Largest authority line fine in state history levied against 1776 PAC for texts in 2022 school board race

The largest fine in state history for a missing authority line in a political ad was announced by Maryland officials on Thursday.

State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III and State Elections Administrator Jared DeMarinis announced the $20,250 fine against the “1776 Project PAC.”

The organization sent more than 13,879 text messages to Carroll County voters in the 2022 Board of Education election.

The text message, sent on or about Nov. 1, read “Stop indoctrination in our schools, early voting has started [sic] vote for the pro-parent ticket for school board Tara Battaglia, James Miller and Steve Whisler.”

Maryland law requires campaign messages to include who paid for the information — whether it’s a yard sign, a pamphlet or an advertisement.

Authority line violations have traditionally been sanctioned with minimal citations, but DeMarinis, who became state elections administrator in September, has said he will focus on increased enforcement of election transparency laws. For 18 years, DeMarinis was the board’s director of candidacy and campaign finance.

Change comes to the state elections board as DeMarinis takes the helm

“The State Board of Elections is committed to continuing to ensure that there is no mystery about who is communicating with voters in Maryland Elections,” DeMarinis said in a written statement. “We will be working hard with the State Prosecutor and other enforcement partners to keep Maryland elections honest and fair.”

On the social media site X, DeMarinis posted that the fine was the largest of its kind in state history.

Howard, whose office leads public corruption and election law prosecutions in the state, said “being able to identify the source of information for campaign material is essential to honesty and transparency in our electoral process.”

“I am proud of our team’s hard work to ensure that we protect that integrity in light of new technological advancements in communication,” Howard’s statement continued.

The national 1776 PAC formed in 2021 to push back against the New York Times’ 1619 Project and endorsed dozens of school board candidates across the country.

The organization raised more than $3.4 million and spent more than $3.1 million in the 2022 election, according to Open Secrets.

Nearly $1 million of the group’s funding came via the Restoration PAC, which is backed by Republican megadonor and billionaire Richard Uihlein.

Battaglia and Whisler won election to the board. Miller lost in the General Election.

The 1776 PAC reported — in a late-filed campaign finance report — that it spent $8,579 each on independent expenditures to support the three Carroll County candidates.

The PAC spent an additional $8,579 to support a slate of three candidates in Frederick County and $6,936 on unspecified online ads in Maryland in 2022.

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