The public could have less transparency in elections and less insight into what political advertisements candidates are paying for under a pair of measures moving through the Hawaii Legislature.

House Bill 144 and House Bill 674 would exempt candidates for office from filing reports on ads with the state. That 20-year-old law was intended to shine a light on how much money candidates and super PACs are spending on ads during election season to sway voters.

Wording in the ad reporting law has confounded some campaigns and led to significant fines in recent years.

The agency in charge of regulating campaign finance has tried to introduce fixes this session. But now, that agency warns that the proposed candidate exemptions would erode scrutiny of campaigns.

The public could have less transparency in elections and less insight into what political advertisements candidates are paying for under a pair of measures moving through the Hawaii Legislature.

House Bill 144 and House Bill 674 would exempt candidates for office from filing reports on ads with the state. That 20-year-old law was intended to shine a light on how much money candidates and super PACs are spending on ads during election season to sway voters.

Wording in the ad reporting law has confounded some campaigns and led to significant fines in recent years.

The agency in charge of regulating campaign finance has tried to introduce fixes this session. But now, that agency warns that the proposed candidate exemptions would erode scrutiny of campaigns.