Amended in Assembly January 14, 2016

Amended in Assembly January 12, 2016

Amended in Assembly January 7, 2016

Amended in Assembly May 21, 2015

Amended in Assembly April 14, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 700


Introduced by Assembly Members Gomez and Levine

February 25, 2015


An act to amend Sectionsbegin delete 82025, 84305, 84310,end delete 84501, 84505,begin delete 84511, and 85704end deletebegin insert and 84511end insert of, to add Sections 84504.1, 84504.2, and 84504.3 to, to repeal Sections 84506, 84507, and 84508 of, and to repeal and add Sections 84502, 84503, 84504, and 84509 of, the Government Code, relating to the Political Reform Act of 1974begin delete and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediatelyend delete.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 700, as amended, Gomez. Political Reform Act of 1974: advertisement disclosures.

(1) Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing and activities. The act requires a committee that supports or opposes ballot measures to name and identify itself using a name or phrase the clearly identifies the economic or other special interests of its major donors of $50,000 or more. The act also requires that if the major donors share a common employer, the identity of the employer be disclosed.

This bill would repeal these provisions.

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(2) The act defines the term “expenditure” as a payment, a forgiveness of a loan, a payment of a loan by a third party, or an enforceable promise to make a payment, unless it is clear from the surrounding circumstances that it is not made for political purposes.

end delete
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This bill would specify additional types of payments that are or are not included in the definition of expenditure. The bill would also define terms used within those provisions, including “clearly identified” and “expressly advocates.”

end delete
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(3) The act prohibits a candidate, committee, or slate mailer organization from expending campaign funds to pay for specified telephone calls that advocate support of, or opposition to, a candidate, ballot measure, or both, unless the name of the organization that authorized or paid for the call is disclosed to the recipient of the call during the course of each call.

end delete
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This bill would instead make these requirements applicable to a candidate, a candidate controlled committee established for elective office for the controlling candidate, a political party committee, and a slate mailer organization that expends campaign funds to pay for such telephone calls.

end delete
begin delete

(4)

end delete

begin insert(2)end insert The act also requires advertisements, as defined, to include prescribed disclosure statements, including, among others, a requirement that the disclosure statement include the names of the persons who made the 2 highest cumulative contributions, as defined, to the committee paying for the advertisement.

This bill would repeal and recast provisions of the act relating to advertisement disclosure statements. Among those changes, this bill would revise the definition of “advertisement” to exclude a number of communications, including communications paid for by a political party committee or person who is not a committee, and communications that involve wearing apparel, sky writing, and certain electronic media communications, as specified. The bill would also replace existing advertisement disclosure statements with newly prescribed disclosure statements that identify the name of the committee paying for the advertisement and the top contributors of the committee paying for the advertisement. The bill would define “top contributors” for purposes of these provisions as the persons from whom the committee paying for the advertisement received its 3 highest cumulative contributions, as specified. The bill would exempt certain committees, including committees that make independent expenditures totaling $1,000 or more in a calendar year, from the requirement to disclose the top contributors in advertisement disclosure statements. The bill would also prescribe location and format criteria for the disclosure statements that is specific to radio and telephone, television and video, print, and electronic media advertisements.

begin delete

(5) The act prohibits a person from making a contribution as an intermediary on behalf of another person without disclosing to the recipient of the contribution specified information about both the intermediary and the source of the contribution. The act also prohibits a person from making a contribution to a committee on the condition or with the agreement that it will be contributed to a particular candidate unless the contribution is disclosed in compliance with those requirements for contributions made by an intermediary.

end delete
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This bill would revise the latter provision to prohibit a person from making a contribution to a committee or candidate that is earmarked for a contribution to another committee or candidate, unless the contribution is disclosed in compliance with the requirements for contributions made by an intermediary. The bill would also describe circumstances in which a contribution is deemed to be earmarked.

end delete
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(6)

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begin insert(3)end insert Because a violation of the act is punishable as a misdemeanor, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

begin delete

(7)

end delete

begin insert(4)end insert The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a 23 vote of each house and compliance with specified procedural requirements.

This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.

begin delete

(8) This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

end delete

Vote: 23. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

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P4    1

SECTION 1.  

Section 82025 of the Government Code is
2amended to read:

3

82025.  

(a) “Expenditure” means a payment, a forgiveness of
4a loan, a payment of a loan by a third party, or an enforceable
5promise to make a payment, unless it is clear from the surrounding
6circumstances that it is not made for political purposes.
7“Expenditure” does not include a candidate’s use of his or her own
8money to pay for either a filing fee for a declaration of candidacy
9or a candidate statement prepared pursuant to Section 13307 of
10the Elections Code. An expenditure is made on the date the
11payment is made or on the date consideration, if any, is received,
12whichever is earlier. A payment is made for political purposes if
13it is any of the following:

14(1) For the purpose of influencing or attempting to influence
15the action of the voters for or against the nomination or election
16of a candidate or candidates, or the qualification or passage of any
17measure.

18(2) Made by:

19(A) A candidate, unless it is clear from surrounding
20circumstances that the payment was made for personal purposes
21unrelated to his or her candidacy or status as an officeholder.

22(B) A controlled committee.

23(C) An official committee of a political party, including a state
24central committee, county central committee, assembly district
25committee, or any subcommittee of such committee.

26(D) An organization formed or existing primarily for political
27purposes as defined in paragraph (1), including, but not limited
28to, a committee sponsored by any membership organization, labor
29union, or corporation.

30(b) “Expenditure” includes any monetary or non-monetary
31payment made by any person, who is not a person or organization
32described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a), that is used for
33communications which expressly advocate the nomination,
34election, or defeat of a clearly identified candidate or candidates,
35or the qualification, passage, or defeat of a clearly identified ballot
36measure.

37(c) “Clearly identified” has the following meaning:

P5    1(1)  A candidate is clearly identified if the communication states
2his name, makes unambiguous reference to his office or status as
3a candidate, or unambiguously describes him in any manner.

4(2) A group of candidates is clearly identified if the
5communication makes unambiguous reference to some
6well-defined characteristic of the group, even if the communication
7does not name each candidate. A communication that clearly
8identifies a group of candidates and expressly advocates their
9election or defeat is reportable as an expenditure, but the
10expenditure need not be allocated among all members of the class
11or group on the campaign statement reporting the expenditure.

12(3) A measure that has qualified to be placed on the ballot is
13clearly identified if the communication states a proposition number,
14official title, or popular name associated with the measure. In
15addition, the measure is clearly identified if the communication
16refers to the subject matter of the measure and either states that
17the measure is before the people for a vote or, taken as a whole
18and in context, unambiguously refers to the measure.

19(4) A measure that has not qualified to be placed on the ballot
20is clearly identified if the communication refers to the subject
21matter of the measure and to the qualification drive.

22(d) A communication “expressly advocates” the nomination,
23election, or defeat of a candidate or the qualification, passage, or
24defeat of a measure if it contains express words of advocacy such
25as “vote for,” “elect,” “support,” “cast your ballot,” “vote against,”
26“defeat,” “reject,” “sign petitions for” or, within 120 days prior to
27an election in which the candidate or measure appears on the ballot,
28the communication otherwise refers to a clearly identified candidate
29or measure so that the communication, taken as a whole,
30unambiguously urges a particular result in an election.

31(1) Except for those communications paid for with public monies
32by a state or local government agency and reported as specified
33by the Commission, a communication, taken as a whole,
34unambiguously urges a particular result in an election if it is
35susceptible of no reasonable interpretation other than as an appeal
36to vote for or against a specific candidate or measure. A
37communication is susceptible of no reasonable interpretation other
38than as an appeal to vote for or against a specific candidate or
39 measure when, taken as a whole, it could only be interpreted by a
P6    1reasonable person as containing an appeal to vote for or against a
2specific candidate or measure because:

3(A) The electoral portion of the communication is unmistakable,
4unambiguous, and suggestive of only one meaning; and

5(B) Reasonable minds could not differ as to whether it
6encourages a vote for or against a clearly identified candidate or
7measure, or encourages some other kind of action on a legislative,
8executive, or judicial matter or issue, or

9(C) The solicitation of funds for the communication
10demonstrates a clear intent for the communication to encourage a
11vote for or against a clearly identified candidate or measure.

12(e) Safe Harbor. A communication does not “expressly
13advocate” the nomination, election, or defeat of a candidate or the
14qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot measure, within the
15meaning of this section, if:

16(1) It does not mention an election, candidacy, political party
17(unless required by law), opposing candidate, voting by the general
18public, and does not take a position on the character, qualifications,
19or fitness for office of a candidate or officeholder, or the merits of
20a ballot measure; and

21(2) It focuses on a legislative, executive, or judicial matter or
22issue, either urging a candidate to take a particular position or
23action with respect to the matter or issue, or urging the public to
24adopt a particular position and to contact the candidate with respect
25to the matter or issue.

26

SEC. 2.  

Section 84305 of the Government Code is amended
27to read:

28

84305.  

(a) Except as provided in subdivision (b), no candidate,
29candidate controlled committee established for elective office for
30the controlling candidate, political party committee, or committee
31shall send a mass mailing unless the name, street address, and city
32of the candidate or committee are shown on the outside of each
33piece of mail in the mass mailing and on at least one of the inserts
34included within each piece of mail of the mailing in no less than
356-point type which shall be in a color or print which contrasts with
36the background so as to be easily legible. A post office box may
37be stated in lieu of a street address if the candidate’s, controlled
38committee’s, political party committee’s, or committee’s address
39is a matter of public record with the Secretary of State.

P7    1(b) If the sender of the mass mailing is a single candidate or
2committee, the name, street address, and city of the candidate or
3committee need only be shown on the outside of each piece of
4mail.

5(c) If the sender of a mass mailing is a controlled committee,
6the name of the person controlling the committee shall be included
7in addition to the information required by subdivision (a).

8

SEC. 3.  

Section 84310 of the Government Code is amended
9to read:

10

84310.  

(a) A candidate, candidate controlled committee
11established for elective office for the controlling candidate, political
12party committee, or slate mailer organization may not expend
13campaign funds, directly or indirectly, to pay for telephone calls
14that are similar in nature and aggregate 500 or more in number,
15made by an individual, or individuals, or by electronic means and
16that advocate support of, or opposition to, a candidate, ballot
17measure, or both, unless during the course of each call the name
18of the candidate, candidate controlled committee established for
19elective office for the controlling candidate, political party
20committee, committee or slate mailer organization that authorized
21or paid for the call is disclosed to the recipient of the call. Unless
22the organization that authorized the call and in whose name it is
23placed has filing obligations under this title, and the name
24announced in the call either is the full name by which the
25organization or individual is identified in any statement or report
26required to be filed under this title or is the name by which the
27organization or individual is commonly known, the candidate,
28committee, or slate mailer organization that paid for the call shall
29be disclosed. This section shall not apply to telephone calls made
30by the candidate, the campaign manager, or individuals who are
31volunteers.

32(b) Campaign and ballot measure committees are prohibited
33from contracting with any phone bank vendor that does not disclose
34the information required to be disclosed by subdivision (a).

35(c) A candidate, committee, or slate mailer organization that
36pays for telephone calls as described in subdivision (a) shall
37maintain a record of the script of the call for the period of time set
38forth in Section 84104. If any of the calls qualifying under
39subdivision (a) were recorded messages, a copy of the recording
40shall be maintained for that period.

end delete
P8    1

begin deleteSEC. 4.end delete
2begin insertSECTION 1.end insert  

Section 84501 of the Government Code is
3amended to read:

4

84501.  

For purposes of this article the following terms have
5the following meanings:

6(a) (1) “Advertisement” means any general or public
7communication which is authorized and paid for by a committee
8for the purpose of supporting or opposing a candidate or candidates
9for elective office or a ballot measure or ballot measures.

10(2) “Advertisement” does not include any of the following:

11(A) A communication paid for by a political party committee
12or a candidate controlled committee established for elective office
13for the controlling candidate.

14(B) A communication from an organization, other than a political
15party, to its members.

16(C) A campaign button smaller than 10 inches in diameter; a
17bumper sticker smaller than 60 square inches; or a small tangible
18promotional item, such as a pen, pin, or key chain, upon which the
19disclosures required by this article cannot be conveniently printed
20or displayed.

21(D) Wearing apparel.

22(E) Sky writing.

23(F) An electronic media communication where inclusion of the
24disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, or 84506.5, is
25impracticable or would severely interfere with the committee’s
26ability to convey the intended message because of the nature of
27the technology used to make the communication.

28(G) Any other advertisement as determined by regulations of
29the Commission.

30(b) “Cumulative contributions” means the cumulative amount
31of contributions received by a committee beginning 12 months
32prior to the date of the expenditure and ending seven days before
33the time the advertisement is sent to the printer or broadcaster.

34(c) (1) “Top contributors” means the persons from whom the
35committee paying for an advertisement has received its three
36highest cumulative contributions of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000)
37or more.

38(2) If two or more contributors of identical amounts qualify as
39top contributors, the most recent contributor of that amount shall
P9    1be listed as the top contributor in any disclosure required by Section
284503.

3(3) If a contributor appears to qualify as a top contributor but
4received earmarked funds to make the contribution, the person or
5committee that earmarked the funds and gave those funds to the
6contributor shall instead be disclosed as the top contributor if they
7qualified as such. The person or committee transferring earmarked
8funds shall disclose the true source of the funds to the committee
9 receiving the earmarked funds at the time the funds are transferred.
10Funds are “earmarked” in the following circumstances:

11(A) The contributor solicited and received the funds from donors
12for the purpose of making a contribution to the committee paying
13for the advertisement.

14(B) The funds were given to the contributor subject to a
15condition, agreement, or understanding with the donor that all or
16a portion would be used to make a contribution to the committee
17paying for the advertisement, including any circumstance where
18the donor identifies the committee as a potential recipient of the
19contribution and the committee in fact receives all or a portion of
20the donor’s contribution.

21(C) The contributor had existing funds from a donor and a
22subsequent agreement or understanding was reached with the donor
23that all or a portion of the funds would be used to contribute to the
24committee paying for the advertisement, including any
25circumstance where the donor identifies the committee as a
26potential recipient of the contribution and the committee in fact
27receives all or a portion of the donor's contribution.

28

begin deleteSEC. 5.end delete
29begin insertSEC. 2.end insert  

Section 84502 of the Government Code is repealed.

30

begin deleteSEC. 6.end delete
31begin insertSEC. 3.end insert  

Section 84502 is added to the Government Code, to
32read:

33

84502.  

(a) Any advertisement paid for by a committee pursuant
34to subdivision (a) of Section 82013 shall include the words “Paid
35for by” followed by the name of the committee as it appears on
36the most recent Statement of Organization filed pursuant to Section
3784101.

38(b) Any advertisement paid for by a committee as defined by
39subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 82013 shall include the words
40“Paid for by” followed by the name that the filer is required to use
P10   1on campaign statements pursuant to subdivision (o) of Section
284211.

3

begin deleteSEC. 7.end delete
4begin insertSEC. 4.end insert  

Section 84503 of the Government Code is repealed.

5

begin deleteSEC. 8.end delete
6begin insertSEC. 5.end insert  

Section 84503 is added to the Government Code, to
7read:

8

84503.  

(a) Any advertisement paid for by a committee pursuant
9to subdivision (a) of Section 82013 shall include the words “This
10committee has major funding from” followed by the names of the
11top contributors to the committee paying for the advertisement. If
12fewer than three contributors qualify as top contributors, only those
13contributors that qualify shall be disclosed pursuant to this section.
14If there are no contributors that qualify as top contributors, this
15disclosure is not required. If the content of the advertisement names
16each of the top contributors as major funding sources of the
17committee, this disclosure is not required.

18(b) The disclosure of a top contributor pursuant to this section
19need not include legal terms such as “incorporated,” “committee,”
20“political action committee,” or “corporation,” or abbreviations
21of these terms, unless the term is part of the contributor’s name in
22common usage or parlance.

23(c) If this article requires the disclosure of the name of a top
24contributor that is a committee pursuant to subdivision (a) of
25Section 82013 and is a sponsored committee pursuant to 82048.7
26with a single sponsor, only the name of the single sponsoring
27organization shall be disclosed.

28(d) This section does not apply to a committee as defined by
29subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 82013 or a political party
30committee.

31

begin deleteSEC. 9.end delete
32begin insertSEC. 6.end insert  

Section 84504 of the Government Code is repealed.

33

begin deleteSEC. 10.end delete
34begin insertSEC. 7.end insert  

Section 84504 is added to the Government Code, to
35read:

36

84504.  

(a) An advertisement that is disseminated over the
37radio or by telephonic means shall include the disclosures required
38by Sections 84502, 84503, and 84506.5 at the beginning or end of
39the advertisement, read in a clearly spoken manner and in a pitch
P11   1and tone substantially similar to the rest of the advertisement, and
2shall last no less than three seconds.

3(b) Notwithstanding the definition of “top contributors” in
4paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 84501, radio and
5prerecorded telephonic advertisements shall be required to disclose
6only the single top contributor of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000)
7or more.

8

begin deleteSEC. 11.end delete
9begin insertSEC. 8.end insert  

Section 84504.1 is added to the Government Code, to
10read:

11

84504.1.  

(a) An advertisement that is disseminated as a video,
12including advertisements on television and videos disseminated
13over the Internet, shall include the disclosures required by Sections
1484502 and 84503 at the beginning or end of the advertisement.

15(b) The disclosure required by subdivision (a) shall be written
16and displayed for at least five seconds of a broadcast of thirty
17seconds or less or for at least ten seconds of a broadcast that lasts
18longer than thirty seconds.

19(1) The written disclosure required by subdivision (a) shall
20appear on a solid black background on the entire bottom one-third
21of the television or video display screen and shall be in a
22contrasting color in Arial equivalent type, and the type size for the
23tallest letters in the written disclosure shall be exactly 4 percent
24of the height of the television or video display screen. The top
25contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a separate horizontal
26line, in descending order, beginning with the top contributor who
27made the largest cumulative contributions on the first line. The
28name of each of the top contributors shall be centered horizontally.
29If the names of the top three contributors exceed or cause the
30disclosure to exceed one-third of the television or video display
31screen, the percent of the height of the type size shall be reduced
32to the minimum amount necessary to provide for full disclosure
33of the top contributors. The written disclosures required by Sections
3484502 and 84503 shall be underlined, except for the names of the
35top contributors, if any.

36(2) Committees subject to Section 84223 shall include the text
37“Funding Details At [insert Commission Internet Web site with
38information required to be posted by subdivision (c) of Section
3984223].” The text shall be in contrasting color in Arial equivalent
P12   1type and the type size shall be equivalent to at least 2.5 percent of
2the height of the television or video display screen.

3(3) If using a type size of 4 percent of the height of the television
4or video display screen causes the name of any of the top
5contributors to exceed the width of the screen, the type sizes of
6the name of the contributor that exceeds the width of the screen
7shall be reduced until it fits on the width of the screen, but in no
8case shall the type size be smaller than 2.5 percent of the height
9of the screen.

10

begin deleteSEC. 12.end delete
11begin insertSEC. 9.end insert  

Section 84504.2 is added to the Government Code, to
12read:

13

84504.2.  

(a) A print advertisement shall include the disclosures
14required by Sections 84502, 84503, and 84506.5, displayed as
15follows:

16(1) The disclosure area shall have a solid white background and
17shall be in a printed or drawn box on the bottom of at least one
18page that is set apart from any other printed matter. All text in the
19disclosure area shall be in contrasting color.

20(2) The text shall be in an Arial equivalent type with a type size
21of at least 10-point for printed advertisements designed to be
22individually distributed, including, but not limited to, mailers,
23flyers, and door hangers.

24(3) The top contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a
25separate horizontal line, in descending order, beginning with the
26top contributor who made the largest cumulative contributions on
27the first line. The name of each of the top contributors shall be
28centered horizontally in the disclosure area.

29(4) Immediately below the text described in paragraph (3),
30committees subject to Section 84223 shall include the text
31“Funding Details At [insert Commission Internet Web site with
32information required to be posted by subdivision (c) of Section
3384223].” The text shall be in an Arial equivalent type with a type
34size of at least 10-point for printed advertisements designed to be
35individually distributed, including but not limited to mailers, flyers
36and door hangers.

37(b) Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (4) of subdivision (a),
38the disclosure on a printed advertisement that is larger than those
39designed to be individually distributed, including, but not limited
40to, yard signs or billboards, shall be in Arial equivalent type with
P13   1a type size of at least 10 percent of the height of the advertisement,
2and printed on a solid background with sufficient contrast that is
3easily readable by the average person.

4(c) Notwithstanding the definition of “top contributors” in
5paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 84501, newspaper,
6magazine, or other public print advertisements that are 20 square
7inches or less shall be required to disclose only the single top
8contributor of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more.

9

begin deleteSEC. 13.end delete
10begin insertSEC. 10.end insert  

Section 84504.3 is added to the Government Code,
11to read:

12

84504.3.  

(a) An electronic media advertisement shall do all
13of the following:

14(1) Contain the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503,
15and 84506.5 in a type size and font that is easily readable by the
16average viewer, visible for a period of at least four seconds and
17contrasts with the background so as to be easily readable by the
18average person, unless impractical.

19(2) Hyperlink to an Internet Web site containing the text required
20by paragraph (1).

21(b) An Internet Web site that is hyperlinked to as provided for
22in paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) shall remain online and available
23to the public until 30 days after the date of the election where the
24candidate or measure supported or opposed by the advertisement
25was voted upon.

26(c) An advertisement made via a form of electronic media that
27is audio only and therefore cannot include either of the disclaimers
28in subdivision (a) shall comply with the disclaimer requirements
29for radio advertisements in Section 84504.

30(d) An advertisement made via a form of electronic media that
31allows users to engage in discourse and post content, or any other
32type of social media, shall only be required to include the
33disclaimer required by subdivision (a) on the committee’s home
34page, landing page, or similar location and shall not be required
35to include the disclaimer required by subdivision (a) on each
36individual post, comment, or other similar communication.

37(e) The disclaimer required by this section does not apply to
38advertisements made via social media where the only expense or
39cost of the communication is compensated staff time unless the
P14   1social media account where the content is posted was created only
2for the purpose of advertisements governed by this title.

3

begin deleteSEC. 14.end delete
4begin insertSEC. 11.end insert  

Section 84505 of the Government Code is amended
5to read:

6

84505.  

(a) In addition to the requirements of Sections 84502,
784503, and 84506.5, the committee placing the advertisement or
8persons acting in concert with that committee shall be prohibited
9from creating or using a noncandidate-controlled committee or a
10nonsponsored committee to avoid, or that results in the avoidance
11of, the disclosure of any individual, industry, business entity,
12controlled committee, or sponsored committee as a top contributor.

13(b) Written disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, and
1484506.5 shall not appear in all capital letters provided, however,
15capital letters shall be permitted for the beginning of a sentence,
16the beginning of a proper name or location, or as otherwise required
17by conventions of the English language.

18

begin deleteSEC. 15.end delete
19begin insertSEC. 12.end insert  

Section 84506 of the Government Code is repealed.

20

begin deleteSEC. 16.end delete
21begin insertSEC. 13.end insert  

Section 84507 of the Government Code is repealed.

22

begin deleteSEC. 17.end delete
23begin insertSEC. 14.end insert  

Section 84508 of the Government Code is repealed.

24

begin deleteSEC. 18.end delete
25begin insertSEC. 15.end insert  

Section 84509 of the Government Code is repealed.

26

begin deleteSEC. 19.end delete
27begin insertSEC. 16.end insert  

Section 84509 is added to the Government Code, to
28read:

29

84509.  

If the order of top contributors required to be disclosed
30pursuant to this article changes or a new contributor qualifies as
31a top contributor, the disclosure in the advertisement shall be
32updated as follows:

33(a) A television, radio, telephone, electronic billboard, or other
34electronic media advertisement shall be updated to reflect the new
35top contributors within seven business days, or five business days
36if the change in top contributors occurs within 30 days of an
37election.

38(b) A print media advertisement, including nonelectronic
39billboards, shall be updated to reflect the new top contributors
P15   1prior to placing a new or modified order for additional printing of
2the advertisement.

3

begin deleteSEC. 20.end delete
4begin insertSEC. 17.end insert  

Section 84511 of the Government Code is amended
5to read:

6

84511.  

(a) This section applies to a committee that does either
7of the following:

8(1) Makes an expenditure of five thousand dollars ($5,000) or
9more to an individual for his or her appearance in an advertisement
10that supports or opposes the qualification, passage, or defeat of a
11ballot measure.

12(2) Makes an expenditure of any amount to an individual for
13his or her appearance in an advertisement that supports or opposes
14the qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot measure and that
15states or suggests that the individual is a member of an occupation
16that requires licensure, certification, or other specialized,
17documented training as a prerequisite to engage in that occupation.

18(b) A committee described in subdivision (a) shall file, within
1910 days of the expenditure, a report that includes all of the
20following:

21(1) An identification of the measure that is the subject of the
22advertisement.

23(2) The date of the expenditure.

24(3) The amount of the expenditure.

25(4) The name of the recipient of the expenditure.

26(5) For a committee described in paragraph (2) of subdivision
27(a), the occupation of the recipient of the expenditure.

28(c) An advertisement paid for by a committee described in
29paragraph (1) of subdivision (a) shall include a disclosure statement
30stating “(spokesperson’s name) is being paid by this campaign or
31its donors” in highly visible font shown continuously if the
32advertisement consists of printed or televised material, or spoken
33in a clearly audible format if the advertisement is a radio broadcast
34or telephonic message. If the advertisement is a television or video
35advertisement, the statement shall be shown continuously, except
36when the disclosure statement required by Section 84504.1 is being
37shown.

38(d) (1) An advertisement paid for by a committee described in
39paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) shall include a disclosure statement
40stating “Persons portraying members of an occupation in this
P16   1advertisement are compensated spokespersons not necessarily
2employed in those occupations” in highly visible font shown
3continuously if the advertisement consists of printed or televised
4material, or spoken in a clearly audible format if the advertisement
5is a radio broadcast or telephonic message.

6(2) A committee may omit the disclosure statement required by
7this subdivision if all of the following are satisfied with respect to
8each individual identified in the report filed pursuant to subdivision
9(b) for that advertisement:

10(A) The occupation identified in the report is substantially
11similar to the occupation portrayed in the advertisement.

12(B) The committee maintains credible documentation of the
13appropriate license, certification, or other training as evidence that
14the individual may engage in the occupation identified in the report
15and portrayed in the advertisement and makes that documentation
16immediately available to the Commission upon request.

begin delete
17

SEC. 21.  

Section 85704 of the Government Code is amended
18to read:

19

85704.  

(a) A person may not make any contribution to any
20committee or candidate that is earmarked for a contribution to any
21other committee or candidate unless the contribution is fully
22disclosed pursuant to Section 84302.

23(b) For purposes of this section a contribution is earmarked if
24the contribution is made under any of the following circumstances:

25(1) The committee or candidate receiving the contribution
26solicited the contribution for the purpose of making a contribution
27to another committee or candidate, and requests the contributor to
28consent to such use.

29(2) The contribution was made subject to a condition, agreement,
30or understanding with the donor that all or a portion of the
31contribution would be used to make a contribution to another
32committee or candidate including any circumstance in which the
33donor identifies the committee or candidate as a potential recipient
34of the contribution and the committee or candidate in fact receives
35all or a portion of the donor’s contribution.

36(3) After the contribution was made the contributor and the
37committee or candidate receiving the contribution reached a
38subsequent agreement or understanding that all or a portion of the
39contribution would be used to make a contribution to another
40committee or candidate including any circumstance in which the
P17   1donor identifies the committee or candidate as a potential recipient
2of the contribution and the committee or candidate in fact receives
3all or a portion of the donor’s contribution.

end delete
4

begin deleteSEC. 22.end delete
5begin insertSEC. 18.end insert  

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
6Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
7the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
8district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
9infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
10for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of
11the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within
12the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
13Constitution.

14

begin deleteSEC. 23.end delete
15begin insertSEC. 19.end insert  

The Legislature finds and declares that this bill
16furthers the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within
17the meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government
18Code.

begin delete
19

SEC. 24.  

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
20immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
21the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
22immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

23In order to protect the interests of Californians who are
24empowered with the right to vote, it is appropriate that they be
25duly informed and that their constitutional right to instruct their
26representatives be protected. This purpose is best served by an
27informed electorate and an informed press. The need for greater
28 transparency of campaign contributions and advertisement
29disclosures is vital to the interests of the State such that this act
30must take effect immediately.

end delete


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