SENATE, No. 821

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

INTRODUCED FEBRUARY 22, 1996

By Senators McGREEVEY and Schluter

An Act concerning campaign advertising and supplementing Title 19 of the Revised Statutes.

    Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

    1. The Legislature finds and declares that:

    a. the United States Constitution and the Constitution of the State of New Jersey guarantee the citizens of this State the fundamental right to freedom of political expression;

    b. in recognition of the essential importance of this right to the democratic process, the federal and State courts have accorded political speech the highest degree of protection and subjected government regulation thereof to the strictest scrutiny;

    c. for over two centuries the unfettered expression of ideas and discussion of issues in the course of campaigns for public office have helped to preserve our democratic form of government;

    d. while campaigns for public office have traditionally been far from sedate, the vicious personal attacks, deceptive statements and outright lies which now constitute so-called "negative advertising" threaten to undermine the political process;

    e. part of the cost of democracy is toleration of offensive speech and much of what constitutes "negative advertising" is protected speech which is beyond the reach of government regulation;

    f. nevertheless, the courts have recognized that certain types of deliberately false statements made in the context of a campaign for public office may be subject to punishment; and

    g. it is, therefore, time for New Jersey to join approximately 20 other states which penalize certain types of deliberately false campaign advertising.

    2. As used in this act:

    "campaign advertisement" means a press release, pamphlet, flyer, form letter, sign, billboard or paid advertisement printed in any newspaper or other publication or broadcast on radio or television, or any other form of advertising directed to the electorate, which urges the election or defeat of any candidate for nomination or election to a State or local elective public office;

    "material fact" means a fact about a candidate for nomination or election to a State or local elective public office which has real importance or significant consequences in regard to how a reasonably prudent person views that candidate and includes, but is not limited to, the following facts about a candidate: the titles of any offices held or previously held, status as an incumbent, academic degrees or certificates held, the dates or location of education or training, criminal history, mental health history, military record, voting record or endorsements by others.

    3. No person, with intent to affect the outcome of a campaign for nomination or election to a State or local elective public office, shall publish, broadcast or otherwise disseminate to members of the public any campaign advertisement which contains a false statement of material fact about a candidate for nomination or election to that office, with knowledge that the statement is false or with reckless disregard for whether it is false. The provisions of this section shall apply to statements made on behalf of, or in opposition to, a candidate and to statements made about oneself or another.

    4. Any person who is found to have violated the provisions of this act shall be guilty of a disorderly persons offense and subject to up to six months imprisonment or a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

    5. a. The provisions of this act shall not be construed to apply to any bona fide news item or editorial contained in any publication of bona fide general circulation. No penalty shall be imposed under this act upon acts done by the publisher, owner, agent, or employee of a newspaper or periodical or a radio or television station in the publication or dissemination of any advertisement.

    b. The provisions of this act shall not be construed to apply to any candidate for an office of a political party.

    6. This act shall take effect immediately.

STATEMENT

    This bill would prohibit certain types of false statements in campaign advertising.

    The bill provides that no person, with intent to affect the outcome of a campaign for nomination or election to a State or local elective public office, shall publish, broadcast or otherwise disseminate to the public any campaign advertisement which contains a false statement of material fact about a candidate for nomination or election to a State or local elective public office, with knowledge that the statement is false or with reckless disregard for whether it is false. The prohibition would apply to statements made on behalf of, or in opposition to, a candidate and to statements made about oneself or another.

    The bill defines a "material fact" as a fact about a candidate which has real importance or significant consequences in regard to how a reasonably prudent person views a candidate. It includes, but is not limited to, the titles of any offices held or previously held, status as an incumbent, academic degrees or certificates held, the dates or location of education or training, criminal history, mental health history, military record, voting record or endorsements by others.

    A violation of the bill's provisions would be a disorderly persons offense and punishable by up to six months' imprisonment, a fine of up to $1,000, or both.

    A bona fide news item or editorial contained in any publication of bona fide general circulation would be exempt from coverage under the bill. In addition, acts done by the publisher, owner, agent or employee of a newspaper or periodical or a radio or television station in the publication of any advertisement would not be subject to penalty under the bill.

    The bill also incorporates the exemption from penalty under the legislation of acts by media publishers, owners, agents and employees in the publication of any advertisement.

Prohibits certain false statements in campaign advertisements.