CALIFORNIA IN BRIEF : SACRAMENTO : Campaign Funds to Lawmakers Slacken

Legislators raised $24.4 million last year for their reelection campaigns, marking the first time in memory the flow of money into lawmakers’ war chests has slowed, California Common Cause reported Friday. The figure, culled from campaign reports submitted to the secretary of state, is 13% lower than in 1987, the last year in which there was no election. The 1989 figure compares to $27.4 million in 1987, the all-time high for off-year fund-raising. Most campaign funds are raised during election years. Common Cause spokeswomen were reluctant to credit the decrease to Proposition 73, a 1988 ballot measure that overhauled the state’s campaign finance laws. Among other things, Proposition 73 set limits on contributions for the first time.