House Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal used his government-funded official Facebook page to air campaign advertisements, Facebook Ad Library shows, potentially running afoul of House Ethics rules that prohibit campaign business on House official resources.
In Neal’s official Facebook page disclaimer, up to $100 were spent on the ads in 2018 paid for by “Richard Neal for Congress Committee, Treasurer Michael F. Hall,” suggesting Neal’s campaign funds paid for the ad to air through the House office’s Facebook page.
House official resources, including social media, also run under the purview of the House Administration Committee. Their rules say that member-controlled content on social media accounts is subject to the same requirements as member websites. In both cases, it forbids any campaign use. The rules also explicitly state that campaign funds may not pay for a member’s official expenses, which are used to maintain and operate a members’ official resources.
Both ads are roughly 30 seconds in length and display written text stating: “Commit to vote on September 4th for Richard Neal” at the video’s end with the note, “Paid for by Richard E Neal for Congress Committee.”
Official guidance from the House Ethics Committee generally bars members from using their office or official House resources for purposes of “the drafting of campaign speeches, statements, press releases or literature.” However, there is little mention of rules regarding social media sites and their sponsored content.
Neal’s official Facebook account ran the two ads for 13 days, Aug. 10, 2018 to Aug. 23, 2018, two weeks prior to Massachusetts’ Sept 4th primary. Both are identical to ads from the Massachusetts Democrat’s campaign Facebook that ran from Aug. 21, 2018 to Sept. 4, 2018. According to House franking rules, a member is prohibited from sending out unsolicited mass communications, including advertisements, within 90 days of any election.
Based on Facebook Ad Library metrics, one ad was seen between 1,000-5,000 times, including possible multiple viewings, while the other made less than 1,000 impressions. Ninety-seven percent of viewership of both ads were in Neal’s home state of Massachusetts.
Requests for comment from Neal’s office were not returned.
