PRINTER'S NO. 1520
No. 1324 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY SCRIMENTI, NAILOR, TIGUE, WILLIAMS, STURLA, SURRA,
HORSEY AND FREEMAN, APRIL 19, 1999
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT, APRIL 19, 1999
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
2 "An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
3 special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
4 primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
5 and defining membership of county boards of elections;
6 imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
7 courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
8 imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
9 revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
10 repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
11 elections," providing for regulation of public service
12 announcements.
13 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
14 hereby enacts as follows:
15 Section 1. Section 1638 of the act of June 3, 1937
16 (P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code,
17 added October 4, 1978 (P.L.893, No.171), is amended to read:
18 Section 1638. Advertising.--
19 (a) Whenever any person makes an expenditure for the purpose
20 of financing communications either expressly or indirectly
21 advocating the election or defeat of a candidate, or ballot
22 questions, through any broadcasting station, public service
1 announcement, newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising facility,
2 direct mailing, or any other type of general public political
3 advertising, such communication:
4 (1) If authorized by the candidate, his authorized political
5 committee or their agents, shall clearly and conspicuously state
6 that the communication has been authorized.
7 (2) If not authorized by a candidate, his authorized
8 political committee, or their agents, shall clearly and
9 conspicuously state the name of the person who made or financed
10 the expenditure for the communication, including, in the case of
11 a political committee the name of any affiliated or connected
12 organization.
13 (b) (1) No broadcast station shall transmit any form of
14 public service announcement in which a candidate for public
15 office appears visually or verbally during a sixty (60) day time
16 period before any election.
17 (2) For the purposes of this section, the term "public
18 service announcement" shall be defined as any means of informing
19 the public through the broadcast medium of an issue or service
20 beneficial to the recipients in which a candidate for a
21 contested office is featured either visibly or vocally.
22 [(b)] (c) (1) No candidate for public office, or political
23 committee or party acting on his behalf, shall place any
24 advertisement referring to an opposing candidate for the same
25 office which is to be broadcast or published during the one
26 hundred and twenty (120) hours immediately prior to an election
27 or published in a weekly newspaper or periodical during the
28 eight (8) days immediately prior to an election, with a
29 television or radio broadcasting station, newspaper or
30 periodical, unless he has first given a copy of the material to
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1 appear or be used in the advertisement and reasonable notice to
2 the opposing candidate and the county board of elections of the
3 county where the advertisement is to be placed in sufficient
4 time for a reply advertisement to be published or broadcast at
5 the same approximate time or in the same issue of the
6 publication or on the same radio or television broadcast as the
7 original advertisement and prior to the election in question.
8 (2) The reasonable notice referred to in clause (1) shall be
9 given in writing by registered mail, return receipt requested,
10 addressee signature only, with a true copy of the material
11 enclosed to appear or be used in the advertisement so as to
12 afford the recipient sufficient time to place a reply
13 advertisement to be published or broadcast at the same
14 approximate time or in the same issue of the publication or on
15 the same radio or television broadcast as the original
16 advertisement and prior to the election in question.
17 [(3)] (d) Any person, firm or corporation, political
18 committee or party or member thereof, violating any of the
19 provisions of this section, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor,
20 and upon conviction thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine
21 not exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000), or to undergo an
22 imprisonment of not less than one (1) month nor more than two
23 (2) years, or both, in the discretion of the court.
24 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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