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ARTICLE · 19 JANUARY 2018

2018 Political Law Update

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As we enter the new year, there are new changes in state and federal lobbying, gift and campaign finance laws.

United StatesGovernment, Public Sector
Melissa L. Laurenza
Melissa L. Laurenza
Samuel J. Olswanger
Samuel J. Olswanger
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As we enter the new year, there are new changes in state and federal lobbying, gift and campaign finance laws.

California: In September, Gov. Jerry Brown signed new campaign finance laws that require political committees to disclose contributions or independent expenditures aggregating $5,000 or more to support or oppose a single local ballot initiative or referendum. Previously, disclosure was required for state-level ballot measures only.

Less than a month later, the state legislature passed the DISCLOSE Act (the “Act”), which the Governor also signed into law. Under this new campaign finance law, disclosure of an ad’s top donors must be displayed more prominently on the ad than previously required, including special rules for disclosures on social media, websites and other forms of electronic communications. The Act also requires disclosure of the original source of earmarked donations, closing a loophole that committees previously used to hide the true identity

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