BILL ANALYSIS Ó AB 510 Page 1 CONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS AB 510 (Ammiano) As Amended May 28, 2014 2/3 vote ----------------------------------------------------------------- |ASSEMBLY: |58-16|(January 30, |SENATE: |27-9 |(August 18, | | | |2014) | | |2014) | ----------------------------------------------------------------- Original Committee Reference: E. & R. SUMMARY : Requires an advertisement relating to a ballot measure to include a specified disclaimer if it includes an appearance by an individual who is paid to appear in the advertisement and it communicates that the individual is a member of an occupation that requires licensure or specialized training. Specifically, this bill : 1)Requires a committee that makes an expenditure of any amount to an individual for his or her appearance in an advertisement that supports or opposes the qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot measure, and that states or suggests that the individual is a member of an occupation that requires licensure, certification, or other specialized documented training as a prerequisite to engage in that occupation, to do both of the following: a) File a report within 10 days of the expenditure identifying the measure, date of the expenditure, name and occupation of the recipient, and amount expended; and, b) Include the following statement in the advertisement in highly visible roman font shown continuously if the advertisement consists of printed or televised material, or spoken in a clearly audible format if the advertisement is a radio broadcast or telephone message: Persons portraying members of an occupation in this advertisement are compensated spokespersons not necessarily employed in those occupations. 2)Permits a committee to omit the statement detailed above in an advertisement if the occupation of the individual who is being paid to appear in the advertisement is substantially similar AB 510 Page 2 to the occupation portrayed in the advertisement and the committee maintains credible documentation of the license, certification, or other training that permits the individual to engage in the occupation portrayed in the advertisement and provides it to the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) upon request. The Senate amendments delete a requirement that a committee must obtain a waiver from the FPPC in order to omit the disclosure statement required by this bill, and instead permit a committee to omit that statement as long as the committee maintains documentation that the occupation of the individual who is being paid to appear in the advertisement is substantially similar to the occupation portrayed in the advertisement. FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Senate Appropriations Committee, pursuant to Senate Rule 28.8, negligible state costs. COMMENTS : According to the author, "Campaign commercials use the professional status of commercial participants as spokespersons in an attempt to sway the opinion of the voters by giving the viewer the impression that professionals in that field may be better informed than they. These spokespersons, be they doctors, engineers, or other professionals are often compensated by the campaign for their participation in the commercial with the audience left knowing no better." In 2000, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed SB 1223 (Burton), Chapter 102, which became Proposition 34 on the November 2000 General Election ballot. One of the provisions of Proposition 34 established new reporting and disclaimer requirements for ballot measure advertisements that featured paid spokespeople. Those requirements apply only when a committee makes an expenditure of $5,000 or more to the individual appearing in the advertisement. Additionally, any entity that qualifies as a "committee" under the Political Reform Act (PRA) is required to itemize all expenditures of $100 or more on periodic campaign disclosure reports. To the extent that a committee paid a spokesperson $100 or more to appear in an advertisement supporting or opposing a ballot measure, that information is already required to be reported on the committee's campaign disclosure statements. The primary difference between the existing "paid spokesperson" requirement and this bill is that this bill's reporting and AB 510 Page 3 disclaimer requirements apply if a person was paid any amount of money, but only if the advertisement suggested or stated that the person who was being paid is a member of an occupation that requires licensure, certification, or other specialized, documented training as a prerequisite to engage in that occupation. The author argues that this bill's reporting and disclosure requirements are important to ensure that voters are not mislead into thinking that the opinions of paid spokespersons are those of a licensed professional. California voters passed an initiative, Proposition 9 of 1974, that created the FPPC and codified significant restrictions and prohibitions on candidates, officeholders and lobbyists. That initiative is commonly known as the PRA. Amendments to the PRA that are not submitted to the voters, such as those contained in this bill, must further the purposes of the initiative and require a two-thirds vote of both houses of the Legislature. The disclaimer created by this bill is not required to be included in an advertisement related to a ballot measure if the person who appears in the advertisement actually engages in the occupation that is represented in the advertisement. As approved by the Assembly, this bill would have required the committee to seek and obtain a waiver from the FPPC in order to omit the disclaimer. The Senate amendments delete the requirement to obtain a waiver, and instead require the committee to maintain documentation that the person in the advertisement is permitted to engage in the occupation represented, and to make that documentation available to the FPPC upon request so that the FPPC can verify compliance with this bill. This bill, as amended in the Senate, is consistent with Assembly actions. Please see the policy committee analysis for a full discussion of this bill. Analysis Prepared by : Ethan Jones / E. & R. / (916) 319-2094 FN: 0004174 AB 510 Page 4