HF 318

as introduced - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act
  1.2             relating to elections; fair campaign practices; 
  1.3             requiring campaign material to contain specified 
  1.4             identifying information about a candidate in certain 
  1.5             cases; amending Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 
  1.6             211B.04. 
  1.7   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.8      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 211B.04, is 
  1.9   amended to read: 
  1.10     211B.04 [CAMPAIGN LITERATURE MUST INCLUDE DISCLAIMER.] 
  1.11     (a) A person who participates in the preparation or 
  1.12  dissemination of campaign material other than as provided in 
  1.13  section 211B.05, subdivision 1, that does not prominently 
  1.14  include the name and address of the person or committee causing 
  1.15  the material to be prepared or disseminated in a disclaimer 
  1.16  substantially in the form provided in paragraph (b) or (c) is 
  1.17  guilty of a misdemeanor.  
  1.18     (b) Except in cases covered by paragraph (c), the required 
  1.19  form of disclaimer is:  "Prepared and paid for by the .......... 
  1.20  committee, .........(address)" for material prepared and paid 
  1.21  for by a principal campaign committee, or "Prepared and paid for 
  1.22  by the .......... committee, .........(address), in support of 
  1.23  .........(insert name of candidate or ballot question)" for 
  1.24  material prepared and paid for by a person or committee other 
  1.25  than a principal campaign committee. 
  1.26     (c) In the case of broadcast media, the required form of 
  2.1   disclaimer is:  "Paid for by the ............ committee." 
  2.2      (d) Campaign material that is not circulated on behalf of a 
  2.3   particular candidate or ballot question must also include in the 
  2.4   disclaimer either that it is "in opposition to .....(insert name 
  2.5   of candidate or ballot question.....)"; or that "this 
  2.6   publication is not circulated on behalf of any candidate or 
  2.7   ballot question." 
  2.8      (e) This section does not apply to objects stating only the 
  2.9   candidate's name and the office sought, fundraising tickets, or 
  2.10  personal letters that are clearly being sent by the candidate, 
  2.11  except as otherwise provided in paragraph (g). 
  2.12     (f) This section does not modify or repeal section 211B.06. 
  2.13     (g) Notwithstanding contrary provisions in this section, if 
  2.14  two or more candidates have a surname with the same spelling and 
  2.15  simultaneously seek election to one or more offices that would 
  2.16  result in their appearing on the same ballot, each candidate's 
  2.17  campaign material must include the disclaimer required by this 
  2.18  section and must fully identify the candidate so as to 
  2.19  distinguish the candidate from any other candidate with the same 
  2.20  surname on the same ballot.  In addition to the disclaimer, the 
  2.21  material must include the candidate's surname and one of the 
  2.22  following:  the candidate's first name, first name and middle 
  2.23  initial, or initials only.  The material may also include the 
  2.24  candidate's occupation and address.