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A federal appeals court on Monday struck down a Wisconsin law that set limits on contributions to groups that run independent political ads.

The appeal was brought by the political action committee of Wisconsin Right to Life, which earlier won a temporary injunction against enforcing the law during recall elections this year.

Monday's ruling by a three-judge panel of the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals makes the injunction permanent.

Wisconsin has long had a $10,000 limit on how much one could give each year to political action committees. But the panel said that law is not in keeping with the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling last year in the Citizens United case, which determined that corporations and unions can spend freely in elections.

"Citizens United held that independent expenditures do not pose a threat of actual or apparent quid pro quo corruption, which is the only governmental interest strong enough to justify restrictions on political speech," Judge Diane Sykes wrote for the panel.

"Accordingly, applying the $10,000 aggregate annual cap to contributions made to organizations engaged only in independent spending for political speech violates the First Amendment."

Barbara Lyons, Wisconsin Right to Life's executive director, called Monday's ruling a victory "in the areas of free speech and election law."

But the ruling may have little practical effect, campaign finance observers said.

In response to Citizens United, state election officials even before Monday's ruling allowed groups to set up separate accounts that can accept unlimited donations from individuals, noted Mike Wittenwyler, an election law attorney. With Monday's decision, Wisconsin Right to Life and other groups will be allowed to receive unlimited donations through their political action committees, rather than having to set up separate accounts.

Mike McCabe, director of election finance watchdog Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, said groups already had a number of ways to accept unrestricted donations, and Monday's decision gives them one more avenue to do that.

"I don't think very many people in our state will notice a difference," he said. "I think the practical result will be candidates will matter a little bit less and special interests will matter a little bit more."

Cap for candidates stays

The state also has a $10,000 limit on how much individuals can give to candidates for office, but Monday's decision has no effect on that cap. The decision also does not apply to political action committees that take donors' money and then give it to candidates.

Wisconsin Right to Life was one of several groups to sue last year over new state campaign finance regulations. In all, three suits were filed - one in federal court in Madison, one in federal court in Milwaukee and one in the state Supreme Court.

The cases centered on new rules by the state Government Accountability Board that required groups that praised or criticized political candidates at election time to disclose their donors and their spending. The board stopped enforcing parts of the rule in response to the lawsuits.

Wisconsin Right to Life's suit, in federal court in Milwaukee, went further than the other two cases by raising issues such as contributions to political action committees.