CFB testimony - Ryan on amended bill and disclosure model
Ryan appreciates that the amended bill shifts from a prohibition to a disclosure model and names CFB as the implementing agency, eliminating First Amendment vulnerabilities and clarifying enforcement responsibilities. He says CFB is well qualified as a disclosure administrator.
To that end, we appreciate that the amended version of this legislation meaningfully addresses our most significant legal and implementation concerns shared at the hearing in December 2024.
By shifting from a prohibition to a disclosure model and naming the CFB as the agency in receipt of these disclosures, as well as naming the CFB as the agency responsible for implementing the new disclosure regime,
the Council eliminated the greatest vulnerabilities to First Amendment legal challenge and clarified administrative and enforcement responsibilities.
The CFB has a unique perspective on this topic rooted in our dual mandate to serve candidates and voters.
CFB is well qualified to administer and enforce the requirements of Intro 12A.
We receive disclosure reports from all campaigns running for city office and all independent spenders active in city elections.
We sympathize with the perspective of both.
And we impose fines and penalties for violations of our campaign finance rules and laws.
We wholeheartedly share your concerns about the ways that AI technology could be used to spread false information to intentionally mislead or deceive voters about council members and other city candidates and officeholders.
Importantly, this bill casts the CFB in a role we have already played as a disclosure administrator, receiving, processing, and making public the information reported to us, not as a content regulator.
At the Campaign Finance Board, we have placed a priority on learning about artificial intelligence.
Ms.
Melillo and I recently completed the Harvard Kennedy School AI in Action certificate course.