Judge rules campaign disclosure law constitutional

HELENA (AP) — A federal judge has ruled Montana's requirement that political committees disclose their campaign spending is constitutional.

U.S. District Judge Dana Christensen sided with the state Tuesday in a new decision.

He wrote that the public's right to know who is financing political campaigns vastly outweighs the minimal burden imposed on committees required to report the information.

The case stems from a lawsuit filed last year by the National Association for Gun Rights.

The Virginia organization argued it wanted to send political mailings on gun issues without registering as a political committee. It argued the requirement was an unconstitutional restriction of speech.

The judge rejected the argument and sided with the state's request to dismiss the case.