150 Kansas PACs Document Spending $12.7 Million in Oct 31 Reports
One PAC spent $8 million but many millions are hidden in "non-partisan" non-profit spending
Kansas Political Action Committees (PACs) filed reports recently with the Kansas Governmental Ethics Commission showing campaign finance updates since the August primary election.
There are roughly 200 Kansas PACs. About 150 PACs reported spending $12.7 million in the last three months. About 25 PACs filed showing zero expenditures. About 25 PACs have not filed reports that were due on Monday. (This does not include federal PACs that are registered in Kansas but are governed by the FEC.)
Spending by Top 25 PACs
In July the Sunflower State Journal reported spending by the Kansas Values Institute alone was approaching $20 million for their broadcast ads. How many millions has KVI spent since July on their dozens of video ads? Most of this money does not show up on any PAC report. Historically, only about 30% of KVI’s money can be documented.
The whole “political pie” for the 2022 elections may never be known.
In the next two or more years much more will be learned as non-profits file their IRS 990 reports. But some IRS 990s documenting what happened in the 2020 election are not yet available.
There is evidence several “non-partisan” political groups in Kansas used their 501(c)(3) organizations to coordinate voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts among mostly one party of voters. These groups hide and delay reporting of their activities while other groups are reporting their activities now in their PAC reports.
Related
House candidates file general election finance reports, Brad Cooper, Sunflower State Journal, Oct. 31, 2022.
