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SB220 INTRODUCED
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SB220
YMREV22-1
By Senator Orr
RFD: Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Development
First Read: 29-Jan-26
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YMREV22-1 01/28/2026 PMG (L)cr 2026-23
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First Read: 29-Jan-26
SYNOPSIS:
The Fair Campaign Practices Act requires the
disclosure of persons that contribute $100 or more
during a reporting period to a political action
committee or principal campaign committee. The original
source of funds to a political campaign can remain
undisclosed through nonprofit 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4)
corporations that are set up to mask the identity of
campaign contribution sources. This is considered dark
money.
This bill would prohibit a nonprofit
organization from making any contributions to a
principal campaign committee unless the organization
registers with the Secretary of State as a political
donor organization and the contributions are made from
a separate, segregated fund.
This bill would require a political donor
organization to submit to the Secretary of State
reports that disclose the identity of each contributor
to a political spending fund of the organization if the
total contributions to the organization's fund amount
to $100 or more in a 12-month period.
This bill would require a political donor
organization that receives a contribution to inform the
contributing source that the source's identity will be
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contributing source that the source's identity will be
disclosed if their total contributions amount to $100
or more during a 12-month period.
This bill would require the Secretary of State
to publish the disclosure reports.
This bill would require the political donor
organization to keep certain records and make the
records available to the Secretary of State or State
Ethics Commission upon request.
This bill would prohibit a nonprofit
organization from making a contribution to or an
expenditure on behalf of a political action committee.
This bill would also authorize the Secretary of
State to enforce this act in the same manner as now
provided for other reporting requirements under the
Fair Campaign Practices Act.
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to campaign finance; to amend Sections
17-5-14.1 and 17-5-19, Code of Alabama 1975, and add Section
17-5-14.2 to the Code of Alabama 1975, to prohibit nonprofit
organizations from making contributions to principal campaign
committees unless registered with the Secretary of State as a
political donor organization and the contributions are made
from a separate, segregated fund; to require these
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from a separate, segregated fund; to require these
organizations to submit reports to the Secretary of State
disclosing the identity of persons that contribute more than a
certain amount to the organization; to require organizations
to provide notice to persons contributing to the organization;
to require these organizations to maintain certain records; to
prohibit nonprofit organizations from making contributions
to, or expenditures on behalf of, political action committees;
and to authorize the Secretary of State to impose civil
penalties for violations.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Sections 17-5-14.1 and 17-5-19, Code of
Alabama 1975, are amended to read as follows:
"§17-5-14.1
(a) AnyExcept as provided in Section 17-5-14.2, any
business or nonprofit corporation, incorporated under the laws
of or doing business in this state, or any officer or agent
acting on behalf of the corporation may give, pay, expend, or
contribute money, services, anything of value for the purposes
of establishing, administering, or soliciting voluntary
contributions to a separate, segregated fund which can be
utilized used for political purposes : (i) to aid or promote
the nomination or election of any person, including an
incumbent political officeholder or any other person who is or
becomes a candidate for political office; or (ii) to aid or
promote the interest or success, or defeat of any political
party or political proposition. Any separate, segregated fund
established hereunder for any of the above enumerated purposes
shall be established and administered pursuant to the
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shall be established and administered pursuant to the
following requirements and prohibitions:
(1) Any such business or nonprofit corporation, or any
officer or agent acting on behalf of such business or
nonprofit corporation, may solicit voluntary contributions to
the fund only from the corporation's, or its affiliates',
stockholders and their families and its employees and their
families; or in the case of a nonprofit corporation, its
members and their employees. However, the funds may accept
voluntary contributions from any individuals.
(2) The custodians of any separate, segregated
political fund established hereunder pursuant to this section
shall file with the Secretary of State such financial
disclosure reports or statements now required of a candidate
for public office. Filing with the Secretary of State a copy
of the information required to be filed with the Federal
Election Commission by such separate, segregated fund shall
constitute compliance with the reporting provisions of this
section.
(b) It shall be unlawful:
(1) For any separate, segregated political fund
established pursuant to this section or for any person acting
on behalf of the fund to solicit or secure any money or
anything of value by physical force, job discrimination, or
financial reprisals, or by threats thereof; by dues, fees, or
other moneys monies required as a condition of employment; or
by moneys monies obtained in any commercial transaction;
(2) For any person soliciting contributions to the fund
to fail to inform any person being solicited of the political
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to fail to inform any person being solicited of the political
purposes of the fund at the time of the solicitation;
(3) For any person soliciting for a contribution to the
fund to fail to inform the person being solicited, at the time
of the solicitation, of his or her right to refuse to
contribute without any reprisal; and
(4) For any corporation regulated by the Public Service
Commission to pass on to its customers any contribution made
for the purpose of establishing, administering, or soliciting
voluntary contributions to a separate, segregated fund to be
utilized for political purposes."
"§17-5-19
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a
person who intentionally violates any provision of this
chapter shall be guilty, upon conviction, of a Class A
misdemeanor.
(b) A person who intentionally violates any reporting
requirement of Sections 17-5-4, 17-5-5, or 17-5-8 , or
17-5-14.2 shall be guilty, upon conviction, of a Class A
misdemeanor. A person's failure to promptly file a required
report upon discovering or receiving notice from any person
that the report has not been filed, or the failure to promptly
correct an omission, error, or other discrepancy in a filed
report upon discovering or receiving notice of the
discrepancy, shall create a rebuttable presumption of intent
to violate the applicable reporting requirement.
(c) Any person who intentionally violates Section
17-5-7 shall be guilty, upon conviction, of a Class B felony.
(d) The Attorney General or district attorney for the
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(d) The Attorney General or district attorney for the
appropriate jurisdiction may prosecute violations of this
chapter. Venue for cases involving violations of this chapter
shall be in the county in which the violation occurred or the
county in which the alleged violator resides or is
incorporated. If the alleged violator resides or is
incorporated outside of the State of Alabama or if the
violation or violations occurred outside the State of Alabama,
venue shall be in Montgomery County.
(e) No prosecution for violation of this chapter shall
be commenced later than two years after the date of violation.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, a prosecution brought pursuant
to Section 17-5-7 shall be commenced within four years after
the commission of the offense."
Section 2. Section 17-5-14.2 is added to the Code of
Alabama 1975, to read as follows:
§17-5-14.2
(a) For purposes of this section, the following terms
have the following meanings:
(1) CONTRIBUTING SOURCE. a. Any person, including any
donor or member of a political donor organization, who
knowingly and voluntarily does either of the following:
1. Contributes to a political spending fund of a
political donor organization.
2. Expressly permits the use of the person's monies or
other financial resources given to the political donor
organization to be used for political spending.
b. A nonprofit organization may not be a contributing
source and may not contribute to the political spending fund
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source and may not contribute to the political spending fund
of a political donor organization.
(2) IDENTITY. a. In the case of an individual, the name
and mailing address of the individual; and
b. In the case of any other person, the name, mailing
address, federal tax status, and state of incorporation,
registration, or partnership, if any.
(3) NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION. Any corporation, union,
association, organization, or other entity exempt from federal
income taxes under 26 U.S.C. § 501(c)(3) or 501(c)(4).
(4) POLITICAL DONOR ACCOUNTING RECORDS. A written
record of: (i) the identity of each contributing source who
contributed to the political spending fund of a political
donor organization; (ii) the date of receipt of each
contribution, deposit, or transfer of monies to the political
spending fund by a contributing source; (iii) a record of each
contributing source's approval for the use of the contributed
funds for political spending; and (iv) the date and identity
of each contribution made to, or expenditure made on behalf
of, a principal campaign committee.
(5) POLITICAL DONOR ORGANIZATION. Any nonprofit
organization that uses or transfers monies for political
spending.
(6) POLITICAL SPENDING. Any contribution to, or
expenditure on behalf of, a principal campaign committee.
(7) POLITICAL SPENDING FUND. A separate, segregated
fund held by a political donor organization solely used for
political spending. A political spending fund shall only
include financial contributions from a contributing source
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include financial contributions from a contributing source
that has approved in writing the use of the contributed funds
for political spending.
(b)(1) It shall be unlawful for any nonprofit
organization to make a contribution to, or an expenditure on
behalf of, a political action committee or a principal
campaign committee.
(2) Notwithstanding subdivision (1), a nonprofit
organization may make a contribution to, or an expenditure on
behalf of, a principal campaign committee under the following
conditions:
a. The nonprofit organization has registered with the
Secretary of State as a political donor organization.
b. The contribution or expenditure is made entirely
from the political donor organization's political spending
fund.
(c) It shall be unlawful for a political action
committee or a principal campaign committee to accept or
receive a contribution from a person if the political action
committee or principal campaign committee knew or reasonably
should have known that the person:
(1) Is a nonprofit organization; and
(2) Is not registered with the Secretary of State as a
political donor organization.
(d) Prior to engaging in any political spending, a
nonprofit organization must first register with the Secretary
of State as a political donor organization in the manner
prescribed by the Secretary of State through administrative
rule.
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rule.
(e)(1) Each registered political donor organization
shall file periodic disclosure reports with the Secretary of
State on a schedule prescribed by the Secretary of State, by
rule.
(2) Each disclosure report shall include the identity
of every contributing source that aggregately contributed or
donated more than one hundred dollars ($100) to the political
spending fund of the political donor organization within the
previous 12 months.
(f)(1) A political donor organization shall maintain
political donor accounting records for a period of five years
and provide verified copies of the records, upon request, to
the Secretary of State or the State Ethics Commission.
(2) It shall be unlawful for any political donor
organization or any person acting on behalf of the
organization to: (i) require contributions or donations,
including dues or fees, to a political spending fund as a
condition of membership or association with the nonprofit
organization; or (ii) solicit, secure, or acquire any money or
anything of value for the political spending fund by physical
force, job discrimination, financial reprisal, or by monies
obtained in any commercial transaction.
(3) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly or
intentionally use separate entities or third-party proxies to
divide a person's contribution or donation to a political
spending fund into smaller sums for the purpose of avoiding
the reporting requirements of this act or any rule adopted
pursuant to this act.
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pursuant to this act.
(g) Prior to the deposit or use of a contribution or
donation to a political spending fund, a political donor
organization must provide written notice to a contributing
source that informs the person that the contribution or
donation will be used solely for political spending. The
notice under this subsection must do all of the following:
(1) Inform contributing sources in writing that their
monies or contributions will be used solely for political
spending and that the identity of a contributing source that
contributes more than one hundred dollars ($100) within a
12-month period will be reported to the Secretary of State for
disclosure to the public in accordance with the requirements
established by the Secretary of State.
(2) Inform contributing sources that any donation or
contribution to the political spending fund is voluntary and,
if applicable, not required for membership or association with
the nonprofit organization.
(3) Comply with any additional requirements established
by the Secretary of State pursuant to this section and through
administrative rules to ensure that the notice reasonably
informs contributing sources of the political use of the
contribution or donation and the potential public disclosure
of the person's identity.
(h)(1) The Secretary of State shall establish and
maintain, by rule, a schedule for the filing, submission, and
publishing of periodic disclosure reports for political donor
organizations.
(2) All disclosure reports submitted to the Secretary
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(2) All disclosure reports submitted to the Secretary
of State pursuant to this section shall be promptly published
on its website for public access and viewing.
(i) The Secretary of State may adopt additional
administrative rules as necessary to administer this section.
Section 3. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2026.
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