Laurence Laufer in City & State Article on the NYC CFB as a Model for Statewide Campaign Finance Reform

Partner Laurence D. Laufer, Director of the firms’ Corporate Political Activity Law and Non-Profit & Tax Exempt Organizations Practice Groups, is quoted twice in an extensive analysis by City & State of the role of the Campaign Finance Board in New York City

Reporter Nick Powell writes, “Many reformers would like to see a statewide system based on the one New York City has with the Campaign Finance Board, although campaign finance experts and advocates are decidedly split on whether the CFB model can be expanded on a macro level.” Mr. Laufer comments, “It’s so much more complicated on the state level, because you have competitive primaries and generals, you have two viable political parties, a two-year election cycle, 213 [legislative] seats as opposed to 59 … The smart thing to do is to create a core program, administer it and work the bugs out, but no one’s talking in ‘phase-in terms,’ which is the obvious compromise.”

Before joining the firm, from 1988 to 2000, Mr. Laufer served as Counsel to the Executive Director and as General Counsel of the New York City Campaign Finance Board.