Oregon Advisory Opinions February 21, 1966: OAG 66-26 (February 21, 1966)
Collection: Oregon Attorney General Opinions
Docket: OAG 66-26
Date: Feb. 21, 1966
Advisory Opinion Text
OAG 66-26.
Licensees of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission are not prohibited from purchasing advertising space in publications of political parties.
Administrator
Oregon Liquor Control Commission
You ask whether or not the provisions of ORS 471.420 and 472.310 (5) prohibit licensees of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission from purchasing commercial advertising space in magazines published and distributed in the State of Oregon by a political party.
The pertinent portions of ORS 471.420 provide:
"No licensee under the Liquor Control Act or any dealer in, manufacturer or distiller of intoxicating liquor shall make any monetary contribution * * * to any political party * * *." (Emphasis supplied)
A review of the legislative history of these provisions indicates a gradual liberalizing of political activities of licensees of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. See also Opinions of the Attorney General, 1950-1952, p. 278.
Prior to the last legislative change in 1959, ORS 471.420 read:
"No licensee under the Liquor Control Act or any dealer in, manufacturer or distiller of intoxicating liquor shall make any contribution to any candidate for political office or to any political party." (Emphasis supplied)
It is apparent that the 1959 legislature intended to liberalize the restriction formerly set forth in ORS 471.420 and 472.310 (5).
"Contribution" is defined by Webster's New International Dictionary, 2d ed., unabridged, as:
"3. That which is contributed; a sum or thing voluntarily contributed; the portion which an individual furnishes to the common stock, or the whole which is formed by the gifts of individuals * * *."
As can be seen, a "contribution" in its ordinary sense connotes a "gift" or "donation," rather than an amount paid for which a consideration is received. In the instant case, the licensee is paying money for advertising, which would not constitute a violation of the provision prohibiting "any monetary contribution" as long as the charges for such advertising were consistent with the usual charges in the advertising trade.
It is, therefore, my opinion that ORS 471.420 and 472.310 (5) do not prohibit licensees of the Oregon Liquor Control Commission from purchasing commercial advertising space in magazines published and distributed in the State of Oregon by a political party, so long as the sums paid for such advertising are consistent with the normal rates in the advertising field.