The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.West Virginia House Bill 4848 Establishes Dark Money Disclosure Requirements and Penalties for Election Expenditures
Last action · January 27, 2026: To House JudiciarySponsors: Joe Funkhouser and 2 others
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Proposed
House Bill 4848 requires individuals and entities making s or s for campaign-related disbursements in West Virginia to disclose detailed donor information within 48 hours. The measure introduces the 'Smear Merchant Transparency and Accountability Act' to regulate , applies rules to federal political action committees engaging in state-level activities, and establishes criminal misdemeanor penalties for willful noncompliance.
Political committees, non-profit organizations, and individuals engaging in state-level election advertising must collect and report donor identities and transfer details under tight timelines, facing fines up to $100,000 or jail time for willful violations.
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.
Political committees and organizations
Political committees and organizations making independent expenditures or covered transfers must collect, report, and disclose detailed contributor information within strict 48-hour timeframes.
Federal political action committees
Federal PACs engaging in state-level independent expenditures or electioneering communications are required to follow West Virginia state disclosure rules.
Secretary of State
The office must prepare and publish candidate-by-candidate expenditure indices, provide online access to electronic filings within 24 hours, and promulgate emergency rules.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is considered a covered transfer under this bill?
Who must file disclosure statements for independent expenditures?
What are the penalties for failing to comply with the reporting requirements?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in House committee.
Procedural history
4 actions- Jan 27, 2026HouseCommitteeTo House Judiciary
- Jan 27, 2026HouseIntroducedIntroduced in House
- Jan 27, 2026HouseCommitteeTo Judiciary
- Jan 27, 2026HouseIntroducedFiled for introduction
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.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Extension of State Disclosure Rules to Federal PACs
The bill explicitly mandates that federal political action committees making state-level independent expenditures or electioneering communications must comply with West Virginia disclosure rules.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.wvlegislature.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 75)
- Controversy80Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz60Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools