Representative Rick Larsen (WA-02) joined 184 colleagues in both houses of Congress in reintroducing the DISCLOSE Act, legislation to end dark money in American elections and make government more accountable to the will of voters.  

“Folks in Northwest Washington deserve to participate in a fair election and have the right to know who is spending money to influence elections,” said Representative Larsen. “This legislation will ensure accountability in our electoral process so voters can make informed decisions about the candidates running for office.” 

Since the 2010 Citizens United decision, secret spending in U.S. elections by corporations, ultra-rich ideological extremists, and secretive front groups has exploded. Dark-money expenditures have increased from less than $5 million in 2006 to more than $300 million in the 2012 election cycle, and topped $1.9 billion in 2024, shattering the previous record of $1 billion in 2020.  

The bill is sponsored by all 47 senators who caucus with Democrats, and 138 Democrats in the House. Rep. Larsen has supported the DISCLOSE Act since it was first introduced in 2010. 

The DISCLOSE Act would restore transparency in American elections and restore fairness and accountability in our political system by: 

1. Requiring super PACs, 501(c)(4) “dark money” groups, corporations, and other organizations spending more than $10,000 in elections and on judicial nominations to promptly disclose donors who contribute more than $10,000; 
2. Shutting down the use of transfers between organizations to cloak the identity of the original contributor. 
3. Strengthening prohibitions against foreign actors participating in election spending in the United States, including in state and local referenda; 
4. Prohibiting the establishment of corporations to conceal election contributions and donations by foreign actors; 
5. Expanding “stand by your ad” disclosure requirements to online ads and ads that may promote or attack a candidate but stop short of expressly advocating for a vote for or against a candidate; and 
6. Requiring identification of top funders of outside groups paying for video, text, or audio political ads. 

The bill has been adapted to the modern political ecosystem. The DISCLOSE Act of 2026 would: 

1. Capture payments made to social media influencers to promote or oppose a candidate as political spending that must be disclosed and disclaimed; 
2. Narrow and specify what constitutes threats and harassment to qualify for an exemption to disclosure, and put commonsense guardrails on the process to grant such exemptions; and 
3. Allow more flexibility for disclaimers for short political ads instead of limiting it to hyperlinks. 

A summary of the DISCLOSE Act of 2026 can be found here. The House bill text can be found here, and the Senate bill text can be found here. 

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