{"id":2062,"date":"2025-06-27T16:13:49","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T20:13:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/massachusetts\/?post_type=press&p=2062"},"modified":"2025-08-11T13:59:32","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T17:59:32","slug":"a-push-for-more-transparency-on-ballot-question-spending-fundraising","status":"publish","type":"press","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/massachusetts\/press\/a-push-for-more-transparency-on-ballot-question-spending-fundraising\/","title":{"rendered":"A push for more transparency on ballot question spending, fundraising"},"template":"","class_list":["post-2062","press","type-press","status-publish","hentry","press_type-news-clip"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"Common Cause Massachusetts-backed legislation would make campaigns subject to the same disclosure rules as candidates\r\n","featured_image":"","press_type":155,"authors":"","related_issues":[105,464,92,462],"related_work":false,"location":24},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":false,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":"","name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":null}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_wysiwyg":{"content":"This article was originally published in the CommonWealth Beacon on June 10, 2025. View the original article HERE.<\/a><\/em><\/strong>\r\n\r\nBallot question committees, hoping to convince voters to vote \u201cyes\u201d or \u201cno\u201d on their respective proposals, ranging from the elimination of the MCAS test as a graduation requirement to an audit of the state Legislature, spent tens of millions of dollars last year.\r\n\r\nIt was hard to avoid the barrage of ads making the case for one side or the other of some ballot questions. But it was a very different story when it came to seeing who was funding the campaigns.\r\n\r\nFor an eight-month period during the heat of these campaigns \u2013 from January to September \u2013 ballot question committees were not required to report their fundraising and spending activity to the state campaign finance office, which makes public such filings on its website. The disclosure rules are far stricter for candidates for statewide office, legislative seats, and other posts, who must file monthly reports during the same period.\r\n\r\nCommonWealth Beacon\u00a0<\/em>reported during last year\u2019s campaign on the\u00a0stark difference<\/a> in finance disclosure requirements for candidates and ballot campaigns, which good-government advocates decried as loophole that should be closed. Now, two Boston-area lawmakers have filed legislation to do just that.\r\n\r\nSal DiDomenico, the state Senate\u2019s assistant majority leader, and Boston state Rep. Dan Ryan have each filed a bill in their respective branch that would require ballot campaigns to file monthly reports.\r\n\r\n