McConnell v. Federal Election Comm'n, 540 U.S. 93, 263 (2003)

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362

McCONNELL v. FEDERAL ELECTION COMM'N

Rehnquist, C. J., dissenting

"request[s for] broadcast time" as well as actual broadcasts, it is not supported by this goal. Requests that do not mature into actual purchases will have no viewers, but the information may allow competitors or adversaries to obtain information regarding organizational or political strategies of purchasers. Second, even as to broadcasts themselves, in this noncandidate-related context, this goal is a far cry from the Government interests endorsed in Buckley, which were limited to evaluating and preventing corruption of federal candidates. Ibid.; see also McIntyre v. Ohio Elections Comm'n, 514 U. S. 334, 354 (1995).

As to disclosure requirements with respect to candidates under the new Communications Act § 315(e)(1)(A), BCRA § 504 significantly overlaps with § 201, which is today also upheld by this Court, ante, at 194-202 ( joint opinion of Stevens and O'Connor, JJ.), and requires purchasers of "electioneering communications" to disclose a wide array of information, including the amount of each disbursement and the elections to which electioneering communications pertain. While I recognize that there is this overlap, § 504 imposes a different burden on the purchaser's First Amendment rights: as noted above, § 201 is limited to purchasers' disclosure of disbursements for electioneering communications, whereas § 504 requires broadcast licensees' disclosure of requests for broadcast time by purchasers. Not only are the purchasers' requests, which may never result in an actual advertisement, subject to the disclosure requirements, but § 504 will undoubtedly result in increased costs of communication because the licensees will shift the costs of the onerous disclosure and recordkeeping requirements to purchasers. The Government fails to offer a reason for the separate burden and apparent overlap.

The Government cannot justify, and for that matter, has not attempted to justify, its requirement that "request[s for] broadcast" time be publicized. On the record before this Court, I cannot even speculate as to a governmental interest

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