ANNAPOLIS — Campaign contributions from 4-year-olds would be counted against their parents' or guardians' campaign giving limits under a bill introduced by Del. Brian J. Feldman.

Several states have outright bans on campaign contributions made in the name of minors. Feldman (D-Dist. 15) of Potomac said he doesn't want to go that far.

Instead, his bill would allow contributions from a dependent minor to be made in the child's name, but the contribution would be considered to be from the child's parent or guardian.

Campaign finance laws limit individuals' contributions during a four-year election cycle to a total of $10,000. Contributions to any one candidate, political action committee, slate or political party are limited to $4,000.

The bill would apply one-half of the amount of the minor's contribution to each parent or guardian if the child has two parents or guardians. If there is only one parent or guardian, the full amount would be applied to that individual.

Feldman, who teaches a master's degree course on state policymaking at Johns Hopkins University, said he became interested in the issue after a student wrote a paper on the subject.

"When you see kids who clearly have no knowledge of any elected officials, any of the candidates, it does strike me as a loophole that is worth closing," Feldman said.