general election, while the ODS reported 213 million Kč.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, among the chief critics of the plan is the ODS, joining the calls of several other parties - and many in the media - demanding the ČSSD explain its own funding in previous years.

"In previous elections, the Social Democrats ran enormous campaigns, much more extensive than the campaigns of the ODS," said ODS spokesman Tomáš Bartovský. "Yet in its 2010 financial report, you'll find out that their declared expenditures had been much lower than [ours]. The ČSSD needs to make this clear."

Sobotka, who declined to speak with The Prague Post for this report, has said in other interviews that under current law, the party is not obligated to disclose certain aspects of its financing and therefore will not do so.

"We provided information on our financial management according to the law," he told the daily Hospodářské noviny April 27. "Once we are obliged to provide it differently, we will. I did not handle campaign financing [in the last election].

"But now at stake are rules applicable for everyone. We want the rules to be defined by law."

The ČSSD hopes to officially propose a draft amendment to the law in the Senate, where it holds a small majority, by the summer.

- Filip Šenk and Klára Jiřičná contributed to this report.

Jack Buehrer can be reached at
jbuehrer@praguepost.com