By Bob Katzen
House 149-0, approved a bill requiring more frequent public reporting of fundraising and spending by groups supporting or opposing ballot questions. Under the bill, ballot question committees would be required to provide monthly reports on their finances. After September of that year, campaigns would have to file biweekly reports until Election Day. The bill would hold ballot question campaigns to the same standard of disclosure already followed by candidates for office. Currently, ballot committees don’t have to report on their finances between Jan. 20 and September.
The bill also establishes a thirteen-member special legislative commission to conduct a comprehensive review of the statewide initiative petition process and to submit recommendations, including proposed constitutional amendments where appropriate, by December 31, 2027.
The Senate has approved its own version of the measure, and the House version now goes to the Senate for consideration.
“This Act will bring ballot question committees and their campaign reporting requirements in line with the reporting schedule that we, as duly elected representatives of the people, adhere to,” said Rep. Dan Ryan (D-Boston), primary House sponsor of the bill. “These requirements allow voters to see who is influencing the messages they are hearing leading up to Election Day.”
“Massachusetts voters deserve to know who is behind the campaigns asking for their vote,” said Rep. Daniel Hunt (D-Boston), House Chair of the Committee on Election Laws. “This legislation ensures voters have access to timely, meaningful information before they head to the polls, helping cut through the confusion that can surround statewide ballot question campaigns. By modernizing reporting requirements, increasing transparency, strengthening accountability and making campaign finance information easier to access, we are giving voters the tools they need to make informed decisions and greater confidence in the integrity of our elections.”
(A Yes” vote is for the bill.)
Rep. Christine Barber Yes Rep. Mike Connolly Yes Rep. Paul Donato Yes Rep. Erika Uyterhoeven Yes