GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 1997

S	3 

SENATE BILL 708
Judiciary Committee Substitute Adopted 4/22/97
Third Edition Engrossed 4/24/97

Short Title:  Stand By Your Ad.	(Public)

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Sponsors:

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Referred to:  

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April 7, 1997

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT TO REQUIRE CERTAIN DISCLOSURES BY THE SPONSORS OF POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENTS.
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:
Section 1. Article 22A of Chapter 163 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Part to read:
"Part 1A. Disclosure Requirements for Media Advertisements.
"§ 163-278.39. Basic disclosure requirements for all political campaign advertisements.
(a)	Basic Requirements. – No advertisement in the print media or on radio or television whose cost or value constitutes an expenditure or contribution required to be disclosed under this Article shall be made by a sponsoring candidate, candidate campaign committee, political party organization, political action committee, referendum committee, or individual in a State or local campaign unless all the following conditions are met:
(1) 	It bears the legend or includes the statement: 'Paid for by ....................... [Name of  candidate, candidate campaign committee, political party organization, political action committee, referendum committee, or individual].' In television advertisements, this disclosure shall be made by visual legend.
(2)	The name used in the labeling required in subdivision (1) of this subsection is the name that appears on the statement of organization as required in G.S. 163-278.7(b)(1).
(3)	The sponsor states in the advertisement its position for or against the candidate, provided that this subdivision applies only if the media advertisement supports or opposes a specific candidate or candidates.
(4)	The sponsor states in the advertisement its position for or against a ballot measure, provided that this subdivision applies only if the media advertisement is made for or against a ballot measure.
(5)	In a print media advertisement supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates, the sponsor states whether it is authorized by a candidate. The visual legend in the advertisement shall state either 'Authorized by [name of candidate], candidate for [name of office]' or 'Not authorized by a candidate.' This subdivision does not apply if the sponsor of the advertisement is the candidate the advertisement supports or that candidate's campaign committee.
(b)	Size Requirements. – In a print media advertisement covered by subsection (a) of this section, all disclosure statements required by that subsection shall constitute at least ten percent (10%) of the space of the advertisement.  If a single advertisement consists of multiple pages, folds, or faces, the requirement of the previous sentence applies only to one page, fold, or face. In a television advertisement covered by subsection (a) of this section, the visual disclosure legend shall constitute 32 scan lines in size.
(c)	Misrepresentation of Authorization. – Notwithstanding G.S. 163-278.27(a),  any candidate, candidate campaign committee, political party organization, political action committee, referendum committee, or sponsoring individual making an advertisement in the print media or on radio or television bearing any legend required by subsection (a) of this section that misrepresents the sponsorship or authorization of the advertisement is guilty of a Class 1 misdemeanor.
"§ 163-278.39A. Disclosure requirements for television and radio advertisements supporting or opposing candidates.
(a)	Expanded Disclosure Requirements. – In addition to the basic disclosure requirements in G.S. 163-278.39, any political campaign advertisement on radio or television supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall comply with the expanded disclosure requirements set forth in this section.
(b)	Disclosure Requirements for Television. –
(1)	Candidate Advertisements on Television. – Television advertisements purchased by a candidate or by a candidate campaign committee supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the candidate and containing at least the following words: 'I am (or "This is..." ) [candidate's name], candidate for [name of office], and I (or "my campaign..." ) sponsored this ad.'
(2)	Political Party Advertisements on Television. – Television advertisements purchased by a political party organization supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the chair, executive director, or treasurer of the political party organization and containing at least the following words: 'The [name of political party organization] sponsored this ad opposing/supporting [name of candidate] for [name of office].' The disclosed name of the political party organization shall include the name of the political party as it appears on the ballot.
(3)	Political Action Committee Advertisements on Television. – Television advertisements purchased by a political action committee supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the chief executive officer or treasurer of the political action committee and containing at least the following words: 'The [name of political action committee] political action committee sponsored this ad opposing/supporting [name of candidate] for [name of office].' The name of the political action committee used in the advertisement shall be the name that appears on the statement of organization as required in G.S. 163-278.7(b)(1).
(4)	Advertisements on Television by an Individual. –  Television advertisements purchased by an individual supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the individual and containing at least the following words: 'I am [individual's name], and I sponsored this advertisement opposing/sponsoring [name of candidate] for [name of office].'
(5)	All Advertisements on Television. – In any television advertisement described in subdivisions (1) through (4) of this subsection, an unobscured, full-screen picture containing the disclosing person, either in photographic form or through the actual appearance of the disclosing person on camera, shall be featured throughout the duration of the disclosure statement.
(c)	Disclosure Requirements for Radio. –
(1)	Candidate Advertisements on Radio. – Radio advertisements purchased by a candidate or by a candidate campaign committee shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the candidate and containing at least the following words: 'I am (or "This is.." ) [name of candidate], candidate for [name of office], and this ad was paid for by [name of candidate campaign committee that paid for the advertisement].'
(2)	Political Party Advertisements on Radio. – Radio advertisements purchased by a political party organization supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the chair, executive director, or treasurer of the political party organization and containing at least the following words: 'This ad opposing/supporting [name of candidate] for [name of office] was paid for (or "sponsored" or "furnished") by [name of political party].' The disclosed name of the political party organization shall include the name of the political party as it appears on the ballot.
(3)	Political Action Committee Advertisements on Radio. – Radio advertisements purchased by a political action committee supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the chief executive officer or treasurer of the political action committee and containing at least the following words: 'This ad opposing/supporting [name of candidate] for [name of office] was paid for (or "sponsored" or "furnished") by [name of political action committee] political action committee.' The name of the political action committee used in the advertisement shall be the name that appears on the statement of organization as required by G.S. 163-278.7(b)(1).
(4)	Advertisements on Radio by an Individual. – Radio advertisements purchased by an individual supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall include a disclosure statement spoken by the individual and containing at least the following words: 'I am [individual's name], and this ad opposing/supporting [name of candidate] for [name of office] was paid for (or "sponsored" or "furnished") by me.'
(d)	Placement of Disclosure Statement in Television and Radio Advertisements. – In advertisements on television, a sponsoring candidate or candidate campaign committee, political party organization, political action committee, or individual may place the disclosure statement required by this section at any point during the advertisement, except if the duration of the advertisement is more than five minutes, the disclosure statement shall be made both at the beginning and end of the advertisement. The sponsor may provide the oral disclosure statement required by this section at the same time as the visual disclosure required under the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317 is shown. But any visual disclosure legend shall be at least 32 scan lines in size. For advertisements on radio, the placement of the oral disclosure statement shall follow the requirements under the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317.
(e)	Choice by Noncandidate Entity of Supporting or Opposing a Candidate. – In its oral disclosure statement, a sponsoring political party organization, political action committee, or individual shall choose either to identify an advertisement as supporting a specific candidate or opposing a specific candidate.
(f)	Legal Remedy. – Pursuant to the conditions established in subdivisions (1), (2), and (3) of this subsection, a candidate for an elective office who complied with the television and radio disclosure requirements throughout that candidate's entire campaign shall have a monetary remedy in a civil action against (i) an opposing candidate or candidate committee whose television or radio advertisement violates these disclosure requirements and (ii) against any political party organization, political action committee, or individual whose advertisement for that elective office violates these disclosure requirements:
(1)	Any plaintiff candidate in a statewide race in an action under this section shall complete and file a Notice of Complaint Regarding Failure to Disclose on Television or Radio Campaign Advertising with the State Board of Elections after the airing of the advertisement but no later than the first Friday after the Tuesday on which the election occurred. Candidates in nonstatewide races may file the notice during the same time period with one county board of elections within the electoral area in which they are candidates. The timely filing of this notice preserves the candidate's right to bring an action in superior court any time within 90 days after the election. A candidate shall bring the civil action in the county where the candidate filed the notice.
(2)	Upon receiving a favorable verdict in accordance with existing law, the plaintiff candidate shall receive a monetary award of actual damages. The price of actual damages shall be calculated as the total dollar amount of television and radio advertising time that was aired and that the plaintiff candidate correctly identifies as being in violation of the disclosure requirements of this section.
		The plaintiff candidate shall also receive an award that trebles the amount of actual damages if:
a.	The plaintiff candidate can establish having notified or attempted to notify the sponsor of the advertisement properly by return-receipt mail about the failure of a particular advertisement or advertisements to comply with the disclosure requirements of this section, and
b.	After the notice or attempted notice, the advertisement continued to be aired.
	The treble damages shall be calculated from the date on which the return-receipt notice was accepted or rejected by a defendant sponsoring candidate or candidate committee, political party organization, political action committee, or individual. The plaintiff candidate or candidate committee shall send a copy of any return-receipt mailing to the relevant board of elections as provided in subdivision (1) of this subsection within five days after the notice is returned to the possession of the candidate or candidate committee.
		The court shall award reasonable attorneys' fees to a plaintiff candidate who prevails in an action under this section. The plaintiff candidate may bring the civil action personally or authorize his or her candidate campaign committee to bring the civil action.
(3)	A candidate who violates the disclosure requirements of State law in this section and that candidate's campaign committee shall be jointly and severally liable for the payment of damages and attorneys' fees. If the candidate is held personally liable for any payment of damages or attorneys' fees, the candidate shall not use or be reimbursed by funds from the candidate's campaign committee in paying any amount.
(g)	Relation to the Federal Communications Act. – Television advertisements by candidates or candidate campaign committees, political party organizations, political action committees, and individuals supporting or opposing a specific candidate or candidates shall comply with the oral disclosure requirements under State law in this section. Those advertisements shall also comply with disclosure requirements under the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317 by use of visual legends. The content of those visual legends is specified by the Federal Communications Act. 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317, and G.S. 163-278.39(a)(1). The size of those visual legends is determined by G.S. 163-278.39(b), which satisfies minimum requirements under the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317. In the case of radio advertisements, the oral disclosure requirements under State law in this section incorporate the content requirements under the Federal Communications Act, 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317.
(h)	No Additional Liability of Television or Radio Outlets. – Television or radio outlets shall not be liable under this section for carriage of political advertisements that fails to include the disclosure requirements provided for in this section.
(i)	No Criminal Liability. – Nothing in this section regarding the disclosure requirements in subsections (b) and (c) of this section shall be relied upon or otherwise interpreted to create criminal liability for any person.
"§ 163-278.39B. Definitions.
As used in this Part:
(1)	'Candidate' means any individual who, with respect to a public office listed in G.S. 163-278.6(18), has filed a notice of candidacy or a petition requesting to be a candidate, or has been certified as a nominee of a political party for a vacancy, or has otherwise qualified as a candidate in a manner authorized by law, or has filed a statement of organization under G.S. 163-278.7 and is required to file periodic financial disclosure statements under G.S. 163-278.9.
(2)	'Candidate campaign committee' means any political committee organized by or under the direction of a candidate.
(3)	'Full-screen' means the only picture appearing on the television screen during the oral disclosure statement contains the disclosing person, that the picture occupies all visible space on the television screen, and that the image of the disclosing person occupies at least fifty percent (50%) of the vertical height of the television screen.
(4)	'Print media' means billboards, cards, newspapers, newspaper inserts, magazines, mass mailings, pamphlets, periodicals, and outdoor advertising facilities.  A 'mass mailing' is a mailing with more than five hundred (500) pieces.
(5)	'Political action committee' has the same meaning as 'political committee' in G.S. 163-278.6(14), except that 'political action committee' does not include any political party or political party organization.
(6)	'Political party organization' means any political party executive committee or any political committee that operates under the direction of a political party executive committee or political party chair.
(7)	'Radio' means any radio broadcast station that is subject to the provisions of 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317.
(8)	'Scan line' means a standard term of measurement used in the electronic media industry calculating a certain area in a television advertisement.
(9)	'Supporting or Opposing' means an advertisement that mentions the name of a candidate and whose cost or value constitutes an expenditure or contribution required to be disclosed under this Article.
(10)	'Television' means any television broadcast station, cable television system, wireless-cable multipoint distribution system, satellite company, or telephone company transmitting video programming that is subject to the provisions of 47 U.S.C. §§ 315 and 317.
(11)	'Unobscured' means the only printed material that may appear on the television screen is a visual disclosure statement required by law, and nothing is blocking the view of the disclosing person's face.
"§ 163-278.39C.  Scope of disclosure requirements.
The disclosure requirements of this Part apply to all those candidates or candidate committees, political party organizations, political action committees, and individuals required to file financial disclosure statements in North Carolina pursuant to this Article or pursuant to federal law, except that the disclosure requirements of this Part do not apply to an individual who expends or contributes an aggregate of less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) in a political campaign."
Section 2.  G.S. 163-278.16 reads as rewritten:
"§ 163-278.16.  Regulations regarding timing of contributions and expenditures.
(a)	Except as provided in G.S. 163-278.12, no contribution may be received or expenditure made by or on behalf of a candidate, political committee, or referendum committee:
(1)	Until the candidate, political committee, or referendum committee appoints a treasurer and certifies the name and address of the treasurer to the Board; and
(2)	Unless the contribution is received or the expenditure made by or through the treasurer of the candidate, political committee, or referendum committee.
(b)	to (e) Repealed by Session Laws 1975, c. 565, s. 2.
									" "
Section 3.  G.S. 163-278.27(a) reads as rewritten:
"(a)	Any individual, candidate, political committee, referendum committee, treasurer, person or media who violates the provisions of G.S. 163-278.7, 163-278.8, 163-278.9, 163-278.10, 163-278.11, 163-278.12, 163-278.14, 163-278.16, 163-278.17, 163-278.18, 163-278.39, 163-278.40A, 163-278.40B, 163-278.40C, 163-278.40D or 163-278.40E is guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor."
Section 4.  The provisions of this act are severable. If any provision is held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity does not affect other provisions of the act that can be given effect without the invalid provision.
Section 5.  This act becomes effective January 1, 1998, and applies to all advertisements published on or after that date. Prosecutions for, or sentences based on, offenses occurring before the effective date of this act are not abated or affected by this act, and the statutes that would be applicable to those prosecutions or sentences but for the provisions of this act remain applicable to those prosecutions or sentences.