,,ii #aahth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #dhf ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,february #af1 #bjbc ,ms4 ,klobuchar 7for herself1 ,mr4 ,graham1 and ,mr4 ,warner7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,rules and ,administration ,a ,,bill ,to enhance transparency and accountability for online political advertisements by requiring those who purchase and publish such ads to disclose information about the advertisements to the public1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,honest ,ads ,act4 #b4 ,purpose ,the purpose of this subtitle is to enhance the integrity of ,american democracy and national security by improving disclosure requirements for online political advertisements in order to uphold the ,supreme ,court's well-established standard that the electorate bears the right to be fully informed4 #c4 ,findings ,congress makes the following findings3 7#a7 ,in #bjjb1 the ,bipartisan ,campaign ,reform ,act of #bjjb 7,public ,law #ajg-aee7 became law1 establishing disclosure requirements for political advertisements distributed from a television or radio broadcast station or provider of cable or satellite television4 ,in #bjjc1 the ,supreme ,court upheld regulations on electioneering communications established under the ,act1 noting that such requirements provide the electorate with information and insure that the voters are fully informed about the person or group who is speaking4 ,the ,court reaffirmed this conclusion in #bjaj by an #h-a vote4 7#b7 ,in its #bjjf rulemaking1 the ,federal ,election ,commission1 the independent ,federal agency charged with protecting the integrity of the ,federal campaign finance process1 noted that #ah percent of all ,americans cited the internet as their leading source of news about the #bjjd ,presidential election4 ,by contrast1 ,gallup and the ,knight ,foundation found in #bjbj that the majority of ,americans1 #eh percent1 got most of their news about elections online4 7#c7 ,according to studies from ,ad,impact and ,borrell ,associates1 in #bjbj1 an estimated #a1gjj1jjj1jjj was spent on online political advertising1 more than #aj times the amount spent in #bjab4 7#d7 ,in order to enhance transparency of all political advertisement funding1 it is prudent to extend to online internet platforms the same types of political advertisement disclosure requirements applicable to broadcast television and radio stations1 and providers of cable and satellite television4 7#e7 ,effective and complete transparency for voters must include information about the true and original source of money given1 transferred1 and spent on political advertisements made online4 7#f7 ,requiring the disclosure of this information is a necessary and narrowly tailored means to inform the voting public of who is behind digital advertising disseminated to influence their votes and to enable the ,federal ,election ,commission and the ,department of ,justice to detect and prosecute illegal foreign spending on local1 ,state1 and ,federal elections and other campaign finance violations4 7#g7 ,paid advertising on large online platforms is different from advertising placed on other common media in terms of the comparatively low cost of reaching large numbers of people1 the availability of sophisticated microtargeting1 and the ease with which online advertisers1 particularly those located outside the ,united ,states1 can evade disclosure requirements4 ,requiring large online platforms to maintain public files of information about the online political ads they disseminate is the best and least restrictive means to ensure the voting public has complete information about who is trying to influence their votes and to aid enforcement of other laws1 including the prohibition on foreign money in domestic campaigns4 7#h7 ,the reach of a few large internet platforms--larger than any broadcast1 satellite1 or cable provider--has greatly facilitated the scope and effectiveness of disinformation campaigns4 ,for instance1 the largest platform has over #bdg1jjj1jjj ,american users--over #aec1jjj1jjj of them on a daily basis4 ,by contrast1 the largest cable television provider has #af1adb1jjj subscribers1 while the largest satellite television provider has #ac1cjj1jjj subscribers4 ,and the most-watched television broadcast in ,united ,states history had #aah1jjj1jjj viewers4 7#i7 ,the public nature of broadcast television1 radio1 and satellite ensures a level of publicity for any political advertisement4 ,these communications are accessible to the press1 fact-checkers1 and political opponents4 ,this creates strong disincentives for a candidate to disseminate materially false1 inflammatory1 or contradictory messages to the public4 ,social media platforms1 in contrast1 can target portions of the electorate with direct1 ephemeral advertisements often on the basis of private information the platform has on individuals1 enabling political advertisements that are contradictory1 racially or socially inflammatory1 or materially false4 7#aj7 ,large social media platforms are the only entities in possession of certain key data related to paid online ads1 including the exact audience targeted by those ads and their number of impressions4 ,such information1 which cannot be reliably disclosed by the purchasers of ads1 is extremely useful for informing the electorate1 guarding against corruption1 and aiding in the enforcement of existing campaign finance regulations4 7#aa7 ,paid advertisements on social media platforms have served as critical tools for foreign online influence campaigns--even those that rely on large amounts of unpaid content--because such ads allow foreign actors to test the effectiveness of different messages1 expose their messages to audiences who have not sought out such content1 and recruit audiences for future campaigns and posts4 7#ab7 ,a #bjai ,senate ,select ,committee on ,intelligence's ,report on ,russian ,active ,measures ,campaigns and ,interference in the #bjaf ,u4,s4 ,election ,volume #b3 ,russia's ,use of ,social ,media with ,additional ,views1 the ,committee recommended that ,congress examine legislative approaches to ensuring ,americans know the sources of online political advertisements4 ,the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga requires political advertisements on television1 radio and satellite to disclose the sponsor of the advertisement4 ,the same requirements should apply online4 ,this will also help to ensure that the ,,ira or any similarly situated actors cannot use paid advertisements for purposes of foreign interference44 7#ac7 ,on ,march #af1 #bjba1 the ,office of the ,director of ,national ,intelligence released the declassified ,intelligence ,community assessment of foreign threats to the #bjbj ,u4,s4 ,federal elections4 ,the declassified report found3 ,throughout the election cycle1 ,russia's online influence actors sought to affect ,u4,s4 public perceptions of the candidates1 as well as advance ,moscow's longstanding goals of undermining confidence in ,u4,s4 election processes and increasing sociopolitical divisions among the ,american people4 ,the report also determined that ,iran sought to influence the election by creating and amplifying social media content that criticized candidates4 7#ad7 ,according to a ,wall ,street ,journal report in ,april #bjba1 voluntary ad libraries operated by major platforms rely on foreign governments to self-report political ad purchases4 ,these ad-buys1 including those diminishing major human rights violations like the ,uighur genocide1 are under-reported by foreign government purchasers1 with no substantial oversight or repercussions from the platforms4 7#ae7 ,multiple reports have indicated that online ads have become a key vector for strategic influence by the ,people's ,republic of ,china4 ,an ,april #bjba ,wall ,street ,journal report noted that the ,chinese ,government and ,chinese ,state-owned enterprises are major purchasers of ads on the ,u4,s4's largest social media platform1 including to advance ,chinese propaganda4 7#af7 ,large online platforms have made changes to their policies intended to make it harder for foreign actors to purchase political ads4 ,however1 these private actions have not been taken by all platforms1 have not been reliably enforced1 and are subject to immediate change at the discretion of the platforms4 7#ag7 ,the ,federal ,election ,commission's current regulations on political advertisements do not provide sufficient transparency to uphold the public's right to be fully informed about political advertisements made online4 #d4 ,sense of ,congress ,it is the sense of ,congress that-- 7#a7 the dramatic increase in digital political advertisements1 and the growing centrality of online platforms in the lives of ,americans1 requires the ,congress and the ,federal ,election ,commission to take meaningful action to ensure that laws and regulations provide the accountability and transparency that is fundamental to our democracy2 7#b7 free and fair elections require both transparency and accountability which give the public a right to know the true sources of funding for political advertisements1 be they foreign or domestic1 in order to make informed political choices and hold elected officials accountable2 and 7#c7 transparency of funding for political advertisements is essential to enforce other campaign finance laws1 including the prohibition on campaign spending by foreign nationals4 #e4 ,expansion of definition of public communication 7a7 ,in general ,paragraph 7#bb7 of section #cja of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjaja7bb77 is amended by striking or satellite communication and inserting satellite1 paid internet1 or paid digital communication4 7b7 ,treatment of contributions and expenditures ,section #cja of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjaja7 is amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#h77;,b77v71 by striking on broadcasting stations1 or in newspapers1 magazines1 or similar types of general public political advertising and inserting in any public communication2 and 7#b7 in paragraph 7#i77;,b7-- 7,a7 by amending clause 7i7 to read as follows3 7i7 any news story1 commentary1 or editorial distributed through the facilities of any broadcasting station or any print1 online1 or digital newspaper1 magazine1 publication1 periodical1 blog1 or platform1 unless such broadcasting1 print1 online1 or digital facilities are owned or controlled by any political party1 political committee1 or candidate2 2 and 7,b7 in clause 7iv71 by striking on broadcasting stations1 or in newspapers1 magazines1 or similar types of general public political advertising and inserting in any public communication4 7c7 ,disclosure and disclaimer statements ,subsection 7a7 of section #cah of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjabj7 is amended-- 7#a7 by striking financing any communication through any broadcasting station1 newspaper1 magazine1 outdoor advertising facility1 mailing1 or any other type of general public political advertising and inserting financing any public communication2 and 7#b7 by striking solicits any contribution through any broadcasting station1 newspaper1 magazine1 outdoor advertising facility1 mailing1 or any other type of general public political advertising and inserting solicits any contribution through any public communication4 7d7 ,effective date ,the amendments made by this section shall take effect 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 the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and the amendments made by this part by the deadline set forth in subsection 7e74 7e7 ,regulation ,not later than #a year after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,federal ,election ,commission shall promulgate regulations on what constitutes a paid internet or paid digital communication for purposes of paragraph 7#bb7 of section #cja of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjaja7bb771 as amended by subsection 7a71 except that such regulation shall not define a paid internet or paid digital communication to include communications for which the only payment consists of internal resources1 such as employee compensation1 of the entity paying for the communication4 #f4 ,expansion of definition of electioneering communication 7a7 ,expansion to online communications 7#a7 ,application to qualified ,internet and digital communications 7,a7 ,in general ,subparagraph 7,a7 of section #cjd7;f77#c7 of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd7;f77#c77;,a77 is amended by striking or satellite communication each place it appears in clauses 7i7 and 7ii7 and inserting satellite1 or qualified internet or digital communication4 7,b7 ,qualified internet or digital communication ,paragraph 7#c7 of section #cjd7;f7 of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd7;f77 is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph3 7,d7 ,qualified internet or digital communication ,the term qualified internet or digital communication means any communication which is placed or promoted for a fee on an online platform 7as defined in subsection 7j77#c774 4 7#b7 ,nonapplication of relevant electorate to online communications ,section #cjd7;f77#c77;,a77i77,,iii7 of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd7;f77#c77;,a77i77,,iii77 is amended by inserting any broadcast1 cable1 or satellite before communication4 7#c7 ,news exemption ,section #cjd7;f77#c77;,b77i7 of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd7;f77#c77;,b77i77 is amended to read as follows3 7i7 a communication appearing in a news story1 commentary1 or editorial distributed through the facilities of any broadcasting station or any online or digital newspaper1 magazine1 publication1 periodical1 blog1 or platform1 unless such broadcasting1 online1 or digital facilities are owned or controlled by any political party1 political committee1 or candidate2 4 7b7 ,effective date ,the amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to communications made on or after ,january #a1 #bjbd1 and shall take effect without regard to whether or not the ,federal ,election ,commission has promulgated regulations to carry out such amendments4 #g4 ,application of disclaimer statements to online communications 7a7 ,clear and conspicuous manner requirement ,subsection 7a7 of section #cah of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjabj7;a77 is amended-- 7#a7 by striking shall clearly state each place it appears in paragraphs 7#a71 7#b71 and 7#c7 and inserting shall state in a clear and conspicuous manner2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following flush sentence3 ,for purposes of this section1 a communication 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 overlooked44 7b7 ,special rules for qualified ,internet or digital communications 7#a7 ,in general ,section #cah of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjabj7 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection3 7e7 ,special rules for qualified internet or digital communications 7#a7 ,special rules with respect to statements ,in the case of any qualified internet or digital communication 7as defined in section #cjd7;f77#c77;,d77 which is disseminated through a medium in which the provision of all of the information specified in this section is not possible1 the communication shall1 in a clear and conspicuous manner-- 7,a7 state the name of the person who paid for the communication2 and 7,b7 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 required information4 7#b7 ,safe harbor for determining clear and conspicuous manner ,a statement in qualified internet or digital communication 7as defined in section #cjd7;f77#c77;,d77 shall be considered to be made in a clear and conspicuous manner as provided in subsection 7a7 if the communication meets the following requirements3 7,a7 ,text or graphic communications ,in the case of a text or graphic communication1 the statement-- 7i7 appears in letters at least as large as the majority of the text in the communication2 and 7ii7 meets the requirements of paragraphs 7#b7 and 7#c7 of subsection 7c74 7,b7 ,audio communications ,in the case of an audio communication1 the statement is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible manner at the beginning or end of the communication and lasts at least #c seconds4 7,c7 ,video communications ,in the case of a video communication which also includes audio1 the statement-- 7i7 is included at either the beginning or the end of the communication2 and 7ii7 is made both in-- 7,i7 a written format that meets the requirements of subparagraph 7,a7 and appears for at least #d seconds2 and 7,,ii7 an audible format that meets the requirements of subparagraph 7,b74 7,d7 ,other communications ,in the case of any other type of communication1 the statement is at least as clear and conspicuous as the statement specified in subparagraph 7,a71 7,b71 or 7,c74 4 7#b7 ,nonapplication of certain exceptions ,the exceptions provided in section #aaj4aa7;f77#a77;i7 and 7ii7 of title #aa1 ,code of ,federal ,regulations1 or any successor to such rules1 shall have no application to qualified internet or digital communications 7as defined in section #cjd7;f77#c77;,d7 of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga74 7c7 ,modification of additional requirements for certain communications ,section #cah7;d7 of such ,act 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjabj7;d77 is amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#a77;,a7-- 7,a7 by striking which is transmitted through radio and inserting which is in an audio format2 and 7,b7 by striking ,by radio in the heading and inserting ,audio format2 7#b7 in paragraph 7#a77;,b7-- 7,a7 by striking which is transmitted through television and inserting which is in video format2 and 7,b7 by striking ,by television in the heading and inserting ,video format2 and 7#c7 in paragraph 7#b7-- 7,a7 by striking transmitted through radio or television and inserting made in audio or video format2 and 7,b7 by striking through television in the second sentence and inserting in video format4 7d7 ,effective date ,the amendment made by subsection 7a7 shall take effect 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 amendments4 #h4 ,political record requirements for online platforms 7a7 ,in general ,section #cjd of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd7 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection3 7j7 ,disclosure of certain online advertisements 7#a7 ,in general 7,a7 ,requirements for online platforms 7i7 ,in general ,an online platform shall maintain1 and make available for online public inspection in machine readable format1 a complete record of any qualified political advertisement which is purchased by a person whose aggregate purchases of qualified political advertisements on such online platform during the calendar year exceeds #ejj4 7ii7 ,requirement relating to political ads sold by third party advertising vendors ,an online platform that displays a qualified political advertisement sold by a third party advertising vendor shall include on its own platform-- 7,i7 an easily accessible and identifiable link to the records maintained by the third-party advertising vendor under clause 7i7 regarding such qualified political advertisement2 or 7,,ii7 in any case in which the third party advertising vendor does not make such records available1 a statement that no records from the third party advertising vendors records are available4 7,b7 ,requirements for advertisers ,any person who purchases 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 7,a74 7#b7 ,contents of record ,a record maintained under paragraph 7#a77;,a7 shall contain-- 7,a7 a digital copy of the qualified political advertisement2 7,b7 a description of the audience that received the advertisement1 the number of views generated from the advertisement1 and the date and time that the advertisement is first displayed and last displayed2 and 7,c7 information regarding-- 7i7 the total cost of the advertisement 7which may be rounded to the nearest #ajj72 7ii7 the name of the candidate to which the advertisement refers and the office to which the candidate is seeking election1 the election to which the advertisement refers1 or the national legislative issue to which the advertisement refers 7as applicable72 7iii7 in the case of a request made by1 or on behalf of1 a candidate1 the name of the candidate1 the authorized committee of the candidate1 and the treasurer of such committee2 and 7iv7 in the case of any request not described in clause 7iii71 the name of the person purchasing the advertisement1 the name and address of a contact person for such person1 and a list of the chief executive officers or members of the executive committee or of the board of directors of such person4 7#c7 ,online platform 7,a7 ,in general ,for purposes of this subsection1 subject to subparagraph 7,b71 the term online platform means any public-facing website1 web application1 or digital application 7including a social network1 ad network1 or search engine7 which-- 7i7 7,i7 sells qualified political advertisements2 and 7,,ii7 has #ej1jjj1jjj or more unique monthly ,united ,states visitors or users for a majority of months during the preceding #ab months2 or 7ii7 is a third-party advertising vendor that has #ej1jjj1jjj or more unique monthly ,united ,states visitors in the aggregate on any advertisement space that it has sold or bought for a majority of months during the preceding #ab months1 as measured by an independent digital ratings service accredited by the ,media ,ratings ,council 7or its successor74 7,b7 ,exemption ,such term shall not include any online platform that is a distribution facility of any broadcasting station or newspaper1 magazine1 blog1 publication1 or periodical4 7,c7 ,third-party advertising vendor defined ,for purposes of this subsection1 the term third-party advertising vendor includes any third-party advertising vendor network1 advertising agency1 advertiser1 or third-party advertisement serving company that buys and sells advertisement space on behalf of unaffiliated third-party websites1 search engines1 digital applications1 or social media sites4 7#d7 ,qualified political advertisement ,for purposes of this subsection1 the term qualified political advertisement means any advertisement 7including search engine marketing1 display advertisements1 video advertisements1 native advertisements1 and sponsorships7 that-- 7,a7 is made by or on behalf of a candidate2 or 7,b7 communicates a message relating to any political matter of national importance1 including-- 7i7 a candidate2 7ii7 any election to ,federal office2 or 7iii7 a national legislative issue of public importance4 7#e7 ,time to maintain file ,the information 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 #d years4 7#f7 ,special rule ,for purposes of this subsection1 multiple versions of an advertisement that contain no material differences 7such as versions that differ only because they contain a recipient's name1 or differ only in size1 color1 font1 or layout7 may be treated as a single qualified political advertisement4 7#g7 ,penalties ,for penalties for failure by online platforms1 and persons requesting to purchase a qualified political advertisement on online platforms1 to comply with the requirements of this subsection1 see section #cji4 4 7b7 ,effective date ,the amendments made by this section shall take effect 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 the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and the amendments made by this part by the deadline set forth in subsection 7c74 7c7 ,rulemaking ,not later than #abj days after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 the ,federal ,election ,commission shall establish rules-- 7#a7 for determining whether an advertisement communicates a national legislative issue for purposes of section #cjd7;j7 of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7as added by subsection 7a772 7#b7 requiring common data formats for the record required to be maintained under such section #cjd7;j7 so that all online platforms submit and maintain data online in a common1 machine-readable and publicly accessible format2 and 7#c7 establishing search interface requirements relating to such record1 including searches by candidate name1 issue1 purchaser1 and date4 7d7 ,reporting ,not later than #b years after the date of the enactment of this ,act1 and biannually thereafter1 the ,chairman of the ,federal ,election ,commission shall submit a report to ,congress on-- 7#a7 matters relating to compliance with and the enforcement of the requirements of section #cjd7;j7 of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga1 as added by subsection 7a72 7#b7 recommendations for any modifications to such section to assist in carrying out its purposes2 and 7#c7 identifying ways to bring transparency and accountability to political advertisements distributed online for free4 #i4 ,preventing contributions1 expenditures1 independent expenditures1 and disbursements for electioneering communications by foreign nationals in the form of online advertising ,section #cai of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjaba7 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection3 7c7 ,responsibilities of broadcast stations1 providers of cable and satellite television1 and online platforms 7#a7 ,in general ,each television or radio broadcast station1 provider of cable or satellite television1 or online platform 7as defined in section #cjd7;j77#c77 shall make reasonable efforts to ensure that communications described in section #cah7;a7 and made available by such station1 provider1 or platform are not purchased by a foreign national1 directly or indirectly4 7#b7 ,regulations ,not later than #a year after the date of the enactment of this subsection1 the ,commission shall promulgate regulations on what constitutes reasonable efforts under paragraph 7#a74 4 #aj4 ,requiring online platforms to display notices identifying sponsors of political advertisements and to ensure notices continue to be present when advertisements are shared 7a7 ,in general ,section #cjd of the ,federal ,election ,campaign ,act of #aiga 7#eb ,u4,s4,c4 #cjajd71 as amended by section #h7;a71 is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection3 7k7 ,ensuring display and sharing of sponsor identification in online political advertisements 7#a7 ,requirement ,any online platform that displays a qualified political advertisement 7regardless of whether such qualified political advertisement was purchased directly from the online platform7 shall-- 7,a7 display with the advertisement a visible notice identifying the sponsor of the advertisement 7or1 if it is not practical for the platform to display such a notice1 a notice that the advertisement is sponsored by a person other than the platform72 and 7,b7 ensure that the notice will continue to be displayed if a viewer of the advertisement shares the advertisement with others on that platform4 7#b7 ,safe harbor ,an online platform shall not be treated as having failed to comply with the requirements of paragraph 7#a77;,a7 for the misidentification of a person as the sponsor of the advertisement if-- 7,a7 the person placing the online advertisement designated the person displayed in the advertisement as the sponsor2 and 7,b7 the online platform relied on such designation in good faith4 7#c7 ,definitions ,in this subsection-- 7,a7 the term online platform has the meaning given such term in subsection 7j77#c72 7,b7 the term #8qualified political advertisement has the meaning given such term in subsection 7j77#d72 and 7,c7 the term sponsor means the person purchasing the advertisement4 4 7b7 ,effective date ,the amendment made by subsection 7a7 shall apply with respect to advertisements displayed on or after the #abj-;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 amendments4