Electioneering reporting bill advanced

Lawmakers gave first-round approval March 23 to a bill that would require reporting of electioneering activity under the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Act.

LB606, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Bill Avery, would require a person who makes an electioneering communication in the amount of more than $250 to file a report with the Accountability and Disclosure Commission.

An electioneering communication is defined as any communication that:

• refers to a clearly identified candidate;
• is publicly distributed in the 30 days before an election; and
• is directed to the electorate of the office sought by the clearly identified candidate.

The definition would not include a contribution or expenditure, communication by the media, a candidate debate or a communication by a membership organization to its members.

Under the bill, a corporation, labor organization or business association making an electioneering communication with a value of more than $250 would be required to file a report disclosing the date, nature and value of the communication and the name, address, occupation, employer and principal place of business of each person who contributed more than $250 to the communication.

A report would have to be filed within 10 days.

Avery said the goal of the bill is to require disclosure from groups that engage in political communication directed at specific candidates under the guise of providing educational material. Such groups attempt to influence elections without acknowledging who funds them, he said.

“That is not how we should do business in this state,” Avery said.

Sen. Russ Karpisek of Wilber supported the bill, saying candidates currently are unable to respond to allegations made by anonymous groups during the late stages of a campaign.
“We’ve all been through campaigns,” he said. “It can really get to be very tough.”

Columbus Sen. Paul Schumacher questioned whether the bill would curb anonymous electioneering, noting that groups frequently engage in activity during the last few days of a campaign. With a 10-day reporting requirement and relatively small fines for late filing, he said, those who fund electioneering activity likely will remain anonymous until after an election is over.

Omaha Sen. Scott Lautenbaugh offered an amendment that would have removed a 50 percent limit on the amount an abiding candidate could raise from nonindividuals under Nebraska’s Campaign Finance Act. He said removing the limit would result in more money being donated to campaigns rather than funding anonymous groups attempting to influence elections.

“All we’ve done is force the money underground,” he said.

Avery challenged the germaneness of Lautenbaugh’s amendment on the grounds that accountability and disclosure is a distinctly different area of law than campaign finance.

Lautenbaugh responded that both the underlying bill and his amendment address the issue of campaign expenditures.

“This is clearly the same topic,” he said.

Speaker Mike Flood of Norfolk ruled that the amendment was not germane to the subject matter of LB606 and the bill advanced to select file on a 31-0 vote.