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Illinois enacts law prohibiting anonymous contributions in judicial elections

On Nov. 15, 2021, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed SB0536, a law prohibiting candidates seeking nomination to state courts from accepting donations from organizations that do not disclose their donors’ identities. The bill also bars judicial campaign committees from receiving funds from out-of-state sources, forbids people from making or accepting contributions made on behalf of someone else, and raises the threshold for itemized contributions from $500 to $1,000. The statutes pertaining to nonprofit contributions were part of the larger elections-related content of the bill.

The bill passed both chambers of the Democrat-controlled Illinois General Assembly along partisan lines. All  72 Democrats in the House voted in favor of the bill, and 42 Republicans voted against it. In the Senate, 41 Democrats voted for the bill, and 17 Republicans voted against it. 

Reactions

Democratic sponsors of the bill said it would increase funding transparency in the state’s judicial elections and prevent donors from influencing court decisions. State Rep. Katie Stuart (D) said, “The danger of dark money I don’t think can be [over]stated,” and “the thought that there’s dark money influencing someone, again, who’s a sitting judge for 10 years” was concerning. “Trying to avoid dark money in elections, I think is something that we can all get behind. So the change would stop out-of-state and untraceable money from finding its way into our judicial races to maintain the integrity of those judicial elections,” Stuart said.

Some Republican lawmakers said the bill was a Democratic effort to protect the party’s state supreme court majority. State Rep. Ryan Spain (R) said, “I can’t help but notice that the impetus for great changes in how we conduct elections for the judiciary in the state of Illinois – both the remapping of the Supreme Court (and) the change in campaign finance activities – comes after, for the first time in the history of our state, a Democratic Supreme Court justice lost his retention in the 2020 election,” a reference to former Justice Thomas Kilbride’s loss in his second retention election. “This is another effort for the majority [party] to change the rules of the game because they don’t like the outcome,” Spain said.  

Republicans also said the bill could violate freedom of speech, citing the 2010 Citizens United U.S. Supreme Court decision that held limits on corporate independent expenditures in elections violated the First Amendment. Stuart pointed to decisions in cases like Caperton v. A. T. Massey Coal Co. in 2002, in which the court ruled judicial campaign contributions could violate due process. 

In context

Illinois, along with 28 other states, already prohibited judicial campaigns from soliciting contributions directly. Twenty-four states have introduced legislation to expand donor disclosure requirements. SB0536 is unique in that it completely prohibits undisclosed donations rather than requiring their disclosure. 

A California elections agency also recently addressed contributions made on behalf of someone else, which SB0356 prohibits. On Oct. 21, the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) voted unanimously to adopt new disclosure requirements for charitable contributions made on behalf of politicians in a practice known as behested payments. Under the new rules, elected officials must report the name of the person directing a behested payment through a donor-advised fund. While this rule requires the disclosure of the source of these payments, SB0356 forbids them entirely. 

SB0536 is the eighth donor disclosure and privacy bill passed this year. The others were enacted in California, Idaho, Iowa, South Dakota, and Tennessee.

The big picture

Number of relevant bills by state: We’re currently tracking 45 pieces of legislation dealing with donor disclosure and privacy. On the map below, a darker shade of green indicates a greater number of relevant bills. Click here for a complete list of all the bills we’re tracking. 

Number of relevant bills by current legislative status: 

Number of relevant bills by partisan status of sponsor(s): 

Recent legislative actions

For complete information on all of the bills we are tracking, click here. 

• Michigan HB5490: This bill would modify the Michigan Campaign Finance Act to exclude a contributor’s occupation, employer, and principal place of business from the information required in campaign finance statements.
  • Primary emphasis: Privacy
  • Republican sponsorship
  • This bill was referred to committee on Oct. 28, 2021

• Illinois SB0536: This bill would prohibit candidates seeking nomination to state courts from accepting donations from any organization that does not disclose its donors’ identities. It bars judicial campaign committees from receiving funds from out-of-state sources, forbids people from making or accepting contributions made on behalf of someone else, and raises the threshold for itemized contributions from $500 to $1,000. 
  • Primary emphasis: Disclosure
  • Democratic sponsorship
  • Gov. J. B. Pritzker signed the bill into law on Nov. 15, 2021.

• Florida H0617: This bill would create an exemption from public records requirements for personal identifying information of a donor or prospective donor to the direct-support organization of the Statewide Council on Human Trafficking who desires to remain anonymous and provide an exemption from notice requirements for specified meetings. It provides for future legislative review and repeal of the exemption under the Open Government Sunset Review Act. It is a companion bill to Florida S0294. 
  • Primary emphasis: Disclosure
  • Republic sponsorship
  • Toby Overdorf (R) introduced the bill on Nov. 16, 2021.  

• Pennsylvania HB2087: This bill would prohibit public agencies from disclosing the personal information of a charitable organization’s members, volunteers, and donors. Additionally, public agencies would not be able to require individuals or organizations to provide personal information.
  • Primary emphasis: Privacy
  • Republican sponsorship
  • This bill was referred to committee on Nov. 16, 2021