The Federal Election Commission has approved rules for how federal candidates, campaign committees and political action committees report large contributions packaged together by lobbyists. The requirements, which take effect next year, govern the practice of "bundling" - or raising political donations from business associates and friends. The practice of bundling funneled large amounts of money into this year's presidential campaigns. Under the new rules, candidates reporting bundled contributions to the FEC can divide the money among lobbyists, based on their knowledge of how much money each lobbyist raised. In addition, a contribution can be attributed to a lobbyist if there is written documentation or other evidence linking the lobbyist to the donation. Some campaign watchdogs said this means candidates and lobbyists could avoid disclosing donations by not having written records. Last year, President Bush signed the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA), which included a provision requiring candidates and political committees to report "bundling" activities if the amount bundled by a lobbyist reached $15,000 in six months, or sometimes over a shorter period. The new law had not taken effect because the FEC had not yet approved rules defining how the system would work. The commission -- which has three Democratic and three Republican members -- approved the new rules with a unanimous vote. For more details, visit the Federal Election Commission website at http://www.fec.gov/agenda/2008/mtg08-48.pdf.