It's political season again in Quartzsite. As a courtesy to political candidates, Desert Messenger is posting the requirements for advertising published by Arizona Newspaper Association and ARS Statutes regulating advertising for candidates. SEE BELOW: It is the candidate's responsibility to know the law.
DESERT MESSENGER POLICY:
Political advertising, advertising on public policy questions and controversial issues will be prepaid. These ads must contain “Paid for by...” the name and contact of person(s) or organization(s) responsible for the advertisement.
CANDIDATE ADVERTISEMENTS
Any advertisement by a candidate or political committee that
advocates the election or
defeat of any candidate or solicits contributions to a
political committee shall state that it
was paid for by the candidate or the candidate’s campaign
committee, if that statement is
accurate, or shall state the name of the political committee
that paid for the
advertisement, identify the chairman of the political
committee and provide a telephone
number for that individual.
If the literature or advertisement is not authorized by any
candidate or candidate’s
campaign, the advertisement shall so state. If the
advertisement is an independent
expenditure (i.e., an expenditure by a person or political committee,
other than a
candidate’s campaign committee, that expressly advocates the
election or defeat of a
clearly identified candidate, that is made without
cooperation or consultation or at the
request or suggestion of any candidate or committee or agent
of the candidate) by a
political committee, the advertisement shall also state the
names and telephone numbers
of the three political committees making the largest
contributions to the political
committee that paid for the advertisement. If an acronym is
used to identify any political
committee, the name of any sponsoring organization of the
political committee must also
be identified.
The required disclosures must be printed clearly and legibly
in a conspicuous manner in
the advertisement. In printed advertisements, the disclosure
must appear in a font that is
at least 3/32 inches tall in a dark type on a light
background surrounded by a dark box.
§ 16-901(14), (19). Definitions
In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:
14. “Independent expenditure” means an expenditure by a
person or
political committee, other than a candidate’s campaign
committee, that expressly
advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified
candidate, that is made without
cooperation or consultation with any candidate or committee
or agent of the candidate
and that is not made in concert with or at the request or
suggestion of a candidate, or any
committee or agent of the candidate. Independent expenditure
includes an expenditure
that is subject to the requirements of section 16-917 which
requires a copy of campaign
literature or advertisement to be sent to a candidate named
or otherwise referred to in the
literature or advertisement. An expenditure is not an
independent expenditure if any of
the following applies:
(a) Any officer, member, employee or agent of the political
committee making the expenditure is also an officer, member,
employee or
agent of the committee of the candidate whose election or
whose opponent’s
defeat is being advocated by the expenditure or an agent of
the candidate whose
election or whose opponent’s defeat is being advocated by
the expenditure.
(b) There is any arrangement, coordination or direction with
respect to the expenditure between the candidate or the
candidate’s agent and the
person making the expenditure, including any officer,
director, employee or
agent of that person.
(c) In the same election the person making the expenditure,
including any officer, director, employee or agent of that
person, is or has been:
(i) Authorized to raise or expend monies on behalf of the
candidate or the candidate’s authorized committees.
(ii) Receiving any form of compensation or
reimbursement from the candidate, the candidate’s committees
or the
candidate’s agent.
(d) The expenditure is based on information about the
candidate’s
plans, projects or needs, or those of his campaign
committee, provided to the
expending person by the candidate or by the candidate’s
agents or any officer,
member or employee of the candidate’s campaign committee
with a view
toward having the expenditure made.
19. “Political committee” means a candidate or any
association or
combination of persons that is organized, conducted or
combined for the purpose of
influencing the result of any election or to determine
whether an individual will become a
candidate for election in this state or in any county, city,
town, district or precinct in this
state, that engages in political activity in behalf of or
against a candidate for election or
retention or in support of or opposition to an initiative,
referendum or recall or any other
measure or proposition and that applies for a serial number
and circulates petitions and,
in the case of a candidate for public office except those
exempt pursuant to section 16-
903, that receives contributions or makes expenditures in
connection therewith,
notwithstanding that the association or combination of
persons may be part of a larger
association, combination of persons or sponsoring
organization not primarily organized,
conducted or combined for the purpose of influencing the
result of any election in this
state or in any county, city, town or precinct in this
state.
§ 16-912(A)-(E). Candidates and independent expenditures;
campaign literature and
advertisement sponsors; identification; civil penalty
A. A political committee that makes an expenditure for
campaign literature or
advertisements that expressly advocate the election or
defeat of any candidate or that make any
solicitation of contributions to any political committee
shall be registered pursuant to this chapter
at the time of distribution, placement or solicitation and
shall include on the literature or
advertisement the words “paid for by” followed by the name
of the committee that appears on its
statement of organization or five hundred dollar exemption
statement.
B. If the expenditure for the campaign literature or
advertisements by a political
committee is an independent expenditure, the political
committee, in addition to the disclosures
required by subsection A of this section, shall include on
the literature or advertisement the names
and telephone numbers of the three political committees
making the largest contributions to the
political committee making the independent expenditure. If
an acronym is used to name any
political committee outlined in this section, the name of
any sponsoring organization of the
political committee shall also be printed or spoken. For
purposes of determining the three
contributors to be disclosed, the contributions of each
political committee making the independent
expenditure during the one year period before the election
being affected are aggregated.
C. Subsection A of this section does not apply to bumper
stickers, pins, buttons,
pens and similar small items on which the statements
required in subsection A of this section
cannot be conveniently printed or to signs paid for by a
candidate with campaign monies or by a
candidate’s campaign committee or to a solicitation of
contributions by a separate segregated fund
from those persons it may solicit pursuant to §§ 16-920 and
16-921.
D. The disclosures required pursuant to this section shall
be printed clearly and
legibly in a conspicuous manner or, if the advertisement is
broadcast on a telecommunications
system, the disclosure shall be spoken. For printed material
that is delivered or provided by hand
or by mail, the disclosure shall be printed in a font that
is at least 3/32 inches tall in dark type on
light background surrounded by a dark box. For
communications that are broadcast on a
telecommunications system or other medium that can provide a
viewable disclosure and a spoken
disclosure, the disclosure may be made in printed format
only and a spoken disclosure is not
required.
E. A person who violates this section is subject to a civil
penalty of up to three
times the cost of producing and distributing the literature
or advertisement. This civil penalty
shall be imposed as prescribed in § 16-924.
For all your Quartzsite Advertising needs, contact
Shanana "Rain" Golden-Bear, Publisher of Desert Messenger,
Quartzsite's FREE Community Paper
at 928-916-4235.
Email Editor@DesertMessenger.com.
