Bill Text: NY S05980 | 2013-2014 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Requires the disclosure of the identity of certain entities making expenditures for political communications and provides penalties for failure to do so.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 6-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-06-04 - PRINT NUMBER 5980D [S05980 Detail]

Download: New_York-2013-S05980-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        5980--B
                              2013-2014 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                   November 6, 2013
                                      ___________
       Introduced  by Sens. GRIFFO, ADDABBO, AVELLA, ESPAILLAT, HOYLMAN, KRUEG-
         ER, LATIMER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to  be
         committed  to  the  Committee  on  Rules -- committee discharged, bill
         amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said  commit-
         tee  --  recommitted  to the Committee on Elections in accordance with
         Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill  amended,  ordered
         reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
       AN  ACT  to amend the election law, in relation to requiring the disclo-
         sure of the identity of certain entities making expenditures for poli-
         tical communications and providing penalties for failure to do so
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Section 14-100 of the election law is amended by adding a
    2  new subdivision 12 to read as follows:
    3    12. "POLITICAL COMMUNICATION" MEANS ANY  PRINT,  RADIO,  TELEVISED  OR
    4  INTERNET ADVERTISING, BROCHURE, FLYER, POSTER, MAILING OR OTHER COMMUNI-
    5  CATION THAT ADVOCATES FOR OR AGAINST A CANDIDATE, ELECTION, BALLOT MEAS-
    6  URE OR ISSUE.
    7    S  2.  The  election  law is amended by adding a new section 14-132 to
    8  read as follows:
    9    S 14-132. POLITICAL COMMUNICATION DISCLOSURE. 1. FOR THE  PURPOSES  OF
   10  THIS SECTION:
   11    A.  "POLITICAL  COMMUNICATION"  MEANS  ANY  PRINT, RADIO, TELEVISED OR
   12  INTERNET  ADVERTISING,  BROCHURE,  FLYER,  POSTER,  MAILING,  ELECTRONIC
   13  COMMUNICATION,  INCLUDING BY COMPUTER OR OTHER ELECTRONIC DEVICE INCLUD-
   14  ING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, ELECTRONIC  MAIL  OR  TEXT  MESSAGE,  OR  OTHER
   15  COMMUNICATION  THAT  EXPRESSLY  ADVOCATES  FOR OR AGAINST A CANDIDATE OR
   16  ADVOCATES FOR OR AGAINST A BALLOT MEASURE OR ISSUE.
   17    B. "EXPRESS ADVOCACY" MEANS A COMMUNICATION:
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD11774-05-4
       S. 5980--B                          2
    1    (1) THAT CONTAINS EXPRESS WORDS SUCH AS VOTE, OPPOSE, SUPPORT,  ELECT,
    2  DEFEAT, OR REJECT, WHICH CALL FOR THE ELECTION OR DEFEAT OF A CANDIDATE,
    3  OR
    4    (2)  WHEN  TAKEN AS A WHOLE WITH LIMITED REFERENCE OR EXTERNAL EVENTS,
    5  SUCH AS THE PROXIMITY TO THE ELECTION, COULD ONLY BE  INTERPRETED  BY  A
    6  REASONABLE  PERSON  AS  CONTAINING ADVOCACY OF THE ELECTION OR DEFEAT OF
    7  ONE OR MORE CLEARLY IDENTIFIED CANDIDATES BECAUSE:
    8    (A) THE ELECTORAL PORTION OF THE COMMUNICATION IS UNMISTAKABLE,  UNAM-
    9  BIGUOUS, AND SUGGESTIVE OF ONLY ONE MEANING; AND
   10    (B)  REASONABLE  MINDS  COULD  NOT  DIFFER AS TO WHETHER IT ENCOURAGES
   11  ACTIONS TO ELECT OR DEFEAT ONE OR MORE CLEARLY IDENTIFIED CANDIDATES  OR
   12  ENCOURAGES SOME OTHER KIND OF ACTION.
   13    C. "CLEARLY IDENTIFIED CANDIDATE" MEANS THAT:
   14    (1) THE NAME OF THE CANDIDATE INVOLVED APPEARS;
   15    (2) A PHOTOGRAPH OR DRAWING OF THE CANDIDATE APPEARS; OR
   16    (3)  THE  IDENTITY  OF THE CANDIDATE IS APPARENT BY UNAMBIGUOUS REFER-
   17  ENCE.
   18    2. ANY CANDIDATE OR POLITICAL COMMITTEE THAT MAKES AN EXPENDITURE  FOR
   19  A  POLITICAL  COMMUNICATION,  WHICH EXPRESSLY ADVOCATES FOR OR AGAINST A
   20  CLEARLY IDENTIFIED CANDIDATE OR ADVOCATES FOR OR AGAINST A BALLOT  MEAS-
   21  URE,  OR ISSUE, SHALL BE REQUIRED TO DISCLOSE THE IDENTITY OF THE CANDI-
   22  DATE OR POLITICAL COMMITTEE WHICH MADE THE EXPENDITURE ON SUCH POLITICAL
   23  COMMUNICATION.  THE  DISCLOSURE  ON  PRINTED  POLITICAL  COMMUNICATIONS,
   24  INCLUDING  BUT  NOT  LIMITED  TO  BROCHURES,  FLYERS, POSTERS, MAILINGS,
   25  INTERNET ADVERTISEMENTS, SHALL BE PRINTED OR  TYPED  IN  AN  APPROPRIATE
   26  LEGIBLE FORM TO READ AS FOLLOWS: "PAID FOR BY:"  FOLLOWED BY THE NAME OF
   27  THE POLITICAL COMMITTEE MAKING THE EXPENDITURE.
   28    3. THE DISCLOSURE ON NON-PRINTED POLITICAL COMMUNICATIONS SHALL CLEAR-
   29  LY  AND  PROMINENTLY DISPLAY OR SPEAK THE FOLLOWING STATEMENT: "PAID FOR
   30  BY:"  FOLLOWED BY THE NAME OF THE POLITICAL COMMITTEE MAKING THE EXPEND-
   31  ITURE.  IN THE CASE OF A POLITICAL COMMUNICATION  THAT  IS  NOT  VISUAL,
   32  SUCH  AS RADIO OR AUTOMATED TELEPHONE CALLS, CLEARLY SPEAKING THE STATE-
   33  MENT WILL SATISFY THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS SECTION.
   34    4. PROMOTIONAL ITEMS THAT SUPPORT A  PARTICULAR  CANDIDATE,  ELECTION,
   35  BALLOT  MEASURE  OR  ISSUE AND LIMIT THE CONTENT OF COMMUNICATION TO THE
   36  NAME, OFFICE AND BRIEF MESSAGE OF SUPPORT,  SHALL  BE  EXEMPT  FROM  THE
   37  PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION. PROMOTIONAL ITEMS SHALL BE ITEMS THAT ARE OF
   38  NOMINAL  VALUE AND ARE DISTRIBUTED TO SUPPORTERS IN AN EFFORT TO PROMOTE
   39  A PARTICULAR CANDIDATE, ELECTION, BALLOT MEASURE OR  ISSUE.  PROMOTIONAL
   40  ITEMS  INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO PENS, BUMPER STICKERS, YARD SIGNS,
   41  BUTTONS, SHIRTS, BAGS OR BALLOONS.
   42    5. ANY PERSON WHO FAILS TO  MAKE  A  DISCLOSURE  AS  REQUIRED  BY  THE
   43  PROVISIONS  OF  THIS SECTION SHALL BE SUBJECT TO A CIVIL PENALTY, NOT IN
   44  EXCESS OF ONE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR EACH VIOLATION, TO BE RECOVERABLE  IN
   45  A SPECIAL PROCEEDING OR CIVIL ACTION TO BE BROUGHT BY THE STATE BOARD OF
   46  ELECTIONS OR OTHER BOARD OF ELECTIONS.
   47    6.  ANY PERSON WHO VIOLATES THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION THREE TIMES
   48  UPON THE OCCURRENCE OF THE THIRD VIOLATION SHALL BE GUILTY OF  A  MISDE-
   49  MEANOR.
   50    S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.