HB0155

HOUSE BILL 155

50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2011

INTRODUCED BY

Brian F. Egolf

AN ACT

RELATING TO ELECTIONS; REQUIRING DISCLOSURE OF THE SOURCES OF FUNDS USED FOR EXPRESS ADVOCACY OR THE FUNCTIONAL EQUIVALENT OF EXPRESS ADVOCACY; REQUIRING DISCLAIMERS ON COMMUNICATIONS THAT CONSTITUTE EXPRESS ADVOCACY OR THE FUNCTIONAL EQUIVALENT OF EXPRESS ADVOCACY; RECONCILING MULTIPLE AMENDMENTS TO THE SAME SECTION OF LAW IN LAWS 2009.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

SECTION 1. A new section of the Campaign Reporting Act is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] DISCLOSURE OF FUNDING USED FOR POLITICAL

ADVOCACY.--

A. A person, other than a candidate for state public office, who engages in express advocacy or the functional equivalent of express advocacy shall report the details of the communication to the office of the secretary of state, on forms that the secretary of state shall develop by rule, if:

(1) the total price of the communication, including production and distribution costs, is more than five hundred dollars ($500); and

(2) the communication occurs during an election year for the office sought by the candidate.

B. The report shall include, at a minimum, the following information:

(1) the name and address of the person making the communication;

(2) the name and address of a responsible officer who authorized the communication;

(3) a digital or print copy of the communication;

(4) the source of funds for the communication:

(a) including general treasury funds and the name and address of businesses, unions, groups, associations or other organizations using general treasury funds for the communication; provided that if a business, union, group, association or other organization undertakes a special solicitation of its members or other persons for a communication, or it otherwise receives funds that are used for a communication, that entity shall report pursuant to Subparagraph (b) of this paragraph; and

(b) for special solicitations and other funds, if funding from a person in the aggregate has exceeded two hundred fifty dollars ($250) for the communication, the name and address of the person or, if the person is an individual, the name, address, occupation and employer of the person;

(5) a detailed description of each expenditure of more than five hundred dollars ($500);

(6) the date the expenditure was made and the date the communication was first broadcast, transmitted, mailed, erected, distributed or otherwise published;

(7) the amount of the expenditure;

(8) the name of each candidate clearly identified in the communication, the office being sought by each candidate and the amount of the expenditure attributable to each candidate; and

(9) any other information the secretary of state may require or exempt by rule in accordance with the purposes of this section.

C. The report must be received by the office of the secretary of state within two business days of the date on which the communication is first distributed.

D. This section does not apply to:

(1) a voter guide allowed by the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to be produced and distributed by Section 501(c)(3) organizations; or

(2) communications appearing in a news story, commentary or editorial distributed through print or electronic media or the facilities of any broadcasting station, unless such facilities or media are owned or controlled by any political party, political committee or candidate."

SECTION 2. A new section of the Campaign Reporting Act is enacted to read:

"[NEW MATERIAL] DISCLAIMERS FOR POLITICAL ADVOCACY.--

A. A person, other than a candidate for state public office, who makes a communication that constitutes express advocacy or the functional equivalent of express advocacy shall specify on the communication:

(1) the words "authorized by" and the name, address and phone number of a responsible officer who authorized the communication;

(2) the words "paid for by" and the name of any person who contributed at least two hundred fifty dollars ($250) toward the funding of the communication and who requested that the contribution be used to fund express advocacy or the functional equivalent of express advocacy or who contributed in response to a solicitation of funds to be used for express advocacy or the functional equivalent of express advocacy; and

(3) a statement that the communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate's campaign committee.

B. Disclosure statements required by this section shall be printed clearly and legibly on any printed or electronic communications. If the communication is broadcast on radio, the information shall be spoken at the end of the communication. If the communication is broadcast on a telecommunications system, the information shall be both written and spoken at the end of the communication, except that if the disclosure statement is written for at least five seconds of a thirty-second advertisement broadcast or ten seconds of a sixty-second broadcast, a spoken disclosure is not required. If the communication is broadcast on a telecommunications system, the written disclosure statement shall be printed in letters equal to or larger than four percent of the vertical picture height.

C. This section does not apply to:

(1) a voter guide allowed by the federal Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to be produced and distributed by Section 501(c)(3) organizations; or

SECTION 3. Section 1-19-26 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1979, Chapter 360, Section 2, as amended by Laws 2009, Chapter 67, Section 1 and by Laws 2009, Chapter 68, Section 2) is amended to read:

"1-19-26. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Campaign Reporting Act:

A. "advertising campaign" means an advertisement or series of advertisements used for a political purpose and disseminated to the public either in print, by radio or television broadcast or by any other electronic means, including telephonic communications, and may include direct or bulk mailings of printed materials;

B. "anonymous contribution" means a contribution the contributor of which is unknown to the candidate or the candidate's agent or the political committee or its agent who accepts the contribution;

C. "bank account" means an account in a financial institution located in New Mexico;

D. "campaign committee" means two or more persons authorized by a candidate to raise, collect or expend contributions on the candidate's behalf for the purpose of electing the candidate to office;

E. "candidate" means an individual who seeks or considers an office in an election covered by the Campaign Reporting Act, including a public official, who either has filed a declaration of candidacy or nominating petition or:

(1) for a non-statewide office, has received contributions or made expenditures of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more or authorized another person or campaign committee to receive contributions or make expenditures of one thousand dollars ($1,000) or more for the purpose of seeking election to the office; or

(2) for a statewide office, has received contributions or made expenditures of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or more or authorized another person or campaign committee to receive contributions or make expenditures of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or more for the purpose of seeking election to the office or for candidacy exploration purposes in the years prior to the year of the election;

F. "contribution" means a gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money or other thing of value, including the estimated value of an in-kind contribution, that is made or received for a political purpose, including payment of a debt incurred in an election campaign, but "contribution" does not include the value of services provided without compensation or unreimbursed travel or other personal expenses of individuals who volunteer a portion or all of their time on behalf of a candidate or political committee, nor does it include the administrative or solicitation expenses of a political committee that are paid by an organization that sponsors the committee;

G. "deliver" or "delivery" means to deliver by certified or registered mail, telecopier, electronic transmission or facsimile or by personal service;

H. "election" means any primary, general or statewide special election in New Mexico and includes county and judicial retention elections but excludes municipal, school board and special district elections;

I. "election year" means an even-numbered year in which an election covered by the Campaign Reporting Act is held;

J. "expenditure" means a payment, transfer or distribution or obligation or promise to pay, transfer or distribute any money or other thing of value for a political purpose, including payment of a debt incurred in an election campaign or pre-primary convention, but does not include the administrative or solicitation expenses of a political committee that are paid by an organization that sponsors the committee;

K. "express advocacy" means any communication that asks the recipient to vote for or against a specific candidate for state public office and that is distributed via broadcast, cable, satellite, print or electronic media to voters living in the district that the candidate seeks to represent; but "express advocacy" does not include communications from an organization to its own members or to persons who have requested that the organization send them information, including information conveyed on an organization's web site;

L. "functional equivalent of express advocacy" means any communication that, when taken as a whole, can only be reasonably interpreted as advocating the election or defeat of a candidate for state public office, taking into account whether the communication mentions a candidate or a political party, or takes a position on a candidate's character, qualifications or fitness for office and that is distributed via broadcast, cable, satellite, print or electronic media to voters living in the district that the candidate seeks to represent; but "functional equivalent of express advocacy" does not include communications from an organization to its own members or to persons who have requested that the organization send them information, including information conveyed on an organization's web site;

[K.] M. "person" means an individual or entity, including a business entity, union or nonprofit organization;

[L.] N. "political committee" means two or more persons, other than members of a candidate's immediate family or campaign committee or a husband and wife who make a contribution out of a joint account, who are selected, appointed, chosen, associated, organized or operated primarily for a political purpose; and "political committee" includes: (1) political parties, political action committees or similar organizations composed of employees or members of any corporation, labor organization, trade or professional association or any other similar group that raises, collects, expends or contributes money or any other thing of value for a political purpose;

(2) a single individual whose actions represent that the individual is a political committee; and

(3) a person or an organization of two or more persons that within one calendar year expends funds in excess of five hundred dollars ($500) to conduct an advertising campaign for a political purpose;

[M.] O. "political purpose" means influencing or attempting to influence an election or pre-primary convention, including a constitutional amendment or other question submitted to the voters;

[N.] P. "prescribed form" means a form or electronic format prepared and prescribed by the secretary of state;

[O.] Q. "proper filing officer" means either the secretary of state or the county clerk as provided in Section 1-19-27 NMSA 1978;

[P.] R. "public official" means a person elected to an office in an election covered by the Campaign Reporting Act or a person appointed to an office that is subject to an election covered by that act; [and

Q.] S. "reporting individual" means every public official, candidate or treasurer of a campaign committee and every treasurer of a political committee; and

T. "state public office" means the office of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state treasurer, state auditor, secretary of state, commissioner of public lands, public regulation commissioner, state senator or state representative."

SECTION 4. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2011.

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