At its May 13 meeting the Federal Election Commission (FEC) approved a General Counsel recommendation to defer action on its political committee rulemaking for 90 days. The General Counsel said the FEC needed time to give the complex issues in the case more thorough consideration, saying "It is just as important not to drop the issue as to get it right." The move makes it unlikely any new rules will take effect this year. In response the House Administration Committee has scheduled a hearing for May 20. The action followed rejection of a proposal from Commissioners Michael Toner and Scott Thomas, who advocated for quick action that would have subjected most 527 organizations (groups exempt from federal income tax whose primary purpose is to influence elections) to FEC rules. Everything from political parties and candidate campaigns to local ballot measure campaigns are included in this category. Although their proposal did not specifically exempt 501(c) organizations from regulation, they made it clear that they intended to do so and would be willing to amend their proposal accordingly. The Commission rejected this approach because two major elements of the Toner-Thomas proposal are undefined: what constitutes a "major purpose" to influence federal elections, and what communications "promote, support, attack or oppose" a federal candidate. The FEC's decision not to drop the rulemaking means that they will come back in mid-August likely to adopt one of three options outlined by the General Counsel &#8212 issue a final rule, make a new proposal and seek public comment, or defer action and seek guidance from Congress. The ruling allows Democratic leaning political committees like Americans Coming Together and the Media Fund to continue their operations. Within days of the FEC meeting Republican leaning groups, such as the Club for Growth, said they would begin raising funds. Shortly after the FEC meeting ended, Rep. Robert Ney (R-OH), chair of the House Administration Committee, announced an oversight hearing for May 20. In a press release Ney said he wants the FEC Commissioners to explain their action and expressed concern about the growing activity of 527 organizations. More details are at nonprofitadvocacy.org.