E-disclosure laws and electronic campaign finance reform: Lessons from the diffusion of e-government policies in the States

This study presents a first look at the diffusion of electronic campaign finance laws, or e-disclosure policies, across the 50 states. Fifty state data and multivariate regression analysis test the influence of state professional networks and interest groups on the extent of e-disclosure implementation across the states. Findings demonstrate that certian types of interest groups are influential in expanding or retarding the growth of e-disclosure policies when controlling for other factors. Findings also demonstrate that greater levels of legislative professionalism, education, and state resources support greater levels of implementation of e-disclosure policies. Greater levels of state infrastructure capacity for e-government are also significant predictor of more extensive e-disclosure implementation. Findings have implications for emerging research at the intersection of technology and democracy.