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(Washington D.C.)- The House of Representatives voted today to strengthen elections and provide more information to voters about political spending done by corporations, unions, and third party advocacy organizations. The legislation also prohibits election-related spending by foreign-owned corporations and government contractors. The Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Elections (DISCLOSE) Act passed by a vote of 219 to 206.
“The DISCLOSE Act pulls back the curtain to let voters know which corporations and advocacy groups are trying to influence an election and how much money they are spending to do so,” said Rep. Levin. “Voters should know who is behind the spending on TV and radio ads so they can judge motives and reach their own conclusions.”
Currently, advocacy organizations can hide behind generic or even misleading names to spend millions of dollars in political advertising attacking a candidate or cause. Posing as grassroots citizens groups, often advertisements turn out to be astroturf campaigns funded by corporations, industry trade associations, and political interests.
The Supreme Court allowed for a dramatic increase in this undisclosed spending when they overturned two decades of precedents that prohibited corporate and union expenditures in political campaigns. In a 5-4 decision, the Supreme Court in Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission permitted all corporations, unions, and advocacy organizations to spend unlimited amounts of treasury funds to expressly advocate for the election or defeat of candidates for federal office.
The DISCLOSE Act addresses this issue by requiring the CEO or President of the sponsoring corporation, union, or advocacy organization to stand by their ad, just as candidates must. The bill requires these organizations to inform their members or shareholders of their election-related spending so that the decision makers can be held accountable. It requires spending amounts to be posted online and, for those shadow groups that seem to form overnight, advertisements will be required to list their top five funders, and the organization will need to make a list of their large donors available to the public.
The DISCLOSE Act also steps in to bar spending by corporations controlled by foreign nationals as well as government contractors and TARP recipients so they cannot spend taxpayer money on election activities.
The DISCLOSE Act has strong support from the campaign finance reform community and has been endorsed by Common Cause, League of Women Voters, Public Citizen, Campaign Legal Center, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW), and Democracy 21, among many other organizations.
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