Cortez Masto calls for increased transparency in presidential inauguration committees

With nearly a year to go before the 2025 presidential inauguration, Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) is calling for greater transparency on how presidential inaugural committees use the funds they raise.

“The next presidential inauguration will take place one year from now, and we need to have safeguards in place to ensure the American people know who is donating to inaugural committees and how that money is being spent,” Cortez Masto said in a statement.

The bill, titled the Inaugural Committee Transparency Act, would increase oversight and public disclosure surrounding donations and how they are dispersed by presidential inauguration committees. Cortez Masto is hoping this will prevent any misuse of committee funds.

“It’s past time we close loopholes and help make sure that these committees do not become vehicles for corruption or ‘pay to play’ politics — no matter who the president is,” she said.

Unlike campaign committees, which are prohibited from accepting contributions directly from corporations, inaugural committees currently can accept unlimited amounts of money from virtually anyone, including companies. 

Under the introduced legislation, inaugural committees would be required to disclose to the Federal Election Commission the name and address of each individual who gave a payment of $200 or more, along with the purpose of the payment.

Donations on behalf of another person and putting donations to personal use would also be prohibited, and any remaining funds would need to be donated to a charity within 90 days of the inaugural ceremony.

The Nevada Democrat first sounded the alarm on the topic in 2019 amid reports former President Trump’s inaugural committee misused some of its funds. The committee raised more than $100 million for his 2017 inauguration, a chunk of which came from billionaire mega-donors.

This was far more than President Biden’s inaugural committee, which raised nearly $62 million, a sum largely financed by corporations and wealthy donors. Biden’s numbers, however, were higher than former President Obama, whose inauguration committee raised about $53 million for his 2009 inauguration and $43 million for his second inauguration in 2013.

Federal prosecutors in New York launched an investigation in which the former president’s committee was subpoenaed to turn over documents about its donors, finances and activities.

District of Columbia’s attorney general also launched a probe into the inaugural committee. The attorney general’s office filed suit against the committee in 2020 over allegations it misused nonprofit funds and collaborated with the Trump family to overpay for an event space in the Trump International Hotel, which was later added to the suit along with the Trump organization.

The former president’s entities, along with the inaugural committee reached a deal in May 2022 and agreed to pay the District of Columbia $750,000 to be used for three nonprofit organizations.

Cortez Masto introduced a bill under nearly the same name in the Senate in 2019, but it was referred to the Judiciary Committee.

Democratic Reps. John Sarbanes (Md.) and Mary Gay Scanlon (Pa.) introduced similar legislation in November that would require full disclosure of expenditures and contributions over a certain amount, along with a $50,000 limit on contributions. The bill, titled the Inaugural Fund Integrity Act, was referred to a committee.