House File 68HOUSE FILE BY HUNTER, WESSEL=KROESCHELL, KUHN, LENSING, WHITAKER, D. OLSON, SWAIM, BAILEY, and D. TAYLOR Passed House, Date Passed Senate, Date Vote: Ayes Nays Vote: Ayes Nays Approved A BILL FOR 1 An Act relating to mandatory disclosures in certain political 2 telephone communications, and applying a penalty. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1756HH 82 5 jr/es/88 PAG LIN 1 1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 68A.407 DISCLOSURES RELATED TO 1 2 POLITICAL TELEPHONE COMMUNICATIONS. 1 3 1. For the purposes of this section, unless the context 1 4 otherwise requires: 1 5 a. "Legitimate poll" means a telephone communication 1 6 conducted by a polling firm for the purpose of a scientific 1 7 poll of respondents concerning public opinion concerning a 1 8 candidate, public office holder, or ballot issue that is part 1 9 of a series of like telephone communications that utilizes a 1 10 scientific sampling technique to produce a random sample of 1 11 interviewees. 1 12 b. "Political telemarketing" means the canvassing of 1 13 persons under the guise of performing a legitimate poll, with 1 14 the purpose of encouraging support of, or opposition to, a 1 15 clearly identified candidate for public office or the passage 1 16 or defeat of a clearly identified ballot issue. 1 17 2. The general assembly finds that political telephone 1 18 communication is increasingly used in political campaigns in 1 19 this state in a deceptive manner, including but not limited to 1 20 the use of political telemarketing, also known as push= 1 21 polling, where an anonymous telephone communication is 1 22 designed to appear as a legitimate poll, but is in fact used 1 23 as a vehicle to sway opinion through innuendo, by the 1 24 communication of certain negative information related to a 1 25 candidate or ballot issue in a manner designed to suggest that 1 26 such information may be true. The general assembly declares 1 27 that a compelling public interest exists to identify the 1 28 source of funding of telephone communications related to 1 29 elections, in order to prevent corruption and deceit at the 1 30 expense of the electorate and to preserve accountability for 1 31 expenditures made in connection with political campaigns. 1 32 3. A candidate, an authorized representative of a 1 33 candidate, a candidate's committee, or a political committee 1 34 that engages either in a telephone communication for the 1 35 purpose of soliciting contributions or in a telephone 2 1 communication that has the effect of promoting or opposing the 2 2 nomination or election of a candidate for public office or the 2 3 passage of a constitutional amendment or public measure shall 2 4 disclose all of the following by the end of the telephone 2 5 communication: 2 6 a. The identity of the individual who is communicating and 2 7 the entity with which the individual is affiliated, if any. 2 8 b. The individual or entity that paid for the telephone 2 9 communication. If a candidate's committee or political 2 10 committee has paid for or authorized the telephone 2 11 communication, the name of the candidate's committee or 2 12 political committee shall be disclosed. If any person other 2 13 than a candidate's committee or political committee has paid 2 14 for or authorized the telephone communication, the 2 15 communication shall also state whether or not the 2 16 communication has been authorized by the candidate intended to 2 17 benefit from the communication and shall state whether the 2 18 communication is an independent expenditure. 2 19 c. The name, telephone number, and address of an 2 20 individual whom the communication recipient can contact for 2 21 further information regarding the telephone communication. 2 22 4. An individual who, on behalf of, at the direction of, 2 23 or in cooperation with a political committee, engages either 2 24 in a telephone communication for the purpose of soliciting 2 25 contributions or in a telephone communication that has the 2 26 effect of promoting or opposing the nomination or election of 2 27 a candidate for public office or the passage of a 2 28 constitutional amendment or public measure shall disclose all 2 29 of the following at the commencement of the telephone 2 30 communication: 2 31 a. The identity of the individual who is communicating and 2 32 the entity with which the individual is affiliated, if any. 2 33 b. The individual or entity that paid for the telephone 2 34 communication. If a political committee has paid for or 2 35 authorized the telephone communication, the name of the 3 1 political committee shall be disclosed. If any person other 3 2 than the candidate, a candidate's committee, or a political 3 3 committee has paid for or authorized the telephone 3 4 communication, the communication shall also state whether or 3 5 not the communication has been authorized by the candidate 3 6 intended to benefit from the communication. 3 7 c. The name, telephone number, and address of an 3 8 individual whom the communication recipient can contact for 3 9 further information regarding the telephone communication. 3 10 5. The board shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A 3 11 establishing procedures to administer this section. 3 12 EXPLANATION 3 13 This bill creates a new Code section that requires the 3 14 disclosure of certain information by the end of political 3 15 telephone communications that solicit contributions or that 3 16 have the effect of promoting or opposing a candidate or ballot 3 17 issue. The caller must disclose the name and affiliation of 3 18 the caller, the name of the individual or entity that paid for 3 19 the telephone communication, whether a candidate who will 3 20 benefit from the communication has authorized the 3 21 communication, and the name, address, and telephone number of 3 22 an individual whom the person can contact for further 3 23 information regarding the communication. 3 24 Violations of this provision are punishable under Code 3 25 section 68A.701 as a serious misdemeanor, which carries a 3 26 penalty of a fine of $315 to $1,875, and may also include a 3 27 sentence of up to one year in jail. 3 28 The bill also contains definitions of "legitimate poll" and 3 29 "political telemarketing", and contains a statement of 3 30 legislative intent regarding political telemarketing and push= 3 31 polling. 3 32 LSB 1756HH 82 3 33 jr:rj/es/88