DISCLOSE Act of 2023
Latest action. ASSUMING FIRST SPONSORSHIP - Mr. Pappas asked unanimous consentDoing business by universal agreement instead of votes. Most Senate floor action happens this way, which is why a single objecting senator has real power.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) that he may hereafter be considered as the first sponsor of H.R. 1118, a bill originally introduced by Representative Cicilline, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII. Agreed to without objection.
Democracy Is Strengthened by Casting Light On Spending in Elections Act of 2023 or the DISCLOSE Act of 2023
This bill addresses campaign finance, including by expanding the prohibition on campaign spending by foreign nationals, requiring additional disclosures of campaign expenditures, and requiring additional disclosures regarding certain political advertisements.
Specifically, the bill expands existing foreign money prohibitions to include disbursements for paid web-based or digital communications and federal judicial nomination communications. It also prohibits foreign nationals from contributing to campaigns related to ballot initiatives and referenda.
The Government Accountability Office must, for each four-year election cycle, study and report on the incidence of illicit foreign money in federal elections.
Next, the bill makes it unlawful to establish or use a corporation, company, or other entity with the intent to conceal an election contribution or donation by a foreign national. A violator is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to five years, or both.
Covered organizations (e.g., corporations, labor organizations, and political organizations) must, within 24 hours, file reports with the Federal Election Commission to disclose campaign expenditures of more than $10,000 during an election cycle.
The bill also requires organizations to provide additional disclosures regarding political advertisements, including the donors who contributed the most money to that organization in the last year.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 21, 2023. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 11, 2023: ASSUMING FIRST SPONSORSHIP - Mr. Pappas asked unanimous consent that he may hereafter be considered as the first sponsor of H.R. 1118, a bill originally introduced by Representative Cicilline, for the purpose of adding cosponsors and requesting reprintings pursuant to clause 7 of rule XII. Agreed to without objection.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 118th Congress (2023-24), 274 of the 16,565 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 1.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
David Cicilline (D-RI) introduced it on February 21, 2023, and 193 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 193 Democrats.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 21, 2023, 1297 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1157 days ago, on July 11, 2023.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 118th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2025 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIntroduced, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers