Campaign Finance Transparency Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8720 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8720

     To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to modify
 requirements regarding contributions related to elections for Federal
office and to improve the operation of the Federal Election Commission,
                        and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 11, 2026

  Mr. Steil introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
                   Committee on House Administration

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

     To amend the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 to modify
 requirements regarding contributions related to elections for Federal
office and to improve the operation of the Federal Election Commission,
                        and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Campaign Finance Transparency Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIRING DISCLOSURE OF CARD VERIFICATION VALUE OR CARD
              VERIFICATION CODE AS CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE OF ONLINE
              CONTRIBUTIONS MADE USING CREDIT OR DEBIT CARDS IN FEDERAL
              ELECTIONS.

    Section 302 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C.
30102) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(j)(1) No political committee shall accept any internet credit or
debit card contribution unless--
            ``(A) except in the case of a contribution the political
        committee receives by mail, the individual or entity making
        such contribution is required, at the time such individual or
        entity makes such contribution, to disclose the card
        verification value or card verification code of such credit or
        debit card and the ZIP Code of the billing address associated
        with such credit or debit card; and
            ``(B)(i) the mailing address of the individual or entity is
        located in a State; or
            ``(ii) in the case of a contribution made by an individual
        whose mailing address is not located in a State, the individual
        provides the committee with the applicable information
        described in paragraph (2).
    ``(2) The applicable information described in this paragraph is as
follows:
            ``(A) In the case of an individual who is a citizen or
        national of the United States--
                    ``(i) the United States mailing address the
                individual uses for voter registration purposes;
                    ``(ii) a copy of the individual's United States
                passport; or
                    ``(iii) a copy of a comparable acceptable
                identification document, or the unique identifying
                number from such a document, for the individual.
            ``(B) In the case of an individual who is lawfully admitted
        for permanent residence, as defined by section 101(a)(20) of
        the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(20))--
                    ``(i) a copy of the individual's permanent resident
                card; or
                    ``(ii) a copy of a comparable acceptable
                identification document issued by the Department of
                Homeland Security.
    ``(3) A political committee that accepts any internet credit or
debit card contribution as a recurring contribution shall require the
individual or entity making such contribution to comply with the
requirements of this subsection for the first such contribution, but
shall not require the individual or entity to provide the information
identified in paragraphs (1) and (2) for subsequent recurring
contributions made using the same credit or debit card as the initial
contribution.
    ``(4) A political committee that stores or saves, or arranges to
store or save, any credit or debit card information shall require the
individual or entity making such contribution to comply with the
requirements of this subsection for the first such contribution or at
the time of storing or saving such information, but shall not require
the individual or entity to provide the information identified in
paragraphs (1) and (2) for subsequent contributions made using the same
credit or debit card as the initial contribution.
    ``(5) An internet credit or debit card contribution received by a
political committee made through the use of a digital wallet shall be
treated as complying with the requirements of this subsection.
    ``(6) Notwithstanding subsection (b) or (c), in the case of an
internet credit or debit card contribution--
            ``(A) no later than 10 days after receiving the
        contribution, the person who receives the contribution shall
        forward to the treasurer such contribution, the name and
        address of the person making the contribution, and the date of
        receipt; and
            ``(B) the treasurer of a political committee shall keep an
        account of the name and address of any person making any such
        contribution, together with the date and amount of such
        contribution by any person consistent with applicable
        regulations of the Commission, including regulations relating
        to the period for which contribution records must be preserved
        and the anonymity of certain contributors.
    ``(7)(A) A treasurer of a political committee who is aware that a
contribution to the committee is not in compliance with this subsection
has an affirmative duty to refund the contribution to the individual or
entity making the contribution.
    ``(B) If the treasurer of a political committee shows that best
efforts have been used to comply with the requirements of this
paragraph, the committee shall be considered in compliance with this
subsection.
    ``(8) In this subsection--
            ``(A) the term `digital wallet' means a software
        application that stores payment or account information to
        facilitate traditional payments that use bank and credit card
        information; and
            ``(B) the term `Internet credit or debit card contribution'
        means a contribution that--
                    ``(i) is made using a credit or debit card; and
                    ``(ii) is received through an internet website or
                application.''.

SEC. 3. REQUIRING NAME ON CREDIT OR DEBIT CARD TO BE NAME OF DONOR AS
              CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE OF CONTRIBUTIONS IN FEDERAL
              ELECTIONS.

    Section 302 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C.
30102), as amended by section 2, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
    ``(k) No political committee shall accept any credit or debit card
contribution unless the name on the credit or debit card used to make
such contribution is the name of the individual or entity donating such
contribution.''.

SEC. 4. PROHIBITING ACCEPTANCE OF CONTRIBUTIONS MADE USING GIFT CARDS
              IN FEDERAL ELECTIONS.

    Section 302 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C.
30102), as amended by section 2 and section 3, is amended by adding at
the end the following:
    ``(l) No political committee shall knowingly accept a contribution
made through the use of a gift certificate or store gift card, as such
terms are defined, respectively, under section 915(a) of the Electronic
Fund Transfer Act.
    ``(2)(A) A treasurer of a political committee who is aware that a
contribution to the committee is not in compliance with this subsection
has an affirmative duty to refund the contribution to the individual or
entity making the contribution.
    ``(B) If the treasurer of a political committee shows that best
efforts have been used to comply with the requirements of this
subsection, the committee shall be considered in compliance with this
subsection.''.

SEC. 5. REMOVAL OF THRESHOLD FOR REPORTING CONTRIBUTIONS.

    Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C.
30104) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(3)--
                    (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``whose
                contribution or contributions have an aggregate amount
                or value in excess of $200 within the calendar year (or
                election cycle, in the case of an authorized committee
                of a candidate for Federal office), or in any lesser
                amount if the reporting committee should so elect,'';
                    (B) in subparagraph (F), by striking ``in an
                aggregate amount or value in excess of $200 within the
                calendar year (or election cycle, in the case of an
                authorized committee of a candidate for Federal
                office)''; and
                    (C) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``in an
                aggregate value or amount in excess of $200 within the
                calendar year (or election cycle, in the case of an
                authorized committee of a candidate for Federal
                office)'';
            (2) in subsection (c)(2)(C), by striking ``in excess of
        $200''; and
            (3) in subsection (e)(3)--
                    (A) by striking ``receipts or''; and
                    (B) by striking `` paragraphs (3)(A), (5),'' and
                inserting ``paragraphs (5)''.

SEC. 6. PROHIBITING AIDING OR ABETTING MAKING OF CONTRIBUTION IN THE
              NAME OF ANOTHER.

    Section 320 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C.
30122) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``No person'' and inserting the following:
    ``(a) In General.--No person''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) Prohibition on Assistance.--No person shall knowingly direct,
help, or assist any person in making a contribution in the name of
another person.
    ``(c) Reporting of Suspected Contributions.--Any recipient who
suspects that a contribution made to such recipient is a contribution
made by one person in the name of another person shall report such
contribution to the Federal Election Commission.''.

SEC. 7. REGULATIONS.

    (a) Deadline.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Federal Election Commission shall promulgate
regulations to carry out the amendments made by this Act.
    (b) Consultation With Credit Card Payment Networks.--In
promulgating regulations under subsection (a) to carry out the
amendments made by this Act, the Commission shall consult with
representatives of payment card networks, as defined under section
921(c) of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (15 U.S.C. 1693o-2(c)), and
other relevant stakeholders.

SEC. 8. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    The amendments made by this Act shall apply with respect to
contributions made after the expiration of the 90-day period which
begins on the date the Commission promulgates regulations under section
7.
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