Kansas lawmakers want to boost their campaign contribution limits to keep pace with a boom in outside election ads.
The House Elections Committee unanimously endorsed a bill last week that would at least double contribution limits to campaigns for state offices. Lawmakers from both major parties said the move is necessary after an election cycle in which outside groups vastly outspent official campaigns.
Democratic Rep. Tom Sawyer of Wichita says both sides are scared of the rising influence of special interest groups that now have the power to swing elections with their ad spending.
The boom in outside money followed a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that allowed for unlimited campaign spending by special interests, some of which are not required to disclose their donors.