States and local governments continue the march toward adopting
bans on political engagement by foreign nationals, including
foreign corporations. As of September, at least 20 states have
enacted bans on foreign spending in ballot measure campaigns, with
at least nine of those having been enacted in 2025 alone.
A more recent trend is an effort to define "foreign
influenced" companies broadly enough to capture large swaths
of U.S.-headquartered companies by restricting political activity
based on a company's low level of foreign ownership — as
low as 1% or 5% — or receipt of revenue from foreign sources,
as low as $50,000 or $100,000 in the prior four years.
For example, laws enacted in Kansas, Kentucky and Indiana impose
certification obligations on U.S. companies contributing to
political campaigns if they receive revenue from foreign sources
over the past four years over a certain threshold — $100,000
in Kansas and Kentucky and $50,000 in Indiana.
