House Bill 2762 was introduced Tuesday by Reps. Malcolm Kenyatta, D-Philadelphia, and Chris Rabb, D-Philadelphia, and referred to the House Judiciary Committee. The legislation appears to be aimed at state Sen. Doug Mastriano, the Republican candidate for governor who attended rallies in support of President Donald Trump on Jan. 6, 2021, but who currently faces no charges of wrongdoing in the riot.

According to the Associated Press, Mastriano made a short appearance Tuesday before the House panel investigating the U.S. Capitol insurrection. Mastriano helped organize efforts in Pennsylvania to submit alternate presidential electors beholden to Trump. He cut his interview short without answering questions. He disputed the validity of the committee and the terms of the appearance, his attorney said.

Mastriano’s attorney, Timothy Parlatore, said his client’s appearance before the committee was over in less than 15 minutes. He said Mastriano wanted to be able to record the interview and said little during the brief session, Parlatore said they plan to challenge the committee in court.

“Because he’s currently in a general election, we just want some protective measures,” Parlatore said in a phone interview, “to prevent them from putting out a false or misleading quote that would potentially impact the election.”

Submitted Photos Rep. Chris Rabb, D-Philadelphia, speaks on the state House floor earlier this year.

He also spoke with the FBI last year and said he did not know about a planned insurrection, his lawyer has said.

Mastriano has said he had regular calls with then-President Donald Trump in the months between Trump’s reelection defeat and the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. His attorney sought to shield Mastriano from testifying over the alternative electors plan because it was undertaken when his client was a state senator. Parlatore said much of Mastriano’s contacts with Trump in the lead-up to Jan. 6 involved Mastriano’s capacity as a state lawmaker — a status that complicates the committee’s efforts to interview him about what the lawyer described as “alternative electors” to the Electoral College. Parlatore said he planned to file a court action in Washington, D.C., federal court, seeking to have a judge determine if Jan. 6 committee’s makeup and procedures violate House rules. Growing from Trump’s false claims of voter fraud, the fake electors strategy relied on having several battleground states that Biden won submit their tally for the defeated Republican president, rather than the Democratic winner, Biden.

Kenyatta and Rabb said House Bill 2762 would make those convicted of seditious conspiracy against the United States ineligible for elected office in Pennsylvania and remove civil officers from their offices if they are convicted of seditious conspiracy against the United States. To become part of the state constitution, amendments must pass both the House and Senate in two consecutive terms, then be passed by a majority of voters in a statewide referendum. It’s unlikely House Bill 2762 will advance out of the Judiciary Committee.

“Democracy is a fragile thing, and we must do everything in our power to protect it for ourselves and our posterity,” Kenyatta and Rabb wrote in their legislative memorandum. “In the recent past, our democracy was threatened by a group of armed individuals. It continues to be threatened by individuals who share misinformation and create distrust, fear, and ignorance within our communities. Some individuals spread deceit and encourage upheaval while holding elected office. Sedition should have no place in Pennsylvania, nor should public servants be permitted to continue in their elected office if they commit sedition against our nation.”

A companion bill, House Bill 2763, would create new offenses and penalties in state law for seditious conspiracy against the Commonwealth. Pennsylvania. To be found guilty of sedition against the state, a person would have to be found guilty of conspiring to overthrow, put down or destroy by force the state government, levy war against state government, oppose by force state government’s authority or use force to prevent execution of state law or use force to take state property.

Penalties would include a fine of up to $15,000, 100 hours of community service, a ban on receipt of state grant funding, contracts or state licenses.

“For these reasons, we plan to introduce two pieces of legislation seeking to eliminate sedition in our great state and ensure that our elected officials are held accountable for actions they take against our democracy,” Kenyatta and Rabb wrote in their legislative memorandum.

— The Associated Press contributed to this report.