Letters to the Editor on the California DISCLOSE ActGreat Letters to the Editor by California DISCLOSE Act SupportersRead great letters by supporters — and get inspired to write your own letters!Join our Letter Writing Team! Ask to be put on the list of rapid-response letter-writers to help spread the word! info@CAclean.org Here’s a bill that will help you figure out who’s trying to buy your voteSacramento Bee, by Senator Henry Stern and Assemblymember Mark Berman, 9/27/17 Voters should have the right to know the identities of people and organizations asking for their votes. By no longer allowing special interests to hide behind meaningless committee names, AB 249 would serve as an example to the nation for achieving more meaningful campaign disclosure. Full story Expand campaign fundingSan Francisco Chronicle, by David Schmidt, 7/12/23 Assembly Member Lee's bill AB270 allows all cities, counties, and the state to create public campaign financing systems where candidates can get matching funds for small-dollar contributions. This empowers voters and reduces the influence of big-money contributors. Full story Letter: We need to get big money out of politicsSan Jose Mercury News, by Karen Beck, 1/19/18 "The Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling eight years ago corrupted our democracy by allowing the rich to overrule the rest of us forever... By working locally, we can pass legislation like California DISCLOSE Act which lets the voters follow the money." Full story Bringing the dark money of California politics into the lightOrange County Register, by Sharon Quirk-Silva, 9/30/17 The DISCLOSE Act would be the strongest campaign advertisement finance law in the nation. California should set an example for this great nation, and ensure that our politics represent the people, not big-money corporations. Full story AB 700 is no-brainer legislationSan Francisco Chronicle, by Sergio Klor de Alva, 6/2/15 "With AB700, we would see who actually pays for ballot proposition ads, by mandating that the top three funders of proposition campaigns disclose themselves clearly in the ads themselves..." Full story True funders of state political ads not clearSan Jose Mercury News, by Craig Dunkerley, 5/23/15 "Our state laws do not require the true funders of ads to be clearly and unambiguously disclosed. Instead, if they appear at all, they're in fine print, all caps (hard to read) and usually disguised with some misleading, innocuous sounding name like "Californians for Warm Puppies."..." Full story AB 700 will ensure more transparencySan Jose Mercury News, by Nancy Neff, 5/22/15 "In California, too often the true funders of political ads are obfuscated by misleading committee names in a hard-to-read typeface. That's why the Legislature needs to pass AB 700, the California Disclose Act." Full story Legislation will help track 'dark money'San Jose Mercury News, by Craig Dunkerley, 3/25/15 "... voters at least need to be able to see where all this money is coming from. Legislation like the California Disclose Act will bring precisely this kind of transparency to our electoral process." Full story Dark MoneySan Francisco Chronicle, by David Schmidt, 2/3/15 "Voters have a right to know who's bombarding them with political ads. Thanks to San Francisco state Sen. Mark Leno, there's a simple solution, the California Disclose Act, which would require the top three funders of ballot proposition ads to be shown in large, clear print on their ads, including TV ads..." Full story Letter: Disclose ActVentura County Star, by Allen Dirrim, 8/23/14 "Tell Assemblyman Jeff Gorell to continue his support for getting dark money out of politics at 916-319-2044. Tell him to make sure this vote happens, and that he votes yes." Full story Disclosure needs OKSan Luis Obispo Tribune, by William Arkfeld, 8/22/14 "We are now in the last two weeks of the legislative session. The Assembly has many bills to consider, but clearly SB 52 is the most important. So let’s turn up the pressure on our Assembly members to fix this mess and pass SB 52." Full story Glenda Olsen: 'Disclose' the secret donorsModesto Bee, by Glenda Olsen, 5/31/14 "Sen. Cannella has already voted for [SB 52]. Assemblymember Olsen should do the same when she gets a chance this summer. If you want the light to shine on who is behind the political ads that bombard us at election time, call Assemblymember Olsen and encourage a “yes” vote." Full story More transparency a must in California politicsMerced Sun-Star, by Taylor Kollmann, 5/25/14 Gray should join Cannella and vote for the California Disclose Act to require political ads to list their top funders. This is an opportunity to bring much-needed transparency and accountability to the misleading political ads that bombard the airwaves each election. Full story Yee just a small part of a much larger problemSan Jose Mercury News, by Eileen Sargent, 4/27/14 "I'm grateful that two Bay Area senators, Sen. Mark Leno and Sen. Jerry Hill, are working to pass the California DISCLOSE Act, SB 52, to require political ads to list their top three funders..." Full story Carole Stark: State law more important nowModesto Bee, by Carole Stark, 4/9/14 "This makes the issue of transparency even more crucial and California has two laws ready to be passed addressing this: Senate Bill 27 and SB 52." Full story Wilk goes against voter wantsSanta Clarita Valley Signal, by Carole Lutness, 3/6/14 "It baffles me how Wilk goes against what voters clearly want, which is “transparency” in elections. The people want to know who is funding candidates and propositions because this helps them make informed choices and not be manipulated by slick media campaigns..." Full story California Disclose Act ensures transparencySan Jose Mercury News, by Craig Dunkerley, 2/18/14 "... Even worse, most of the money for things like political ads is spent anonymously. We could begin to fix this last part by supporting more legislation like the California Disclose Act, SB 52...." Full story Bill would unmask special interestsPalo Alto Daily Post, by Nancy Neff, 12/20/13 I appreciate the leadership of our own Senator Jerry Hill, author of SB 52 (with Senator Mark Leno) and a champion of Clean Money. Full story Must shed light on who pays for political adsSan Jose Mercury News, by Mary McVey Gill, 10/31/13 "It's outrageous that wealthy donors to political campaigns (whether liberal or conservative) can attempt to influence our elections anonymously. This is exactly why we should strongly support SB 52, the California Disclose Act..." Full story Force big-time political donors out of the shadowsSan Gabriel Valley Tribune, by Mary Lou Williams, 6/5/13 "The May 10 editorial "Bill would rid campaign ads of anonymity" is correct in saying we citizens need to demand a greater accountability at the state and national level of the people and groups who are attempting to influence our elections by providing copious amounts of money without identifying themselves." Full story DisclosureSan Jose Mercury News, by Dan Dippery, 6/5/13 "Imagine the power if everyone reading this took just a few minutes to write their Assembly members and asked them to do everything in their power to help SB 52 pass in the Assembly." Full story Who opposes disclosure?San Francisco Chronicle, by Joni Eisen, 6/4/13 Voters need to know, when they see or hear a political ad, who the top three funders of that ad really are. An informed electorate is essential to a functioning democracy. Full story Follow the moneySan Francisco Chronicle, by Bill Walzer, 6/4/13 I agree we need to know who pays for political ads. Then we can follow the money, so to speak, to find out if the ad serves our public interest or just some private special interest. Full story Voters demand to knowSan Francisco Chronicle, by Nancy Neff, 6/4/13 I salute Republican Sen. Anthony Cannella for his "yes" vote and hope that his Republican colleagues in the Assembly follow his lead. They can take courage from the fact that 78 percent of Republican voters favor this measure. Full story Shine light on political adsFresno Bee, by Eleanor Garabedian, 5/30/13 "I liked your May 25 editorial about the California Disclose Act -- SB 52... Everyone from individuals, labor unions to Big Oil will be disclosed if this bill passes. It is truly fair and equitable." Full story Identifying ads' funders the right callContra Costa Times, by Joe Ely, 5/30/13 "Knowledge is power, and the DISCLOSE Act will place more power in the hands of the voters instead of a few veiled wealthy power brokers." Full story We need disclosure in political adsSan Gabriel Valley Tribune, by Bob Gerecke, 5/28/13 "We need to bring political ads out of the dark with clear disclosure of who's paying for them by passing Senate Bill 52, the California DISCLOSE Act." Full story State must change its campaign lawsOakland Tribune, by Eloise Hamann, 5/23/13 "...there is something Californians can do now that will improve the election process, which is to raise their voices in support of SB 52, the California Disclose Act." Full story Californians need to know who's paying for politicsSan Gabriel Valley Tribune, by Mark Byars, 5/22/13 "Political ads are self-serving, but many of them don't even tell us who the "self" is... SB 52 would change that..." Full story Letters: The Politics of CorporationsLos Angeles Times, by John M. Goodman, 5/9/13 What is little known about the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision is that eight of the nine justices also said that disclosure of who is paying for ads is really important — first, so voters can properly weigh the arguments; second, so shareholders can know how their companies are spending their money . . . Full story Voters need disclosureSan Francisco Chronicle, by Nancy Neff, 2/25/13 " . . . voters need clear and prominent disclosure on political ads. The Legislature must pass the strongest bill for on-ad disclosure of the real funders of political ads: SB52 . . ." Full story Full disclosure all overSan Luis Obispo Tribune, by Malcolm McEwen, 1/14/13 "After all, if full disclosure is required before sex, then full disclosure should also be required before someone inserts propaganda into my mailbox, uses the radio to whisper sweet nothings into my ear, or seduces me with television spots." Full story Stronger disclosure laws are necessarySan Jose Mercury News, by Nancy Neff, 11/6/12 "We obviously need stronger disclosure laws. The incoming Legislature should pass the California DISCLOSE Act, sponsored by the California Clean Money Campaign and supported by California Common Cause and the League of Women Voters..." Full story Election shows need for the California DISCLOSE ActSan Jose Mercury News, by Steve Levin, 11/6/12 "It also illustrates how badly we need to pass the California DISCLOSE Act next year to strengthen our disclosure laws and to make sure that political ads have to show who really pays for them." Full story California Supreme Court forced revelation of $11mPalo Alto Online, by Elaine Elbizri, 11/5/12 "... It also illustrates how badly we need to pass the California DISCLOSE Act next year to strengthen our disclosure laws and to make sure that political ads have to show who really pays for them." Full story Bring truth to political adsSanta Clarita Signal, by Carole Lutness, 5/25/12 "AB 1648 will give the voters information about who is spending money to try to persuade them to vote for or against a particular candidate or proposition. That is information we all should have a right to know. Please call Smyth's office at 661-286-1565 and tell him you want him to be the deciding vote." Support Disclose ActFresno Bee, by Francine M. Farber, 5/17/12 "A bill in the Assembly, AB 1648, is known as the California Disclose Act... If you want a clean money campaign in your state this year, let your representatives in the Legislature know it. Tell them that voters deserve to know who really pays for political ads." Full story Avert democracy's doomSan Luis Obispo Tribune, by Malcolm McEwen, 4/1/12 "We need to enact legislation to require disclosure of who is paying for political ads. As Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia recently wrote: “Requiring people to stand up in public for their political acts fosters civic courage, without which democracy is doomed." Full story More voting transparencyFresno Bee, by Diane Merrill, 3/19/12 "The League is supporting The California Disclose Act, AB 1648, because it will give voters needed information in a form that they can understand, with no more covering up who is behind political ads..." Full story DISCLOSE Act needs supportBakersfield Californian, by Jason Harmeyer, 3/16/12 "The DISCLOSE Act would expose who really pays for political ads, by disclosing the top three funders of these unlimited Super PAC-type campaigns where it counts -- in the ads themselves, so no one can miss it." Full story What do campaign funders have to hide?San Jose Mercury News, by John Fioretta, 2/18/12 "The Mercury News was spot on when it wrote there was no honorable reason to conceal who pays for a political ad. What do the opponents of this necessary reform have to hide?" Full story Transparency would have been goodHi Desert Star, by Jason Gueltzow, 2/10/12 "Despite wide approval, 84 percent in polls across all party lines, on Jan. 31, the California Assembly failed to pass AB 1148. It fell short of the requisite two-thirds majority by just two votes. Sadly, my representative from the 65th Assembly District, Assemblyman Paul Cook, was one of the handful to vote against AB 1148." Full story Campaign moneyVentura County Star, by Jay Kapitz, 1/27/12 "The one bright spot in this mess is AB1148, the California DISCLOSE Act. Sponsored by the California Clean Money Campaign, it would expose who really pays for political ads - right in the ads." Full story Money behind political ads would be disclosedVisalia Times-Delta, by Dorothy Osak, 1/26/12 "As a member of the non-partisan League of Women Voters, I wish to bring attention to the proposed legislation AB 1148, the California Disclose Act. AB1148 would fight back against unlimited hidden spending on campaigns by letting voters know who really is paying for political ads — on the ads themselves..." Full story Time for real disclosureFresno Bee, by Amy Davis, 1/26/12 "Californians have a unique opportunity to take back control of our democratic process. It seems a common complaint among voters is that money buys elections and drives legislation. Now in California, we have AB 1148, the California DISCLOSE Act..." Full story The public has a right to knowStockton Record, by Bea Lingenfelter, 1/20/12 "The League of Women Voters of California has long promoted campaign finance laws that ensure full disclosure of contributors to candidates and ballot measures. For this reason, we are pleased to support the California Disclose Act, AB1148 (Brownley)..." Full story Disclose PAC contributorsFresno Bee, by Connie Peterson, 1/13/12 "Californians need to know that AB 1148, the California DISCLOSE Act, is currently wending its way through the state Legislature..." Full story Overspending in an election? You ain't seen nothin' yetSan Francisco Chronicle, by David Schmidt, 1/5/12 "If you're sick of misleading political ads, tell your state legislators to pass the California DISCLOSE Act, AB 1148, to expose who's really paying for political ads, right in the ads themselves." Full story |
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