Sarbanes Statement on New FEC Rulemaking to Improve Internet Ad Disclosure

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Democracy Reform Task Force Chair Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) released the following statement today after the Federal Election Commission (FEC) unanimously approved new rules to strengthen disclosure rules for online political ads:

“The FEC’s agreement to move forward with new disclosure rules on internet advertisements is a positive step forward in providing the public with better information about the sources of online political ads. I look forward to the upcoming public comment process, and hope that today’s bipartisan action marks a thaw in the Commission’s recent partisan dysfunction. To be clear, much more needs to be done to stop the spread of misinformation online and to harden our elections from foreign interference. Congress should take a cue from the FEC and begin working on meaningful, bipartisan reforms to protect our democracy.”

The FEC proposed the rulemaking after Congressman Sarbanes led a coalition of Democratic House and Senate members in sending a letter to the agency, urging it to consider new rules that would prevent foreign agents from buying political and issue-based ads on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Congressman Sarbanes also submitted comments to support the FEC’s proposed rulemaking.

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