Two campaign-finance bills fail to advance from Senate committee

Two bills addressing campaign finance administration failed to advance from the committee.

Delegate Siebel presented a substitute that would allow campaign contributions received after 5 p.m. on the day before an election to be reported by noon on election day rather than by the night before. Siebel said the substitute responded to practical problems faced by volunteer treasurers who may receive late donations. Members expressed concern that the change could impair transparency by permitting large contributions to be reported late; the transcript records the roll as "Yes 5, No 9, abstentions 1," and the chair announced the bill failed to report.

Separately, Delegate O'Quinn described HB1185 to allow campaign committees to maintain up to two depository accounts so candidates can bank with a local community bank while using another institution for functions such as ACH transfers. Members questioned the need for a second account and the motion to report the bill also failed on the recorded committee tally.

In both cases, members aired concerns about transparency and the practical effects of the proposals. Neither bill advanced from the committee during this docket.

Next steps: both bills failed to report and would need renewed action elsewhere to proceed.