Idaho conservative policy center, opponents of Prop 1 sue to stop TV ads

Opponents of the proposed abortion rights initiative Proposition 1 filed a lawsuit Monday seeking to pull TV ads paid for by the Idaho Democratic Party in favor of the initiative. 

The conservative, Christian advocacy organization, the Idaho Family Policy Center, and leaders with a political action committee that opposes the initiative, Too Extreme for Idaho PAC, brought the lawsuit. 

The ballot initiative Prop 1 would repeal Idaho’s abortion ban, allowing the procedure up to viability or after in cases of emergency, enumerate rates related to a range of reproductive healthcare, and provide legal liability protections for healthcare providers who provide that type of care. The initiative will be before Idaho voters in the Nov. 3 general election. 

The lawsuit, filed in Canyon County court, alleges that the supporters and authors of Prop 1, a group called Idahoans United for Women and Families, paid the Idaho Democratic Party to run ads in favor of the initiative in order to pay the more favorable rates that broadcasters are required to charge to political candidates ahead of elections. The ads were run on behalf of Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terri Pickens. 

“Pro-abortion activists cheated their way into cheaper television advertisements to stump for their radical abortion ballot initiative,” Idaho Family Policy Center President Blaine Conzatti said in a written statement. “Instead of playing by the rules of the game as outlined in our state campaign finance laws, Idahoans United for Women and Families colluded with the Idaho Democratic Party to mislead  voters and gain an unfair advantage. Idaho voters deserve transparency — not shell games and dirty tricks.” 

Idaho Democratic Party spokesperson Avery Roberts called the lawsuit “frivolous” in an email to the Idaho Capital Sun. She said it was “another attempt by opponents of Prop 1 to distract from the devastating consequences of Idaho’s extreme abortion ban.” 

“Women are being forced to leave the state for lifesaving medical care, and the politicians responsible have done nothing to fix it,” Roberts said. “Instead of addressing the harm this ban has caused, opponents are trying to silence the families speaking out, even after the Secretary of State’s Office confirmed our advertising complies with Idaho campaign finance laws. We won’t be intimidated into silence. Idahoans deserve to hear these families’ stories and make up their own minds on November 3.”

The family policy center helped author Idaho’s law allowing family members of an aborted fetus to sue the abortion provider for a minimum of $20,000. It has also been a supporter of Idaho’s criminal abortion ban, which includes felony prison penalties for abortion providers. 

Idaho Secretary of State’s Office says office isn’t investigating ad, never received a complaint about it

The Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane’s office, which oversees statewide elections, told Boise State Public Radio Friday that the ads did not violate campaign finance laws. 

Secretary of State’s Office spokesperson Joe Parris told the Sun Monday that the office was not investigating an ad about Prop 1 paid for by the Idaho Democrats because it had not received a complaint about it. 

The lawsuit includes a complaint to the office about financial reporting related to ads paid for by the Pickens campaign, but does not mention Prop 1 or a contribution from Idahoans United.

“Our office has not received a complaint on the ad that is at the center of this lawsuit,” Parris said. 

What does the lawsuit say? 

Attorneys from the Idaho Family Policy Center argued that a donation from the Idahoans United for Women and Families PAC to the Idaho State Democratic Party was an attempt to “conceal” the source the funding and pay lower rates for TV ads. 

Within 60 days of a general election, Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, rules require TV broadcast stations to charge qualified political candidates the lowest rate they’ve charged for the same type of ad, length and time of day. 

These lower rates only apply to political candidate ads, and not “issue ads,” which are “political ads that are paid for and sponsored by non-candidate persons and entities,” according to the FCC. 

The lawsuit alleges that the rates paid by Idaho Democrats for the ads were much lower than ads paid for by Too Extreme for Idaho in opposition to Prop 1. It also argues that the party and candidate campaigns purchasing the ads after a large donation from Idahoans United violated Idaho campaign finance laws requiring disclosure of who pays for political ads. The attorney argued the move violated laws against attempts to conceal the funders of political ads. 

Family Policy Center spokesperson Edward Clark told the Sun in an email the organization had not yet filed a complaint with the FCC, “but we are considering all of our options to ensure the integrity of this campaign.” 

A letter from legal counsel for the Idaho Democrats to TV stations that received complaints from the Stop Prop 1 leaders argued that the ads complied with laws. 

“… note that both the IDP and Ms. Pickens strongly support Proposition 1, the Reproductive

Freedom and Privacy Act Initiative,” legal counsel Jessica Robinson wrote. “Ms. Pickens has repeatedly announced her support in public on the campaign trail.” 

She also noted that the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that limits cannot be placed on how much political parties may spend in coordination with a candidate for office. 

“As a result, IDP may lawfully spend unlimited amounts of its own funds on communications coordinated with Idaho Democratic candidates, including Ms. Pickens,” Robinson wrote.