California Cracks Down on Influencers for Political Ads

California’s new legislation, enacted by Governor Gavin Newsom, intensifies the requirements for online influencers to reveal when they are compensated to promote political content.

According to a report by The New York Times, while California previously mandated that influencers disclose their endorsements related to state or local elections, there were no penalties for those who failed to comply. (Texas has similar disclosure requirements, and several other states are evaluating comparable laws.)

The newly enacted bill, known as AB 1130, empowers regulators to impose fines of up to $5,000 for each infraction and allows for referrals to law enforcement for potential misdemeanor charges. 

As highlighted by the NYT, billionaire Tom Steyer, who ran for the Democratic nomination for California governor earlier this year without success, engaged numerous influencers to promote his campaign on social media, many of whom did not disclose their financial arrangements.

Governor Newsom approved this legislation as part of a comprehensive suite of laws aimed at safeguarding California elections from possible interference by President Donald Trump. The bill’s advocate, Democratic Assemblyman Marc Berman, noted that he proposed the legislation after identifying “a bit of ambiguity about the [existing] law and its enforcement.”