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Chapter 0260 - 572R - C Ver of HB2874
Conference Engrossed
campaign committees;
termination statements; contributions
State of Arizona
House of Representatives
Fifty-seventh Legislature
Second Regular Session
2026
CHAPTER 260
HOUSE BILL 2874
AN
ACT
amending sections 16-928, 16-934
and 16-937, Arizona Revised Statutes; relating to campaign CONTRIBUTIONS
and expenses.
(TEXT OF BILL BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE)
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the State of Arizona:
Section 1. Section 16-928, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
16-928.
Filing officer; statements and reports
A. A person that is required to file any statements
and reports required by this article and articles 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.6
and 1.7 of this chapter shall file with the filing officer in charge of that
election, as follows:
1. The secretary of state is the filing officer for
statewide and legislative elections, including retention elections for supreme
court justices and court of appeals judges. The secretary of state
is also the filing officer for committees that support or oppose a recall
election or the circulation of a petition for a recall election for a statewide
or legislative officeholder, for committees that support or oppose a statewide
initiative or referendum or other statewide ballot measure, question or
proposition or the circulation of a petition for a statewide initiative or
referendum or other statewide ballot measure, question or proposition.
2. The county officer in charge of elections is the
filing officer for county, school district, community college district and
special taxing district elections, including retention elections for superior
court judges. The county officer in charge of elections is also the
filing officer for committees that support or oppose a recall election or the
circulation of a petition for a recall election for an officeholder of a county
office, a school district governing board office, a community college district governing
board office or a special taxing district governing board office, for
committees that support or oppose a county, school district, community college
district or special taxing district initiative or referendum or other ballot
measure, question or proposition, including bond, tax, budget and budget
override measures or that oppose or support the circulation of a petition for a
county, school district, community college district or special taxing district
initiative or referendum or other county, school district, community college
district or special taxing district ballot measure, question or proposition.
3. The city or town clerk is the filing officer for
city and town elections. The city or town clerk is also the filing
officer for committees that support or oppose a recall election or the
circulation of a petition for a recall election for a city or town
officeholder, for committees that support or oppose a city or town initiative
or referendum or other city or town ballot measure, question or proposition or
the circulation of a petition for a city or town initiative or referendum or
other city ballot measure, question or proposition.
B. Notwithstanding subsection A of this section, a
standing committee shall file reports only with the secretary of state.
C. A filing officer shall provide the option for
electronic filing
,
and
shall make all statements and reports publicly available on
the internet
and within five days after the closing date for
filing a report shall publish a listing of all active committees that owe
penalties for late filing of reports
. A filing officer may
comply with this section by opting into the secretary of state's electronic
filing system.
END_STATUTE
Sec. 2. Section 16-934, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
16-934.
Termination statement; filing; contents
A. A committee may terminate only when the committee
treasurer files a termination statement with the filing officer with whom the
committee's statement of organization was filed.
B. In the termination statement, the committee
treasurer shall certify under penalty of perjury that
all
either
of the following
apply
applies
:
1. The committee received no
CONTRIBUTIONS.
2. The committee received
contributions and all of the following apply:
1.
(
a
)
The committee will no longer receive any
contributions or make any disbursements.
2.
(
b
)
The committee either:
(a)
(
i
)
Has no outstanding debts
,
or
obligations
or void penalties pursuant to
section 16-937, subsection B, paragraph 1
.
(b)
(
ii
)
Has outstanding debts or obligations, or both, that
are all more than five years old, and that the committee's creditors have
agreed to discharge the debts and obligations and have agreed to the
termination of the committee.
3.
(
c
)
Any surplus monies have been disposed of and that
the committee has no cash on hand.
4.
(
d
)
All contributions and expenditures have been
reported, including any disposal of surplus monies.
C. A filing officer may reject the termination
statement if it appears to the filing officer that the requirements in
subsection B of this section have not been satisfied.
D. After a termination statement is filed, a
committee:
1. Is not required to file any subsequent campaign
finance reports.
2. Shall have no further receipts or disbursements
without filing a new statement of organization.
E. A standing committee may terminate its activities
in a particular reporting jurisdiction, and remain active in other reporting
jurisdictions, by filing a statement of that intent with the filing officer in
each reporting jurisdiction.
END_STATUTE
Sec. 3. Section 16-937, Arizona Revised Statutes, is amended to read:
START_STATUTE
16-937.
Failure to file; penalties; notice; suspension
A. If a committee
fails to timely file a complete report as prescribed by articles 1, 1.1, 1.2,
1.3, 1.4, 1.5 and 1.6 of this chapter, the filing officer shall send a written
notice by
e-mail
email
to the
committee within five days after the filing deadline that identifies the late
report, describes how fines accrue and identifies methods of payment.
B. A committee that fails to timely file a report
shall pay the filing officer a penalty of
ten dollars
$10
for each day that the filing is late during the first
fifteen days after the filing deadline and
twenty-five
dollars
$25
for each subsequent day that the
filing is late. Penalties accrue until the late report is filed
,
except that:
1. penalties shall not be assessed
and any accrued penalties are void if the committee certifies that it received
no CONTRIBUTIONS and made no expenditures during the reporting period to which
the untimely report corresponds and files a termination statement pursuant to
section 16-934, subsection B
.
2. Beginning July 1, 2026, tHE
MAXIMUM AMOUNT of penalties THAT A COMMITTEE MAY ACCRUE FOR EACH LATE REPORT IS
$5,000
.
C. If a committee fails to file a complete report
within thirty days after the filing deadline and after providing notice
pursuant to subsection A of this section, the filing officer may notify the
appropriate enforcement officer prescribed in this article.
D. For any political action committee or political
party that fails to file three consecutive complete reports, the filing officer
shall send by
e-mail
email
to
the committee a notice of temporary suspension and the following apply:
1. On receipt, the committee's authority to operate
in the jurisdiction is temporarily suspended.
2. The notice shall state that failure to comply
with all filing and payment requirements within thirty days after the date of
the notice shall result in permanent suspension of the committee's authority to
operate in that jurisdiction.
E. After compliance with subsection D of this
section, the filing officer may permanently suspend the committee and shall
notify the committee by
e-mail
email
and is not required to provide any further notice. Permanent or
temporary suspension does not eliminate a committee's continuing obligation to
file reports and pay any outstanding and accruing penalties provided by law.
F. For a committee that files a
termination statement as prescribed by section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph
1 that states that the committee received no CONTRIBUTIONS, the following
apply:
1. Penalties may not be assessed
against and may not accrue against the committee.
2. Any penalties that are assessed or
that accrue against a committee that subsequently files a termination statement
pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 1 are deemed void
retroactively.
3. For any ENFORCEMENT action
initiated by the ENFORCEMENT officer against a committee that subsequently
files a termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B,
paragraph 1, the enforcement officer is deemed without JURISDICTION and if the
matter is before a court, the court shall dismiss the matter promptly.
G. FOR A COMMITTEE THAT files a
termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 2 and
that HAS ACCRUED PENALTIES FOR UNTIMELY REPORTS CORRESPONDING TO REPORTING
PERIODS DURING WHICH THE COMMITTEE RECEIVED NO CONTRIBUTIONS AND MADE NO
EXPENDITURES, THE FOLLOWING APPLY:
1. PENALTIES MAY NOT BE ASSESSED
AGAINST AND MAY NOT ACCRUE AGAINST THE COMMITTEE IN CONNECTION WITH those
REPORTS.
2. ANY PENALTIES THAT ARE ASSESSED OR
THAT ACCRUE AGAINST THE COMMITTEE IN CONNECTION WITH those REPORTS ARE DEEMED
VOID RETROACTIVELY.
3. FOR ANY ENFORCEMENT ACTION
INITIATED BY THE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER AGAINST THE COMMITTEE IN CONNECTION WITH
those REPORTS, THE ENFORCEMENT OFFICER IS DEEMED WITHOUT JURISDICTION AND IF
THE MATTER IS BEFORE A COURT, THE COURT SHALL DISMISS THE MATTER PROMPTLY.
END_STATUTE
Sec. 4.
Committees; untimely reports; termination
statement
Notwithstanding section 16-937,
Arizona Revised Statutes, as amended by this act, and notwithstanding any other
law, for a committee that accrues penalties for filing untimely reports
required by title 16, chapter 6, articles 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6 and
1.7, Arizona Revised Statutes, the penalties may not be assessed against that
committee for the untimely reports and any penalties that do accrue against
that committee are void if both of the following apply:
1. The penalties were
accrued during a reporting period for which the committee certifies and files
complete reports that the committee received no contributions and made no
expenditures during the reporting period and if the committee subsequently
receives contributions and makes expenditures, the committee files complete
reports for the reporting periods.
2. The committee files a
termination statement on or before December 31, 2026.
Sec. 5.
Retroactivity
This act applies retroactively to from
and after July 5, 2016.
Sec. 6.
Emergency
This act is an emergency measure that
is necessary to preserve the public peace, health or safety and is operative
immediately as provided by law.
APPROVED BY THE GOVERNOR JUNE 22, 2026.
FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE JUNE 22, 2026.