What does it apply to?
Vermont amended its existing political advertising laws to include online political advertising. (Vt. Stat. Ann. tit. 17 § 2901(6) (Vermont General Assembly, Vermont Statutes Online through Oct. 4, 2019)). The law applies to electioneering communications. (§ 2972(a)).
What are the disclaimer requirements?
Electioneering communications, including those disseminated online, must state the “name and mailing address of the person, candidate, political committee, or political party that paid for the communication.” (§ 2972(a)). However, candidates who purchase audio electioneering communications need not state the candidate’s address in the ad. (§ 2972(a)(1)).
Electioneering communications that are purchased on behalf of a person, candidate, political committee, or political party must state on whose behalf the communication was purchased. (§ 2972(a)(2)). If the communication was purchased on behalf of a candidate as a campaign expenditure, it must “clearly designate the candidate” using language like “on behalf of.” (§ 2972(b)).
In certain circumstances, Vermont imposes additional disclaimer requirements:
Electioneering communications “paid for by or on behalf of a political committee or political party,” must state the names of those who contributed $2,000 or more or “more than 25[%] of all contributions” “to that committee or party since the beginning of the two-year general election cycle.” (§ 2972(c)(1)).
Electioneering communications that are online videos must state the purchaser’s name and title in an audio statement. (§ 2973(a)). If the purchaser is not an individual, the audio statement must include the name of the purchaser and the purchaser’s principal officer, or the name of the treasurer if the purchaser is a political committee or political party. (§ 2973(b)).
Vermont includes an exception to these requirements if including the disclaimer is not practical (§ 2972(d)). In that case, the electioneering communication must include a hyperlink to a separate page listing the required information. (§ 2972(d)).
Definitions for Vermont:
An electioneering communication is a message, including a digital communication, that supports or opposes a clearly identified candidate, even if the message does not expressly ask voters to vote for or against that candidate. (§ 2901(6)).