486 
Sec. 4111. Reporting of campaign-related disbursements. 
Sec. 4112. Application of foreign money ban to disbursements for campaign-re-
lated disbursements consisting of covered transfers. 
Sec. 4113. Effective date. 
PART 3—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 
Sec. 4121. Petition for certiorari. 
Sec. 4122. Judicial review of actions related to campaign finance laws. 
PART 4—DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO POLITICAL COMMITTEES 
IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO ELECTION 
Sec. 4131. Disclosure of contributions to political committees immediately prior 
to election. 
Subtitle C—Strengthening Oversight of Online Political Advertising 
Sec. 4201. Short title. 
Sec. 4202. Purpose. 
Sec. 4203. Findings. 
Sec. 4204. Sense of Congress. 
Sec. 4205. Expansion of definition of public communication. 
Sec. 4206. Expansion of definition of electioneering communication. 
Sec. 4207. Application of disclaimer statements to online communications. 
Sec. 4208. Political record requirements for online platforms. 
Sec. 4209. Preventing contributions, expenditures, independent expenditures, 
and disbursements for electioneering communications by for-
eign nationals in the form of online advertising. 
Sec. 4210. Independent study on media literacy and online political content 
consumption. 
Sec. 4211. Requiring online platforms to display notices identifying sponsors of 
political advertisements and to ensure notices continue to be 
present when advertisements are shared. 
Subtitle D—Stand By Every Ad 
Sec. 4301. Short title. 
Sec. 4302. Stand by every ad. 
Sec. 4303. Disclaimer 
requirements 
for 
communications 
made 
through 
prerecorded telephone calls. 
Sec. 4304. No expansion of persons subject to disclaimer requirements on inter-
net communications. 
Sec. 4305. Effective date. 
Subtitle E—Deterring Foreign Interference in Elections 
PART 1—DETERRENCE UNDER FEDERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971 
Sec. 4401. Restrictions on exchange of campaign information between can-
didates and foreign powers. 
Sec. 4402. Clarification of standard for determining existence of coordination 
between campaigns and outside interests. 
Sec. 4403. Prohibition on provision of substantial assistance relating to con-
tribution or donation by foreign nationals. 
Sec. 4404. Clarification of application of foreign money ban.
487 
PART 2—NOTIFYING STATES OF DISINFORMATION CAMPAIGNS BY FOREIGN 
NATIONALS 
Sec. 4411. Notifying States of disinformation campaigns by foreign nationals. 
PART 3—PROHIBITING USE OF DEEPFAKES IN ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 
Sec. 4421. Prohibition on distribution of materially deceptive audio or visual 
media prior to election. 
PART 4—ASSESSMENT OF EXEMPTION OF REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS 
UNDER FARA FOR REGISTERED LOBBYISTS 
Sec. 4431. Assessment of exemption of registration requirements under FARA 
for registered lobbyists. 
Subtitle F—Secret Money Transparency 
Sec. 4501. Repeal of restriction of use of funds by Internal Revenue Service to 
bring transparency to political activity of certain nonprofit or-
ganizations. 
Sec. 4502. Repeal of regulations. 
Subtitle G—Shareholder Right-to-Know 
Sec. 4601. Repeal of restriction on use of funds by Securities and Exchange 
Commission to ensure shareholders of corporations have knowl-
edge of corporation political activity. 
Sec. 4602. Assessment of shareholder preferences for disbursements for polit-
ical purposes. 
Sec. 4603. Governance and operations of corporate PACs. 
Subtitle H—Disclosure of Political Spending by Government Contractors 
Sec. 4701. Repeal of restriction on use of funds to require disclosure of political 
spending by government contractors. 
Subtitle I—Limitation and Disclosure Requirements for Presidential 
Inaugural Committees 
Sec. 4801. Short title. 
Sec. 4802. Limitations and disclosure of certain donations to, and disburse-
ments by, Inaugural Committees. 
Subtitle J—Miscellaneous Provisions 
Sec. 4901. Effective dates of provisions. 
Sec. 4902. Severability.
488 
Subtitle A—Establishing Duty To 
Report Foreign Election Inter-
ference 
SEC. 4001. FINDINGS RELATING TO ILLICIT MONEY UNDER-
MINING OUR DEMOCRACY. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) Criminals, terrorists, and corrupt govern-
ment officials frequently abuse anonymously held 
Limited Liability Companies (LLCs), also known as 
‘‘shell companies,’’ to hide, move, and launder the 
dirty money derived from illicit activities such as 
trafficking, bribery, exploitation, and embezzlement. 
Ownership and control of the finances that run 
through shell companies are obscured to regulators 
and law enforcement because little information is re-
quired and collected when establishing these entities. 
(2) The public release of the ‘‘Panama Papers’’ 
in 2016 and the ‘‘Paradise Papers’’ in 2017 revealed 
that these shell companies often purchase and sell 
United States real estate. United States anti-money 
laundering laws do not apply to cash transactions in-
volving real estate effectively concealing the bene-
ficiaries and transactions from regulators and law 
enforcement.
489 
(3) Since the Supreme Court’s decisions in Citi-
zens United v. Federal Election Commission, 558 
U.S. 310 (2010), millions of dollars have flowed into 
super PACs through LLCs whose funders are anon-
ymous or intentionally obscured. Criminal investiga-
tions have uncovered LLCs that were used to hide 
illegal campaign contributions from foreign criminal 
fugitives, to advance international influence-buying 
schemes, and to conceal contributions from donors 
who were already under investigation for bribery and 
racketeering. Voters have no way to know the true 
sources of the money being routed through these 
LLCs to influence elections, including whether any 
of the funds come from foreign or other illicit 
sources. 
(4) Congress should curb the use of anonymous 
shell companies for illicit purposes by requiring 
United States companies to disclose their beneficial 
owners, strengthening anti-money laundering and 
counter-terrorism finance laws. 
(5) Congress should examine the money laun-
dering and terrorist financing risks in the real estate 
market, including the role of anonymous parties, and 
review legislation to address any vulnerabilities iden-
tified in this sector.
490 
(6) Congress should examine the methods by 
which corruption flourishes and the means to detect 
and deter the financial misconduct that fuels this 
driver of global instability. Congress should monitor 
government efforts to enforce United States anti- 
corruption laws and regulations. 
SEC. 4002. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN REPORTING OF FOREIGN 
CONTACTS. 
(a) INITIAL NOTICE.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection: 
‘‘(j) DISCLOSURE OF REPORTABLE FOREIGN CON-
TACTS.— 
‘‘(1) COMMITTEE
OBLIGATION
TO
NOTIFY.— 
Not later than 1 week after a reportable foreign con-
tact, each political committee shall notify the Fed-
eral Bureau of Investigation and the Commission of 
the reportable foreign contact and provide a sum-
mary of the circumstances with respect to such re-
portable foreign contact. The Federal Bureau of In-
vestigation, not later than 1 week after receiving a 
notification from a political committee under this 
paragraph, shall submit to the political committee,
491 
the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of 
the House of Representatives, and the Select Com-
mittee on Intelligence of the Senate written or elec-
tronic confirmation of receipt of the notification. 
‘‘(2) INDIVIDUAL
OBLIGATION
TO
NOTIFY.— 
Not later than 3 days after a reportable foreign con-
tact— 
‘‘(A) each candidate and each immediate 
family member of a candidate shall notify the 
treasurer or other designated official of the 
principal campaign committee of such candidate 
of the reportable foreign contact and provide a 
summary of the circumstances with respect to 
such reportable foreign contact; and 
‘‘(B) each official, employee, or agent of a 
political committee shall notify the treasurer or 
other designated official of the committee of the 
reportable foreign contact and provide a sum-
mary of the circumstances with respect to such 
reportable foreign contact. 
‘‘(3) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACT.—In this 
subsection: 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘reportable 
foreign contact’ means any direct or indirect 
contact or communication that—
492 
‘‘(i) is between— 
‘‘(I) a candidate, an immediate 
family member of the candidate, a po-
litical committee, or any official, em-
ployee, or agent of such committee; 
and 
‘‘(II) an individual that the per-
son described in subclause (I) knows, 
has reason to know, or reasonably be-
lieves is a covered foreign national; 
and 
‘‘(ii) the person described in clause 
(i)(I) knows, has reason to know, or rea-
sonably believes involves— 
‘‘(I) an offer or other proposal 
for a contribution, donation, expendi-
ture, disbursement, or solicitation de-
scribed in section 319; or 
‘‘(II) coordination or collabora-
tion with, an offer or provision of in-
formation or services to or from, or 
persistent and repeated contact with, 
a covered foreign national in connec-
tion with an election. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—
493 
‘‘(i) CONTACTS IN OFFICIAL CAPACITY 
AS ELECTED OFFICIAL.—The term ‘report-
able foreign contact’ shall not include any 
contact or communication with a covered 
foreign national by an elected official or an 
employee of an elected official solely in an 
official capacity as such an official or em-
ployee. 
‘‘(ii) CONTACTS
FOR
PURPOSES
OF 
ENABLING
OBSERVATION
OF
ELECTIONS 
BY
INTERNATIONAL
OBSERVERS.—The 
term ‘reportable foreign contact’ shall not 
include any contact or communication with 
a covered foreign national by any person 
which is made for purposes of enabling the 
observation of elections in the United 
States by a foreign national or the obser-
vation of elections outside of the United 
States by a candidate, political committee, 
or any official, employee, or agent of such 
committee. 
‘‘(iii) EXCEPTIONS
NOT
APPLICABLE 
IF
CONTACTS
OR
COMMUNICATIONS
IN-
VOLVE
PROHIBITED
DISBURSEMENTS.—A 
contact or communication by an elected of-
494 
ficial or an employee of an elected official 
shall not be considered to be made solely 
in an official capacity for purposes of 
clause (i), and a contact or communication 
shall not be considered to be made for pur-
poses of enabling the observation of elec-
tions for purposes of clause (ii), if the con-
tact or communication involves a contribu-
tion, donation, expenditure, disbursement, 
or solicitation described in section 319. 
‘‘(C) COVERED
FOREIGN
NATIONAL
DE-
FINED.— 
‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In this paragraph, 
the 
term 
‘covered 
foreign 
national’ 
means— 
‘‘(I) a foreign principal (as de-
fined in section 1(b) of the Foreign 
Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 
U.S.C. 611(b))) that is a government 
of a foreign country or a foreign polit-
ical party; 
‘‘(II) any person who acts as an 
agent, representative, employee, or 
servant, or any person who acts in 
any other capacity at the order, re-
495 
quest, or under the direction or con-
trol, of a foreign principal described in 
subclause (I) or of a person any of 
whose activities are directly or indi-
rectly supervised, directed, controlled, 
financed, or subsidized in whole or in 
major part by a foreign principal de-
scribed in subclause (I); or 
‘‘(III) any person included in the 
list of specially designated nationals 
and blocked persons maintained by 
the Office of Foreign Assets Control 
of the Department of the Treasury 
pursuant to authorities relating to the 
imposition of sanctions relating to the 
conduct of a foreign principal de-
scribed in subclause (I). 
‘‘(ii) CLARIFICATION REGARDING AP-
PLICATION TO CITIZENS OF THE UNITED 
STATES.—In the case of a citizen of the 
United States, subclause (II) of clause (i) 
applies only to the extent that the person 
involved acts within the scope of that per-
son’s status as the agent of a foreign prin-
496 
cipal described in subclause (I) of clause 
(i). 
‘‘(4) IMMEDIATE
FAMILY
MEMBER.—In this 
subsection, the term ‘immediate family member’ 
means, with respect to a candidate, a parent, parent- 
in-law, spouse, adult child, or sibling.’’. 
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 
by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to report-
able foreign contacts which occur on or after the 
date of the enactment of this Act. 
(b) INFORMATION INCLUDED ON REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304(b) of such Act 
(52 U.S.C. 30104(b)) is amended— 
(A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para-
graph (7); 
(B) by striking the period at the end of 
paragraph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(9) for any reportable foreign contact (as de-
fined in subsection (j)(3))— 
‘‘(A) the date, time, and location of the 
contact;
497 
‘‘(B) the date and time of when a des-
ignated official of the committee was notified of 
the contact; 
‘‘(C) the identity of individuals involved; 
and 
‘‘(D) a description of the contact, including 
the nature of any contribution, donation, ex-
penditure, disbursement, or solicitation involved 
and the nature of any activity described in sub-
section (j)(3)(A)(ii)(II) involved.’’. 
(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 
by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to reports 
filed on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 
which begins on the date of the enactment of this 
Act. 
SEC. 4003. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN FOREIGN CONTACT RE-
PORTING COMPLIANCE SYSTEM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(j) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACTS COMPLIANCE 
POLICY.— 
‘‘(1) REPORTING.—Each political committee 
shall establish a policy that requires all officials, em-
ployees, and agents of such committee (and, in the
498 
case of an authorized committee, the candidate and 
each immediate family member of the candidate) to 
notify the treasurer or other appropriate designated 
official of the committee of any reportable foreign 
contact (as defined in section 304(j)) not later than 
3 days after such contact was made. 
‘‘(2) 
RETENTION
AND
PRESERVATION
OF 
RECORDS.—Each political committee shall establish 
a policy that provides for the retention and preserva-
tion of records and information related to reportable 
foreign contacts (as so defined) for a period of not 
less than 3 years. 
‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon filing its state-
ment of organization under section 303(a), and 
with each report filed under section 304(a), the 
treasurer of each political committee (other 
than an authorized committee) shall certify 
that— 
‘‘(i) the committee has in place poli-
cies that meet the requirements of para-
graphs (1) and (2); 
‘‘(ii) the committee has designated an 
official to monitor compliance with such 
policies; and
499 
‘‘(iii) not later than 1 week after the 
beginning of any formal or informal affili-
ation with the committee, all officials, em-
ployees, and agents of such committee 
will— 
‘‘(I) receive notice of such poli-
cies; 
‘‘(II) be informed of the prohibi-
tions under section 319; and 
‘‘(III) sign a certification affirm-
ing their understanding of such poli-
cies and prohibitions. 
‘‘(B) AUTHORIZED
COMMITTEES.—With 
respect to an authorized committee, the can-
didate shall make the certification required 
under subparagraph (A).’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to political 
committees which file a statement of organization 
under section 303(a) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103(a)) on or after 
the date of the enactment of this Act. 
(2) TRANSITION RULE FOR EXISTING COMMIT-
TEES.—Not later than 30 days after the date of the
500 
enactment of this Act, each political committee 
under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 
shall file a certification with the Federal Election 
Commission that the committee is in compliance 
with the requirements of section 302(j) of such Act 
(as added by subsection (a)). 
SEC. 4004. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 
Section 309(d)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 
Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(d)(1)) is amended by add-
ing at the end the following new subparagraphs: 
‘‘(E) Any person who knowingly and willfully com-
mits a violation of subsection (j) or (b)(9) of section 304 
or section 302(j) shall be fined not more than $500,000, 
imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. 
‘‘(F) Any person who knowingly and willfully conceals 
or destroys any materials relating to a reportable foreign 
contact (as defined in section 304(j)) shall be fined not 
more than $1,000,000, imprisoned not more than 5 years, 
or both.’’. 
SEC. 4005. REPORT TO CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE 
COMMITTEES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 
date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 
the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall 
submit to the congressional intelligence committees a re-
501 
port relating to notifications received by the Federal Bu-
reau of Investigation under section 304(j)(1) of the Fed-
eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by section 
4002(a) of this Act). 
(b) ELEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 
shall include, at a minimum, the following with respect 
to notifications described in subsection (a): 
(1) The number of such notifications received 
from political committees during the year covered by 
the report. 
(2) A description of protocols and procedures 
developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation re-
lating to receipt and maintenance of records relating 
to such notifications. 
(3) With respect to such notifications received 
during the year covered by the report, a description 
of any subsequent actions taken by the Director re-
sulting from the receipt of such notifications. 
(c) CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEES 
DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘congressional intel-
ligence committees’’ has the meaning given that term in 
section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 
3003).
502 
SEC. 4006. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this subtitle or the amendments made by 
this subtitle shall be construed— 
(1) to impede legitimate journalistic activities; 
or 
(2) to impose any additional limitation on the 
right to express political views or to participate in 
public discourse of any individual who— 
(A) resides in the United States; 
(B) is not a citizen of the United States or 
a national of the United States, as defined in 
section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Na-
tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22)); and 
(C) is not lawfully admitted for permanent 
residence, as defined by section 101(a)(20) of 
the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(20)). 
Subtitle B—DISCLOSE Act 
SEC. 4100. SHORT TITLE. 
This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Democracy Is 
Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections 
Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘DISCLOSE Act of 2021’’.
503 
PART 
1—CLOSING 
LOOPHOLES 
ALLOWING 
SPENDING BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELEC-
TIONS 
SEC. 4101. CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITION ON PARTICI-
PATION BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELEC-
TION-RELATED ACTIVITIES. 
(a) 
CLARIFICATION
OF
PROHIBITION.—Section 
319(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 
U.S.C. 30121(a)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 
(1); 
(2) by striking the period at the end of para-
graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraph: 
‘‘(3) a foreign national to direct, dictate, con-
trol, or directly or indirectly participate in the deci-
sion making process of any person (including a cor-
poration, labor organization, political committee, or 
political organization) with regard to such person’s 
Federal or non-Federal election-related activity, in-
cluding any decision concerning the making of con-
tributions, donations, expenditures, or disbursements 
in connection with an election for any Federal, 
State, or local office or any decision concerning the 
administration of a political committee.’’.
504 
(b) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE.—Section 319 
of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30121) is amended by adding at 
the end the following new subsection: 
‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION
OF COMPLIANCE REQUIRED 
PRIOR TO CARRYING OUT ACTIVITY.—Prior to the mak-
ing in connection with an election for Federal office of any 
contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expendi-
ture, or disbursement for an electioneering communication 
by a corporation, labor organization (as defined in section 
316(b)), limited liability corporation, or partnership dur-
ing a year, the chief executive officer of the corporation, 
labor organization, limited liability corporation, or part-
nership (or, if the corporation, labor organization, limited 
liability corporation, or partnership does not have a chief 
executive officer, the highest ranking official of the cor-
poration, labor organization, limited liability corporation, 
or partnership), shall file a certification with the Commis-
sion, under penalty of perjury, that a foreign national did 
not direct, dictate, control, or directly or indirectly partici-
pate in the decision making process relating to such activ-
ity in violation of subsection (a)(3), unless the chief execu-
tive officer has previously filed such a certification during 
that calendar year.’’. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the
505 
180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 
of this Act, and shall take effect without regard to whether 
or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 
regulations to carry out such amendments. 
SEC. 4102. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 
MONEY BAN TO CERTAIN DISBURSEMENTS 
AND ACTIVITIES. 
(a) APPLICATION
TO DISBURSEMENTS
TO SUPER 
PACS AND OTHER PERSONS.—Section 319(a)(1)(A) of 
the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 
30121(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking the semicolon and 
inserting the following: ‘‘, including any disbursement to 
a political committee which accepts donations or contribu-
tions that do not comply with any of the limitations, prohi-
bitions, and reporting requirements of this Act (or any dis-
bursement to or on behalf of any account of a political 
committee which is established for the purpose of accept-
ing such donations or contributions), or to any other per-
son for the purpose of funding an expenditure, inde-
pendent expenditure, or electioneering communication (as 
defined in section 304(f)(3));’’. 
(b) CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH CORPORATE PACS 
MAY MAKE CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES.—Sec-
tion 316(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30118(b)) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
506 
‘‘(8) A separate segregated fund established by a cor-
poration may not make a contribution or expenditure dur-
ing a year unless the fund has certified to the Commission 
the following during the year: 
‘‘(A) Each individual who manages the fund, 
and who is responsible for exercising decisionmaking 
authority for the fund, is a citizen of the United 
States or is lawfully admitted for permanent resi-
dence in the United States. 
‘‘(B) No foreign national under section 319 
participates in any way in the decisionmaking proc-
esses of the fund with regard to contributions or ex-
penditures under this Act. 
‘‘(C) The fund does not solicit or accept rec-
ommendations from any foreign national under sec-
tion 319 with respect to the contributions or expend-
itures made by the fund. 
‘‘(D) Any member of the board of directors of 
the corporation who is a foreign national under sec-
tion 319 abstains from voting on matters concerning 
the fund or its activities.’’. 
SEC. 4103. AUDIT AND REPORT ON ILLICIT FOREIGN 
MONEY IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 
Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), as
507 
amended by section 1821, is further amended by inserting 
after section 319A the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 319B. AUDIT AND REPORT ON DISBURSEMENTS BY 
FOREIGN NATIONALS. 
‘‘(a) AUDIT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con-
duct an audit after each Federal election cycle to de-
termine the incidence of illicit foreign money in such 
Federal election cycle. 
‘‘(2) PROCEDURES.—In carrying out paragraph 
(1), the Commission shall conduct random audits of 
any disbursements required to be reported under 
this Act, in accordance with procedures established 
by the Commission. 
‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the end 
of each Federal election cycle, the Commission shall sub-
mit to Congress a report containing— 
‘‘(1) results of the audit required by subsection 
(a)(1); 
‘‘(2) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 
foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 
and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 
turnout among rural communities and the success or 
failure of these efforts, together with recommenda-
tions to address these efforts in future elections;
508 
‘‘(3) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 
foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 
and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 
turnout among African-American and other minority 
communities and the success or failure of these ef-
forts, together with recommendations to address 
these efforts in future elections; 
‘‘(4) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 
foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 
and propaganda campaigns focused on influencing 
military and veteran communities and the success or 
failure of these efforts, together with recommenda-
tions to address these efforts in future elections; and 
‘‘(5) recommendations to address the presence 
of illicit foreign money in elections, as appropriate. 
‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 
‘‘(1) The term ‘Federal election cycle’ means 
the period which begins on the day after the date of 
a regularly scheduled general election for Federal of-
fice and which ends on the date of the first regularly 
scheduled general election for Federal office held 
after such date. 
‘‘(2) The term ‘illicit foreign money’ means any 
disbursement by a foreign national (as defined in 
section 319(b)) prohibited under such section.’’.
509 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to the Federal elec-
tion cycle that began during November 2020, and each 
succeeding Federal election cycle. 
SEC. 4104. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONA-
TIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN CONNEC-
TIONS 
WITH 
BALLOT 
INITIATIVES 
AND 
REFERENDA. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 319(a)(1)(A) of the Fed-
eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 
30121(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘State, or local 
election’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘State, or local elec-
tion, including a State or local ballot initiative or ref-
erendum’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
this section shall apply with respect to elections held in 
2022 or any succeeding year. 
SEC. 4105. DISBURSEMENTS AND ACTIVITIES SUBJECT TO 
FOREIGN MONEY BAN. 
(a) 
DISBURSEMENTS
DESCRIBED.—Section 
319(a)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 
(52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 
(B); and
510 
(2) by striking subparagraph (C) and inserting 
the following: 
‘‘(C) an expenditure; 
‘‘(D) an independent expenditure; 
‘‘(E) a disbursement for an electioneering 
communication (within the meaning of section 
304(f)(3)); 
‘‘(F) a disbursement for a communication 
which is placed or promoted for a fee on a 
website, web application, or digital application 
that refers to a clearly identified candidate for 
election for Federal office and is disseminated 
within 60 days before a general, special, or run-
off election for the office sought by the can-
didate or 30 days before a primary or pref-
erence election, or a convention or caucus of a 
political party that has authority to nominate a 
candidate for the office sought by the can-
didate; 
‘‘(G) a disbursement for a broadcast, cable 
or satellite communication, or for a communica-
tion which is placed or promoted for a fee on 
a website, web application, or digital applica-
tion, that promotes, supports, attacks, or op-
poses the election of a clearly identified can-
512 
‘‘(J) a disbursement for a Federal judicial 
nomination communication (as defined in sec-
tion 324(d)(2)).’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall apply with respect to disbursements 
made on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
SEC. 4106. PROHIBITING ESTABLISHMENT OF CORPORA-
TION TO CONCEAL ELECTION CONTRIBU-
TIONS AND DONATIONS BY FOREIGN NATION-
ALS. 
(a) PROHIBITION.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 
States Code, as amended by section 1071(a) and section 
1201(a), is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘§ 614. Establishment of corporation to conceal elec-
tion contributions and donations by for-
eign nationals 
‘‘(a) OFFENSE.—It shall be unlawful for an owner, 
officer, attorney, or incorporation agent of a corporation, 
company, or other entity to establish or use the corpora-
tion, company, or other entity with the intent to conceal 
an activity of a foreign national (as defined in section 319 
of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 
30121)) prohibited under such section 319.
513 
‘‘(b) PENALTY.—Any person who violates subsection 
(a) shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, fined 
under this title, or both.’’. 
(b) TABLE OF SECTIONS.—The table of sections for 
chapter 29 of title 18, United States Code, as amended 
by section 1071(b) and section 1201(b), is amended by 
inserting after the item relating to section 613 the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘614. Establishment of corporation to conceal election contributions and dona-
tions by foreign nationals.’’. 
PART 2—REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED 
DISBURSEMENTS 
SEC. 4111. REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE-
MENTS. 
(a) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS
FOR CORPORA-
TIONS, LABOR ORGANIZATIONS, AND CERTAIN OTHER 
ENTITIES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 324 of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30126) 
is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 324. DISCLOSURE OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE-
MENTS BY COVERED ORGANIZATIONS. 
‘‘(a) DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any covered organization 
that makes campaign-related disbursements aggre-
gating more than $10,000 in an election reporting
514 
cycle shall, not later than 24 hours after each disclo-
sure date, file a statement with the Commission 
made under penalty of perjury that contains the in-
formation described in paragraph (2)— 
‘‘(A) in the case of the first statement filed 
under this subsection, for the period beginning 
on the first day of the election reporting cycle 
(or, if earlier, the period beginning one year be-
fore the first such disclosure date) and ending 
on the first such disclosure date; and 
‘‘(B) in the case of any subsequent state-
ment filed under this subsection, for the period 
beginning on the previous disclosure date and 
ending on such disclosure date. 
‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa-
tion described in this paragraph is as follows: 
‘‘(A) The name of the covered organization 
and the principal place of business of such or-
ganization and, in the case of a covered organi-
zation that is a corporation (other than a busi-
ness concern that is an issuer of a class of secu-
rities registered under section 12 of the Securi-
ties Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l) or 
that is required to file reports under section 
15(d) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 78o(d))) or an en-
515 
tity described in subsection (e)(2), a list of the 
beneficial owners (as defined in paragraph 
(4)(A)) of the entity that— 
‘‘(i) identifies each beneficial owner by 
name and current residential or business 
street address; and 
‘‘(ii) if any beneficial owner exercises 
control over the entity through another 
legal entity, such as a corporation, partner-
ship, limited liability company, or trust, 
identifies each such other legal entity and 
each such beneficial owner who will use 
that other entity to exercise control over 
the entity. 
‘‘(B) The amount of each campaign-related 
disbursement made by such organization during 
the period covered by the statement of more 
than $1,000, and the name and address of the 
person to whom the disbursement was made. 
‘‘(C) In the case of a campaign-related dis-
bursement that is not a covered transfer, the 
election to which the campaign-related disburse-
ment pertains and if the disbursement is made 
for a public communication, the name of any 
candidate identified in such communication and
516 
whether such communication is in support of or 
in opposition to a candidate. 
‘‘(D) A certification by the chief executive 
officer or person who is the head of the covered 
organization that the campaign-related dis-
bursement is not made in cooperation, consulta-
tion, or concert with or at the request or sug-
gestion of a candidate, authorized committee, or 
agent of a candidate, political party, or agent of 
a political party. 
‘‘(E)(i) If the covered organization makes 
campaign-related disbursements using exclu-
sively funds in a segregated bank account con-
sisting of funds that were paid directly to such 
account by persons other than the covered orga-
nization that controls the account, for each 
such payment to the account— 
‘‘(I) the name and address of each 
person who made such payment during the 
period covered by the statement; 
‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 
payment; and 
‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 
such payments made by the person during 
the period beginning on the first day of the
517 
election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 
period beginning one year before the dis-
closure date) and ending on the disclosure 
date, 
but only if such payment was made by a person 
who made payments to the account in an aggre-
gate amount of $10,000 or more during the pe-
riod beginning on the first day of the election 
reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the period begin-
ning one year before the disclosure date) and 
ending on the disclosure date. 
‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2022, sec-
tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de-
scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 
such section applies to the limitations estab-
lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 
(a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 
purposes of applying such section to the 
amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 
period’ shall be 2022. 
‘‘(F)(i) If the covered organization makes 
campaign-related disbursements using funds 
other than funds in a segregated bank account 
described in subparagraph (E), for each pay-
ment to the covered organization—
518 
‘‘(I) the name and address of each 
person who made such payment during the 
period covered by the statement; 
‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 
payment; and 
‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 
such payments made by the person during 
the period beginning on the first day of the 
election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 
period beginning one year before the dis-
closure date) and ending on the disclosure 
date, 
but only if such payment was made by a person 
who made payments to the covered organization 
in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more 
during the period beginning on the first day of 
the election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 
period beginning one year before the disclosure 
date) and ending on the disclosure date. 
‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2022, sec-
tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de-
scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 
such section applies to the limitations estab-
lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 
(a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for
519 
purposes of applying such section to the 
amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 
period’ shall be 2022. 
‘‘(G) Such other information as required in 
rules established by the Commission to promote 
the purposes of this section. 
‘‘(3) EXCEPTIONS.— 
‘‘(A) AMOUNTS
RECEIVED
IN
ORDINARY 
COURSE OF BUSINESS.—The requirement to in-
clude in a statement filed under paragraph (1) 
the information described in paragraph (2) 
shall not apply to amounts received by the cov-
ered organization in commercial transactions in 
the ordinary course of any trade or business 
conducted by the covered organization or in the 
form of investments (other than investments by 
the principal shareholder in a limited liability 
corporation) in the covered organization. For 
purposes of this subparagraph, amounts re-
ceived by a covered organization as remittances 
from an employee to the employee’s collective 
bargaining representative shall be treated as 
amounts received in commercial transactions in 
the ordinary course of the business conducted 
by the covered organization.
520 
‘‘(B) DONOR
RESTRICTION
ON
USE
OF 
FUNDS.—The requirement to include in a state-
ment submitted under paragraph (1) the infor-
mation described in subparagraph (F) of para-
graph (2) shall not apply if— 
‘‘(i) the person described in such sub-
paragraph prohibited, in writing, the use of 
the payment made by such person for cam-
paign-related disbursements; and 
‘‘(ii) the covered organization agreed 
to follow the prohibition and deposited the 
payment in an account which is segregated 
from any account used to make campaign- 
related disbursements. 
‘‘(C) THREAT
OF
HARASSMENT
OR
RE-
PRISAL.—The requirement to include any infor-
mation relating to the name or address of any 
person (other than a candidate) in a statement 
submitted under paragraph (1) shall not apply 
if the inclusion of the information would subject 
the person to serious threats, harassment, or 
reprisals. 
‘‘(4) OTHER
DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 
this section: 
‘‘(A) BENEFICIAL OWNER DEFINED.—
521 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Except as pro-
vided in clause (ii), the term ‘beneficial 
owner’ means, with respect to any entity, 
a natural person who, directly or indi-
rectly— 
‘‘(I) exercises substantial control 
over an entity through ownership, vot-
ing rights, agreement, or otherwise; or 
‘‘(II) has a substantial interest in 
or receives substantial economic bene-
fits from the assets of an entity. 
‘‘(ii) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘bene-
ficial owner’ shall not include— 
‘‘(I) a minor child; 
‘‘(II) a person acting as a nomi-
nee, intermediary, custodian, or agent 
on behalf of another person; 
‘‘(III) a person acting solely as 
an employee of an entity and whose 
control over or economic benefits from 
the entity derives solely from the em-
ployment status of the person; 
‘‘(IV) a person whose only inter-
est in an entity is through a right of 
inheritance, unless the person also
522 
meets the requirements of clause (i); 
or 
‘‘(V) a creditor of an entity, un-
less the creditor also meets the re-
quirements of clause (i). 
‘‘(iii) ANTI-ABUSE RULE.—The excep-
tions under clause (ii) shall not apply if 
used for the purpose of evading, circum-
venting, or abusing the provisions of clause 
(i) or paragraph (2)(A). 
‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE DATE.—The term ‘dis-
closure date’ means— 
‘‘(i) the first date during any election 
reporting cycle by which a person has 
made campaign-related disbursements ag-
gregating more than $10,000; and 
‘‘(ii) any other date during such elec-
tion reporting cycle by which a person has 
made campaign-related disbursements ag-
gregating more than $10,000 since the 
most recent disclosure date for such elec-
tion reporting cycle. 
‘‘(C) ELECTION REPORTING CYCLE.—The 
term ‘election reporting cycle’ means the 2-year 
period beginning on the date of the most recent
523 
general election for Federal office, except that 
in the case of a campaign-related disbursement 
for a Federal judicial nomination communica-
tion, such term means any calendar year in 
which the campaign-related disbursement is 
made. 
‘‘(D) PAYMENT.—The term ‘payment’ in-
cludes any contribution, donation, transfer, pay-
ment of dues, or other payment. 
‘‘(b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROVISIONS.— 
‘‘(1) OTHER REPORTS FILED WITH THE COM-
MISSION.—Information included in a statement filed 
under this section may be excluded from statements 
and reports filed under section 304. 
‘‘(2) TREATMENT AS SEPARATE SEGREGATED 
FUND.—A segregated bank account referred to in 
subsection (a)(2)(E) may be treated as a separate 
segregated fund for purposes of section 527(f)(3) of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 
‘‘(c) FILING.—Statements required to be filed under 
subsection (a) shall be subject to the requirements of sec-
tion 304(d) to the same extent and in the same manner 
as if such reports had been required under subsection (c) 
or (g) of section 304.
524 
‘‘(d) 
CAMPAIGN-RELATED
DISBURSEMENT
DE-
FINED.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 
‘campaign-related disbursement’ means a disburse-
ment by a covered organization for any of the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(A) An independent expenditure which ex-
pressly advocates the election or defeat of a 
clearly identified candidate for election for Fed-
eral office, or is the functional equivalent of ex-
press advocacy because, when taken as a whole, 
it can be interpreted by a reasonable person 
only as advocating the election or defeat of a 
candidate for election for Federal office. 
‘‘(B) Any public communication which re-
fers to a clearly identified candidate for election 
for Federal office and which promotes or sup-
ports the election of a candidate for that office, 
or attacks or opposes the election of a candidate 
for that office, without regard to whether the 
communication expressly advocates a vote for or 
against a candidate for that office. 
‘‘(C) An electioneering communication, as 
defined in section 304(f)(3).
525 
‘‘(D) A Federal judicial nomination com-
munication. 
‘‘(E) A covered transfer. 
‘‘(2) FEDERAL JUDICIAL NOMINATION COMMU-
NICATION.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘Federal ju-
dicial nomination communication’ means any 
communication— 
‘‘(i) that is by means of any broad-
cast, cable, or satellite, paid internet, or 
paid digital communication, paid pro-
motion, newspaper, magazine, outdoor ad-
vertising facility, mass mailing, telephone 
bank, telephone messaging effort of more 
than 500 substantially similar calls or elec-
tronic messages within a 30-day period, or 
any other form of general public political 
advertising; and 
‘‘(ii) which promotes, supports, at-
tacks, or opposes the nomination or Senate 
confirmation of an individual as a Federal 
judge or justice. 
‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Such term shall not in-
clude any news story, commentary, or editorial 
distributed through the facilities of any broad-
526 
casting station or any print, online, or digital 
newspaper, magazine, publication, or periodical, 
unless such facilities are owned or controlled by 
any political party, political committee, or can-
didate. 
‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘campaign-related 
disbursement’ does not include any news story, com-
mentary, or editorial distributed through the facili-
ties of any broadcasting station or any print, online, 
or digital newspaper, magazine, publication, or peri-
odical, unless such facilities are owned or controlled 
by any political party, political committee, or can-
didate. 
‘‘(4) INTENT NOT REQUIRED.—A disbursement 
for an item described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 
(D), or (E) of paragraph (1) shall be treated as a 
campaign-related disbursement regardless of the in-
tent of the person making the disbursement. 
‘‘(e) COVERED ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—In this 
section, the term ‘covered organization’ means any of the 
following: 
‘‘(1) A corporation (other than an organization 
described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986).
527 
‘‘(2) A limited liability corporation that is not 
otherwise treated as a corporation for purposes of 
this Act (other than an organization described in 
section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986). 
‘‘(3) An organization described in section 
501(c) of such Code and exempt from taxation 
under section 501(a) of such Code (other than an 
organization described in section 501(c)(3) of such 
Code). 
‘‘(4) A labor organization (as defined in section 
316(b)). 
‘‘(5) Any political organization under section 
527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, other 
than a political committee under this Act (except as 
provided in paragraph (6)). 
‘‘(6) A political committee with an account that 
accepts donations or contributions that do not com-
ply with the contribution limits or source prohibi-
tions under this Act, but only with respect to such 
accounts. 
‘‘(f) COVERED TRANSFER DEFINED.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 
‘covered transfer’ means any transfer or payment of
528 
funds by a covered organization to another person if 
the covered organization— 
‘‘(A) designates, requests, or suggests that 
the amounts be used for— 
‘‘(i) campaign-related disbursements 
(other than covered transfers); or 
‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 
person for the purpose of making or pay-
ing for such campaign-related disburse-
ments; 
‘‘(B) made such transfer or payment in re-
sponse to a solicitation or other request for a 
donation or payment for— 
‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam-
paign-related disbursements (other than 
covered transfers); or 
‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 
person for the purpose of making or pay-
ing for such campaign-related disburse-
ments; 
‘‘(C) engaged in discussions with the re-
cipient of the transfer or payment regarding— 
‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam-
paign-related disbursements (other than 
covered transfers); or
529 
‘‘(ii) donating or transferring any 
amount of such transfer or payment to an-
other person for the purpose of making or 
paying for such campaign-related disburse-
ments; 
‘‘(D) made campaign-related disburse-
ments (other than a covered transfer) in an ag-
gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 
2-year period ending on the date of the transfer 
or payment, or knew or had reason to know 
that the person receiving the transfer or pay-
ment made such disbursements in such an ag-
gregate amount during that 2-year period; or 
‘‘(E) knew or had reason to know that the 
person receiving the transfer or payment would 
make campaign-related disbursements in an ag-
gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 
2-year period beginning on the date of the 
transfer or payment. 
‘‘(2) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘covered transfer’ 
does not include any of the following: 
‘‘(A) A disbursement made by a covered 
organization in a commercial transaction in the 
ordinary course of any trade or business con-
ducted by the covered organization or in the
530 
form of investments made by the covered orga-
nization. 
‘‘(B) A disbursement made by a covered 
organization if— 
‘‘(i) the covered organization prohib-
ited, in writing, the use of such disburse-
ment for campaign-related disbursements; 
and 
‘‘(ii) the recipient of the disbursement 
agreed to follow the prohibition and depos-
ited the disbursement in an account which 
is segregated from any account used to 
make campaign-related disbursements. 
‘‘(3) SPECIAL
RULE
REGARDING
TRANSFERS 
AMONG AFFILIATES.— 
‘‘(A) SPECIAL
RULE.—A transfer of an 
amount by one covered organization to another 
covered organization which is treated as a 
transfer between affiliates under subparagraph 
(C) shall be considered a covered transfer by 
the covered organization which transfers the 
amount only if the aggregate amount trans-
ferred during the year by such covered organi-
zation to that same covered organization is 
equal to or greater than $50,000.
531 
‘‘(B) DETERMINATION
OF
AMOUNT
OF 
CERTAIN
PAYMENTS
AMONG
AFFILIATES.—In 
determining the amount of a transfer between 
affiliates for purposes of subparagraph (A), to 
the extent that the transfer consists of funds 
attributable to dues, fees, or assessments which 
are paid by individuals on a regular, periodic 
basis in accordance with a per-individual cal-
culation which is made on a regular basis, the 
transfer shall be attributed to the individuals 
paying the dues, fees, or assessments and shall 
not be attributed to the covered organization. 
‘‘(C) DESCRIPTION
OF
TRANSFERS
BE-
TWEEN
AFFILIATES.—A transfer of amounts 
from one covered organization to another cov-
ered organization shall be treated as a transfer 
between affiliates if— 
‘‘(i) one of the organizations is an af-
filiate of the other organization; or 
‘‘(ii) each of the organizations is an 
affiliate of the same organization, 
except that the transfer shall not be treated as 
a transfer between affiliates if one of the orga-
nizations is established for the purpose of mak-
ing campaign-related disbursements.
532 
‘‘(D) DETERMINATION OF AFFILIATE STA-
TUS.—For purposes of subparagraph (C), a 
covered organization is an affiliate of another 
covered organization if— 
‘‘(i) the governing instrument of the 
organization requires it to be bound by de-
cisions of the other organization; 
‘‘(ii) the governing board of the orga-
nization includes persons who are specifi-
cally designated representatives of the 
other organization or are members of the 
governing board, officers, or paid executive 
staff members of the other organization, or 
whose service on the governing board is 
contingent upon the approval of the other 
organization; or 
‘‘(iii) the organization is chartered by 
the other organization. 
‘‘(E) COVERAGE
OF
TRANSFERS
TO
AF-
FILIATED
SECTION
501(c)(3) 
ORGANIZA-
TIONS.—This paragraph shall apply with re-
spect to an amount transferred by a covered or-
ganization to an organization described in para-
graph (3) of section 501(c) of the Internal Rev-
enue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under
533 
section 501(a) of such Code in the same man-
ner as this paragraph applies to an amount 
transferred by a covered organization to an-
other covered organization. 
‘‘(g) NO EFFECT ON OTHER REPORTING REQUIRE-
MENTS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to 
waive or otherwise affect any other requirement of this 
Act which relates to the reporting of campaign-related dis-
bursements.’’. 
(2) 
CONFORMING
AMENDMENT.—Section 
304(f)(6) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104) is amended 
by striking ‘‘Any requirement’’ and inserting ‘‘Ex-
cept as provided in section 324(b), any require-
ment’’. 
(b) COORDINATION WITH FINCEN.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Finan-
cial Crimes Enforcement Network of the Depart-
ment of the Treasury shall provide the Federal Elec-
tion Commission with such information as necessary 
to assist in administering and enforcing section 324 
of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 
added by this section. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Chairman 
of the Federal Election Commission, in consultation
534 
with the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforce-
ment Network of the Department of the Treasury, 
shall submit to Congress a report with recommenda-
tions for providing further legislative authority to as-
sist in the administration and enforcement of such 
section 324. 
SEC. 4112. APPLICATION OF FOREIGN MONEY BAN TO DIS-
BURSEMENTS FOR CAMPAIGN-RELATED DIS-
BURSEMENTS 
CONSISTING 
OF 
COVERED 
TRANSFERS. 
Section 319(a)(1)(A) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)(A)), as amend-
ed by section 4102, is amended by striking the semicolon 
at the end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and any dis-
bursement, other than an disbursement described in sec-
tion 324(a)(3)(A), to another person who made a cam-
paign-related disbursement consisting of a covered trans-
fer (as described in section 324) during the 2-year period 
ending on the date of the disbursement;’’. 
SEC. 4113. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
The amendments made by this part shall apply with 
respect to disbursements made on or after January 1, 
2022, and shall take effect without regard to whether or 
not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 
regulations to carry out such amendments.
535 
PART 3—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS 
SEC. 4121. PETITION FOR CERTIORARI. 
Section 307(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 
Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30107(a)(6)) is amended by in-
serting ‘‘(including a proceeding before the Supreme 
Court on certiorari)’’ after ‘‘appeal’’. 
SEC. 4122. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF ACTIONS RELATED TO 
CAMPAIGN FINANCE LAWS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title IV of the Federal Election 
Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30141 et seq.) is 
amended by inserting after section 406 the following new 
section: 
‘‘SEC. 407. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 373(f), 
if any action is brought for declaratory or injunctive relief 
to challenge, whether facially or as-applied, the constitu-
tionality or lawfulness of any provision of this Act or of 
chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
or is brought to with respect to any action of the Commis-
sion under chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 
of 1986, the following rules shall apply: 
‘‘(1) The action shall be filed in the United 
States District Court for the District of Columbia 
and an appeal from the decision of the district court 
may be taken to the Court of Appeals for the Dis-
trict of Columbia Circuit.
536 
‘‘(2) In the case of an action relating to declar-
atory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu-
tionality of a provision, the party filing the action 
shall concurrently deliver a copy the complaint to 
the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 
Secretary of the Senate. 
‘‘(3) It shall be the duty of the United States 
District Court for the District of Columbia and the 
Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Cir-
cuit to advance on the docket and to expedite to the 
greatest possible extent the disposition of the action 
and appeal. 
‘‘(b) CLARIFYING SCOPE OF JURISDICTION.—If an 
action at the time of its commencement is not subject to 
subsection (a), but an amendment, counterclaim, cross- 
claim, affirmative defense, or any other pleading or motion 
is filed challenging, whether facially or as-applied, the con-
stitutionality or lawfulness of this Act or of chapter 95 
or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or is brought 
to with respect to any action of the Commission under 
chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 
the district court shall transfer the action to the District 
Court for the District of Columbia, and the action shall 
thereafter be conducted pursuant to subsection (a).
537 
‘‘(c) INTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 
In any action described in subsection (a) relating to de-
claratory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu-
tionality of a provision, any Member of the House of Rep-
resentatives (including a Delegate or Resident Commis-
sioner to the Congress) or Senate shall have the right to 
intervene either in support of or opposition to the position 
of a party to the case regarding the constitutionality of 
the provision. To avoid duplication of efforts and reduce 
the burdens placed on the parties to the action, the court 
in any such action may make such orders as it considers 
necessary, including orders to require interveners taking 
similar positions to file joint papers or to be represented 
by a single attorney at oral argument. 
‘‘(d) CHALLENGE BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—Any 
Member of Congress may bring an action, subject to the 
special rules described in subsection (a), for declaratory 
or injunctive relief to challenge, whether facially or as-ap-
plied, the constitutionality of any provision of this Act or 
chapter 95 or 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 
(1) Section 9011 of the Internal Revenue Code 
of 1986 is amended to read as follows:
538 
‘‘SEC. 9011. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 
‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of certifi-
cations, determinations, and actions by the Commission 
under this chapter, see section 407 of the Federal Election 
Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 
(2) Section 9041 of the Internal Revenue Code 
of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 9041. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 
‘‘For provisions relating to judicial review of actions 
by the Commission under this chapter, see section 407 of 
the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 
(3) Section 310 of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30110) is repealed. 
(4) Section 403 of the Bipartisan Campaign 
Reform Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 30110 note) is re-
pealed. 
(c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall apply to actions brought on or after Jan-
uary 1, 2021.
539 
PART 4—DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO 
POLITICAL 
COMMITTEES 
IMMEDIATELY 
PRIOR TO ELECTION 
SEC. 4131. DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS TO POLITICAL 
COMMITTEES IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO ELEC-
TION. 
(a) DISCLOSURE.—Section 304(a)(6) of the Federal 
Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(a)(6)) 
is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subparagraphs (D) and 
(E) as subparagraphs (E) and (F); and 
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (C) the fol-
lowing new subparagraph: 
‘‘(D)(i) A political committee, including a super PAC, 
shall notify the Commission of any contribution or dona-
tion of more than $5,000 received by the committee during 
the period beginning on the 20th day before any election 
in connection with which the committee makes a contribu-
tion or expenditure and ending 48 hours before such an 
election. 
‘‘(ii) The committee shall make the notification under 
clause (i) not later than 48 hours after the receipt of the 
contribution or donation involved, and shall include the 
name of the committee, the name of the person making 
the contribution or donation, and the date and amount 
of the contribution or donation.
540 
‘‘(iii) For purposes of this subparagraph, a pledge, 
promise, understanding, or agreement to make a contribu-
tion or expenditure with respect to an election shall be 
treated as the making of a contribution or expenditure 
with respect to the election. 
‘‘(iv) This subparagraph does not apply to an author-
ized committee of a candidate or any committee of a polit-
ical party. 
‘‘(v) In this subparagraph, the term ‘super PAC’ 
means a political committee which accepts donations or 
contributions that do not comply with the limitations, pro-
hibitions, and reporting requirements of this Act, and in-
cludes an account of such a committee which is established 
for the purpose of accepting such donations or contribu-
tions.’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 
subsection (a) shall apply with respect to elections occur-
ring during 2022 or any succeeding year. 
Subtitle 
C—Strengthening 
Over-
sight of Online Political Adver-
tising 
SEC. 4201. SHORT TITLE. 
This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Honest Ads Act’’.
541 
SEC. 4202. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this subtitle is to enhance the integ-
rity of American democracy and national security by im-
proving disclosure requirements for online political adver-
tisements in order to uphold the Supreme Court’s well- 
established standard that the electorate bears the right to 
be fully informed. 
SEC. 4203. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) On January 6, 2017, the Office of the Di-
rector of National Intelligence published a report ti-
tled ‘‘Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in 
Recent U.S. Elections’’, noting that ‘‘Russian Presi-
dent Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign 
in 2016 aimed at the US presidential election * * 
*’’. Moscow’s influence campaign followed a Russian 
messaging strategy that blends covert intelligence 
operation—such as cyber activity—with overt efforts 
by Russian Government agencies, state-funded 
media, third-party intermediaries, and paid social 
media users or ‘‘trolls’’. 
(2) On November 24, 2016, The Washington 
Post reported findings from 2 teams of independent 
researchers that concluded Russians ‘‘exploited 
American-made technology platforms to attack U.S. 
democracy at a particularly vulnerable moment * *
542 
* as part of a broadly effective strategy of sowing 
distrust in U.S. democracy and its leaders.’’. 
(3) Findings from a 2017 study on the manipu-
lation of public opinion through social media con-
ducted by the Computational Propaganda Research 
Project at the Oxford Internet Institute found that 
the Kremlin is using pro-Russian bots to manipulate 
public discourse to a highly targeted audience. With 
a sample of nearly 1,300,000 tweets, researchers 
found that in the 2016 election’s 3 decisive States, 
propaganda constituted 40 percent of the sampled 
election-related tweets that went to Pennsylvanians, 
34 percent to Michigan voters, and 30 percent to 
those in Wisconsin. In other swing States, the figure 
reached 42 percent in Missouri, 41 percent in Flor-
ida, 40 percent in North Carolina, 38 percent in 
Colorado, and 35 percent in Ohio. 
(4) On September 6, 2017, the Nation’s largest 
social media platform disclosed that between June 
2015 and May 2017, Russian entities purchased 
$100,000 in political advertisements, publishing 
roughly 3,000 ads linked to fake accounts associated 
with the Internet Research Agency, a pro-Kremlin 
organization. According to the company, the ads
543 
purchased focused ‘‘on amplifying divisive social and 
political messages * * *’’. 
(5) In 2002, the Bipartisan Campaign Reform 
Act became law, establishing disclosure requirements 
for political advertisements distributed from a tele-
vision or radio broadcast station or provider of cable 
or satellite television. In 2003, the Supreme Court 
upheld regulations on electioneering communications 
established under the Act, noting that such require-
ments ‘‘provide the electorate with information and 
insure that the voters are fully informed about the 
person or group who is speaking.’’. 
(6) According to a study from Borrell Associ-
ates, in 2016, $1,415,000,000 was spent on online 
advertising, more than quadruple the amount in 
2012. 
(7) The reach of a few large internet plat-
forms—larger than any broadcast, satellite, or cable 
provider—has greatly facilitated the scope and effec-
tiveness of disinformation campaigns. For instance, 
the largest platform has over 210,000,000 Ameri-
cans users—over 160,000,000 of them on a daily 
basis. By contrast, the largest cable television pro-
vider has 22,430,000 subscribers, while the largest 
satellite television provider has 21,000,000 sub-
544 
scribers. And the most-watched television broadcast 
in United States history had 118,000,000 viewers. 
(8) The public nature of broadcast television, 
radio, and satellite ensures a level of publicity for 
any political advertisement. These communications 
are accessible to the press, fact-checkers, and polit-
ical opponents; this creates strong disincentives for 
a candidate to disseminate materially false, inflam-
matory, or contradictory messages to the public. So-
cial media platforms, in contrast, can target portions 
of the electorate with direct, ephemeral advertise-
ments often on the basis of private information the 
platform has on individuals, enabling political adver-
tisements that are contradictory, racially or socially 
inflammatory, or materially false. 
(9) According to comScore, 2 companies own 8 
of the 10 most popular smart phone applications as 
of June 2017, including the most popular social 
media and email services—which deliver information 
and news to users without requiring proactivity by 
the user. Those same 2 companies accounted for 99 
percent of revenue growth from digital advertising in 
2016, including 77 percent of gross spending. 79 
percent of online Americans—representing 68 per-
cent of all Americans—use the single largest social
545 
network, while 66 percent of these users are most 
likely to get their news from that site. 
(10) In its 2006 rulemaking, the Federal Elec-
tion Commission noted that only 18 percent of all 
Americans cited the internet as their leading source 
of news about the 2004 Presidential election; by con-
trast, the Pew Research Center found that 65 per-
cent of Americans identified an internet-based 
source as their leading source of information for the 
2016 election. 
(11) The Federal Election Commission, the 
independent Federal agency charged with protecting 
the integrity of the Federal campaign finance proc-
ess by providing transparency and administering 
campaign finance laws, has failed to take action to 
address online political advertisements. 
(12) In testimony before the Senate Select 
Committee on Intelligence titled, ‘‘Disinformation: A 
Primer in Russian Active Measures and Influence 
Campaigns’’, multiple expert witnesses testified that 
while the disinformation tactics of foreign adver-
saries have not necessarily changed, social media 
services now provide ‘‘platform[s] practically pur-
pose-built for active measures[.]’’ Similarly, as Gen. 
Keith B. Alexander (RET.), the former Director of
546 
the National Security Agency, testified, during the 
Cold War ‘‘if the Soviet Union sought to manipulate 
information flow, it would have to do so principally 
through its own propaganda outlets or through ac-
tive measures that would generate specific news: 
planting of leaflets, inciting of violence, creation of 
other false materials and narratives. But the news 
itself was hard to manipulate because it would have 
required actual control of the organs of media, which 
took long-term efforts to penetrate. Today, however, 
because the clear majority of the information on so-
cial media sites is uncurated and there is a rapid 
proliferation of information sources and other sites 
that can reinforce information, there is an increasing 
likelihood that the information available to average 
consumers may be inaccurate (whether intentionally 
or otherwise) and may be more easily manipulable 
than in prior eras.’’. 
(13) Current regulations on political advertise-
ments do not provide sufficient transparency to up-
hold the public’s right to be fully informed about po-
litical advertisements made online. 
SEC. 4204. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that—
547 
(1) the dramatic increase in digital political ad-
vertisements, and the growing centrality of online 
platforms in the lives of Americans, requires the 
Congress and the Federal Election Commission to 
take meaningful action to ensure that laws and reg-
ulations provide the accountability and transparency 
that is fundamental to our democracy; 
(2) free and fair elections require both trans-
parency and accountability which give the public a 
right to know the true sources of funding for polit-
ical advertisements in order to make informed polit-
ical choices and hold elected officials accountable; 
and 
(3) transparency of funding for political adver-
tisements is essential to enforce other campaign fi-
nance laws, including the prohibition on campaign 
spending by foreign nationals. 
SEC. 4205. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMU-
NICATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (22) of section 301 of 
the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 
30101(22)) is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite commu-
nication’’ and inserting ‘‘satellite, paid internet, or paid 
digital communication’’.
548 
(b) TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDI-
TURES.—Section 301 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101) is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (8)(B)(v), by striking ‘‘on 
broadcasting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 
or similar types of general public political adver-
tising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public communica-
tion’’; and 
(2) in paragraph (9)(B)— 
(A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(i) any news story, commentary, or 
editorial distributed through the facilities 
of any broadcasting station or any print, 
online, or digital newspaper, magazine, 
blog, publication, or periodical, unless such 
broadcasting, print, online, or digital facili-
ties are owned or controlled by any polit-
ical party, political committee, or can-
didate;’’; and 
(B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘on broad-
casting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 
or similar types of general public political ad-
vertising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public commu-
nication’’.
549 
(c) DISCLOSURE AND DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS.— 
Subsection (a) of section 318 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 
30120) is amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘financing any communication 
through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga-
zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 
other type of general public political advertising’’ 
and inserting ‘‘financing any public communication’’; 
and 
(2) by striking ‘‘solicits any contribution 
through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga-
zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 
other type of general public political advertising’’ 
and inserting ‘‘solicits any contribution through any 
public communication’’. 
SEC. 4206. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF ELECTION-
EERING COMMUNICATION. 
(a) EXPANSION TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.— 
(1) APPLICATION TO QUALIFIED INTERNET AND 
DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of 
section 304(f)(3) of the Federal Election Cam-
paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(A)) 
is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite communica-
tion’’ each place it appears in clauses (i) and
550 
(ii) and inserting ‘‘satellite, or qualified internet 
or digital communication’’. 
(B) QUALIFIED
INTERNET
OR
DIGITAL 
COMMUNICATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 
304(f) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following 
new subparagraph: 
‘‘(D) QUALIFIED
INTERNET
OR
DIGITAL 
COMMUNICATION.—The term ‘qualified internet 
or digital communication’ means any commu-
nication which is placed or promoted for a fee 
on an online platform (as defined in subsection 
(k)(3)).’’. 
(2) NONAPPLICATION
OF
RELEVANT
ELEC-
TORATE
TO
ONLINE
COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 
304(f)(3)(A)(i)(III) 
of 
such 
Act 
(52 
U.S.C. 
30104(f)(3)(A)(i)(III)) is amended by inserting ‘‘any 
broadcast, cable, or satellite’’ before ‘‘communica-
tion’’. 
(3) 
NEWS
EXEMPTION.—Section 
304(f)(3)(B)(i) 
of 
such 
Act 
(52 
U.S.C. 
30104(f)(3)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘(i) a communication appearing in a 
news story, commentary, or editorial dis-
tributed through the facilities of any
551 
broadcasting station or any online or dig-
ital newspaper, magazine, blog, publica-
tion, or periodical, unless such broad-
casting, online, or digital facilities are 
owned or controlled by any political party, 
political committee, or candidate;’’. 
(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 
this section shall apply with respect to communications 
made on or after January 1, 2022. 
SEC. 4207. APPLICATION OF DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS TO 
ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS. 
(a) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER REQUIRE-
MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 318 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is 
amended— 
(1) by striking ‘‘shall clearly state’’ each place 
it appears in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and in-
serting ‘‘shall state in a clear and conspicuous man-
ner’’; and 
(2) by adding at the end the following flush 
sentence: ‘‘For purposes of this section, a commu-
nication does not make a statement in a clear and 
conspicuous manner if it is difficult to read or hear 
or if the placement is easily overlooked.’’.
552 
(b) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR 
DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318 of such Act (52 
U.S.C. 30120) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection: 
‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR 
DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 
‘‘(1) SPECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT TO STATE-
MENTS.—In the case of any qualified internet or 
digital 
communication 
(as 
defined 
in 
section 
304(f)(3)(D)) which is disseminated through a me-
dium in which the provision of all of the information 
specified in this section is not possible, the commu-
nication shall, in a clear and conspicuous manner— 
‘‘(A) state the name of the person who 
paid for the communication; and 
‘‘(B) provide a means for the recipient of 
the communication to obtain the remainder of 
the information required under this section with 
minimal effort and without receiving or viewing 
any additional material other than such re-
quired information. 
‘‘(2) SAFE HARBOR FOR DETERMINING CLEAR 
AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER.—A statement in quali-
fied internet or digital communication (as defined in
553 
section 304(f)(3)(D)) shall be considered to be made 
in a clear and conspicuous manner as provided in 
subsection (a) if the communication meets the fol-
lowing requirements: 
‘‘(A) TEXT
OR
GRAPHIC
COMMUNICA-
TIONS.—In the case of a text or graphic com-
munication, the statement— 
‘‘(i) appears in letters at least as large 
as the majority of the text in the commu-
nication; and 
‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of para-
graphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c). 
‘‘(B) AUDIO
COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 
case of an audio communication, the statement 
is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible 
manner at the beginning or end of the commu-
nication and lasts at least 3 seconds. 
‘‘(C) VIDEO
COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 
case of a video communication which also in-
cludes audio, the statement— 
‘‘(i) is included at either the beginning 
or the end of the communication; and 
‘‘(ii) is made both in— 
‘‘(I) a written format that meets 
the requirements of subparagraph (A)
554 
and appears for at least 4 seconds; 
and 
‘‘(II) an audible format that 
meets the requirements of subpara-
graph (B). 
‘‘(D) OTHER
COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 
case of any other type of communication, the 
statement is at least as clear and conspicuous 
as the statement specified in subparagraph (A), 
(B), or (C).’’. 
(2) NONAPPLICATION
OF
CERTAIN
EXCEP-
TIONS.—The 
exceptions 
provided 
in 
section 
110.11(f)(1)(i) and (ii) of title 11, Code of Federal 
Regulations, or any successor to such rules, shall 
have no application to qualified internet or digital 
communications (as defined in section 304(f)(3)(D) 
of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971). 
(c) MODIFICATION OF ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS 
FOR CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318(d) of such 
Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 
through radio’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in an 
audio format’’; and
555 
(B) by striking ‘‘BY RADIO’’ in the heading 
and inserting ‘‘AUDIO FORMAT’’; 
(2) in paragraph (1)(B)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 
through television’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in 
video format’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘BY TELEVISION’’ in the 
heading and inserting ‘‘VIDEO FORMAT’’; and 
(3) in paragraph (2)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘transmitted through radio 
or television’’ and inserting ‘‘made in audio or 
video format’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘through television’’ in the 
second sentence and inserting ‘‘in video for-
mat’’. 
SEC. 4208. POLITICAL RECORD REQUIREMENTS FOR ON-
LINE PLATFORMS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec-
tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend-
ed by section 4002, is amended by adding at the end the 
following new subsection: 
‘‘(k) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN ONLINE ADVERTISE-
MENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—
556 
‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLAT-
FORMS.—An online platform shall maintain, 
and make available for online public inspection 
in machine readable format, a complete record 
of any request to purchase on such online plat-
form a qualified political advertisement which is 
made by a person whose aggregate requests to 
purchase qualified political advertisements on 
such online platform during the calendar year 
exceeds $500. 
‘‘(B) 
REQUIREMENTS
FOR
ADVER-
TISERS.—Any person who requests to purchase 
a qualified political advertisement on an online 
platform shall provide the online platform with 
such information as is necessary for the online 
platform to comply with the requirements of 
subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF RECORD.—A record main-
tained under paragraph (1)(A) shall contain— 
‘‘(A) a digital copy of the qualified political 
advertisement; 
‘‘(B) a description of the audience targeted 
by the advertisement, the number of views gen-
erated from the advertisement, the number of 
views by unique individuals generated by the
557 
advertisement, the number of times the adver-
tisement was shared, and the date and time 
that the advertisement is first displayed and 
last displayed; and 
‘‘(C) information regarding— 
‘‘(i) the average rate charged for the 
advertisement; 
‘‘(ii) the name of the candidate to 
which the advertisement refers and the of-
fice to which the candidate is seeking elec-
tion, the election to which the advertise-
ment refers, or the national legislative 
issue to which the advertisement refers (as 
applicable); 
‘‘(iii) in the case of a request made 
by, or on behalf of, a candidate, the name 
of the candidate, the authorized committee 
of the candidate, and the treasurer of such 
committee; and 
‘‘(iv) in the case of any request not 
described in clause (iii), the name of the 
person purchasing the advertisement, the 
name and address of a contact person for 
such person, and a list of the chief execu-
tive officers or members of the executive
558 
committee or of the board of directors of 
such person, and, if the person purchasing 
the advertisement is acting as the agent of 
a foreign principal under the Foreign 
Agents Registration Act of 1938, as 
amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), a state-
ment that the person is acting as the agent 
of a foreign principal and the identification 
of the foreign principal involved. 
‘‘(3) ONLINE PLATFORM.—For purposes of this 
subsection, the term ‘online platform’ means any 
public-facing website, web application, or digital ap-
plication (including a social network, ad network, or 
search engine) which— 
‘‘(A) sells qualified political advertise-
ments; and 
‘‘(B) has 50,000,000 or more unique 
monthly United States visitors or users for a 
majority of months during the preceding 12 
months. 
‘‘(4) QUALIFIED POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT.— 
For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualified 
political advertisement’ means any advertisement 
(including search engine marketing, display adver-
559 
tisements, video advertisements, native advertise-
ments, and sponsorships) that— 
‘‘(A) is made by or on behalf of a can-
didate; or 
‘‘(B) communicates a message relating to 
any political matter of national importance, in-
cluding— 
‘‘(i) a candidate; 
‘‘(ii) any election to Federal office; or 
‘‘(iii) a national legislative issue of 
public importance. 
‘‘(5) TIME TO MAINTAIN FILE.—The informa-
tion required under this subsection shall be made 
available as soon as possible and shall be retained by 
the online platform for a period of not less than 4 
years. 
‘‘(6) SAFE HARBOR FOR PLATFORMS MAKING 
BEST EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY REQUESTS WHICH ARE 
SUBJECT
TO
RECORD
MAINTENANCE
REQUIRE-
MENTS.—In accordance with rules established by the 
Commission, if an online platform shows that the 
platform used best efforts to determine whether or 
not a request to purchase a qualified political adver-
tisement was subject to the requirements of this sub-
560 
section, the online platform shall not be considered 
to be in violation of such requirements. 
‘‘(7) PENALTIES.—For penalties for failure by 
online platforms, and persons requesting to purchase 
a qualified political advertisement on online plat-
forms, to comply with the requirements of this sub-
section, see section 309.’’. 
(b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 120 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 
Commission shall establish rules— 
(1) requiring common data formats for the 
record required to be maintained under section 
304(k) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 
1971 (as added by subsection (a)) so that all online 
platforms submit and maintain data online in a com-
mon, machine-readable and publicly accessible for-
mat; 
(2) establishing search interface requirements 
relating to such record, including searches by can-
didate name, issue, purchaser, and date; and 
(3) establishing the criteria for the safe harbor 
exception provided under paragraph (6) of section 
304(k) of such Act (as added by subsection (a)). 
(c) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually there-
561 
after, the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission 
shall submit a report to Congress on— 
(1) matters relating to compliance with and the 
enforcement of the requirements of section 304(k) of 
the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 
added by subsection (a); 
(2) recommendations for any modifications to 
such section to assist in carrying out its purposes; 
and 
(3) identifying ways to bring transparency and 
accountability to political advertisements distributed 
online for free. 
SEC. 4209. PREVENTING CONTRIBUTIONS, EXPENDITURES, 
INDEPENDENT 
EXPENDITURES, 
AND 
DIS-
BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COM-
MUNICATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 
THE FORM OF ONLINE ADVERTISING. 
Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 
4101(b), is further amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(d) RESPONSIBILITIES OF BROADCAST STATIONS, 
PROVIDERS OF CABLE AND SATELLITE TELEVISION, AND 
ONLINE PLATFORMS.—