Chapter
292
2006 -- H 7529 SUBSTITUTE A AS AMENDED
Enacted 07/03/06
A N A C T
RELATING
TO ELECTIONS - CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURES
Introduced
By: Representatives Pacheco, Lewiss, San Bento, Corvese, and Gallison
Date
Introduced: February 16, 2006
It is enacted by the General Assembly as
follows:
SECTION 1.
Sections 17-25-3, 17-25-5, 17-25-7.2, 17-25-8.1, 17-25-10, 17-25-10.1, 17-
25-11, 17-25-12 and 17-25-15 of the General Laws
in Chapter 17-25 entitled "Rhode Island
Campaign Contributions and Expenditures
Reporting" are hereby amended to read as follows:
17-25-3.
Definitions. -- As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning
clearly
appears from the context:
(1) "Business
entity" means any corporation, whether for profit or not for profit,
domestic
corporation or foreign corporation, as defined
in section 7-1.2-106, financial institution,
cooperative, association, receivership, trust,
holding company, firm, joint stock company, public
utility, sole proprietorship, partnership,
limited partnership, or any other entity recognized by the
laws of the United States and/or the state of
Rhode Island for the purpose of doing business. The
term "business entity" shall not include
a political action committee organized pursuant to this
chapter or a political party committee or an
authorized campaign committee of a candidate or
office holder.
(2)
"Candidate" means any individual who undertakes any action, whether
preliminary or
final, which is necessary under the law to
qualify for nomination for election or election to public
office, and/or any individual who receives a
contribution or makes an expenditure, or gives his or
her consent for any other person to receive a
contribution or make an expenditure, with a view to
bringing about his or her nomination or election
to any public office, whether or not the specific
public office for which he or she will seek
nomination or election is known at the time the
contribution is received or the expenditure is
made and whether or not he or she has announced
his or her candidacy or filed a declaration of
candidacy at that time.
(3)
"Contributions" and "expenditures" include all transfers of
money, paid personal
services, or other thing of value to or by any
candidate, committee of a political party, or political
action committee or ballot question advocate.
A loan shall be considered a contribution of money
until it is repaid.
(4)
"Election" means any primary, general, or special election or town
meeting for any
public office of the state, municipality, or
district or for the determination of any question
submitted to the voters of the state,
municipality, or district.
(5)
"Election cycle" means the twenty-four (24) month period commencing
on January 1
of odd number years and ending on December 31 of
even number years; provided, with respect to
the public financing of election campaigns of
general officers under sections 17-25-19, 17-25-20,
and 17-25-25, "election cycle" means
the forty-eight (48) month period commencing on January
1 of odd numbered years and ending December 31
of even numbered years.
(6)
"In-Kind Contributions" means the monetary value of other things of
value or paid
personal services donated to, or benefiting, any
person required to file reports with the board of
elections.
(6)(7)
"Other thing of value" means any item of tangible real or personal
property of a
fair market value in excess of one hundred
dollars ($100).
(7)(8)
"Paid personal services" means personal services of every kind and
nature, the
cost or consideration for which is paid or
provided by someone other than the committee or
candidate for whom the services are rendered, but
shall not include personal services provided
without compensation by persons volunteering
their time.
(8)(9)
"Person" means an individual, partnership, committee, association,
corporation,
and any other organization.
(9)(10)
"Political action committee" means any group of two (2) or more
persons that
accepts any contributions to be used for
advocating the election or defeat of any candidate or
candidates or to be used for advocating the
approval or rejection of any question or questions
submitted to the voters. Only political action
committees that have accepted contributions from
fifteen (15) or more persons in amounts of ten
dollars ($10.00) or more within an election cycle
shall be permitted to make contributions, and those
committees must make contributions to at
least five (5) candidates for state or local
office within an election cycle.
(10)(11)
"Public office" means any state, municipal, school, or district
office or other
position that is filled by popular election,
except political party offices. "Political party offices"
means any state, city, town, ward, or
representative or senatorial district committee office of a
political party or delegate to a political party
convention, or any similar office.
(11)(12)
"State" means state of Rhode Island.
(12)(13)
"Testimonial affair" means an affair of any kind or nature including,
but not
limited to, cocktail parties, breakfasts,
luncheons, dinners, dances, picnics, or similar affairs
expressly and directly intended to raise
campaign funds in behalf of a candidate to be used for
nomination or election to a public office in
this state, or expressly and directly intended to raise
funds in behalf of any state or municipal
committee of a political party, or expressly and directly
intended to raise funds in behalf of any
political action committee.
17-25-5.
Duties and powers of the board of elections. -- (a) The board of
elections is
authorized to perform any duties that are
necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter.
Without limiting the generality of this
provision, the board is authorized and empowered to:
(1) Develop forms
for the making of the required reports to be filed with the board of
elections, which form shall contain a notice
setting forth the times and dates when reports are
required to be filed;
(2) Prepare and
publish a manual for all candidates, political party committees, and
political action committees and ballot
questions advocates prescribing the requirements of the
law, including uniform methods of bookkeeping
and reporting and requirements as to the length
of time that any person required to keep any
records pursuant to the provisions of this chapter
shall retain these records, or any class or
category of records, or any other documents;
(3) Adopt rules
and regulations to carry out the purposes of this chapter;
(4) Prepare and
make available for public inspection, through the office of the board of
elections, summaries of all reports grouped
according to candidates and political parties;
(5) Prepare and
publish, prior to May 1 or as soon as practicable thereafter of each year,
an annual report to the general assembly;
(6) Ascertain
whether candidates or political party committees, or political action
committees or ballot questions advocates,
have failed to file reports or have filed defective
reports; and may for good cause shown extend the
dates upon which reports are required to be
filed;
(7) (i) Conduct
confidential investigations and/or closed hearings in accordance with this
title relative to alleged violations of this
chapter either on its own initiative or upon receipt of a
verified written complaint, which complaint
shall, under pain and penalty of perjury, be based
upon actual knowledge and not merely on
information and belief. Upon completion of its
investigation and/or hearings, if the board has
reason to believe that a violation of this chapter has
occurred or that a complainant has willfully
sworn or affirmed falsely, the chairperson of the
board of elections is authorized to and shall
issue to the person found to be in violation of this
chapter a summons pursuant to section 12-7-11 to
appear before the division of the district court
where the person resides and shall be prosecuted
by the attorney general. Any action taken by the
board as a result of a written verified
complaint shall, whenever possible, be completed no later
than five (5) business days after its receipt,
and if no violation is found to exist, all records and
papers shall be kept confidential unless further
legal proceedings are instituted.
(ii) The
confidentiality of an audit, investigation, hearing, and/or findings may be
waived
in writing only by the person or persons
complained of or audited. However, once an audit is
complete and presented to the board, the audit
will be a matter of public record.
(8) Conduct
compliance reviews and audits of campaign accounts as necessary, and in a
manner consistent with the provisions of this
chapter.
(b) The board of
elections shall take any steps that may be necessary or appropriate to
furnish timely and adequate information, in
appropriate printed summaries and in any other form
that it may see fit, to every candidate or
prospective candidate for public office who becomes or is
likely to become subject to the provisions of
this chapter, and to every treasurer duly designated
under the provisions of this chapter, informing
them of their actual or prospective obligations and
responsibilities under this chapter.
(c) (1) The board
of elections is authorized, upon written request, to render written
advisory opinions as to whether a given set of
facts and circumstances set forth in the request
would constitute a violation of any of the
provisions of this chapter, or whether a given set of
facts and circumstances set forth in the request
would render any person subject to any of the
reporting requirements of this chapter;
provided, that the requirement for a written opinion may
be voluntarily waived by the candidate or
committee.
(2) Unless an
extension of time is consented to by any person who submits a written
request for an advisory opinion, the board of
elections shall, whenever possible, render its written
advisory opinion within five (5) business days
of receipt of the request.
(d) (1) For each
quarterly report required to be filed, the board shall send a postcard by
regular mail to each person and entity required
to file a report, which will notify the person or
entity that a report required to be filed is due
within fourteen (14) days.
(2) The failure
to receive this notice shall not absolve the person or entity of the
reporting requirements contained in this
chapter.
17-25-7.2.
Personal use of campaign funds prohibited. -- (a) The personal use by
any
elected public office holder or by any candidate
for public office, as defined in section 17-25-3, of
campaign funds contributed after April 29, 1992,
is prohibited. For the purposes of this section,
"personal use" is defined as any use
other than expenditures related to gaining or holding public
office and for which the candidate for public
office or elected public official would be required to
treat the amount of the expenditure as gross
income under section 61 of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. section 61, or any
subsequent corresponding Internal Revenue Code of
the United States, as from time to time amended.
(b) Expenditures
that are specifically prohibited under this chapter include:
(1) Any
residential or household items, supplies or expenditures, including mortgage,
rent or utility payments for any part of any
personal residence of a candidate or officeholder or a
member of the candidate's or officeholder's
family;
(2) Mortgage,
rent, or utility payments for any part of any non-residential property that is
owned by a candidate or officeholder or a member
of a candidate's or officeholder's family and
used for campaign purposes, to the extent the
payments exceed the fair market value of the
property usage;
(3) Funeral,
cremation, or burial expenses, including any expenses related to deaths
within a candidate's or officeholder's family;
(4) Clothing,
other than items of de minimis value that are used in the campaign;
(5) Tuition
payments;
(6) Dues, fees,
or gratuities at a country club, health club, recreational facility or other
nonpolitical organization, unless they are part
of a specific fundraising event that takes place on
the organization's premises;
(7) Salary
payments to a member of a candidate's family, unless the family member is
providing bona fide services to the campaign. If
a family member provides bona fide services to a
campaign, any salary payments in excess of the
fair market value of the services provided is
personal use;
(8) Admission to
a sporting event, concert, theater, or other form of entertainment, unless
part of a specific campaign or officeholder
activity;
(9) Payment of
any fines, fees, or penalties assessed pursuant to this chapter.
(c) Any expense
that results from campaign or officeholder activity is permitted use of
campaign funds. Such expenditures may include:
(1) The defrayal
of ordinary and necessary expenses of a candidate or officeholder;
(2) Office
expenses and equipment, provided the expenditures and the use of the
equipment can be directly attributable to the
campaign or the officeholder's duties and
responsibilities;
(3) Donations to
charitable organizations, provided the candidate or officeholder does
not personally benefit from the donation or
receive compensation from the recipient organization;
(4) Travel
expenses for an officeholder, provided that the travel is undertaken as an
ordinary and necessary expense of seeking,
holding, or maintaining public office, or seeking,
holding, or maintaining a position within the
legislature or other publicly elected body. If a
candidate or officeholder uses campaign funds to
pay expenses associated with travel that
involves both personal activities and campaign
or officeholder activities, the incremental
expenses that result from the personal
activities are personal use, unless the person(s) benefiting
from this use reimburse(s) the campaign account
within thirty (30) days for the amount of the
incremental expenses;
(5) Gifts of
nominal value and donations of a nominal amount made on a special
occasion such as a holiday, graduation, marriage,
retirement or death, unless made to a member
of the candidate's or officeholder's family;
(6) Meal expenses
which are incurred as part of a campaign activity or as apart of a
function that is related to the candidate's or
officeholder's responsibilities, including meals
between and among candidates and/or
officeholders that are incurred as an ordinary and
necessary expense of seeking, holding, or
maintaining public office, or seeking holding, or
maintaining a position within the legislature or
other publicly elected body;
(7) Food and
beverages which are purchased as part of a campaign or officeholder
activity.
(d) Any campaign
funds not used to pay for the expenses of gaining or holding public
office may:
(1) Be maintained
in a campaign account(s);
(2) Be donated to
a candidate for public office, to a political organization, or to a
political action committee, subject to the
limitation on contributions in section 17-25-10.1;
(3) Be
transferred in whole or in part into a newly established political action
committee
or ballot question advocate;
(4) Be donated to
a tax exempt charitable organization as that term is used in section
501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26
U.S.C. section 501, or any subsequent
corresponding internal revenue code of the
United States as from time to time amended;
(5) Be donated to
the state of Rhode Island; or
(6) Be returned
to the donor.
17-25-8.1.
Appointment of treasurer by political action committee -- Filings. --
(a)
Each political action committee shall appoint
one campaign treasurer before receiving any
contribution or expending any money for the
purpose of advocating the election or defeat of any
candidate or the approval or rejection of any
question.
(b) A campaign
treasurer of a political action committee may appoint deputy campaign
treasurers as may be required. The committees
shall file the names and addresses of the deputy
campaign treasurers with the board of elections.
(c) Any political
action committee may remove at any time its campaign treasurer. In the
case of the death, resignation, or removal of
its campaign treasurer, any committee shall appoint a
successor as soon as practicable and shall file
his or her name and address with the board of
elections within ten (10) days.
17-25-10.
Lawful methods of contributing to support of candidates -- Reporting --
Disposition of anonymous contributions. -- (a) No contribution
shall be made or received, and
no expenditures shall be directly made or
incurred, to support or defeat a candidate or to advocate
the approval or rejection of any question in any
election
except through:
(1) The duly
appointed campaign treasurer, or deputy campaign treasurers, of the
candidates;
(2) The duly
appointed campaign treasurer or deputy campaign treasurers of a political
party committee;
(3) The duly
appointed campaign treasurer or deputy campaign treasurer of a political
action committee.
(b) It shall be
lawful for any person, not otherwise prohibited by law and not acting in
concert with any other person or group, to
expend personally from that person's own funds a sum
which is not to be repaid to him or her for any purpose
not prohibited by law to support or defeat
a candidate or to advocate the approval or
rejection of any question; provided, that any person
making the expenditure shall be required to
report all of his or her expenditures and expenses, if
the total of the money so expended exceeds one
hundred dollars ($100) within a calendar year, to
the board of elections within seven (7) days of
making the expenditure and to the campaign
treasurer of the candidate or political party
committee on whose behalf the expenditure or
contribution was made, or to his or her deputy,
within seven (7) days of making the expenditure,
who shall cause the expenditures and expenses to
be included in his or her reports to the board of
elections. Whether a person is "acting in
concert with any other person or group" for the purposes
of this subsection shall be determined by
application of the standards set forth in section 17-25-
23.
(c) Any anonymous
contribution received by a campaign treasurer or deputy campaign
treasurer shall not be used or expended, but
shall be returned to the donor, if the donor's identity
can be ascertained; if not, the contribution
shall bescheat to the state.
17-25-10.1.
Political contributions -- Limitations. -- (a) (1) No person, other
than the
candidate to his or her own campaign, nor any
political action committee shall make a
contribution or contributions to any candidate,
as defined by section 17-25-3, or political action
committee or political party committee which in
the aggregate exceed one thousand dollars
($1,000) within a calendar year, nor shall any
person make contributions to more than one state or
local candidate, to more than one political
action committee, or to more than one political party
committee, or to a combination of state and
local candidates and political action committees and
political party committees which in the
aggregate exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) within a
calendar year, nor shall any political action
committee make such contributions which in the
aggregate exceed twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000) within a calendar year, nor shall any
candidate or any political action committee or
any political party committee accept a contribution
or contributions which in the aggregate exceed one
thousand dollars ($1,000) within a calendar
year from any one person or political action
committee.
(2)
Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection, a person
or
political action committee or political party committee
may contribute an amount which in the
aggregate does not exceed ten thousand dollars
($10,000) within a calendar year to a political
party committee, which funds can be utilized for
organizational and party building activities, but
shall not be used for contributions to
candidates state and local for public office.
(b) Contributions
to a named candidate made to any political committee authorized by
that candidate to accept contributions on the
candidate's behalf shall be considered to be
contributions made to the candidate.
Contributions to a candidate by a political committee for
another person shall be considered to be
contributions by that person.
(c) Expenditures
made by any person in cooperation, consultation or concert with, or at
the request or suggestion of, a candidate, the
candidate's authorized political committees, or their
agents shall be considered to be a contribution
to the candidate.
(d) The financing
by any person of the dissemination, distribution, or republication, in
whole or in part, of any broadcast or any
written, graphic, or other form of campaign materials
prepared by the candidate, the candidate's
campaign committees, or their authorized agents shall
be considered to be a contribution to a candidate.
(e) Nothing in
this section shall be construed to restrict political party committees
organized pursuant to this title from making
contributions to the candidates of that political party;
provided, that these contributions, other than
allowable "in-kind" contributions, shall not exceed,
in the aggregate, twenty-five thousand dollars
($25,000) to any one candidate within a calendar
year, nor shall any candidate accept a
contribution or contributions, other than allowable "in-
kind" contributions, which in the aggregate
exceed twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) within
a calendar year from all committees of his or
her political party. There shall be no restriction on
the amount of "in-kind" contributions
that a political party committee may make to a candidate of
its political party; provided, that for the
purposes of this subsection only, the cost of any
preparation and airing of television and/or
radio advertisements and the cost of any print
advertisements shall not be considered an allowable
"in-kind" contribution and shall be subject to
the aggregate limitation of twenty-five thousand
dollars ($25,000).
(f) (1) A
contribution from an individual's dependent children, as defined in section 36-
14-2, shall be deemed a contribution from the
individual for the purpose of determining whether
aggregate contributions exceed either the one
hundred dollar ($100) threshold for reporting
purposes or the one thousand dollar ($1,000)
maximum for contributions to a single candidate or
political action committee or the ten thousand
dollar ($10,000) maximum for contributing to all
candidates and political action committees
within a calendar year.
(2) No dependent
child shall contribute an amount which, when added to contributions
already made by that child's parent or legal
guardian and by other dependent children of that
parent or legal guardian, exceed the one
thousand dollar ($1,000) maximum for contributions to a
single candidate or political action committee
or exceed the ten thousand dollar ($10,000)
maximum for contributions to all state or local
candidates and political action committees within
a calendar year.
(g) Nothing in
this section shall be construed to restrict the amount of money that a
candidate can borrow in his or her own name, and
subsequently contribute or loan to his or her
own campaign.
(h) (1) It shall
be unlawful for any corporation, whether profit or non-profit, domestic
corporation or foreign corporation, as defined
in section 7-1.2-106, or other business entity to
make any campaign contribution or expenditure,
as defined in section 17-25-3, to or for any
candidate, political action committee, or
political party committee, or for any candidate, political
action committee, or political party committee
to accept any campaign contribution or
expenditure from a corporation or other business
entity. Any contribution made in the personal
name of any employee of a corporation or other
business entity, for which the employee received
or will receive reimbursement from the
corporation or other business entity, shall be considered
as a contribution by the corporation or other
business entity, in violation of this section.
(2) Any voluntary
payroll deduction and/or contribution made by employees of a
corporation or other business entity shall not
be deemed a contribution of a corporation or other
business entity, notwithstanding that the
contributions were sent to the recipient by the
corporation or other business entity.
(i) All
contributions of funds shall be by check, money order, or credit card and may
be
made over the Internet, but in each case the
source of the funds must be identified; provided, that
candidates may accept contributions in cash
which do not exceed twenty-five dollars ($25.00) in
the aggregate from an individual within a
calendar year. The cash contribution must be delivered
directly by the donor to the candidate, his or
her campaign treasurer, or deputy treasurer. The
treasurer or deputy treasurer shall maintain a
record of the name and address of all persons
making these cash contributions.
(j) Except as
provided in subsection (h) of this section, no entity other than an individual,
a political action committee which is duly
registered and qualified pursuant to the terms of this
chapter, political party committee authorized by
this title, or an authorized committee of an
elected official or candidate established
pursuant to this chapter shall make any contribution to or
any expenditure on behalf of or in opposition to
any candidate, ballot question, political action
committee, or political party.
17-25-11.
Dates for filing of reports by treasurers of candidates or of committees. --
(a) During the period between the appointment of
the campaign treasurer for state and municipal
committees and political action committees, or
in the case of an individual, the date on which the
individual becomes a "declared or undeclared
candidate", as defined in section 17-25-3(2), except
when the ninety (90) day reporting period ends
less than forty (40) days prior to an election, in
which case the ninety (90) day report shall be
included as part of the report required to be filed on
the twenty-eighth (28th) day next preceding the
day of the primary, general, or special election
pursuant to subdivision (2) of this subsection,
and the election, with respect to which
contributions are received or expenditures made
by him or her in behalf of or in opposition to a
candidate or question, the campaign
treasurer of a candidate, a political party committee, or a
political action committee shall file a report
containing an account of contributions received and
expenditures made on behalf of or in opposition
to a candidate or question:
(1) At ninety
(90) day intervals commencing on the date on which the individual first
becomes a candidate, as defined in section
17-25-3(2);
(2) In a
contested election, on the twenty-eighth (28th) and seventh (7th) days next
preceding the day of the primary, general, or
special election; provided, that in the case of a
primary election for a special election, where
the twenty-eighth (28th) day next preceding the day
of the primary election occurs prior to the
first day for filing declarations of candidacy pursuant to
section 17-14-1, the reports shall be due on the
fourteenth (14th) and seventh (7th) days next
preceding the day of the primary election for
the special election; and
(3) A final
report on the twenty-eighth (28th) day following the election. The report shall
contain:
(i) The name and
address and place of employment of each person from whom
contributions in excess of a total of one
hundred dollars ($100) within a calendar year were
received;
(ii) The amount
contributed by each person;
(iii) The name
and address of each person to whom expenditures in excess of one
hundred dollars ($100) were made; and
(iv) The amount
and purpose of each expenditure.
(b) Concurrent
with the report filed on the twenty-eighth (28th) day following an
election, or at any time thereafter, the
campaign treasurer of a candidate, or political party
committee or political action committee, may
certify to the board of elections that the campaign
fund of the candidate, political party
committee, or political action committee having been
instituted for the purposes of the past
election, has completed its business and been dissolved or,
in the event that the committee will continue
its activities beyond the election, that its business
regarding the past election has been completed;
and the certification shall be accompanied by a
final accounting of the campaign fund, or of the
transactions relating to the election, including the
final disposition of any balance remaining in
the fund at the time of dissolution or the
arrangements which have been made for the
discharge of any obligations remaining unpaid at the
time of dissolution.
(c) Once the
campaign treasurer certifies that the campaign fund has completed its
business and been dissolved, no contribution
which is intended to defray expenditures incurred on
behalf of or in opposition to a candidate or
to advocate the approval or rejection of any question
during the campaign can be accepted. Until the
time that the campaign treasurer certifies that the
campaign fund has completed its business and
been dissolved, the treasurer shall file reports
containing an account of contributions received
and expenditures made at ninety (90) day
intervals commencing with the next quarterly
report following the election; however, the time to
file under this subsection shall be no later
than thirty (30) days following the ninety (90) day
period, except when the thirty (30) days filing
deadline following the ninety (90) day reporting
period occurs less than twenty-eight (28) days
before an election, in which case the report shall be
filed pursuant to the provisions of subdivisions
(a)(1) and (2) of this section.
(d) (1) There
shall be no obligation to file the reports of expenditures required by this
section on behalf of or in opposition to a
candidate or question if the total amount to be expended
in behalf of the candidacy or question by
the candidate, by any political party committee, by any
political action committee, or by any person
shall not in the aggregate exceed one thousand
dollars ($1,000).
(2) However, even
though the aggregate amount expended on behalf of the candidacy
does not exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000),
reports must be made listing the source and
amounts of all contributions in excess of a
total of one hundred dollars ($100) from any one
source within a calendar year. Even though the
aggregate amount expended on behalf of the
candidacy does not exceed one thousand dollars
($1,000) and no contribution from any one
source within a calendar year exceeds one
hundred dollars ($100), the report shall state the
aggregate amount of all contributions received.
In addition, the report shall state the amount of
aggregate contributions that were from
individuals, the amount from political action committees,
and the amount from political party committees.
(e) On or before
the first date for filing contribution and expenditure reports, the
campaign treasurer may file a sworn statement
that the treasurer will accept no contributions nor
make aggregate expenditures in excess of the
minimum amounts for which a report is required by
this chapter. Thereafter, the campaign treasurer
shall be excused from filing all the reports for that
campaign, other than the final report due on the
twenty-eighth (28th) day following the election.
(f) A campaign
treasurer must file a report containing an account of contributions
received and expenditures made at the ninety
(90) day intervals provided for in subsection (c) of
this section for any ninety (90) day period in
which the campaign received contributions in excess
of a total of one hundred dollars ($100) within
a calendar year from any one source and/or made
expenditures in excess of one thousand dollars
($1,000) within a calendar year; however, the time
to file under this subsection shall be no later
than thirty (30) days following the ninety (90) day
period, except when the thirty (30) days filing
deadline following the ninety (90) day reporting
period occurs less than twenty-eight (28) days
before an election, in which case the report shall be
filed pursuant to the provisions of subdivisions
(a)(1) and (2) of this section.
(g) (1) The board
of elections may, for good cause shown and upon the receipt of a
written or electronic request, grant a seven (7)
day extension for filing a report; provided, that the
request must be received no later than the date
upon which the report is due to be filed.
(2) Any person or
entity required to file reports with the board of elections pursuant to
this section and who has not filed the report by
the required date, unless granted an extension
pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection,
shall be fined twenty-five dollars ($25.00).
Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this
section, the board of elections shall have the
authority to waive late filing fees for good
cause shown.
(3) The board of
elections shall send a notice of non-compliance, by certified mail, to
any person or entity who fails to file the
reports required by this section. A person or entity who is
sent a notice of non-compliance and fails to
file the required report within seven (7) days of the
receipt of the notice shall be fined two dollars
($2.00) per day from the day of receipt of the
notice of non-compliance until the day the
report has been received by the state board.
Notwithstanding any of the provisions of this section,
the board of elections shall have the
authority to waive late filing fees for good
cause shown.
17-25-12.
Prohibited contributions. -- No contributions shall be made, and no
expenditure shall be made or incurred, whether
anonymously, in a fictitious name, or by one
person or group in the name of another, to
support or defeat a candidate in a primary, general, or
special election or to advocate the approval
or rejection of any question. No treasurer or candidate
shall solicit or knowingly accept any
contribution contrary to the provisions of this section.
17-25-15.
Political action committee -- Notice of formation. -- (a) No political
action
committee shall accept any contributions or make
any expenditures prior to filing notice of its
organization with the board of elections. The
notice shall contain:
(1) The name or
names of any candidates whose election or defeat the committee intends
to advocate and/or the question or questions whose
approval or rejection the committee intends to
advocate;
(2) The names and
addresses of all officers of the committee;
(3) The mailing
address or addresses of the committee;
(4) The goals and
purposes of the political action committee; and
(5) A statement
indicating whether the membership and/or contributor base of the
political action committee is derived primarily
from the employees of one corporation or business
entity or from one business or professional
group or association or labor union and, if so, the
identity of that employer or group or
association or union.
(b) No committee
shall advocate the election or defeat of any candidate or question other
than that set forth in its notice of
organization or amendment to the notice. A political action
committee may amend its notice of organization
at any time. The board of elections shall
prescribe forms in compliance with this section.
(c) In addition
to all other reporting requirements, each political action committee shall
include in each report required to be filed by
this chapter:
(1) The source
and amount of all funds received by the committee in excess of one
hundred dollars ($100) in the aggregate from a
single source in a calendar year; provided, that
funds received through a regular payroll
check-off plan in which the aggregate contribution from
each individual does not exceed one hundred
dollars ($100) per calendar year shall report the
name and address of each entity transferring the
funds to the committee, the aggregate amount
received from the payroll check-off, and the
total number of contributors; and provided also, that
funds received by the political action committee
of a labor organization from the members of the
labor organization in amounts not exceeding
twenty-five dollars ($25.00) per calendar year from
a single source shall be reported by the
aggregate amount received and the total number of
members of the labor organization contributing;
(2) The name and
address of each person to whom expenditures were made, and the
amount and purpose of each expenditure; and
(3) The name and
address of each elected official and candidate for elected office to
whom a contribution was made, and the amount of
the contribution.
(d) The board of
elections may reject the use by a political action committee of a name
which is misleading and/or does not accurately
identify the membership or contributor base of the
committee.
(e) If a
political action committee derives more than fifty percent (50%) of its funds
from
the employees, officers, directors, investors,
and/or stockholders of a corporation or other
business entity, the name of the political
action committee must incorporate the name of that
corporation or business entity. If a political
action committee derives more than fifty percent
(50%) of its funds from persons affiliated with
one industry, profession, trade organization, or
association or labor union, the name of the
political action committee must identify that industry,
profession, trade organization or association,
or labor union.
(f)
Notwithstanding any provision to the contrary, a political action committee
organized
exclusively for the purpose of promoting or
opposing a ballot question may bexpend in excess of
twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) to
promote or oppose that referendum, and shall not be
subject to the requirement of making
contributions to at least five (5) candidates; and the political
action committee shall terminate all activity
within thirty (30) days following that election.
SECTION 2. Title
17 of the General Laws entitled "Elections" is hereby amended by
adding thereto the following chapter:
CHAPTER
25.2
BALLOT QUESTION ADVOCACY
AND REPORTING
17-25.2-1.
Short title. -- This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the
"Rhode
Island Ballot Question Advocacy and Reporting
Act".
17-25.2-2.
Declaration of policy -- It is declared to be in the public interest
and to be the
policy of the state to foster greater
participation in ballot question advocacy in a transparent and
open manner and to provide the public with
sufficient information regarding the source of
contributions received and expenditures made for
ballot question advocacy.
17-25.2-3.
Definitions. -- As used in this chapter, unless a different meaning
clearly
appears from the context:
(1)
"Ballot question" means any question, charter change, constitutional
amendment,
referendum or voter initiated petition placed on
any state, district, city, town or municipal ballot
for a general or special election.
(2)
"Ballot question advocacy" means advocating the passage or defeat of
a ballot
question.
(3)
"Ballot question advocate" means any person making an expenditure
with a
cumulative total that exceeds one thousand
dollars ($1,000) in a calendar year for ballot-question
advocacy on a particular ballot question.
(4)
"Contributions" means donations to a ballot-question advocate in the
form of money,
gifts, loans, paid personal services, or in-kind
contributions as defined herein.
(5)
"In-Kind Contributions" means the monetary value of other things of
value or paid
personal services donated to any person required
to file reports with the board of elections, except
for newsletters and other communications paid
for and transmitted by an organization to its own
members and not to the general public;
(6) "Paid
personal services" means personal services of every kind and nature, the cost
or
consideration for which is paid or provided by
someone other than the ballot-question advocate
for whom the services are rendered, but shall
not include personal services provided without
compensation by persons volunteering their time.
(7) "Expenditures"
means the payment for any goods and services for the purpose of
ballot-question advocacy as set forth in this
paragraph:
(i) any media
advertising services or products, including, but not limited to, newspapers,
radio stations or television stations;
(ii) general
advertising in letters, brochures, flyers, handbills, lawn signs, posters,
bumper
stickers, buttons or other materials except for
newsletters and other communications paid for and
transmitted by an organization to its own
members and not to the general public; or
(iii) paid
personal services donated to any ballot-question advocate including advertising
agency services or other professional services
including accounting services, printing, secretarial
services, public opinion polls, research and
professional campaign consultation or management,
media production or computer services. A written
contract, agreement or promise to make an
expenditure, is an expenditure as of the date
such contract expenditure or obligation is made.
(8)
"Person" means any individual, partnership, committee, association,
corporation, city,
town, or other governmental unit and any other
organization.
(9)
"Election cycle" means the twenty-four (24) month period commencing
on January 1
of odd number years and ending on December 31 of
even number years.
17-25.2-4.
No limitations on contributions or expenditures. -- Nothing
contained in
this chapter shall be construed to limit the
amount of monies contributed to or expended by a
ballot-question advocate for the purpose of
ballot-question advocacy.
17-25.2-5.
Reporting by ballot question advocates. -- (a) Every ballot-question
advocate shall file periodic reports signed by
an individual responsible for its contents on a form
prescribed by the board of elections setting
forth the name and address of the ballot-question
advocate, including any other name under which
the ballot-question advocate conducts ballot-
question advocacy, the name and address of the
person filing the report; and
(1) the name,
address and, if applicable, the place of employment of each person making
a contribution or contributions that in the
aggregate exceed one thousand-eight hundred dollars
($1,800) per election cycle to a ballot-question
advocate for purposes of ballot question advocacy
and the amount contributed by each person or
source; provided, however, this information shall
be reported only if:
(i) the
contributions received by a ballot-question advocate are solicited in any way,
including by written, electronic, or verbal
means, by the ballot-question advocate specifically for
ballot-question advocacy; or
(ii) the contributions
were specifically designated by the contributor for ballot-question
advocacy; or
(iii) the
ballot question advocate knew or had reason to know that the contributor
intended or expected that the majority of the
contributions be used for ballot question advocacy;
and
(2) the name
and address of every person or entity receiving an expenditure for ballot-
question advocacy, which in the aggregate
exceeds one hundred dollars ($100), the amount of
each expenditure for ballot-question advocacy,
and the total amount of expenditures for ballot-
question advocacy made by the ballot-question
advocate as of the last report date; and
(3) a statement
of the position of the ballot-question advocate in support of or opposition
to the ballot-question; and
(4) the names
and addresses of all identified member or endorsing organizations,
corporations, and/or associations that authorize
the ballot-question advocate to represent to the
public that they support the positions of the
ballot-question advocate; and
(5) the name
and address of at least one of the officers of the ballot question advocate, if
any, or one individual that is responsible for
the ballot question advocate's compliance with the
provisions of this act.
(b) The first
report must be filed by a ballot-question advocate for the period beginning
when the ballot-question advocate expends a
cumulative total that exceeds one thousand dollars
($1,000) for ballot-question advocacy and ending
the last day of the first full month following
such date, to be filed with the board of
elections due no later than seven (7) days after the end of
the month. A ballot-question advocate must
thereafter file calendar month reports with the board
of elections due no later than seven (7) days
after the end of the month; provided, that in lieu of
filing for the last full calendar month
preceding the ballot question election, a report must be filed
due no later than seven (7) days before the
election.
(c) A
ballot-question advocate must file a final report of contributions received and
expenditures made for ballot-question advocacy
no later than thirty (30) days after the election for
the ballot question is held subject to the
provisions of section 17-25.2-6. All reports filed with the
board of elections must be received no later
than 4:00 p.m. on the due date.
(d)(1) The
board of elections may, for good cause shown and upon receipt of a written or
electronic request, grant a seven (7) day extension
for filing a report; provided, however, that the
request must be received no later than the date
and time upon which the report is due to be filed,
and further if the election for the ballot
question is to be held less than seven (7) days from the
report due date and time, the report must be
filed prior to the election date.
(2) Any
ballot-question advocate required to file reports with the board of elections
pursuant to this section and who has not filed
the report by the required date and time, unless
granted an extension by the board, shall be
fined twenty-five dollars ($25.00).
(3) The board
of elections shall send a notice of noncompliance, by certified mail, to the
ballot-question advocate who fails to file the
reports required by this section. A ballot-question
advocate that has been sent a notice of
noncompliance and fails to file the required report within
seven (7) days of the receipt of the notice
shall be fined two dollars ($2.00) per day from the date
of the receipt of the notice of noncompliance
until the day the report is received by the board of
elections. Notwithstanding any of the provisions
of this section, the board of election shall have
the authority to waive late filing fees for good
cause shown.
17-25.2-6.
Monies not expended on ballot measure. -- (a) At the time of the
filing of
the final report required by subsection
17-25.2-5(c), any contributions received for ballot question
advocacy and remaining with a ballot question
advocate that exceed one thousand dollars
($1,000) and have not been expended shall be
disbursed in one or more of the following four (4)
manners:
(1) Transferal
in whole or in part into another ballot question advocate account which has
a purpose related to or consistent with that of
the donating ballot question advocate;
(2) Donations
to or retention by a nonprofit organization recognized under section 501(c)
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C.
section 501, or any subsequent corresponding
internal revenue code of the United States as
from time to time amended;
(3) Donations
to the state of Rhode Island; or
(4) Refund to
the donor.
(b) The ballot
question advocate must annually report to the board of elections by June 30
of the calendar year any such remaining
contributions and shall report distributions of any such
remaining contributions within thirty (30) days
of such distributions.
17-25.2-7.
Disclosure of true origin of contributions required. -- (a) No person
shall
make a contribution to a ballot-question
advocate for the purpose of ballot-question advocacy in
any name except its own or in any manner for the
purpose of disguising the true origin of the
contribution.
(b) No person
shall form or use a corporation or other legal entity to advocate for the
approval or defeat of a ballot question with the
intent to:
(1) disguise
the true origin of the funds; or
(2) evade the
reporting requirements of this act.
17-25.2-8.
Duties and powers of the board of elections. -- The board of
elections is
authorized to perform any duties that are
necessary to implement the provisions of this chapter.
Without limiting the generality of this
provision, the board of elections is authorized and
empowered to undertake all actions set forth in
section 17-25-5.
17-25.2-9.
Penalties for violation. -- (a) Whenever the board of elections has
reason to
believe that a ballot-question advocate
willfully and knowingly made a false statement in any
report required under this chapter or failed to
file any report, or has otherwise violated this
chapter, the board of elections may, in addition
to all other actions authorized by law, request the
attorney general to bring an action in the name
of the state of Rhode Island in the superior court
against the person signing any such report
and/or organization to enjoin them from continuing the
violation, or doing any acts in furtherance of
the violation, and for any other relief the court
deems appropriate. In addition, the court may
order the forfeiture of any and all contributions not
reported in violation of this chapter.
(b) The court
may also impose a civil penalty for any violation of this act up to but not
exceeding three (3) times the amount of:
(1)
Contributions and/or expenditures made or accepted in violation of this
chapter;
and/or
(2)
Contributions or expenditures not reported as required by this chapter.
(c) All funds collected
pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the fund established
by the state for public information and
education regarding the election process.
17-25.2-10.
Severability. -- If any provision of this chapter or the application
thereof
shall for any reason be judged invalid, that
judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the
remainder of the law, but shall be confined in
its effect to the provisions or application directly
involved in the controversy giving rise to the
judgment.
SECTION 3.
Sections 17-25.1-1, 17-25.1-2, 17-25.1-3, 17-25.1-4, 17-25.1-5 and 17-
25.1-6 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-25.1
entitled "Gambling Referenda" are hereby
repealed.
17-25.1-1.
Registration of political action committees -- Limits on financial
contributions. -- (a) Any "political
action committee", as defined in chapter 25 of title 17,
advocating the approval or rejection of any
gambling questions shall, in addition to the
requirements of chapter 25 of title 17, register
with the secretary of state by submitting upon the
appropriate form its name, and the names and
addresses of the chairperson and its treasurer who
shall be eligible voters in the referendum
election in question. A "gambling question" is defined
as any referendum that relates to a proposal to
institute gambling in any form.
(b) No
individual, partnership, committee, association, corporation, or any other
organization shall contribute to any political
action committee in excess of one thousand dollars
($1,000) in aggregate for advocating the
approval or rejection of any gambling question.
17-25.1-2.
Penalties for violation. -- Any person who willfully and
knowingly violates
the provisions of this chapter shall, upon
conviction, be guilty of a felony and shall be imprisoned
for a term not exceeding two (2) years, or fined
not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000), or
both.
17-25.1-3.
Registration of advocates. -- (a) Every "person," as
defined in chapter 25 of
this title, advocating the approval or rejection
of any gambling question, shall, in addition to any
applicable requirement of chapter 25 and 25.1 of
this title, register with the secretary of state and
the board of elections by submitting upon the
appropriate form its name, and the name and
address of each member of its board or
directors, partner(s), or officer(s), or, if an individual,
such individual's name and address as well as
any person providing funding of five hundred
dollars ($500) or more to the organization. A
"gambling question" is defined as any referendum
that relates to a proposal to institute a casino
within the state or to otherwise expand gambling in
any form.
(b) Before
making an expenditure to advocate the approval or rejection of any gambling
question, a person must register with the
secretary of state and the board of elections and file a
registration statement.
(c) A
registration statement must contain the following information:
(1) The name
and address of the person or entity.
(2) The name
and address of the designated treasurer and deputy treasurer, if a deputy
treasurer is appointed.
(3) The name,
address and title of all other principle officers, directors, partners of the
entity or committee.
(4) The name
and address of a depository institution in the state of Rhode Island in
which a single checking account has been
established for the funds of the person or entity.
(5) The name
and address of any person or entity providing five hundred dollars ($500)
or more, directly or indirectly, to a person or
entity registering and reporting pursuant to this
section.
(6) Whether or
not the person or entity has any direct or indirect affiliation with any
entity or person that operates or owns any type
or kind of gambling facility or entity in any
jurisdiction within or outside of the state and,
if so, the name of such facility or entity.
(d) Every
"person" as defined in chapter 25 of this title, shall supplement its
registration
form if there is a change in the name or address
of any member of its board of directors, partners
or officers, or if there is a change in an
individual's name or address. Failure to notify the board of
elections of changes may be considered by the board
of elections in assessing civil penalties for
late or incomplete reports filed by any person
or entity.
17-25.1-4.
Reports. -- Every "person" as defined in chapter 25 of
this title, spending a
cumulative total of five hundred dollars ($500)
or more for the purpose of advocating the
approval or rejection of any gambling question,
shall report each such expenditure to the board of
elections on a form prescribed by the board of
elections not later than ten (10) days after each
expenditure is made. The report must include the
name, address, principal occupation, employer
of the person filing the report, the name and
address of the person or entity receiving the
expenditure, the amount of each expenditure, and
the total amount of expenditures made, at that
date, by that person or entity during the
calendar year. "Expenditures" shall include the furnishing
of or payment for any media advertising services
or products, including, but not limited to,
newspapers, radio stations, television stations
or electronic mail, general advertising, in
brochures, pamphlets and the like, advertising
agency services, accounting services, billboards,
printing, secretarial services, public opinion
polls, or research and professional campaign
consultation or management, media production, or
computer services, which advocate a position
on a gambling question.
17-25.1-5.
Disclosure of advertising activities. -- Every
"person" as defined in chapter
25 of this title, who makes an expenditure for a
mass mailing, for distribution of campaign
literature of any sort, for a television, radio,
newspaper, or magazine advertisement, or any other
communication that advocates the approval or
rejection of any gambling question shall:
(1) Comply
with section 17-25.1-4; and
(2) Place the
following statement in the mailing, literature, advertisement or other
communication so that it is readily and easily
discernible:
"This
NOTICE TO VOTERS is required by Rhode Island law. (I/we) certify that this
(mailing/literature/advertisement) is paid for
and approved by (name of person)."
17-25.1-6.
Severability. -- If any provision of this chapter or the
application thereof shall
for any reason be judged invalid, that judgment shall
not affect, impair, or invalidate the
remainder of the law, but shall be confined in
its effect to the provision or application directly
involved in the controversy giving rise to the
judgment.
SECTION 4. Chapter
17-25.1 of the General Laws entitled "Gambling Referenda" is
hereby amended by adding thereto the following
section:
17-25.1-1.1.
Gambling referenda -- Ballot question advocates. – Any "ballot
question
advocate", as defined in chapter 25.2 of
title 17, advocating the passage or defeat of any gambling
question shall, in addition to complying with
and being subject to the provisions of chapter 25.2
of title 17, include in its reports filed under
said chapter the following: (i) the name, address and,
if applicable, the place of employment of every
person making a contribution or contributions
that in the aggregate exceed one thousand eight
hundred dollars ($1,800) per election cycle to
such ballot question advocate; and (ii) whether
or not such contributor has any direct or indirect
affiliation with any entity or person that
operates or owns any type or kind of gambling facility or
entity in any jurisdiction and, if so, the name
of such facility or entity. "Gambling question"
means any referendum that relates to a proposal
to institute a casino within the state or to
otherwise expand gambling in any form.
SECTION 5. This act shall take effect upon
passage.
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LC02223/19
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