LPM OnlineDecember 31, 2002 |
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When I submit a letter to the editor and it is not printed within one week, I assume that it will never be printed. I was happily surprised when a letter that I submitted on November 18 was published in The Oakland Press on December 29. Here it is, as edited:
[Headline] Libertarians will stop abuse of legal system
Regarding a recent Oakland Press editorial: Imposing a $75 fine on drivers who didn't carry or quickly find their proof-of-insurance papers is just one example of the many ways in which the Democrats and Republicans abuse the legal system to raise revenue.
There are many laws that are much worse. Consider Michigan's asset forfeiture laws.
The government can confiscate all the contents of your home if someone gambled in your home or someone sold or gave away illegal drugs in your home. It doesn't matter whether you gave consent. It doesn't even matter whether you knew of this conduct. The government can confiscate your car if someone claims he saw illegal drugs in your car. How the drugs got into your car doesn't matter.
The Libertarian Party is the only political party that wants to stop the abuse of the legal system to raise revenue. If people want to end this abuse, they need to stop wasting their votes on Democrats and Republicans.
Leonard Schwartz Oak Park
(Editor's note: Schwartz was Libertarian Party candidate for Oakland County prosecutor in 2000.)
Post-Election Campaign Finance Information for State and Local Candidates
by Leonard Schwartz, LPM campaign finance law adviser
In response to a recent request:
Now that the election is over, you should decide whether to dissolve your campaign committee. One factor is whether you can use the same committee to run for a different office in the future. The rules are discussed in "Michigan Campaign Finance Candidate Committee Manual" (June, 2001), pages 10-11.
If you decide to dissolve your committee, you must pay outstanding debts and properly dispose of remaining funds. You can return money to contributors, give money to a political party committee (such as the LPM Campaign Fund), give money to an independent political committee (such as Small Government Alliance), or give money to a charity (such as Advocates for Self-Government).
If your committee does not have a reporting waiver (or if it had a waiver but had contributions or expenditures greater than $1000), you must file a final campaign statement. This can be combined with your annual campaign statement, which is due on Jan. 31.
If your committee properly has a reporting waiver, you should file a special one page dissolution statement. (But if you do not want to dissolve your committee, you should send a letter to the Bureau of Elections.) The statute does not actually require that you send a dissolution statement or letter. But I recommend that you comply with the Bureau's guidelines, as this clarifies the status of your committee.
For more information, see the Manual, pages 68-69.
If you were a candidate for a judgeship, special MCJC rules apply. |
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