Democrats, NRA said to agree on campaign bill

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Democrats in the House of Representatives have reached an agreement with the National Rifle Association, one of the most powerful lobbying groups on Capitol Hill, on legislation to provide greater disclosure of campaign financing, senior party aides said on Monday.

The accord may clear the way for the House to pass the bill as early as this week, though it remains uncertain if or when the Senate would provide its needed concurrence, aides said.

Under the agreement, the four-million member NRA and some other large organizations would not have to disclose their top contributors on its campaign ads, aides said.

They would, however, still have to put their own names on any of their campaign ads, Craig Holman of Congress Watch said after being briefed by congressional negotiators.

"We still get to know what we need to know: the wealthy entities funding campaign ads," said Holman. His organization along with other citizen watchdog groups back the accord and are therefore supportive of the overall legislation.

But the bill still faces opposition from another major lobbying group, the Chamber of Commerce. With more than three million business members, the chamber would not be exempted from disclosing its top contributors.

Bruce Josten, the chamber's executive vice president, called the legislation a "one-sided muzzling of business and hobbling of business' representative organizations."

The AFL-CIO, the U.S.'s biggest labor federation with more than 11 million members, also would not be exempted and has not staked out a position on the bill, a spokesman said.

Chris Van Hollen, head of the House Democratic Campaign Committee, offered the overall bill to blunt the impact of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling this year that allows corporations, unions and other groups to spend unlimited funds on campaigns.

Van Hollen's measure, backed by the White House, would require unprecedented disclosure of money in politics.

The NRA had opposed some of the disclosure requirements and that resulted in a number of pro-gun House Democrats withholding their support, placing the bill in jeopardy.

The NRA will not oppose the revised measure, Democratic aides said.

The proposed exemption on disclosing contributors would only apply to groups that have at least one million members, are at least 10 years old and receive less 15 percent or less of its funds from corporations, aides said.