The Voter Education Committee (VEC), a 527 organization, has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review a case that challenges the constitutionality of Washington state law requiring any organization found to support or oppose a candidate or ballot issue to register as a political committee and have their finances regulated. VEC wants review of a Washington state Supreme Court decision made last year that ruled that VEC should have registered as a political committee and did not find the definition of "political committee" to be constitutionally vague ( Voters Education Committee v.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State asked the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to investigate Grace Community Church, a Houston church whose pastor issued a letter of endorsement for U.S. House of Representatives candidate Shelley Sekula Gibbs. The pastor's endorsement letter identifies himself as senior pastor of Grace Community Church. "I have pastured in the 22nd District for 24 years. It is not often I endorse a candidate for office. I want to know if they represent my values. I have thoroughly discussed the issues of life, marriage and family with Shelley over the years."

A measure to create a new Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE), a panel of non-House members that would revise the House ethics process, has been delayed twice in a week. Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) has told House Democrats to expect a vote next week, but CQ ($$) suggests that such a plan "might be an overly optimistic goal." Many members oppose turning over House ethics investigations to outsiders. Possibly, if there is no vote on the outside ethics panel next week, it could be held until early April.

Last week the Supreme Court ordered that both sides in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission must file new briefs on whether the Court may hear the appeal. Citizens United is challenging the disclosure requirement for those funding "electioneering communications" (ads mentioning federal candidates 60 days before a general election or 30 days before a primary), as applied to ads for the group's film Hillary: The Movie. U.S. Solicitor General Paul Clement, representing the Federal Election Commission (FEC), asked the Court to dismiss the case or affirm the lower court's ruling .