In the late 1970s, Congress initiated a third revision of the Federal Election Campaign Act, voting for amendments to the legislation in 1979, which were enacted in early 1980. Contrarily to the reasons for earlier amendments, which were imposed after political scandals (1974) and a Supreme Court decision (1976), this time the legislators decided to make changes in the regulations analyzing the conduct of the federal elections of 1976 and 1978. One of the main purposes of the revision of campaign finance law was a simplification of the procedures referring to the disclosure of campaign reports, which was achieved by diminishing the amount of reports, as well as reducing the number of subjects responsible for the disclosure of documentation. The other significant input of the 1979 amendments was the enhancement of the public financing program, through an increase in the amount of funds used in that program. Generally, the law was intended to make the procedures simpler, which was the main notion of election campaign participants, as well as the critics of FECA. Finally, the amendment sought to promote raising turnout and party-building activities. It raised the allowable expenditures of state and local parties, as long as they were coordinated with federal office candidates, particularly in presidential races. Yet while it aimed at voting registration drives and get-out-the-vote activities, it soon became a major source of soft money proliferation.

Despite the fact that Congress implemented small changes to the FECA in the 1980s, there was no further major legislation concerning campaign finance until the beginning of the 21st century, when the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act was adopted.

An Act to amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to make certain changes in the reporting and disclosure requirements of such Act, and for other purposes…