Yes on Prop B, Committee in Support of the Earthquake Safety and Emergency Response Bond v. City and County of San Francisco

I. BACKGROUND

25 Under California law, any person or group of people that raises at least $2,000 or spends at 26 least $1,000 for political purposes in a given year must register as a committee. Cal. Gov’t Code 27 § 82013. Political advertising by committees is subject to a plethora of disclaimer and disclosure requirements under California and San Francisco law. See, e.g. Cal. Gov’t Code §§ 84200, 84200.5, 84202.3, 84203, 84502; see also, e.g. SF Code § 1.161. This case concerns two new disclaimer requirements for committee advertising that went into effect in San Francisco last year. First, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors amended San Francisco’s Campaign and Governmental Conduct Code to require a spoken disclaimer at the beginning (rather than the end) of any audio or video advertisement. See SF Code § 1.161(a)(5); see also Yes on Prop B RJN1 (dkt. 5-1) Ex. B. Last November, San Francisco voters amended the City’s disclaimer laws by approving Proposition F. See generally Yes on Prop B RJN Ex. C at 112–13. Proposition F passed with 76.89% of the vote. San Francisco RJN Ex. B at 6. Now, all ads paid for by…