Larson and House Democrats Reintroduce Bill to Get Dark Money Out of Politics and Constitutional Amendment to Overturn Disastrous Citizens United Decision

Washington, D.C. - Today, Rep. John B. Larson (CT-01) joined Rep. Chris Pappas (NH-01) and more than 180 of their Democratic colleagues to announce the reintroduction of the DISCLOSE Act, landmark legislation to end the scourge of dark money in politics.

Larson also announced he is cosponsoring H.J. Res. 122, a Constitutional amendment to overturn the disastrous Citizens United Supreme Court decision allowing unlimited spending by special interest groups in our political system. The amendment would also explicitly authorize Congress to create a public financing system for elections. Larson recently received an "A" rating on the End Citizens United (ECU) anti-corruption scorecardfor his election reform efforts.

"Sixteen years since the disastrous Citizens Uniteddecision flooded our elections with dark money, the threats to our democracy from big corporations and special interest groups have only grown," said Larson. "As Chair of the Task Force on Election Reform, I was proud to advance the first public financing plan for federal elections, and work with leaders like the late Rep. John Lewis to protect the right to vote for all Americans. With Trump and his MAGA allies threatening to take over our elections, the need to put the power of our democracy back in the hands of everyday citizens has never been greater. I am thrilled to join my colleagues to reintroduce the DISCLOSE Actand a constitutional amendment to end this scourge of dark money and overturn Citizens Unitedonce and for all."

"Trust in our government is nearing historic lows, and we need to take action to bring greater transparency to our elections and restore Americans' faith that their voices will be heard in our democracy," said Pappas. "The DISCLOSE Act would stop billionaires and corporate special interests from secretly buying our elections by requiring dark money groups to disclose who their donors are and shining a light on payments made to social media influencers to promote or attack candidates. It is critical that we pass this legislation to put the power of our democracy back in the hands of the people."

The DISCLOSE Act:

• requires organizations spending money in elections - including super PACs and 501(c)(4) dark-money groups - to promptly disclose donors who have given $10,000 or more during an election cycle

• requires groups that spend money on ads supporting or opposing judicial nominees to disclose their donors

• prohibits political groups from seeking exemptions from the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to shield their donors from disclosure requirements

• requires political campaigns and super PACs to disclose payments to social media influencers

• requires political ads to have clear disclaimers about the top donors funding the ads

As Chairman of the Task Force on Election Reform, Larson introduced legislationto create a voluntary small dollar donation program for federal elections, modeled after Connecticut's successful Citizens Election Program, which passed the House in 2019 and 2021 as part of the For the People Act, a comprehensive elections reform bill he helped author with the late Rep. John Lewis, also including the original DISCLOSE Act, to end partisan gerrymandering nationwide, get dark money out of politics, and protect the right to vote for all Americans.

As President Trump and his allies at the state and local level continue to wage a war on the right to vote, and free and fair elections, Larson has also introduced the following bills, in addition to today's introduction of the DISCLOSE Actto safeguard our elections:

• Stop ICE Election Militarization Actto block ICE or other federal immigration enforcement from deploying to polling places, following Steve Bannon's threats to "surround the polls,"

• Redistricting Reform Actto ban mid-decade redistricting and create independent redistricting commissions to end partisan gerrymandering,

• John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Actto restore Voting Rights Act protections so every eligible citizen can cast their vote free from fear or intimidation,

• Voter Purge Protection Actto prevent states from purging voter rolls without proof that residents are ineligible.

Several prominent good-government organizations cheered the bill's reintroduction today, including Campaign Legal Center, Democracy Defenders Action, Public Citizen, Democracy21, End Citizens United, Common Cause, Center for American Progress, and the Brennan Center.

"Americans deserve to know who is spending money to influence their elections. Every cycle, billions of dollars move through our political system with little to no transparency, allowing billionaires and powerful special interests to influence and shape election outcomes while working families are left in the dark about who's behind the campaigns," said End Citizens United Action Fund President Tiffany Muller. "The DISCLOSE Actis a commonsense step to bring sunlight back into our elections and restore accountability."

"Our campaign finance system is failing voters, in no small part due to the torrents of anonymous spending aimed at influencing their decisions during election season," said Trevor Potter, President of Campaign Legal Center and former Republican Chairman of the Federal Election Commission. "As the amount of secret spending increases, the need for Congress to pass theDISCLOSE Actbecomes ever more urgent. Dark money denies voters critically important information about the sources of election spending, while also leaving our elections vulnerable to corruption and foreign influence. It is beyond time for Congress to come together on a bipartisan basis and pass this commonsense legislation."

Full bill text of the DISCLOSE Actis available HERE.

A one-pager on the DISCLOSE Actis available HERE.

Full text of H.J. Res. 122, the Democratic members' proposed constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United and allow Congress to create a public financing system for our elections, is available HERE.