6-24-14 wi campaign finance

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A federal lawsuit has been filed challenging a Wisconsin state law that limits the amount of money candidates can collect from political action committees.  The CRG Network, a political action committee that works to elect conservative candidates, filed the lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court in Milwaukee against the state Government Accountability Board, which enforces election law.

CRG argues that its First Amendment rights to free speech and free association have been denied because of limits the state places on PAC contributions.  A spokesman for the state board being sued noted that the Wisconsin Supreme Court upheld the law in question in 1990.  But the lawsuit says subsequent U.S. Supreme Court rulings related to campaign finance limitations make the earlier state Supreme Court case irrelevant.