* Rep. Curtis Tarver (D-Chicago) told WGN in September he wanted to crack down on undisclosed payments to political influencers…

Tahman Bradley: Content creators and videos in political campaigns is not new, but it’s getting a lot of attention. What are the problems that you see, and, and what do you think lawmakers should do?

Rep. Tarver: I think the problem is that the public is unaware, oftentimes, that what they’re being presented with is paid for. It’s a perspective that is being pushed upon them by someone who’s being paid to do it, and they’re unaware of that. And I think that’s what we need to correct and solve for. […]

Bradley: Have you filed the bill, and have you talked to Governor Pritzker? I mean, he’s using influencers after all.

Tarver: I’ve not had a conversation with him specifically, but this is not directed at one individual, right? It could be if it were me, I’d be held to the same standard. So I’ve not talked to him. I do have language filed with LRB, and I’m looking to push this bill in veto session.

* Rep. Tarver filed HB5833 this week…

Provides that, if a political committee makes an expenditure for a person to post content on a website, web application, or digital application that is directed at voters and mentions the name of a candidate in the next upcoming election, the person posting the content must concurrently include a statement disclosing that the person was paid by the political committee. Sets forth format and presentation requirements for disclosure statements across image, video, and audio formats. Provides that statements placed solely in captions, descriptions, bios, tags, or hyperlinks do not satisfy disclosure requirements. Requires political committees to provide notice of disclosure requirements and take reasonable actions to ensure compliance with those requirements. […]

Provides for civil penalties and joint and several liability between the committee and the person posting the content. Requires political committees making expenditures aggregating $1,000 or more in an election cycle for paid digital content postings to electronically file a report within 2 business days. Requires quarterly financial reports to itemize paid digital content expenditures under a designated category with specified details regarding creators, platforms, and intermediaries. Authorizes the State Board of Elections to assess an additional civil penalty of up to 300% of compensation for intentional or repeated concealment of paid digital content postings. Applies certain civil penalty provisions to expenditures as well as contributions.

The disclosure would have to remain visible throughout a video, appear directly on an image or be clearly audible in an audio post.

Campaigns would also have to identify the people they’re actually paying to post the content, including their social media handles, where the posts appeared and how much each received. That includes payments made through consulting firms or other intermediaries.

The bill would also prohibit contracts that prevent influencers or vendors from revealing who paid them, how much they received or what work they performed.

Thoughts?