Today's Law As Amended


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AB-2155 Political Reform Act of 1974: campaign disclosures.(2017-2018)



As Amends the Law Today


SECTION 1.

 Section 84501 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84501.
 For purposes of this article, the following definitions apply:
(a) (1) “Advertisement” means any general or public communication that is authorized and paid for by a committee for the purpose of supporting or opposing a candidate or candidates for elective office or a ballot measure or ballot measures.
(2) “Advertisement” does not include any of the following:
(A) A communication from an organization, other than a political party, to its members.
(B) An electronic media communication addressed to recipients, such as email messages or text messages, from an organization to persons who have opted in or asked to receive messages from the organization. This subparagraph does not apply to a customer who has opted in to receive communications from a provider of goods or services, unless the customer has provided express approval to receive political messages from that provider of goods or services. 
(C) Any communication that was solicited by the recipient, including, but not limited to, acknowledgments for contributions or information that the recipient communicated to the organization, or responses to an electronic message sent by the recipient to the same mobile number or email address. organization. 
(D) A campaign button smaller than 10 inches in diameter; a bumper sticker smaller than 60 square inches; or a small tangible promotional item, such as a pen, pin, or key chain, upon which the disclosure required cannot be conveniently printed or displayed.
(E) Wearing apparel.
(F) Sky writing.
(G) Any other type of communication, as determined by regulations of the Commission, for which inclusion of the disclosures required by Sections 84502 to 84509, inclusive, is impracticable or would severely interfere with the committee’s ability to convey the intended message due to the nature of the technology used to make the communication.
(b) “Cumulative contributions” means the cumulative amount of contributions received by a committee beginning 12 months before the date of the expenditure and ending seven days before the time the advertisement is sent to the printer or broadcaster.
(c) (1) “Top contributors” means the persons from whom the committee paying for an advertisement has received its three highest cumulative contributions of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more.
(2) A tie between two or more contributors qualifying as top contributors shall be resolved by determining the contributor who made the most recent contribution to the committee, in which case the most recent contributor shall be listed before any other contributor of the same amount.
(3) If a committee primarily formed to support or oppose a state candidate or ballot measure contributes funds to another committee primarily formed to support or oppose the same state candidate or ballot measure and the funds used for the contribution were earmarked to support or oppose that candidate or ballot measure, the committee receiving the earmarked contribution shall disclose the contributors who earmarked their funds as the top contributor or contributors on the advertisement if the definition of top contributor provided for in paragraph (1) is otherwise met. If the committee receiving the earmarked contribution contributes any portion of the contribution to another committee primarily formed to support or oppose the specifically identified ballot measure or candidate, that committee shall disclose the true source of the contribution to the new committee receiving the earmarked funds. The new committee shall disclose the contributor on the new committee’s advertisements if the definition of top contributor provided for in paragraph (1) is otherwise met.
(A) The primarily formed committee making the earmarked contribution shall provide the primarily formed committee receiving the earmarked contribution with the name, address, occupation, and employer, if any, or principal place of business, if self-employed, of  name and address of  the contributor or contributors who earmarked their funds and the amount of the earmarked contribution from each contributor at the time the contribution is made. If the committee making the contribution received earmarked contributions that exceed the amount contributed or received contributions that were not earmarked, the committee making the contribution shall use a reasonable accounting method to determine which top contributors to identify pursuant to this subparagraph, but in no case shall the same contribution be disclosed more than one time to avoid disclosure of additional contributors who earmarked their funds.
(B) The committee receiving the earmarked contribution may rely on the information provided pursuant to subparagraph (A) for purposes of complying with the disclosure required by Section 84503 and shall be considered in compliance with Section 84503 if the information provided pursuant to subparagraph (A) is disclosed as otherwise required.
(C) For purposes of this paragraph, funds are considered “earmarked” if any of the circumstances described in subdivision (b) of Section 85704 apply.
(4) If an advertisement paid for by a committee supports or opposes a candidate, the determination of top contributors pursuant to paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not include any nonprofit organization exempt from federal income taxation pursuant to Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code or any person who has prohibited in writing the use of that person’s  his or her  contributions to support or oppose candidates if the committee does not use such contributions to support or oppose candidates.

SEC. 2.

 Section 84501.1 is added to the Government Code, to read:

84501.1.
 The Commission shall not, by regulation, policy, opinion, or advice letter, construe or interpret any of Sections 82025, 84305, 84310, 84501 through 84511, inclusive, or Section 85704 as allowing the Commission to establish or maintain any thresholds in quantity or amount that are not specified in those sections. Unless otherwise specified in this title, those sections apply regardless of quantity or amount.

SEC. 3.

 Section 84502 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84502.
 (a) (1) Any advertisement not described in subdivision (b) of Section 84504.3 that is  paid for by a committee pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 82013, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, shall include the words “Ad paid for by” followed by the name of the committee as it appears on the most recent Statement of Organization filed pursuant to Section 84101.
(2) Any advertisement not described in subdivision (b) of Section 84504.3 that is  paid for by a committee pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 82013 that is a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate shall include the words “Ad paid for by” followed by the name of the committee as it appears on the most recent Statement of Organization filed pursuant to Section 84101 if the advertisement is any of the following:
(A) Paid for by an independent expenditure.
(B) An advertisement supporting or opposing a ballot measure.
(C) A radio or television advertisement.
(D) A text message advertisement that is required to include a disclosure pursuant to Section 84504.7.
(b) Any advertisement not described in subdivision (b) of Section 84504.3 that is  paid for by a committee pursuant to subdivision (b) or (c) of Section 82013 shall include the words “Ad paid for by” followed by the name that the filer is required to use on campaign statements pursuant to subdivision (o) of Section 84211.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), if an advertisement is a printed letter, internet website,  Internet Web site,  or email message, the text described in subdivisions (a) and (b) may include the words “Paid for by” instead of “Ad paid for by.”  
(d) Notwithstanding subdivisions (a) and (b), if an advertisement is a text message, the text described in subdivisions (a) and (b) may include the words “Paid for by” or “With,” instead of “Ad paid for by.”
(e) Notwithstanding subdivision (a), if an advertisement is a video advertisement that is disseminated over the internet, is a print advertisement that is larger than those designed to be individually distributed subject to subdivision (b) of Section 84504.2, is an electronic media advertisement subject to subdivision (b) of Section 84504.3, or is a text message advertisement subject to Section 84504.7, then the text for the name of the committee may be shortened by either of the following:
(1) Displaying only enough of the first part of the committee name to uniquely identify the committee. If the committee is a sponsored committee, then the name displayed must include the portion of the committee name that identifies the sponsor or sponsors, unless all of the sponsors are disclosed on the ad as top contributors as required by Section 84503. For example, if ACME Corporation is not listed as a top contributor, then a committee named “Yes on 99, Californians for a Better Tomorrow, a coalition of X, Y, and Z. Sponsored by ACME Corporation” may be disclosed as only “Yes on 99, Californians for a Better Tomorrow. Sponsored by ACME Corporation.”
(2) If the advertisement is paid for by a committee that has top contributors and is subject to Section 84503, then the committee name may be replaced by displaying the words “Committee ID” followed by the committee’s identification number.

SEC. 4.

 Section 84504.1 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.1.
 (a) An advertisement paid for by a committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, that is disseminated as a video, including advertisements on television and videos disseminated over the Internet, shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503,  84502  and 84514 84503  at the beginning or end of the advertisement.
(b) The disclosure required by subdivision (a) shall be written and displayed for at least five seconds of a broadcast of 30 seconds or less or for at least 10 seconds of a broadcast that lasts longer than 30 seconds.
(1) The written disclosure required by subdivision (a) shall appear on a solid black background on the entire bottom one-third of the television or video display screen, or bottom one-fourth of the screen if the committee does not have or is otherwise not required to list top contributors, and shall be in a contrasting color in standard  Arial Regular equivalent  type, and the type size for capital  the smallest  letters in the written disclosure shall be 4 percent of the height or width  of the television or video display advertisement, whichever is less. screen. The top contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a separate horizontal line separate from any other text, in descending order, beginning with the top contributor who made the largest cumulative contributions on the first line. All disclosure text shall be centered horizontally in the disclosure area. If there are any top contributors, the written disclosures shall be underlined in a manner clearly visible to the average viewer, except for the names of the top contributors, if any. 
(2) The disclosure required by Section 84514, if any, shall be white and appear at the top of the disclosure area, and shall be separated from the disclosures required by Sections 84502 and 84503 by a blank horizontal space at least 2 percent of the height of the television or video display screen.
(3) The disclosures required by Section 84502 shall be white and shall follow the disclosure required by Section 84514. The disclosures required by Section 84503, if any, shall be yellow, such as HTML hex value #FFFF00, and shall be separated from the disclosures required by Section 84502 by a blank horizontal space at least 2 percent of the height of the television or video display screen. The top contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a separate horizontal line separate from any other text, in descending order, beginning with the top contributor who made the largest cumulative contributions on the first line. All disclosure text shall be centered horizontally in the disclosure area. If there are any top contributors, the written disclosures shall be underlined in a manner clearly visible to the average viewer, except for the names of the top contributors, if any.
(4) (2)  The names name  of the top contributors contributor  shall not have their its  type condensed or have the spacing between characters reduced to be narrower than a normal non-condensed standard Arial Regular type. Arial equivalent type, unless doing so is necessary to keep the name of the top contributor from exceeding the width of the screen. 
(5) If the name of one or more top contributor exceeds the width of the screen and is required to wrap onto a second line, then the names of contributors shall be clearly marked, using a highly visible symbol or minimum vertical separation defined by the Commission, to indicate where one top contributor name ends and the next begins.
(c) An advertisement that is an independent expenditure supporting or opposing a candidate shall include the appropriate statement from Section 84506.5 in the solid black background described in paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) below all other text required to appear in that area in a contrasting color and in Arial equivalent type no less than 2.5 percent of the height of the television or video display screen. If including this statement causes the disclosures to exceed one-third of the television or video display screen, then it may instead be  printed immediately above the background with sufficient contrast that is easily readable by the average viewer.
(d) Any text or image not required in this section shall not appear in the disclosure area, except as provided in Section 84504.8 and as otherwise authorized or required by applicable law.

SEC. 5.

 Section 84504.2 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.2.
 (a) A print advertisement paid for by a committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514, 84506.5,  displayed as follows:
(1) The disclosure area shall have a solid white background and shall be in a printed or drawn box on the bottom of at least one page that is set apart from any other printed matter. All text in the disclosure area shall be in contrasting color and centered horizontally in the disclosure area.
(2) The text shall be in an Arial equivalent type with a type size of at least 10-point for printed advertisements designed to be individually distributed, including, but not limited to, mailers, flyers, and door hangers.
(3) The disclosure required by Section 84514, if any, shall appear at the top of the disclosure area, and shall be separated from the disclosures required by Sections 84502 and 84503 by a blank line.
(4) (3)  The disclosures required by Sections 84502 and 84503 shall follow the disclosure required by Section 84514. top of the disclosure area shall include the disclosure required by Sections 84502 and 84503.  The text of the disclosure shall be underlined if there are any top contributors.  
(5) (4)  The top contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a separate horizontal line separate from any other text, in descending order, beginning with the top contributor who made the largest cumulative contributions on the first line. The name of each of the top contributors shall be centered horizontally in the disclosure area and shall not be underlined. The names of the top contributors shall not be printed in a type that is condensed to be narrower than a normal non-condensed Arial equivalent type.
(6) (5)  A committee subject to Section 84506.5 shall include the disclosure required by Section 84506.5, which shall be underlined and on a separate line below any of the top contributors.  
(7) (6)  A committee subject to Section 84223 shall next include the text “Funding Details At [insert Commission Internet Website),”  Web site],”  which shall be underlined and printed on a line separate from any other text.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (5) (4)  of subdivision (a), the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5  on a printed advertisement that is larger than those designed to be individually distributed, including, but not limited to, yard signs or billboards, shall be in Arial equivalent type with a total height of at least 5 percent of the height of the advertisement, and printed on a solid background with sufficient contrast that is easily readable by the average viewer. The text may be adjusted so it does not appear on separate horizontal lines, with the top contributors separated by a comma.
(c) Notwithstanding the definition of “top contributors” in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 84501, newspaper, magazine, or other public print advertisements that are 20 square inches or less shall be required to disclose only the single top contributor of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more.

SEC. 5.5.

 Section 84504.2 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.2.
 (a) A print advertisement paid for by a committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514, 84506.5,  displayed as follows:
(1) The disclosure area shall have a solid white background and shall be in a printed or drawn box on the bottom of at least one page that is set apart from any other printed matter. All text in the disclosure area shall be in contrasting color and centered horizontally in the disclosure area.  
(2) The text shall be in an Arial equivalent type with a type size of at least 10-point for printed advertisements designed to be individually distributed, including, but not limited to, mailers, flyers, and door hangers.
(3) The disclosure required by Section 84514, if any, shall appear at the top of the disclosure area, and shall be separated from the disclosures required by Sections 84502 and 84503 by a blank line.
(4) (3)  The disclosures required by Sections 84502 and 84503 shall follow the disclosure required by Section 84514. top of the disclosure area shall include the disclosure required by Sections 84502 and 84503.  The text of the disclosure shall be underlined if there are any top contributors.  
(5) (4)  The top contributors, if any, shall each be disclosed on a separate horizontal line separate from any other text, in descending order, beginning with the top contributor who made the largest cumulative contributions on the first line. The name of each of the top contributors shall be centered horizontally in the disclosure area and shall not be underlined. The names of the top contributors shall not be printed in a type that is condensed to be narrower than a normal non-condensed Arial equivalent type.  
(6) (5)  A committee subject to Section 84506.5 shall include the disclosure required by Section 84506.5, which shall be underlined and on a separate line below any of the top contributors.
(7) (6)  A committee subject to Section 84223 shall next include the text “Funding Details At [insert Commission Internet Website),”  link to Secretary of State Internet Web site page with top 10 contributor lists],”  which shall be underlined and printed on a line separate from any other text.
(b) Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (5) (4)  of subdivision (a), the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5  on a printed advertisement that is larger than those designed to be individually distributed, including, but not limited to, yard signs or billboards, shall be in an  Arial equivalent type with a total height of at least 5 percent of the height of the advertisement, and printed on a solid background with sufficient contrast that is easily readable by the average viewer. The text may be adjusted so it does not appear on separate horizontal lines, with the top contributors separated by a comma.
(c) Notwithstanding the definition of “top contributors” in paragraph (1) of subdivision (c) of Section 84501, newspaper, magazine, or other public print advertisements that are 20 square inches or less shall be required to disclose only the single top contributor of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) or more.

SEC. 6.

 Section 84504.3 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.3.
 (a) This section applies to an electronic media advertisement if either of the following is true:
(1) (a)  The advertisement is  An electronic media advertisement, other than an email message or Internet Web site,  paid for by a committee committee,  other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate. candidate, shall comply with both of the following: 
(2) (1)  The advertisement is paid for by a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, and is either of the following: Include the text “Who funded this ad?” in a contrasting color and a font size that is easily readable by the average viewer. 
(A) Paid for by an independent expenditure.
(B) An advertisement supporting or opposing a ballot measure.
(b) An electronic media advertisement that is a graphic, image, animated graphic, or animated image that the online platform hosting the advertisement allows to link to an internet website paid for by a committee shall comply with both of the following:
(1) (2)  Unless the disclosure area described in paragraph (2) includes the full disclosure text required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5, and 84514, the advertisement shall contain Such text shall be  a hyperlink to an internet website  Internet Web site  containing the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5  in a contrasting color and in no less than 11-point 8-point  font.
(2) The advertisement shall include, for the duration of the advertisement, the disclosures required by Section 84514, if any, followed by the disclosures required by Section 84502, if any, followed by the disclosures required by Section 84503, if any, displayed according to the following:
(A) The disclosure area shall have a solid white or black background and shall be in a box on the bottom of the advertisement. The text in the disclosure area shall be in a contrasting color and in standard Arial Regular type with a type size of at least 11-point and shall not have its type condensed or have the spacing between characters reduced to be narrower than a normal non-condensed standard Arial Regular type.
(B) The disclosure required by Section 84514, if any, shall appear at the top of the disclosure area, and shall be separated from the disclosure required by Section 84502 by a blank line.
(C) Notwithstanding Section 84503, the disclosure area may disclose only the largest top contributor to the committee paying for the advertisement, and the disclosure area may include the words “Top Funder” or “Top Funders” instead of “Ad Committee’s Top Funders” or “Ad Committee’s Top Funder.”
(D) The disclosure required by Section 84506.5 may be displayed at the bottom of the disclosure box, separated from the disclosures required by Section 84503 by a blank horizontal line. This text is not required to be displayed in the disclosure area if the advertisement hyperlinks to a website containing the disclosures as described by paragraph (1).
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), if the image takes up fewer than 65,000 square pixels, i.e., is smaller than a standard 728 by 90 pixel leaderboard image advertisement, then the disclosure area described in paragraph (2) may instead include the text “Who funded this ad?”. This text shall be in standard Arial Regular type with a type size of at least 8-point.
(4) (b)  Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (3), the disclosure area  subdivision (a), the text  required by paragraph (2)  (1) of subdivision (a)  is not required if it would take up more than 10 percent of the graphic or image even using the “Who funded this ad?” option allowed by paragraph (3). In those circumstances, including the language would be impracticable. In such circumstances  the advertisement need only include a hyperlink to an internet website  Internet Web site  containing the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514. 84506.5. 
(5) Any text or image not required by this subdivision shall not appear in the disclosure area, except as provided in Section 84504.8 and as otherwise authorized or required by applicable law.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a),  subdivisions (a) and (b),  an email message or internet website  Internet Web site  paid for by a committee  committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate,  shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5,  printed clearly and legibly in a contrasting color and in no less than 8-point font at the top or bottom of the email message, or at the top or bottom of  message and  every publicly accessible page of the internet website, as applicable. Internet Web site. 
(d) An internet website  Internet Web site  that is linked hyperlinked  as provided for in paragraphs (1) and (4)  paragraph (2)  of subdivision (b) (a)  shall remain online and available to the public until 30 days after the date of the election in which the candidate or ballot measure supported or opposed by the advertisement was voted upon.
(e) An advertisement made via a form of electronic media that is audio only and therefore cannot include either of the disclosures disclaimers  in subdivision (b) (a)  shall comply with the disclosure disclaimer  requirements for radio advertisements in Section 84504.
(f) An electronic media advertisement that is disseminated as a video shall comply with the disclosure requirements of Sections 84504.1 and 84504.5, depending on the type of committee that paid for it. If the video is longer than 30 seconds, the disclosures required by Sections 84504.1 and 84504.5 shall be made at the beginning of the advertisement.
(g) (f)  An advertisement in the form of a post, comment, or similar communication  made via a form of electronic media that allows users to engage in discourse and post content, or any other type of social media, is not  shall only be required to include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, and 84506.5 in a contrasting color and in no less than 8-point font on the committee’s profile, landing page, or similar location and shall not be  required to include the disclosure provided in subdivision (b) if both of the following apply: disclaimer required by subdivision (a) on each individual post, comment, or other similar communication. 
(1) The advertisement was posted directly by the social media page or account of the committee that paid for the advertisement.
(2) (A)  The disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5, and 84514 are included on the cover or header photo of the committee’s profile, landing page, or similar location for the committee’s page or account from which the post, comment, or similar communication was made in a contrasting color that is easily readable by the average viewer and in no less than 10-point font. The disclosures specified in this subparagraph shall be fully visible on the cover or header photo when the profile, landing page, or similar location is viewed from any electronic device that is commonly used to view this form of electronic media, including, but not limited to, a computer screen, laptop, tablet, or smart phone.
(B) Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), if making the disclosures specified in subparagraph (A) fully visible on a commonly used electronic device would be impracticable, the cover or header photo of the profile, landing page, or similar location need only include a hyperlink, icon, button, or tab to an internet website containing the disclosures specified in subparagraph (A).
(h) (g)  The disclosures disclaimer  required by this section do does  not apply to advertisements made via social media for which the only expense or cost of the communication is compensated staff time unless the social media account where the content is posted was created only for the purpose of advertisements governed by this title.

SEC. 6.5.

 Section 84504.3 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.3.
 (a) This section applies to an electronic media advertisement if either of the following is true:
(1) The advertisement is paid for by a committee other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate.
(2) The advertisement is paid for by a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate, and is either of the following:
(A) Paid for by an independent expenditure.
(B) An advertisement supporting or opposing a ballot measure.
(b) (a)  An electronic media advertisement that is a graphic, image, animated graphic, or animated image that the online platform hosting the advertisement allows to link to an internet website  Internet Web site,  paid for by a committee  committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate,  shall comply with both of the following:
(1) Include the text “Who funded this ad?,” “Paid for by,” or “Ad Paid for by” in a contrasting color and a font size that is easily readable by the average viewer for the duration of the advertisement.
(1) (2)  Unless the disclosure area described in paragraph (2) includes the full disclosure text required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5, and 84514, the advertisement shall contain a hyperlink to an internet website  The text shall be included or displayed as a hyperlink, icon, button, or tab to an Internet Web site  containing the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5  in a contrasting color and in no less than 11-point 8-point  font.
(2) The advertisement shall include, for the duration of the advertisement, the disclosures required by Section 84514, if any, followed by the disclosures required by Section 84502, if any, followed by the disclosures required by Section 84503, if any, displayed according to the following:
(A) The disclosure area shall have a solid white or black background and shall be in a box on the bottom of the advertisement. The text in the disclosure area shall be in a contrasting color and in standard Arial Regular type with a type size of at least 11-point and shall not have its type condensed or have the spacing between characters reduced to be narrower than a normal non-condensed standard Arial Regular type.
(B) The disclosure required by Section 84514, if any, shall appear at the top of the disclosure area, and shall be separated from the disclosure required by Section 84502 by a blank line.
(C) Notwithstanding Section 84503, the disclosure area may disclose only the largest top contributor to the committee paying for the advertisement, and the disclosure area may include the words “Top Funder” or “Top Funders” instead of “Ad Committee’s Top Funders” or “Ad Committee’s Top Funder.”
(D) The disclosure required by Section 84506.5 may be displayed at the bottom of the disclosure box, separated from the disclosures required by Section 84503 by a blank horizontal line. This text is not required to be displayed in the disclosure area if the advertisement hyperlinks to a website containing the disclosures as described by paragraph (1).
(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (2), if the image takes up fewer than 65,000 square pixels, i.e., is smaller than a standard 728 by 90 pixel leaderboard image advertisement, then the disclosure area described in paragraph (2) may instead include the text “Who funded this ad?”. This text shall be in standard Arial Regular type with a type size of at least 8-point.
(4) (b)  Notwithstanding paragraphs (2) and (3), the disclosure area  subdivision (a), the text  required by paragraph (2)  (1) of subdivision (a)  is not required if it  including the language  would take up more than 10 percent  one-third  of the graphic or image even using the “Who funded this ad?” option allowed by paragraph (3).  image.  In those circumstances, the advertisement need only include a hyperlink to an internet website  Internet Web site  containing the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514. 84506.5. 
(5) Any text or image not required by this subdivision shall not appear in the disclosure area, except as provided in Section 84504.8 and as otherwise authorized or required by applicable law.
(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (a),  subdivisions (a) and (b),  an email message or internet website  message, or Internet Web site,  paid for by a committee  committee, other than a political party committee or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate,  shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5,  and 84514 84506.5  printed clearly and legibly in a contrasting color and in no less than 8-point font at the top or bottom of the email message, or at the top or bottom of every publicly accessible page of the internet website,  Internet Web site,  as applicable.
(d) An internet website  Internet Web site  that is linked as provided for in paragraphs (1) and (4)  paragraph (2)  of subdivision (b) (a)  shall remain online and available to the public until 30 days after the date of the election in which the candidate or ballot measure supported or opposed by the advertisement was voted upon.
(e) An advertisement made via a form of electronic media that is audio only and therefore cannot include either of the disclosures in subdivision (b) (a)  shall comply with the disclosure requirements for radio advertisements in Section 84504.
(f) An electronic media advertisement that is disseminated as a video shall comply with the disclosure requirements of Sections 84504.1  84504.1, 84504.4,  and 84504.5, depending on the type of committee that paid for it. If the video is longer than 30 seconds, the disclosures required by Sections 84504.1  84504.1, 84504.4,  and 84504.5 shall be made at the beginning of the advertisement.  
(g) An advertisement in the form of a post, comment, or similar communication made via a form of electronic media that allows users to engage in discourse and post content, or any other type of social media, is not required to include the disclosure provided in subdivision (b) if both of the following apply:
(1) The advertisement was posted directly by the social media page or account of the committee that paid for the advertisement.
(2) (g)  (A) (1)   The disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, 84506.5, and 84514 are included on the cover or header photo of the committee’s profile, landing page, or similar location for the committee’s page or account from which the post, comment, or similar communication was made  An advertisement made via a form of electronic media that allows users to engage in discourse and post content, or any other type of social media, shall only be required to include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84503, and 84506.5  in a contrasting color that is easily readable by the average viewer and in no less than 10-point font.  font on the cover or header photo of the committee’s profile, landing page, or similar location and shall not be required to include the disclosure required by subdivision (a) on each individual post, comment, or other similar communication.  The disclosures specified in this subparagraph subdivision  shall be fully visible on the cover or header photo when the profile, landing page, or similar location is viewed from any electronic device that is commonly used to view this form of electronic media, including, but not limited to, a computer screen, laptop, tablet, or smart phone. media.  
(B) (2)  Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), paragraph (1),  if making the disclosures specified in subparagraph (A) paragraph (1)  fully visible on a commonly used electronic device would be impracticable, the cover or header photo of the profile, landing page, or similar location need only include a hyperlink, icon, button, or tab to an internet website  Internet Web site  containing the disclosures specified in subparagraph (A). paragraph (1).  
(h) The disclosures required by this section do not apply to advertisements made via social media for which the only expense or cost of the communication is compensated staff time unless the social media account where the content is posted was created only for the purpose of advertisements governed by this title.

SEC. 7.

 Section 84504.5 of the Government Code is amended to read:

84504.5.
 An advertisement that is an independent expenditure and paid for by a political party or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate shall include the disclosures required by Sections 84502, 84506.5,  84502  and 84514. 84506.5.  An advertisement that supports or opposes a ballot measure and is paid for by a political party or a candidate controlled committee established for an elective office of the controlling candidate shall include the disclosure required by Section 84502. A disclosure that is included in an advertisement pursuant to this section is subject to the following requirements:
(a) A radio or telephone advertisement shall include the required disclosures at the beginning or end of the advertisement and be read in a clearly spoken manner and in a pitch and tone substantially similar to the rest of the advertisement, and shall last no less than three seconds.
(b) A video advertisement, including television and videos disseminated over the internet, Internet,  shall include the required disclosures in writing at the beginning or end of the advertisement in a text that is of sufficient size to be readily legible to an average viewer and in a color that has a reasonable degree of contrast with the background of the advertisement for at least four seconds. The required disclosure must also be spoken during the advertisement if the written disclosure appears for less than five seconds of a broadcast of 30 seconds or less or for less than at least  10 seconds of a broadcast that lasts longer than 30 seconds.
(c) (1) A print advertisement shall include the required disclosures in no less than 10-point font and in a color that has a reasonable degree of contrast with the background of the advertisement.
(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), each line of  the required disclosures on a print advertisement that is larger than those designed to be individually distributed, such as a yard sign or billboard, shall in total constitute no less than 5 percent of the total height of the advertisement and shall appear in a color that has a reasonable degree of contrast with the background of the advertisement.
(d) An electronic media advertisement shall include the disclosures required by Section 84504.3.
SEC. 8.
 Section 5.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to Section 84504.2 of the Government Code proposed by both this bill and Senate Bill 1239. That section shall only become operative if (1) both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2019, but this bill becomes operative first, (2) each bill amends Section 84504.2 of the Government Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after Senate Bill 1239, in which case Section 84504.2 of the Government Code, as amended by Section 5 of this bill, shall remain operative only until the operative date of Senate Bill 1239, at which time Section 5.5 of this bill shall become operative.
SEC. 9.
 Section 6.5 of this bill incorporates amendments to Section 84504.3 of the Government Code proposed by both this bill and Assembly Bill 2188. That section shall only become operative if (1) both bills are enacted and become effective on or before January 1, 2019, but this bill becomes operative first, (2) each bill amends Section 84504.3 of the Government Code, and (3) this bill is enacted after Assembly Bill 2188, in which case Section 84504.3 of the Government Code, as amended by Section 6 of this bill, shall remain operative only until the operative date of Assembly Bill 2188, at which time Section 6.5 of this bill shall become operative.
SEC. 10.
 No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.
SEC. 11.
 The Legislature finds and declares that this bill furthers the purposes of the Political Reform Act of 1974 within the meaning of subdivision (a) of Section 81012 of the Government Code.