HB 371: "An Act requiring a group supporting or opposing a candidate or ballot proposition in a state or local election to maintain an address in the state; amending campaign contribution disclosure requirements; requiring the disclosure of certain persons who coordinate and aggregate individual campaign contributions; limiting contributions to groups or nongroup entities that make only independent expenditures; requiring certain groups and nongroup entities to register with the Alaska Public Offices Commission as majority-nonresident-funded entities; requiring certain disclosures in communications funded by independent expenditures; relating to disbursement of campaign assets after an election; and providing for an effective date."
00 HOUSE BILL NO. 371 01 "An Act requiring a group supporting or opposing a candidate or ballot proposition in a 02 state or local election to maintain an address in the state; amending campaign 03 contribution disclosure requirements; requiring the disclosure of certain persons who 04 coordinate and aggregate individual campaign contributions; limiting contributions to 05 groups or nongroup entities that make only independent expenditures; requiring certain 06 groups and nongroup entities to register with the Alaska Public Offices Commission as 07 majority-nonresident-funded entities; requiring certain disclosures in communications 08 funded by independent expenditures; relating to disbursement of campaign assets after 09 an election; and providing for an effective date." 10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 11 * Section 1. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section 12 to read:
01 LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT. The legislature finds it is in the best 02 interests of the state that transparency exists in elections, particularly elections where ballot 03 propositions are being voted on, and that voter awareness of substantial nonresident funding is 04 an important aspect of ensuring an informed electorate. It is the intent of the legislature that 05 contribution requirements and information disclosures as required under this Act further 06 support and preserve the integrity of the state's elections. 07 * Sec. 2. AS 15.13.040(e) is amended to read: 08 (e) Each person required to report under (d) of this section shall file a full 09 report in accordance with AS 15.13.110(h) on a form prescribed by the commission. 10 The report must contain 11 (1) the name, address, principal occupation, and employer of the 12 individual filing the report; 13 (2) an itemized list of all expenditures made, incurred, or authorized by 14 the person; 15 (3) the name of the candidate or the title of the ballot proposition or 16 question supported or opposed by each expenditure and whether the expenditure is 17 made to support or oppose the candidate or ballot proposition or question; 18 (4) the name and address of each officer and director, when applicable; 19 (5) the aggregate amount of all contributions made to the person, if 20 any, for the purpose of influencing the outcome of an election; for all contributions, 21 the date of the contribution and amount contributed by each contributor; and, for a 22 contributor 23 (A) who is an individual, the name and address of the 24 contributor and, for contributions in excess of $50 in the aggregate during a 25 calendar year, the name, address, principal occupation, and employer of the 26 contributor; or 27 (B) that is not an individual, 28 (i) the name and address of the contributor; 29 (ii) [AND] the name and address of each officer and 30 director of the contributor; and 31 (iii) when applicable, the address of the
01 contributor's agent registered under AS 15.13.050(d). 02 * Sec. 3. AS 15.13.040(g) is amended to read: 03 (g) The provisions of (a), (b), and (l) of this section do not apply to a 04 (1) delegate to a constitutional convention, a judge seeking judicial 05 retention, or a candidate for election to a municipal office under AS 15.13.010, if that 06 delegate, judge, or candidate 07 (A) [(1)] indicates, on a form prescribed by the commission, an 08 intent not to raise and not to expend more than $5,000 in seeking election to 09 office, including both the primary and general elections; 10 (B) [(2)] accepts contributions totaling not more than $5,000 in 11 seeking election to office, including both the primary and general elections; 12 and 13 (C) [(3)] makes expenditures totaling not more than $5,000 in 14 seeking election to office, including both the primary and general elections; 15 (2) group, if the group 16 (A) indicates, on a form prescribed by the commission, an 17 intent not to raise and not to expend more than $5,000 in a calendar year; 18 (B) accepts contributions totaling not more than $5,000 in a 19 calendar year; and 20 (C) makes expenditures totaling not more than $5,000 in a 21 calendar year. 22 * Sec. 4. AS 15.13.040(m) is amended to read: 23 (m) Information required under this chapter shall be submitted to the 24 commission electronically, except that the following information may be submitted in 25 clear and legible black typeface or hand-printed in dark ink on paper in a format 26 approved by the commission or on forms provided by the commission: 27 (1) information submitted by [(A)] a candidate for 28 (A) election to a borough or city office of mayor, membership 29 on a borough assembly, city council, or school board, or any state office, who 30 (i) meets the requirements of (g)(1) [(g)(1) - (3)] of this 31 section; or
01 (ii) does not have reasonable access to the technology 02 necessary to file electronically; in this sub-subparagraph, a candidate is 03 considered not to have reasonable access to the technology necessary to 04 file electronically if the candidate does not own a personal computer or 05 does not have broadband Internet access at the candidate's residence; in 06 this sub-subparagraph, "broadband Internet access" means high-speed 07 Internet access that is always on and that is faster than traditional dial- 08 up access; or 09 (B) [A CANDIDATE FOR] municipal office for a municipality 10 with a population of less than 15,000; in this subparagraph, "municipal office" 11 means the office of an elected borough or city 12 (i) mayor; or 13 (ii) assembly, council, or school board member; 14 (2) information submitted by a group that meets the requirements 15 of (g)(2) of this section; or 16 (3) any information if the commission determines that circumstances 17 warrant an exception to the electronic submission requirement. 18 * Sec. 5. AS 15.13 is amended by adding a new section to read: 19 Sec. 15.13.042. Bundled contribution disclosures. (a) Each candidate shall 20 make a full report, on a form prescribed by the commission, 21 (1) listing 22 (A) the name, address, and employer of each person reasonably 23 known by the candidate to be a person who provided bundled contributions to 24 the candidate in an aggregate amount greater than $10,000 during an election 25 cycle; and 26 (B) the aggregate amount of bundled contributions provided by 27 each person who provided bundled contributions to the candidate during the 28 election cycle; 29 (2) filed in accordance with AS 15.13.110 and certified correct by the 30 candidate or campaign treasurer. 31 (b) In this section, '"bundled contribution"' means a contribution
01 (1) forwarded from a contributor or contributors to a candidate by a 02 person; or 03 (2) received by a candidate from a contributor or contributors but 04 credited by the candidate to a person through a record, designation, or other 05 recognition that the person was responsible for raising the contribution. 06 * Sec. 6. AS 15.13.050(a) is amended to read: 07 (a) Before making an expenditure in support of or in opposition to a candidate 08 or before making an expenditure in support of or in opposition to a ballot proposition 09 or question or to an initiative proposal application filed with the lieutenant governor 10 under AS 15.45.020, each person other than an individual shall 11 (1) register, on forms provided by the commission, with the 12 commission; and 13 (2) provide the person's physical address in the state or the 14 physical address of the person's agent registered under (d) of this section. 15 * Sec. 7. AS 15.13.050 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 16 (d) A person may not register under (a) of this section unless the person has a 17 physical address in the state or registers with the commission an individual resident of 18 the state who maintains a physical address in the state or a domestic corporation 19 authorized to transact business in this state as the person's agent. A person shall notify 20 the commission within 10 days after a change to the person's in-state address, 21 registered agent, or the physical address of the person's registered agent. 22 * Sec. 8. AS 15.13.070 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 23 (h) Notwithstanding (b), (c), and (f) of this section, an individual, group, or 24 nongroup entity may contribute not more than $3,000 each year to a group or 25 nongroup entity that makes only independent expenditures. 26 * Sec. 9. AS 15.13 is amended by adding a new section to read: 27 Sec. 15.13.073. Group or nongroup entity required to register as majority- 28 nonresident-funded entity. A group or nongroup entity that accepts a majority of its 29 total contributions during a calendar year from individuals who are not residents of the 30 state, and groups and nongroup entities that are not incorporated in the state, shall 31 register with the commission, on forms provided by the commission, as a majority-
01 nonresident-funded entity. 02 * Sec. 10. AS 15.13.090 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 03 (h) In addition to other applicable disclosures of this section, a communication 04 paid for by a person making an independent expenditure for a communication 05 described in (a) of this section who, during a calendar year, accepts the majority of the 06 person's contributions from individuals who are not residents of the state and groups 07 and nongroup entities that are not incorporated in the state under AS 15.13.073, that 08 (1) includes a print or video component must have the following 09 statement placed in the communication so as to be easily discernible and, for a 10 broadcast, cable, satellite, or Internet or other digital communication, that the 11 statement remains onscreen throughout the entirety of the communication: "A 12 MAJORITY OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO (PERSON'S NAME) CAME FROM 13 OUTSIDE THE STATE OF ALASKA"; and 14 (2) is transmitted through radio or other audio media or that has an 15 audio component includes the following statement read in a manner that is easily 16 heard: "A majority of contributions to (person's name) came from outside the State of 17 Alaska." 18 * Sec. 11. AS 15.13.110(a) is amended to read: 19 (a) Each candidate, group, and nongroup entity shall make a full report in 20 accordance with AS 15.13.040 and 15.13.042 for the period ending three days before 21 the due date of the report and beginning on the last day covered by the most recent 22 previous report. If the report is a first report, it must cover the period from the 23 beginning of the campaign to the date three days before the due date of the report. If 24 the report is a report due February 15, it must cover the period beginning on the last 25 day covered by the most recent previous report or on the day that the campaign 26 started, whichever is later, and ending on February 1 of that year. The report shall be 27 filed 28 (1) 30 days before the election; however, this report is not required if 29 the deadline for filing a nominating petition or declaration of candidacy is within 30 30 days of the election; 31 (2) one week before the election;
01 (3) 105 days after a special election; and 02 (4) February 15 for expenditures made and contributions received that 03 were not reported previously, including, if applicable, all amounts expended from a 04 public office expense term account established under AS 15.13.116(a)(8) and all 05 amounts expended from a municipal office account under AS 15.13.116(a)(9), or 06 when expenditures were not made or contributions were not received during the 07 previous year. 08 * Sec. 12. AS 15.13.110(h) is amended to read: 09 (h) An independent expenditure report required under AS 15.13.040(e) shall 10 be filed with the commission not later than 10 days after an independent expenditure 11 has been made. However, a person making an independent expenditure shall 12 report to the commission within 24 hours after the person 13 (1) makes an independent expenditure if the expenditure [THAT] 14 exceeds $250 and [THAT] is made within nine days of an election [SHALL BE 15 REPORTED TO THE COMMISSION NOT LATER THAN 24 HOURS AFTER 16 THE EXPENDITURE IS MADE]; 17 (2) receives a contribution that exceeds $1,000 if the person uses or 18 intends to use the contribution to make an independent expenditure. 19 * Sec. 13. AS 15.13.110(i) is amended to read: 20 (i) During an election cycle [A CAMPAIGN PERIOD], the commission may 21 not change the manner or format in which reports required of a candidate under this 22 chapter must be filed. [IN THIS SUBSECTION, "CAMPAIGN PERIOD" MEANS 23 THE PERIOD BEGINNING ON THE DATE THAT A CANDIDATE BECOMES 24 ELIGIBLE TO RECEIVE CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS UNDER THIS 25 CHAPTER AND ENDING ON THE DATE THAT A FINAL REPORT FOR THAT 26 SAME CAMPAIGN MUST BE FILED.] 27 * Sec. 14. AS 15.13.110 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 28 (l) A group or nongroup entity registered as a majority-nonresident-funded 29 entity under AS 15.13.073 that receives a contribution exceeding $500 shall, within 24 30 hours, report to the commission the name, address, principal occupation, and employer 31 of the contributor and the date and amount of the contribution.
01 * Sec. 15. AS 15.13.116(b) is amended to read: 02 (b) After a general, special, municipal, or municipal runoff election, a 03 candidate may retain the ownership of one computer and one printer and of personal 04 property, except money, that was acquired by and for use in the campaign. The current 05 fair market value of the property retained, exclusive of the computer and printer, may 06 not exceed $5,000. All other property shall be disposed of, or sold and the sale 07 proceeds disposed of, in accordance with (a) or (c) of this section. Notwithstanding 08 any other provision of this chapter, 09 (1) a candidate may (A) retain a bulk mailing permit that was paid for 10 with campaign funds, and (B) use personal funds, campaign funds, or unused 11 campaign contributions transferred to a public office expense term account under 12 (a)(8) of this section to pay the continuing charges for the permit after the election; 13 money used to continue the life of the permit is not considered to be a contribution 14 under this chapter; in addition to any other use permitted under this chapter, during the 15 candidate's term of office, the candidate may use the bulk mailing permit for mailings 16 associated with service in the office to which the candidate was elected; during the 17 candidate's term of office, if the candidate files a declaration of candidacy or the 18 document necessary to permit the candidate to incur election-related expenses under 19 AS 15.13.100 for the same or a different elective office, the candidate may also use 20 the bulk mailing permit in that election campaign; 21 (2) a candidate may retain campaign photographs and use the 22 photographs for any purpose associated with service in the office to which the 23 candidate was elected; 24 (3) a candidate may retain seasonal greeting cards purchased with 25 campaign funds; and 26 (4) campaign signs prepared for an election that has already taken 27 place have no monetary value and may be retained or disposed of at the candidate's 28 discretion; a campaign sign that is used in a candidate's subsequent campaign has 29 no monetary value and need not be declared if reused. 30 * Sec. 16. AS 15.13.400 is amended by adding a new paragraph to read: 31 (20) "election cycle" means the period beginning on the date that a
01 candidate becomes eligible to receive campaign contributions under this chapter and 02 ending on the date that a final report for that same campaign must be filed. 03 * Sec. 17. The uncodified law of the State of Alaska is amended by adding a new section to 04 read: 05 APPLICABILITY. This Act does not apply to contributions made to influence the 06 outcome of an election that occurred before the effective date of this Act. 07 * Sec. 18. This Act takes effect immediately under AS 01.10.070(c).