Bill Description: House Bill 394 would modestly reduce the burden of campaign finance reporting related to merchandise sales. 

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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?

House Bill 394 would amend Section 67-6610, Idaho Code, which requires detailed accounting of campaign contributions in excess of $50. The bill would create an exception from reporting for each individual commercial sale transaction when a candidate or political campaign "engages in commercial sales of merchandise at an event or through online transactions."

The exception would only apply if "the total amount of a single transaction is less than two hundred dollars ($200); the total amount of merchandise sales and total amount of the cost of goods sold are reported to the secretary of state; [and] the items sold are available to the general public as a nominal retail transaction."

The exception would not apply to the sale of "items of limited availability with a quantity of five (5) or fewer at the commencement of an event or sale."

Reducing a reporting requirement, as called for by this bill, would reduce the workload of political treasurers and help protect the privacy of individuals who purchase less than $200 worth of political merchandise from candidates or campaigns.

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