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                            LEGISLATURE OF NEBRASKA
                         ONE HUNDRED NINTH LEGISLATURE
                                SECOND SESSION
                   LEGISLATIVE BILL 927
   Introduced by Andersen, 49.
   Read first time January 09, 2026
   Committee: Government, Military and Veterans Affairs
1   A BILL FOR AN ACT relating to the Nebraska Political Accountability and
2Disclosure Act; to amend sections 49-1403, 49-1450, and 49-1467,
3Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, and sections 49-1401, 49-1461,
4and 49-1479.03, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement, 2024; to
5define   terms;    to   change    provisions   relating        to   statements   of
6organization, campaign statements, independent expenditure reports,
7and   contributions      of     foreign   nationals       to    ballot     question
8committees;   to    harmonize    provisions;   and   to   repeal     the   original
9sections.
10    Be it enacted by the people of the State of Nebraska,
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1Section 1. Section 49-1401, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
2    2024, is amended to read:
349-1401 Sections 49-1401 to 49-14,142 and sections 3, 4, and 9 of
4    this act shall be known and may be cited as the Nebraska Political
5    Accountability and Disclosure Act.
6Sec. 2. Section 49-1403, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, is
7   amended to read:
849-1403 For purposes of the Nebraska Political Accountability and
9    Disclosure Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the definitions
10    found in sections 49-1404 to 49-1444 and sections 3 and 4 of this act
11    shall be used.
12Sec. 3.      Foreign national means:
13(1) An individual who is not a citizen of the United States or a
14    national of the United States and who is not lawfully admitted for
15    permanent residence;
16(2) A person, other than an individual, organized under the laws of
17    or having its principal place of business in a foreign country;
18(3) A government of a foreign country; or
19(4)     A   political   party   or   political   committee   established   in   a
20    foreign country.
21Sec. 4.       Preliminary activity includes conducting a poll or focus
22    group, drafting proposed language, making telephone calls, sending or
23    receiving electronic mail, and traveling in connection with a ballot
24    question.
25Sec. 5. Section 49-1450, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, is
26    amended to read:
2749-1450 The statement of organization required by section 49-1449
28    shall include the following information:
29(1) The name, street address, and telephone number, if any, of the
30   committee. The committee address may be the home address of the candidate
31   or treasurer of the committee;
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1(2) The name, street address, and telephone number, if any, of each
2    person, other than an individual, that is a member of the committee;
3(3) The full name, street address, and telephone number, if any, of
4   the treasurer and other principal officers of the committee;
5(4) The name and address of the financial institution in which the
6    official committee depository is located, and the name and address of
7   each financial institution in which a secondary depository is or is
8   intended to be located;
9(5) The full name of and office sought by each candidate and a brief
10    statement identifying the substance of each ballot question supported or
11    opposed by the committee;
12(6)     Identification    of     the    committee   as   a   candidate   committee,
13   political    party   committee,      independent   committee,      or   ballot   question
14   committee if it is identifiable as such a committee; and
15(7) If the committee is identified as a ballot question committee, a
16    certification that no preliminary activity was directly or indirectly
17    funded by one or more foreign nationals; and
18(8) (7) Such other information as may be required by the rules and
19   regulations of the commission.
20Sec. 6. Section 49-1461, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
21   2024, is amended to read:
2249-1461 (1) In addition to the campaign statements required to be
23   filed   pursuant     to   sections    49-1459    and    49-1462,   a    ballot   question
24    committee shall file a campaign statement as required by the Nebraska
25    Political Accountability and Disclosure Act according to the following
26    schedule:
27(a) (1) The first campaign statement shall be filed within ten days
28   after the end of the calendar month in which the petition form is filed
29   with the Secretary of State pursuant to section 32-1405. The closing date
30   for the campaign statement shall be the last day of such calendar month;
31(b) (2) Additional campaign statements shall be filed within ten
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1    days after the end of each calendar month thereafter except for the
2   calendar month during which the signed petitions must be filed with the
3   Secretary of State as provided in section 32-1407. The closing date for
4   such campaign statements shall be the last day of each such calendar
5   month; and
6(c) (3) A final campaign statement shall be filed not later than
7   thirty days after the deadline for filing petitions with the Secretary of
8   State as provided in section 32-1407. The closing date for the campaign
9   statement shall be twenty-five days after the deadline for filing such
10   petitions.
11(2) Any campaign statement filed by a ballot question committee
12   pursuant to this section or section 49-1459 or 49-1462 shall include a
13   certification       by    the   committee's        treasurer        affirming   that     the   donor
14    associated with each contribution is not a foreign national and has not
15   intentionally       received,       solicited,       or   accepted,      whether      directly   or
16   indirectly, contributions or expenditures aggregating in excess of one
17   hundred thousand dollars from one or more foreign nationals within the
18   four-year period immediately preceding the date of the contribution.
19(3) The campaign statements required to be filed pursuant to this
20   section shall be filed whether or not petitions have or will be filed
21    with the Secretary of State. Any person who fails to file a campaign
22    statement with the commission pursuant to this section shall be subject
23    to late filing fees as provided in section 49-1463.
24Sec. 7. Section 49-1467, Reissue Revised Statutes of Nebraska, is
25   amended to read:
2649-1467        (1)    Any   person,      other    than      a   committee,     who   makes   an
27   independent expenditure advocating the election of a candidate or the
28   defeat    of   a   candidate's      opponents        or   the    qualification,       passage,    or
29    defeat of a ballot question, which is in an amount of more than two
30    hundred    fifty  dollars,    shall     file       a     report   of     the    independent
31    expenditure, within ten days, with the commission.
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1(2) The report shall be made on an independent expenditure report
2    form   provided     by    the    commission      and   shall   include    the   date    of   the
3    expenditure, a brief description of the nature of the expenditure, the
4    amount of the expenditure, the name and address of the person to whom it
5    was paid, the name and address of the person filing the report, and the
6    name, address, occupation, employer, and principal place of business of
7    each person who contributed more than two hundred fifty dollars to the
8    expenditure.
9(3) Any person required under this section to file a report for an
10    independent expenditure advocating for the qualification, passage, or
11    defeat of a ballot question shall include an accompanying certification
12    with such report affirming that no funds have been intentionally accepted
13    aggregating in excess of one hundred thousand dollars from one or more
14    foreign nationals within the four-year period immediately preceding the
15    date the expenditure was made.
16(4) (3) Any person who fails to file a report of an independent
17    expenditure with the commission shall pay to the commission a late filing
18    fee of twenty-five dollars for each day the statement remains not filed
19    in violation of this section, not to exceed seven hundred fifty dollars.
20(5) (4) Any person who violates this section shall be guilty of a
21    Class IV misdemeanor.
22Sec. 8. Section 49-1479.03, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement,
23    2024, is amended to read:
2449-1479.03        (1)    For   purposes    of   this    section,   foreign      national
25    means:
26(a) An individual who is not a citizen of the United States or a
27    national of the United States and who is not lawfully admitted for
28    permanent residence;
29(b) A person, other than an individual, organized under the laws of
30    or having its principal place of business in a foreign country;
31(c) A government of a foreign country; or
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1(d)     A    political    party     or    political   committee        established    in    a
2    foreign country.
3(1) (2) It shall be unlawful for a foreign national, directly or
4    indirectly, to make a contribution to a ballot question committee or for
5    a   ballot       question   committee     to    solicit,       accept,   or   receive   such    a
6    contribution.
7(2) It shall be unlawful for a foreign national to directly or
8    indirectly make an expenditure to support or oppose the qualification,
9    passage, or defeat of a ballot question.
10(3) It shall be unlawful for a foreign national to directly or
11    indirectly solicit the making of a contribution or expenditure by another
12    person or committee to support or oppose the qualification, passage, or
13    defeat of a ballot question.
14(4) It shall be unlawful for a foreign national to direct, dictate,
15   control, or directly or indirectly participate in the decisionmaking
16    process of any person or committee regarding that person's or committee's
17    activities to support or oppose the qualification, passage, or defeat of
18    a   ballot       question,     including       decisions       concerning     the   making      of
19    contributions or expenditures.
20(5) (3) A person, other than an individual, organized under the laws
21    of the United States which is a domestic subsidiary of a foreign national
22   may make a contribution or an expenditure to support or oppose the
23   qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot question ballot if:
24(a) The person is a discrete entity organized under the laws of any
25    state within the United States and its principal place of business is
26    within the United States;
27(b) The foreign national parent does not finance election-related
28    contributions or expenditures either directly or through such person,
29    including through subsidizing the person's business operations, unless
30    the person can demonstrate by a reasonable accounting method that it has
31   sufficient        funds     from   its    own       domestic     operations    to   make     any
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1   contributions or expenditures; and
2(c)   All    decisions   concerning      the   administration   of    the   person's
3   contributions or expenditures are made by citizens or permanent residents
4   of the United States.
5(6) Upon a ballot question committee's receipt of a contribution,
6    the committee treasurer shall obtain from the donor an affirmation that
7   the donor is not a foreign national and has not intentionally accepted
8   funds aggregating in excess of one hundred thousand dollars from one or
9   more foreign nationals within the four-year period immediately preceding
10   the date the contribution is made.
11(7)(a) A ballot question committee violating subsection (1) of this
12   section shall be fined the amount of the prohibited contribution or one
13   hundred thousand dollars, whichever is greater.
14(b) A foreign national that made (i) a contribution to a ballot
15   question committee or a person who made a contribution or expenditure on
16   behalf of a foreign national or (ii) an expenditure in violation of this
17    section shall be fined the amount of the prohibited contribution or
18    expenditure plus one hundred thousand dollars.
19(8) Nothing in this section shall be deemed to create or eliminate
20   any existing donor disclosure rights or duties beyond those specifically
21   enumerated.
22(9) The commission may adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to
23   carry out this section.
24Sec. 9.      Any investigation of an alleged violation of the Nebraska
25   Political Accountability and Disclosure Act or a court order in an action
26   brought under the Nebraska Political Accountability and Disclosure Act
27   shall occur in a manner that shields the identity of lawful donors as
28   much as reasonably possible. No state or local government entity, court,
29   or   officer     of   a   court   may   collect     or   require   the    submission   of
30    information on the identity of any donor to a tax-exempt organization
31    other than information directly related to an alleged violation of the
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1    Nebraska Political Accountability and Disclosure Act.
2Sec. 10.    Original sections 49-1403, 49-1450, and 49-1467, Reissue
3    Revised   Statutes   of   Nebraska,    and   sections   49-1401,   49-1461,    and
4    49-1479.03, Revised Statutes Cumulative Supplement, 2024, are repealed.
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