Michigan, Alabama Republicans Advance Bills To Cut Off Foreign Money In Elections; Wisconsin Lawmakers Look to Keep Foreign Money Away From Referendum Committees; 25 States Weigh Legislation On Foreign Funding In Elections

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Michigan, Alabama Republicans Advance Bills To Cut Off Foreign Money In Elections:

Michigan and Alabama Republicans took major steps this week to secure their states’ elections from foreign dark money.

The GOP-controlled Michigan House passed legislation (HB 5197) on Thursday that seeks to prohibit foreign nationals from contributing money to ballot initiative campaigns. The measure passed 97-6, with seven members not voting.

HB 5197 stipulates that Michigan ballot question committees “shall not knowingly or willfully receive, solicit, or accept contributions from a foreign national, whether directly or indirectly.” These committees are further required to obtain “affirmation” from any person who donates to the campaign that he or she “is not a foreign national and has not knowingly or willfully received, solicited, or accepted more than $100,000.00 in aggregate from foreign nationals in the 4 years immediately preceding the date of the contribution.”

Ballot question committees who discover that a donor meets the bill’s criteria are ordered to “return” such contributions “not later than 30 business days” after receiving it. Those who violate the provision will be “subject to a civil fine of not more than double the amount of the undisclosed contribution.”

The measure includes additional language explicitly prohibiting foreign nationals from making “a contribution, independent expenditure, or expenditure to promote or defeat a ballot question or to qualify a question for placement on the ballot.”

HB 5197 now heads to Michigan’s Democrat-run Senate for consideration. --->READ MORE HERE

Wisconsin lawmakers look to keep foreign money away from referendum committees:

Wisconsin lawmakers are looking to keep foreign money out of statewide constitutional amendments and other referendum topics.

Both legislative Democrats and Republicans have similar bills that, in response to a Federal Election Commission enforcement decision that candidates cannot accept contributions from foreign nationals but referendum committees can, would outlaw the process in the state.

But the Republican version, Assembly Bill 906, goes further and requires a referendum to get written affirmation that the donor is not a foreign national and that the donating committee has not “intentionally accepted funds aggregating in excess of $100,000 from one or more foreign nationals during the four-year period immediately preceding the date of the contribution.”

The Republican version also requires that the referendum committee confirms that its preliminary activity was not funded directly or indirectly by a foreign national.

“That decision sent a clear message nationwide: unless a state acts, foreign nationals may be able to legally spend money to influence ballot measures, even when those measures directly shape state policy,” Rep. Dan Knodl, R-Germantown, wrote in testimony on the bill. “That gap creates a real vulnerability for Wisconsin, especially as we approach the 2026 election cycle, when voters are expected to consider multiple constitutional amendment proposals.” --->READ MORE HERE

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+++++Twenty-five states weigh legislation on foreign funding in elections+++++

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