Subcommittee advances bill requiring online contribution platforms to register with state elections bureau

The Elections & Campaign Finance Subcommittee voted to attach an amendment and advance House Bill 581, which sets new registration and reporting requirements for online campaign contribution platforms.

Representative Doggett, the bill sponsor, told the committee the legislation ‘‘provides more transparency with online campaign contributions in our state elections’’ by requiring platforms that collect contributions to register as vendors with the Tennessee Registry of Elections, respond to investigations, and make contributor information available when requested. He said the bill incorporates identity‑theft measures for credit or debit card contributions made without a cardholder’s knowledge and applies existing contribution limits to amounts processed through online platforms.

Bill Young, executive director of the Bureau of Ethics and Campaign Finance, testified the bill would apply to commonly used services such as ActBlue, WinRed, PayPal and Venmo, and that the bureau could audit vendors if an investigation indicated a campaign finance violation. Young described the policy goals as improving accuracy of reports filed with the bureau and preventing fraud. He said platform practices vary and the bill is intended to ensure platforms collect and provide accurate information candidates need to comply with reporting obligations.

Representative Powell asked whether services such as ActBlue would be required to register; Mr. Young confirmed they would. Committee members also asked whether vendors can provide contributor lists to candidates; Mr. Young said some do, usually on request, and that the bill would make vendor reporting more reliable. A question about how platform fees are reported led to testimony that reporting depends on how the service collects the fee: if the contributor pays an additional fee, the full amount (contribution plus fee) is reported as the contribution; if the fee is deducted from the contribution, the candidate reports the full contribution and an expenditure to the vendor for the fee amount.

Amendment 6076 was adopted and the committee recorded a 6–1 vote in favor; the measure proceeds to the State and Local Government full committee.

The bureau told the committee it has discussed similar work with the FBI and TBI and that other states have pursued comparable transparency measures. Committee members asked about the state’s online filing system; bureau staff said funding is needed for an upgrade and noted an upgrade in a nearby state cost roughly $3 million with ongoing maintenance costs.