Bill Description: House Bill 307 would task the Idaho secretary of state with investigating allegedly false information published about a candidate.
Rating: -3
Does it create, expand, or enlarge any agency, board, program, function, or activity of government? Conversely, does it eliminate or curtail the size or scope of government?
House Bill 307 would create Section 34-221, Idaho Code, to create a new responsibility for the Secretary of State. Under this law, "Any candidate for office who believes that false information has been published about him during an election campaign may report such claim to the secretary of state who shall investigate the claim."
The bill would expound on these duties, saying, "If the secretary of state finds the claim to be verifiably false, he shall give the publishing party seven (7) days to respond to his findings; provided, however, that if the secretary of state finds a claim to be verifiably false within two (2) weeks of an election, the publishing party shall have forty-eight (48) hours to respond. After the secretary of state receives the publishing party's response, if any, he shall post his findings on the secretary of state's website by the end of the next business day."
This is an expansion of the scope of the secretary of state's office.
(-1)
Does it violate the principle of equal protection under the law? Examples include laws that discriminate or differentiate based on age, gender, or religion or which apply laws, regulations, rules, or penalties differently based on such characteristics. Conversely, does it restore or protect the principle of equal protection under the law?
The bill targets just one potential form of false information that might be published during an election, allowing only candidates to seek an investigation if false (presumably negative) information has been published about them. It does not allow candidates to seek an investigation if false (but perhaps positive) information is published about their opponents.
It also does not allow anyone other than a candidate to seek an investigation regarding false information that has been published about that person or ballot measure.
While there are many objections to expanding the Secretary of State's responsibilities to create a government arbiter of electoral truth, it is also concerning that access to the office's investigations would be limited only to candidates alleging the publication of one particular kind of false information.
(-1)
Does it violate the spirit or the letter of either the United States Constitution or the Idaho Constitution? Examples include restrictions on speech, public assembly, the press, privacy, private property, or firearms. Conversely, does it restore or uphold the protections guaranteed in the US Constitution or the Idaho Constitution?
The bill would broadly define "publish" to mean "communicate information to any one (1) or more persons either by telephone, radio, television, internet, or in a writing of any kind."
This definition implicates not just the freedom of the press but also the freedom of speech. It also involves the right to privacy, as there is no requirement for the communication to be public. Under this definition, even a private email sent to one person could be subject to investigation and made public under this law.
Expanding the scope of government to investigate communication and determine its truthfulness will create a chilling effect on free speech.
(-1)
