I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 1334 To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to provide for addi- tional disclosure requirements for corporations, labor organizations, Super PACs and other entities, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 25, 2021 Mr. CICILLINE (for himself, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. ALLRED, Mrs. AXNE, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. BASS, Mrs. BEATTY, Mr. BERA, Mr. BEYER, Mr. BLU- MENAUER, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. BONAMICI, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. BROWNLEY, Mr. CARBAJAL, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CASE, Mr. CASTEN, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Ms. CLARK of Massa- chusetts, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. COOPER, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. CRIST, Mr. CROW, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. DEAN, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. DEGETTE, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. DELGADO, Mrs. DEMINGS, Mr. DEUTCH, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. ESCOBAR, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. EVANS, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. GARAMENDI, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. GOLDEN, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. HASTINGS, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. HIMES, Ms. HOULAHAN, Mr. HUFFMAN, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. JACOBS of California, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. JEFFRIES, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. KAHELE, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Mr. KIND, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Ms. KUSTER, Mr. LAMB, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Ms. LEE of Cali- fornia, Ms. LEGER FERNANDEZ, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Mr. LIEU, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mrs. CARO- LYN B. MALONEY of New York, Ms. MANNING, Ms. MATSUI, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. MENG, Mr. MORELLE, Mr. MOULTON, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Mr. NADLER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. NEGUSE, Ms. NORTON, Mr. O’HALLERAN, Ms. OMAR, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. PAPPAS, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PETERS, Mr. PHILLIPS, Ms. PORTER, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. QUIGLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Miss RICE of New York, Mr. RUIZ, Mr. RUSH, Mr. SAN NICOLAS, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. SARBANES, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. SLOTKIN, VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 1334 IH Mr. SOTO, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. STANTON, Ms. STEVENS, Mr. SUOZZI, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Ms. TITUS, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. TONKO, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mrs. TRAHAN, Mr. TRONE, Ms. UNDERWOOD, Mr. VARGAS, Mr. VEASEY, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. WELCH, and Mr. YARMUTH) introduced the following bill; which was re- ferred to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee con- cerned A BILL To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to provide for additional disclosure requirements for cor- porations, labor organizations, Super PACs and other entities, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spend- 5 ing in Elections Act of 2021’’ or the ‘‘DISCLOSE Act 6 of 2021’’. 7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents of 8 this Act is as follows: 9 Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. TITLE I—CLOSING LOOPHOLES ALLOWING SPENDING BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELECTIONS Sec. 101. Clarification of prohibition on participation by foreign nationals in election-related activities. Sec. 102. Clarification of application of foreign money ban to certain disburse- ments and activities. VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 1334 IH Sec. 103. Audit and report on illicit foreign money in Federal elections. Sec. 104. Prohibition on contributions and donations by foreign nationals in connections with ballot initiatives and referenda. Sec. 105. Disbursements and activities subject to foreign money ban. Sec. 106. Prohibiting establishment of corporation to conceal election contribu- tions and donations by foreign nationals. TITLE II—REPORTING OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENTS Sec. 201. Reporting of campaign-related disbursements. Sec. 202. Application of foreign money ban to disbursements for campaign-re- lated disbursements consisting of covered transfers. Sec. 203. Effective date. TITLE III—STAND BY EVERY AD Sec. 301. Short title. Sec. 302. Stand By Every Ad. Sec. 303. Disclaimer requirements for communications made through prerecorded telephone calls. Sec. 304. No expansion of persons subject to disclaimer requirements on inter- net communications. Sec. 305. Effective date. TITLE IV—OTHER ADMINISTRATIVE REFORMS Sec. 401. Petition for certiorari. Sec. 402. Judicial review of actions related to campaign finance laws. TITLE V—OTHER PROVISIONS Sec. 501. Severability. TITLE I—CLOSING LOOPHOLES 1 ALLOWING SPENDING BY 2 FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 3 ELECTIONS 4 SEC. 101. CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITION ON PARTICIPA- 5 TION BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN ELECTION- 6 RELATED ACTIVITIES. 7 (a) CLARIFICATION OF PROHIBITION.—Section 8 319(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 9 U.S.C. 30121(a)) is amended— 10 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 1334 IH (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph 1 (1); 2 (2) by striking the period at the end of para- 3 graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 4 (3) by adding at the end the following new 5 paragraph: 6 ‘‘(3) a foreign national to direct, dictate, con- 7 trol, or directly or indirectly participate in the deci- 8 sion making process of any person (including a cor- 9 poration, labor organization, political committee, or 10 political organization) with regard to such person’s 11 Federal or non-Federal election-related activity, in- 12 cluding any decision concerning the making of con- 13 tributions, donations, expenditures, or disbursements 14 in connection with an election for any Federal, 15 State, or local office or any decision concerning the 16 administration of a political committee.’’. 17 (b) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE.—Section 319 18 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30121) is amended by adding at 19 the end the following new subsection: 20 ‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE REQUIRED 21 PRIOR TO CARRYING OUT ACTIVITY.—Prior to the mak- 22 ing in connection with an election for Federal office of any 23 contribution, donation, expenditure, independent expendi- 24 ture, or disbursement for an electioneering communication 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 1334 IH by a corporation, labor organization (as defined in section 1 316(b)), limited liability corporation, or partnership dur- 2 ing a year, the chief executive officer of the corporation, 3 labor organization, limited liability corporation, or part- 4 nership (or, if the corporation, labor organization, limited 5 liability corporation, or partnership does not have a chief 6 executive officer, the highest ranking official of the cor- 7 poration, labor organization, limited liability corporation, 8 or partnership), shall file a certification with the Commis- 9 sion, under penalty of perjury, that a foreign national did 10 not direct, dictate, control, or directly or indirectly partici- 11 pate in the decision making process relating to such activ- 12 ity in violation of subsection (a)(3), unless the chief execu- 13 tive officer has previously filed such a certification during 14 that calendar year.’’. 15 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 16 this section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 17 180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 18 of this Act, and shall take effect without regard to whether 19 or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 20 regulations to carry out such amendments. 21 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 1334 IH SEC. 102. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 1 MONEY BAN TO CERTAIN DISBURSEMENTS 2 AND ACTIVITIES. 3 (a) APPLICATION TO DISBURSEMENTS TO SUPER 4 PACS AND OTHER PERSONS.—Section 319(b) of the Fed- 5 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(b)) 6 is amended— 7 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 8 subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and by 9 moving such subparagraphs 2 ems to the right; 10 (2) by striking ‘‘As used in this section’’ and in- 11 serting the following: ‘‘DEFINITIONS.—For purposes 12 of this section— 13 ‘‘(1) FOREIGN NATIONAL.—The term’’; and 14 (3) by adding at the end the following new 15 paragraph: 16 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION AND DONATION.—For pur- 17 poses of paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (a), 18 the term ‘contribution or donation’ includes any dis- 19 bursement to a political committee which accepts do- 20 nations or contributions that do not comply with any 21 of the limitations, prohibitions, and reporting re- 22 quirements of this Act (or any disbursement to or on 23 behalf of any account of a political committee which 24 is established for the purpose of accepting such do- 25 nations or contributions), or to any other person for 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 1334 IH the purpose of funding an expenditure, independent 1 expenditure, or electioneering communication (as de- 2 fined in section 304(f)(3)).’’. 3 (b) CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH CORPORATE PACS 4 MAY MAKE CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES.—Sec- 5 tion 316(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30118(b)) is amended 6 by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 7 ‘‘(8) A separate segregated fund established by a cor- 8 poration may not make a contribution or expenditure dur- 9 ing a year unless the fund has certified to the Commission 10 the following during the year: 11 ‘‘(A) Each individual who manages the fund, 12 and who is responsible for exercising decisionmaking 13 authority for the fund, is a citizen of the United 14 States or is lawfully admitted for permanent resi- 15 dence in the United States. 16 ‘‘(B) No foreign national under section 319 17 participates in any way in the decisionmaking proc- 18 esses of the fund with regard to contributions or ex- 19 penditures under this Act. 20 ‘‘(C) The fund does not solicit or accept rec- 21 ommendations from any foreign national under sec- 22 tion 319 with respect to the contributions or expend- 23 itures made by the fund. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 1334 IH ‘‘(D) Any member of the board of directors of 1 the corporation who is a foreign national under sec- 2 tion 319 abstains from voting on matters concerning 3 the fund or its activities.’’. 4 SEC. 103. AUDIT AND REPORT ON ILLICIT FOREIGN MONEY 5 IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS. 6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 7 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is 8 amended by inserting after section 319 the following new 9 section: 10 ‘‘SEC. 319A. AUDIT AND REPORT ON DISBURSEMENTS BY 11 FOREIGN NATIONALS. 12 ‘‘(a) AUDIT.— 13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall con- 14 duct an audit after each Federal election cycle to de- 15 termine the incidence of illicit foreign money in such 16 Federal election cycle. 17 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES.—In carrying out paragraph 18 (1), the Commission shall conduct random audits of 19 any disbursements required to be reported under 20 this Act, in accordance with procedures established 21 by the Commission. 22 ‘‘(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the end 23 of each Federal election cycle, the Commission shall sub- 24 mit to Congress a report containing— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 1334 IH ‘‘(1) results of the audit required by subsection 1 (a)(1); 2 ‘‘(2) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 3 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 4 and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 5 turnout among rural communities and the success or 6 failure of these efforts, together with recommenda- 7 tions to address these efforts in future elections; 8 ‘‘(3) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 9 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 10 and propaganda campaigns focused on depressing 11 turnout among African-American and other minority 12 communities and the success or failure of these ef- 13 forts, together with recommendations to address 14 these efforts in future elections; 15 ‘‘(4) an analysis of the extent to which illicit 16 foreign money was used to carry out disinformation 17 and propaganda campaigns focused on influencing 18 military and veteran communities and the success or 19 failure of these efforts, together with recommenda- 20 tions to address these efforts in future elections; and 21 ‘‘(5) recommendations to address the presence 22 of illicit foreign money in elections, as appropriate. 23 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:32 Mar 31, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1334.IH H1334 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 1334 IH ‘‘(1) The term ‘Federal election cycle’ means 1 the period which begins on the day after the date of 2 a regularly scheduled general election for Federal of- 3 fice and which ends on the date of the first regularly 4 scheduled general election for Federal office held 5 after such date. 6 ‘‘(2) The term ‘illicit foreign money’ means any 7 disbursement by a foreign national (as defined in 8 section 319(b)) prohibited under such section.’’. 9 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 10 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to the Federal elec- 11 tion cycle that began during November 2020, and each 12 succeeding Federal election cycle. 13 SEC. 104. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONA- 14 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]