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Panel advances bill requiring online donation platforms to register, sets limits on online fundraising
Summary
The committee advanced House Bill 5 81 after extended debate over requiring online contribution platforms to register with the ethics bureau, requiring CVV verification, and limiting candidates to 50% of aggregate contributions from online platforms for an election cycle.
The State and Local Government Committee advanced House Bill 5 81 to Government Operations on a 16‑to‑7 vote after protracted debate over disclosure, vendor regulation and limits on online contributions.
Chairman Doggett, the bill sponsor, said the measure is intended to improve transparency for online political donations, require online platforms to register as vendors with the registry of elections, require CVV verification for card transactions in investigations, and apply existing contribution limits to donations processed by online platforms. The sponsor also said the bill incorporates identity theft provisions for cases when a card is used without the cardholder’s consent.
Representative Mitchell and others pressed the sponsor on the 50% cap on a candidate’s aggregate contributions coming from online platforms over an election cycle. Representative Mitchell described the cap as potentially penalizing small‑dollar grassroots donors and said he was concerned it would constrain ordinary fundraising while leaving large dark‑money transfers less restricted.
Representative Powell likewise questioned whether the registration requirement would discourage companies from providing donation services in the state, noting the administrative burden of multiple state registries for multi‑state vendors. Chairman Doggett said the measure was prompted by practical reporting gaps: some platforms do not collect the occupation, address or other data required for state disclosure, leaving it to registry staff to chase missing information.
The sponsor said vendor registration and CVV verification aim to reduce so‑called “smurfing,” where an individual makes multiple contributions under different names; the committee heard an anecdote cited by the sponsor of a person who used multiple names to give $52,000 in contributions in another state.
Opponents voiced free‑market and enforcement concerns, while supporters framed the bill as a transparency measure. The vote to advance the bill was 16 ayes and 7 nays; the bill now goes to Government Operations.
Because the bill changes reporting and places regulatory burdens on private vendors, committee members asked for additional information about implementation, vendor costs, and the interaction with national platforms. The sponsor said vendors would be instructed on required data capture and that the registry would be better positioned to accept and process online contributions that include full identifying data.
