California has introduced penalties for social media influencers who fail to disclose paid political content, under legislation signed by Governor Gavin Newsom.
The state has required disclosures on paid posts concerning state and local campaigns since 2023. Until now, however, creators could not be fined or prosecuted for breaking the rule.
California campaign finance regulators can now impose fines of up to $5,000 for each violation, or refer cases to law enforcement as potential misdemeanours.
The legislation comes as politicians and advocacy groups increasingly use influencers to reach younger audiences, with some creators paid to support particular candidates. Unlike traditional campaign adverts on television or billboards, paid political posts are not covered by federal disclosure requirements.
Marc Berman, a Democratic assemblyman, said he proposed the measure after reports that politicians had been quietly paying influencers during California’s closely fought gubernatorial primary this spring.
Democratic candidate Tom Steyer paid dozens of creators to post favourable material about his campaign on TikTok, YouTube, Instagram and Reddit. Many of the posts did not initially contain a written disclosure.
Complaints were subsequently filed with California’s Fair Political Practices Commission against the Steyer campaign, along with at least one complaint concerning his main rival, Xavier Becerra, who won the primary and will face Republican Steve Hilton in November.
“I was hearing from people in the campaign world that there’s this new strategy of paying political influencers to post content and that some were good about disclosure and others were a bit fast and loose,” Mr Berman said. “I realized there was a bit of ambiguity about the law and how it’s enforced.”
The commission opened an investigation into Mr Steyer’s campaign in May but closed it earlier this week. It said the campaign had properly informed influencers of their legal disclosure obligations and had reminded them when posts were found without the required disclaimer.
A separate investigation into the Steyer campaign remains pending.
Texas also requires disclosure of paid political content online, while lawmakers in Congress and states including New York are considering similar measures. Mr Newsom, a Democrat, signed 13 bills concerning social media and elections as part of Saturday’s legislative package.
