Get Foreign Money Out of U.S. Elections Act

Bill: 118-s-4666
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI]
Introduced: 2024-07-10
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Latest action: action_date: 2024-07-10
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.

Summaries:

tv_txt: II 118th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4666 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 10, 2024 Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Ms. Warren , Mr. Sanders , Mr. Welch , and Mr. Blumenthal ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration A BILL To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to apply the ban on contributions and expenditures by foreign nationals under such Act to foreign-controlled, foreign-influenced, and foreign-owned domestic business entities, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Get Foreign Money Out of U.S. Elections Act . 2. Application of ban on contributions and expenditures by foreign nationals to domestic business entities that are foreign-controlled, foreign-influenced, and foreign-owned (a) Application of ban Section 319(b) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 ( 52 U.S.C. 30121(b) ) is amended— (1) by striking or at the end of paragraph (1); (2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (2) and inserting a semicolon; and (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs: (3) any business entity in which a foreign national which is outside of the United States and is described in paragraph (1) or (2) directly or indirectly owns or controls or otherwise holds direct or indirect beneficial ownership of 50 percent or more of the voting shares, total equity, membership units, or other applicable ownership interests of the entity; or (4) any business entity which is not a foreign national described in paragraph (1), and— (A) in which a foreign national which is outside of the United States and is described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) directly or indirectly owns or controls or otherwise holds direct or indirect beneficial ownership of 1 percent or more of the voting shares, total equity, membership units, or other applicable ownership units of the entity; (B) in which two or more foreign nationals which are outside of the United States and are described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3), in the aggregate, directly or indirectly own or control or otherwise hold direct or indirect beneficial ownership of 5 percent or more of the voting shares, total equity, membership units, or other applicable ownership interests of the entity; (C) over which one or more foreign nationals which are outside of the United States and are described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) have the power to direct, dictate, or control the decision-making process of the entity with respect to its interests in the United States; or (D) over which one or more foreign nationals which are outside of the United States and are described in paragraph (1), (2), or (3) have the power to direct, dictate, or control the decision-making process of the entity with respect to activities in connection with a Federal, State, or local election, including— (i) the making of a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement for an electioneering communication (within the meaning of section 304(f)(3)); or (ii) the administration of a political committee established or maintained by the entity. . (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 for carrying out election activity by business entity (1) Certification required Not later than 7 days after a business entity makes any contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, disbursement for an electioneering communication, or any disbursement in connection with an election for Federal, State, or local office or with any State or local ballot measure, the chief executive officer of the entity (or, if the entity does not have a chief executive officer, the highest ranking official of the entity), shall file a certification with the Commission, under penalty of perjury, avowing that after due inquiry, the entity was not a foreign national on the date the entity made the contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement. (2) Determination of beneficial ownership A business entity shall determine beneficial ownership for purposes of this section in a manner consistent with applicable State law, except that if the entity is registered pursuant to section 12(g) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ( 15 U.S.C. 78l ), the entity shall determine beneficial ownership in accordance with section 13(d) of that Act ( 15 U.S.C. 78m(d) ). (3) Provision to recipients The business entity shall provide a copy of the certification filed under paragraph (1) to each political committee to which it makes a contribution, and, upon the request of the recipient, to each recipient of a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement with respect to which the certification under paragraph (1) is filed. . (c) Prevention of circumvention Section 319 of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 30121 ), as amended by subsection (b), is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (d) Prohibiting use of funds from business entities without certification (1) Prohibition Except as provided in paragraph (2), it shall be unlawful for any person that receives from a business entity a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement with respect to which the business entity is required to file a certification of compliance under subsection (c) to use that contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement, directly or indirectly, to— (A) make such a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement; or (B) contribute, donate, transfer, or otherwise convey such a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement to another person for use as such a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement. (2) Exception for funds accompanied by certification Paragraph (1) does not apply to a person that receives from a business entity a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement described in such paragraph if— (A) the person receives from the business entity a copy of the certification of compliance under subsection (c) with respect to such contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement; (B) the use by the person of the contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement is otherwise lawful; and (C) the person separately designates, records, and accounts for the contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, or disbursement, and ensures that disbursements by the person for a contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, disbursement for an electioneering communication, or any disbursement in connection with an election for Federal, State, or local office are only made from funds that comply with the requirements of this section. (3) Good faith reliance on certification of compliance For purposes of this subsection, a person may rely in good faith on a certification of compliance provided to the person under subsection (c)(3). . (d) Business entity defined Section 319 of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 30121 ), as amended by subsection (b) and subsection (c), is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: (e) Business entity defined For purposes of this section, the term business entity means a for-profit corporation, limited liability corporation, partnership, company, limited partnership, business trust, business association, or other similar for-profit entity. . (e) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 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. 3. Clarification of application of foreign money ban to certain disbursements and activities (a) Application to disbursements in connection with State and local ballot initiatives and disbursements to Super PACs 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 election; inserting the following: election (including a State or local ballot initiative or referendum), including any disbursement to a political committee which accepts donations or contributions that do not comply with the limitations, prohibitions, or reporting requirements of this Act (or any disbursement to or on behalf of any account of a political committee which is established for the purpose of accepting such donations or contributions); . (b) Conditions under which corporate PACs may make contributions and expenditures Section 316(b) of such Act ( 52 U.S.C. 30118(b) ) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph: (8) A separate segregated fund established by a corporation may not make a contribution or expenditure during a year unless the fund has certified to the Commission each of the following during the year: (A) Each individual who manages the fund, and who is responsible for exercising decision-making authority for the fund, is a citizen of the United States or is lawfully admitted for permanent residence in the United States. (B) No foreign national under section 319 participates in any way in the decision-making processes of the fund with regard to contributions or expenditures under this Act. (C) The fund does not solicit or accept recommendations from any foreign national under section 319 with respect to the contributions or expenditures made by the fund. (D) Any member of the board of directors of the corporation who is a foreign national under section 319 abstains from voting on matters concerning the fund or its activities. .