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Read. Follow. Verify.Idaho Senate Overhauls Campaign Finance Laws with New Transparency Rules and AI Restrictions
Last action · February 26, 2026: Reported Printed; referred to State Affairs
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What This Bill Proposed
Idaho Senate Bill 1341 repeals existing campaign finance statutes and enacts a comprehensive new transparency framework under Title 74, Idaho Code, effective July 1, 2026. The legislation establishes strict contribution limits, mandates appointments, prohibits foreign contributions and AI-generated deception, and requires detailed online reporting of contributions, expenditures, and signature gatherer payments.
The measure restructures compliance obligations for candidates, political action committees, political parties, and independent spenders across Idaho, imposing civil fines and misdemeanor penalties for reporting failures and late filings.
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Candidates for public office
Candidates must establish campaign finance accounts, appoint political treasurers, adhere to contribution limits, and file detailed periodic contribution and expenditure reports.
Political action committees
PACs are required to register, appoint political treasurers, maintain segregated accounts, and report independent expenditures and electioneering communications.
Signature gatherers
Persons paying or receiving consideration for gathering signatures on ballot initiative petitions or referenda are subject to mandatory disclosure and reporting requirements.
Foreign nationals
Foreign nationals are prohibited from making contributions, independent expenditures, or electioneering communications in Idaho elections.
Key Facts
- Repeals Chapter 66, Title 67, Idaho Code, and establishes a new Chapter 3, Title 74, Idaho Code, governing campaign finance transparency.
- Prohibits foreign nationals from making contributions, independent expenditures, or electioneering communications, making knowing and willful violations exceeding $1,000 a felony.
- Establishes aggregate contribution limits of $1,500 per election for state legislative, judicial, and local government offices, and $6,000 per election for statewide offices.
- Limits political party committee contributions to $3,000 per primary and general election for legislative races, and $12,000 for statewide races.
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- Requires candidates and political action committees to appoint a political treasurer who is a registered elector of Idaho before receiving contributions or making expenditures.
- Mandates that candidates and PACs maintain checking accounts with financial institutions, keeping accounts current within seven days and retaining financial records for one year.
- Requires candidates and PACs to report contributions exceeding $1,000 within 48 hours of receipt.
- Enacts the Freedom from AI-Rigged (FAIR) Elections Act, prohibiting deceptive synthetic media in election communications and allowing candidates to seek injunctive relief and damages.
- Requires persons paying $100 or more to ballot initiative or referendum signature gatherers to file monthly expenditure reports with the secretary of state.
- Imposes civil fines of $50 plus 5% of unreported amounts for failure to file reports, and late fees of $50 plus $10 per day up to $1,000 for late filings.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the contribution limit for state legislative candidates under this bill?
How are foreign contributions handled?
What rules apply to AI-generated synthetic media in campaigns?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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US Senate Ethics Committee dismisses complaint against Arizona’s Gallego
The U.S. Senate Ethics Committee has closed an investigation into Senator Ruben Gallego after finding no evidence of wrongdoing. The complaint, filed by Representative Anna Paulina Luna, alleged violations of campaign finance laws and Senate rules.
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in Senate committee.
Procedural history
2 actions- Feb 26, 2026CommitteeReported Printed; referred to State Affairs
- Feb 25, 2026IntroducedIntroduced; read first time; referred to JR for Printing
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Total Replacement of Election Campaign Code
The bill explicitly repeals Chapter 66, Title 67, Idaho Code, replacing it entirely with a modernized Chapter 3 under Title 74 to consolidate campaign finance rules.
Statutory Regulation of AI in Elections
Establishes the Freedom from AI-Rigged (FAIR) Elections Act, creating specific legal liabilities, affirmative disclosures, and civil remedies for deceptive synthetic media.
Connected Entities
Sources
legislature.idaho.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 90)
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz75Current news / social attention level
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