On June 30, the 10th circuit affirmed last year’s U.S. District Court decision in New Mexico Youth Organized v Herrera, 09-2212.  The 19-page decision is here.  Two organizations, New Mexico Youth Organized, and Southwest Organizing Project, sent out direct mail in the spring of 2008, criticizing two New Mexico State Senators for their votes on certain bills in the legislature.  The two Senators complained to the Secretary of State that the two organizations had never filed as political committees.  The Secretary of State initially said the law didn’t require the organizations to do that.

The New Mexico Attorney General had then advised the Secretary of State that the two organizations should be told that they must register as political committees.  This would have meant that they had to file the names and addresses of their officers, and make periodic reports of expenditures and contributions.  Both the U.S. District Court and the 10th circuit ruled that states do not have the authority to regulate groups that way, because the groups did not explicitly tell voters to vote against the State Senators, nor to vote for the opponents of those State Senators.  Furthermore the organizations were not formed specifically to influence voters to vote in a certain manner.  Thanks to Rick Hasen for the news.