Source: http://www.wvlegislature.gov/Bill_Status/bills_text.cfm?billdoc=SB115%20INTR.htm&yr=2019&sesstype=RS&i=115
Timestamp: 2019-04-23 17:50:25+00:00

Document:
A BILL to amend and reenact §3-8-2 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended; and to amend said code by adding thereto a new section, designated §3-8-8a, all relating to requiring certain disclosures of election expenditures; clarifying when contributions are required to be disclosed; creating exceptions; clarifying that certain federal entities must make certain state disclosures; requiring disclosure of covered transfers; stating legislative findings; defining terms; providing requirements for disclosure of donations related to the transfer of certain sums of money related to campaign-related disbursements; requiring certain disclosures be made within 48 hours; specifying information required in the disclosures; clarifying the relationship between covered transfers and other regulated areas of election expenditures; creating a misdemeanor offense; and authorizing rulemaking.
ARTICLE 8. REGULATION AND CONTROL OF ELECTIONS.
§3-8-2. Accounts for receipts and expenditures in elections; requirements for reporting independent expenditures.
(a) Except for: (1) Candidates for party committeeman and committeewoman; and (2) federal committees required to file under the provisions of 2 U.S.C. §434, all candidates for nomination or election and all persons supporting, aiding or opposing the nomination, election or defeat of any candidate shall keep for a period of six months records of receipts and expenditures which are made for political purposes. All of the receipts and expenditures are subject to regulation by the provisions of this article. Verified financial statements of the records and expenditures shall be made and filed as public records by all candidates and by their financial agents, representatives or any person acting for and on behalf of any candidate and by the treasurers of all political party committees.
(E) The name and address of any person who contributed a total of more than $250 to the entity making the expenditure between the first day of the preceding calendar year, and the disclosure date: and whose contributions were made for the purpose of furthering the expenditure Provided, That any contribution placed into a separate segregated account that is not used for campaign-related expenditures, any money received in the ordinary course of any trade or business or any contribution that is explicitly made for a nonpolitical purpose is not required to be reported.
(v) (vi) The value in dollars and cents of the contribution.
(G)(1) A certification that such independent expenditure was not made in cooperation, consultation, or concert, with, or at the request or suggestion of, any candidate or any authorized committee or agent of such candidate.
(2) Any person who makes a contribution for the purpose of funding an independent expenditure under this subsection shall, at the time the contribution is made, provide his or her name, address, occupation, his or her current employer, if any, or, if the individual is self-employed, the name of his or her business, if any, to the recipient of the contribution.
(3) The Secretary of State shall expeditiously prepare indices setting forth, on a candidate-by-candidate basis, all independent expenditures separately, made by, or on behalf of, or for, or against each candidate, as reported under this subsection, and for periodically publishing such indices on a timely preelection basis.
(c) (1) A person, including a political committee, who makes or contracts to make independent expenditures aggregating $1,000 or more for any statewide, legislative or multicounty judicial candidate or $500 or more for any county office, single-county judicial candidate, committee supporting or opposing a candidate on the ballot in more than one county, or any municipal candidate on a municipal election ballot, after the 15th day, but more than 12 hours, before the date of an election, shall file a report on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State, describing the expenditures within 24 hours: Provided, That a person making expenditures in the amount of $1,000 or more for any statewide or legislative candidate on or after the 15th day but more than 12 hours before the day of any election shall report such expenditures in accordance with §11-15-2b of this code and shall not file an additional report as provided herein.
(2) Any person who files a report under §3-8-2(c)(1) of this code, shall file an additional report within 24 hours after each time the person makes or contracts to make independent expenditures aggregating an additional $500 with respect to the same election, for any county office, single-county judicial candidate, committee supporting or opposing a candidate on the ballot in more than one county, or any municipal candidate on a municipal election ballot, as that to which the initial report relates.
(d) (1) A person, including a political committee, who makes or contracts to make independent expenditures aggregating $10,000 or more at any time up to and including the 15th day before the date of an election shall file a report on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State, describing the expenditures within 48 hours.
(2) A person who files a report under §3-8-2(d)(1) of this code, the person shall file an additional report within 48 hours after each time the person makes or contracts to make independent expenditures aggregating an additional $10,000 with respect to the same election as that to which the initial report relates.
(2) Clearly identifies the person making the expenditure: Provided, That if the communication appears on or is disseminated by broadcast, cable or satellite transmission, the statement required by this subsection must be both spoken clearly and appear in clearly readable writing at the end of the communication.
(f) Any person who has spent a total of $5,000 or more for the direct costs of purchasing, producing or disseminating electioneering communications during any calendar year shall maintain all financial records and receipts related to such expenditure for a period of six months following the filing of a disclosure pursuant to §3-8-2(a) of this code and, upon request, shall make such records and receipts available to the Secretary of State or county clerk for the purpose of an audit as provided in §3-8-7 of this code.
(g) Any person who willfully fails to comply with this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, thereof shall be fined not less than $500, or confined in jail for not more than one year, or both fined and confined.
(h) (1) Any person who is required to file a statement under this section may file the statement by facsimile device or electronic mail, in accordance with such rules as the Secretary of State may promulgate.
(2) The Secretary of State shall make any document filed electronically pursuant to this subsection accessible to the public on the Internet not later than 24 hours after the document is received by the secretary.
(3) In promulgating a rule under this subsection, the secretary shall provide methods, other than requiring a signature on the document being filed, for verifying the documents covered by the rule. Any document verified under any of the methods shall be treated for all purposes, including penalties for perjury, in the same manner as a document verified by signature.
(i) This section does not apply to candidates for federal office, but it does apply to any federal political action committee that makes state level independent expenditures or engages in state level electioneering communications.
(j) The Secretary of State may promulgate emergency and legislative rules, in accordance with the provisions of §29A-1-1 et seq. of this code, to establish guidelines for the administration of this section.
§3-8-8a. Disclosure requirements for covered transfers.
(7) Requiring greater disclosures of covered transfers, as defined in this section, will serve the state’s interest and the public’s interest in shining light on dark money and ensuring that the voters of this state will know who pays for campaign-related disbursements made by these currently unknown organizations.
“Person” means an individual, corporation, partnership, committee, association and any other legal entity, organization or group of individuals, including, but not limited to, an organization described in Section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and any political organization under Section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, other than a political committee with an account established under this article that complies with the contribution limits and source prohibitions of this article with respect to accounts established for that purpose.
(c) When a person receives a covered transfer of $10,000 or more, the recipient shall notify the contributor that the contributor must submit the information required in §3-8-8a(d) of this code within 48 hours of the transfer: Provided, That if the contributor and the recipient of the covered transfer are affiliates then this subsection only applies to transfers of $50,000 or more. The recipient of the covered transfer may not make a covered transfer of funds or a campaign-related disbursement until it receives the information required by §3-8-8a(d) of this code from the contributor. If the contributor of the covered transfer fails to send the information required by §3-8-8a(d) of this code, then the recipient shall return the covered transfer funds to the contributor or immediately transfer the funds into another account that is not used to campaign-related expenditures in this state.
(5) A description of the contribution, if other than money, and the value in dollars and cents of the contribution.
(e) If a person makes a campaign-related disbursement that is an independent expenditure regulated by §11-15-2 of this code, then it shall disclose in the filing required by §11-15-2 of this code, all of the information required by §11-15-2 of this code and all of the information received pursuant to §3-8-8a(c) and §3-8-8a(d) of this code from any covered transfer received in the 24 months prior to the campaign-related disbursement. If a person makes a campaign-related disbursement that is an electioneering communication regulated by §11-15-2b of this code, then it shall disclose in the filing required by §11-15-2b of this code, all of the information required by §11-15-2 of this code and all of the information received pursuant to §3-8-8a(c) and §3-8-8a(d) of this code from any covered transfer received in the 24 months prior to the campaign-related disbursement.
(f) Any person who willfully fails to comply with this section is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, shall be fined not less than $1,000 and not more than $100,000, or confined in jail for not more than one year, or both fined and confined.
(g) The Secretary of State may promulgate emergency rules and propose legislative rules, in accordance with §29A-1-1 et seq. this code, to implement the provisions of this section.
NOTE: The purpose of this bill is to require disclosure of dark money political expenditures to allow the public to know who is paying for political advertisements.
Strike-throughs indicate language that would be stricken from a heading or the present law, and underscoring indicates new language that would be added.

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