Chairman Steil Demands Answers for ActBlue Money Funneling

Letter

"As Chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on House Administration, which has broad jurisdiction over federal campaign finance law, I write today to request information on ActBlue's donor verification policies and procedures. At our recent full committee hearing concerning the oversight of the Federal Election Commission, committee members and some commissioners expressed concern over lenient
donor verification standards.

Further, the Committee is aware of allegations from across the country that malicious actors have used ActBlue's systems to funnel unlawful funds to political committees on your platform in federal elections, as well as in state elections, such as the recent judicial election for Wisconsin Supreme Court. In some cases, reports allege that such persons are using untraceable, prepaid cards to "wash" otherwise impermissible funds into apparently clean contributions, possibly including money from foreign sources. Federal law prohibits contributions from foreign nationals to federal, state, or local campaigns. Allegations also suggest that malicious actors employ standard identity theft practices to send unlawful funds through ActBlue platform users, with the names of actual persons used to make contributions without their knowledge or consent.

In response to this letter, please provide answers to the following:

1) Federal law imposes many restrictions on political committees, including those that ultimately
receive contributions through conduit platforms like ActBlue. Those committees are responsible
for ensuring any contributions they accept comply with law. Even though these responsibilities
are not imposed on ActBlue, does ActBlue nevertheless take any voluntary steps to ensure that
only real persons are able to make contributions to political committees that use ActBlue's
platform?

2) Specifically, has ActBlue chosen to require the provision of a credit card security code or other
identifying information as a condition of using its platform to make a contribution to a political
committee?

i) If not, why not?

3) If federal law were amended to require additional verification to confirm the identity of potential
contributors, such as the provision of a credit card security code for relevant transactions,8 what
would the resulting effect be on ActBlue?

4) Should the committee explore other areas as it examines the issue of preventing foreign money
from being used in American elections?

5) Could many of these alleged schemes have been prevented had ActBlue employed standard online
financial security practices?"

Source