campaign finance; penalties; suspensions; terminations

SB1617 - 572R - I Ver

REFERENCE TITLE:
campaign finance; penalties; suspensions; terminations

State of Arizona

Senate

Fifty-seventh Legislature

Second Regular Session

2026

SB 1617

Introduced by

Senator
Ortiz

AN
ACT

amending sections 16-311, 16-312, 16-341,
16-928 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 16-311, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
16-311.

Nomination papers; statement of interest; filing; definitions

A. Any person desiring to become a candidate at a
primary election for a political party and to have the person's name printed on
the official ballot shall be a qualified elector of the party and, not less
than one hundred twenty nor more than one hundred fifty days before the primary
election, shall sign and cause to be filed a nomination paper giving the
person's actual residence address or, if the person does not have an actual
residence address, a description of place of residence and post office address,
or, if the person's actual residence address is protected pursuant to section
16-153, a post office box or private mailbox address in the candidate's
district or precinct, as applicable for a district or precinct office, naming
the party of which the person desires to become a candidate, stating the office
and district or precinct, if any, for which the person offers the person's
candidacy, stating the exact manner in which the person desires to have the
person's name printed on the official ballot pursuant to subsection G of
this section, and giving the date of the primary election and, if nominated,
the date of the general election at which the person desires to become a
candidate.� Except for a candidate for United States senator or representative
in Congress, a candidate for public office shall be a qualified elector at the
time of filing and shall reside in the county, district or precinct that the
person proposes to represent.� A candidate for partisan public office shall be
continuously registered with the political party of which the person desires to
be a candidate beginning
no
not

later than the date of the first petition signature on the candidate's petition
through the date of the general election at which the person is a candidate.

B. Any person desiring to become a candidate at any
nonpartisan election and to have the person's name printed on the official
ballot shall be at the time of filing a qualified elector of the county, city,
town or district and, not less than one hundred twenty nor more than one
hundred fifty days before the election, shall sign and cause to be filed a
nomination paper giving the person's actual residence address or, if the person
does not have an actual residence address, a description of place of residence
and post office address, or, if the person's actual residence address is
protected pursuant to section 16-153, a post office box or private
mailbox address in the candidate's county, city, town or district and ward or
precinct, as applicable for a county, city, town or district and ward or
precinct office, stating the office and county, city, town or district and ward
or precinct, if any, for which the person offers the person's candidacy,
stating the exact manner in which the person desires to have the person's name
printed on the official ballot pursuant to subsection G of this section
and giving the date of the election. A candidate for office shall
reside at the time of filing in the county, city, town, district, ward or
precinct that the person proposes to represent.

C. Notwithstanding subsection B of this section, any
city or town may adopt by ordinance for its elections the time frame provided
in subsection A of this section for filing nomination petitions. The
ordinance shall be adopted not less than one hundred fifty days before the
first election to which it applies.

D. All persons desiring to become a candidate shall
file with the nomination paper provided for in subsection A of this section a
declaration, which shall be printed in a form prescribed by the secretary of
state. The declaration shall include facts sufficient to show that,
other than the residency requirement provided in subsection A of this section
and the satisfaction of any monetary penalties, fines or judgments as
prescribed in subsection J of this section, the candidate will be qualified at
the time of election to hold the office the person seeks, and that for any
monetary penalties, fines or judgments as prescribed in subsection J of this
section, the candidate has made complete payment before the time of filing.

E. The nomination paper of a candidate for the
office of United States senator or representative in Congress, for the office
of presidential elector or for a state office, including a member of the
legislature, or for any other office for which the electors of the entire state
or a subdivision of the state greater than a county are entitled to vote, shall
be filed with the secretary of state
no
not

later than 5:00 p.m. on the last date for filing.

F. The nomination paper of a candidate for superior
court judge or for a county, district and precinct office for which the
electors of a county or a subdivision of a county other than an incorporated
city or town are entitled to vote shall be filed with the county elections
officer
no
not
later than 5:00
p.m. on the last date for filing as prescribed by subsection A of this
section. The nomination paper of a candidate for a city or town
office shall be filed with the city or town clerk
no
not
later than 5:00 p.m. on the last date for
filing. The nomination paper of a candidate for school district
office shall be filed with the county school superintendent
no
not
later than 5:00 p.m. on the last date for filing.

G. The nomination paper shall include the exact
manner in which the candidate desires to have the person's name printed on the
official ballot and shall be limited to the candidate's surname and given name
or names, an abbreviated version of such names or appropriate initials such as
"Bob" for "Robert", "Jim" for "James",
"Wm." for "William" or "S." for
"Samuel".� Nicknames are permissible, but nicknames, abbreviated
versions or initials of given names may not suggest reference to professional,
fraternal, religious or military titles and may not include a slogan, a
promotional word or phrase or any word that does not actually constitute a
nickname. No other descriptive name or names shall be printed on the
official ballot, except as provided in this section. Candidates'
abbreviated names or nicknames may be printed within quotation marks.� The
candidate's surname shall be printed first, followed by the given name or
names.

H. Not later than the date of the first petition
signature on a nomination petition, a person who may be a candidate for office
pursuant to this section shall file a statement of interest with the
appropriate filing officer for that office. The statement of interest shall
contain the name of the person, the political party, if any, and the name of
the office that may be sought. Any nomination petition signatures collected
before the date the statement of interest is filed are invalid and subject to
challenge.� This subsection does not apply to:

1. Candidates for elected office for special taxing
districts that are established pursuant to title 48.

2. Candidates for precinct committeeman.

3. Candidates for president or vice president of the
United States.

I. A person who does not file a timely nomination
paper that complies with this section is not eligible to have the person's name
printed on the official ballot for that office.� The filing officer shall not
accept the nomination paper of a candidate for state or local office unless the
person provides or has provided all of the following:

1. The financial disclosure statement as prescribed
for candidates for that office.

2. The declaration of qualification and eligibility
as prescribed in subsection D of this section.

J. Except in cases where the liability is being
appealed, the filing officer shall not accept the nomination paper of a
candidate for state or local office if the person is liable for an aggregation
of $1,000 or more in fines, penalties
,

or
late fees
or administrative or civil judgments
,
including any interest or costs, in any combination, that have not been fully
satisfied at the time of the attempted filing of the nomination paper and the
liability arose from failure to comply with or enforcement of chapter 6 of this
title.

K. For the purposes of this title:

1. "Election district" means this state,
any county, city, town, precinct or other political subdivision or a special
district that is not a political subdivision, that is authorized by statute to
conduct an election and that is authorized or required to conduct its election
in accordance with this title.

2. "Nomination paper" means the form filed
with the appropriate office by a person wishing to declare the person's intent
to become a candidate for a particular political office.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 2. Section 16-312, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
16-312.

Filing of nomination papers for write-in candidates

A. Any person desiring to become a write-in
candidate for an elective office in any election shall be at the time of filing
a qualified elector of the county or district the person proposes to represent
and shall have been a resident of that county or district for one hundred
twenty days before the date of the election, except that for a city or town
office, section 9-232 applies with respect to residency for the
candidate. The person shall file a nomination paper, signed by the
candidate, giving the person's actual residence address or, if the person does
not have an actual residence address, a description of place of residence and
post office address, or, if the person's actual residence address is protected
pursuant to section 16-153, a post office box or private mailbox address
in the candidate's district, precinct or municipality, as applicable for the
district, precinct or municipal office that the person proposes to represent,
and the person's age, length of residence in the state and date of birth.

B. A write-in candidate shall file the
nomination paper not earlier than one hundred fifty days before the election
and not later than 5:00 p.m. on the sixtieth day before the election, except
that:

1. A candidate running as a write-in candidate
as provided in section 16-343, subsection D shall file the nomination
paper not later than 5:00 p.m. on the fifth day before the election.

2. A candidate running as a write-in candidate for
an election that may be canceled pursuant to section 16-410 shall file
the nomination paper not later than 5:00 p.m. on the one hundred sixth day
before the election.

C. The write-in filing procedure shall be in
the same manner as prescribed in section 16-311. Any person
who does not file a timely nomination paper shall not be counted in the tally
of ballots. The filing officer shall not accept the nomination paper
of a candidate for state or local office unless the candidate provides or has
provided the financial disclosure statement as prescribed for candidates for
that office.

D. Except in cases where the liability is being
appealed, the filing officer shall not accept the nomination paper of a
write-in candidate for state or local office if the person is liable for an
aggregation of $1,000 or more in fines, penalties
,

or
late fees
or administrative or civil judgments
,
including any interest or costs, in any combination, that have not been fully
satisfied at the time of the attempted filing of the nomination paper and the
liability arose from failure to comply with or enforcement of chapter 6 of this
title.

E. The secretary of state shall notify the various
boards of supervisors as to write-in candidates filing with the secretary
of state's office. The county school superintendent shall notify the
appropriate board of supervisors as to write-in candidates filing with
the superintendent's office. The board of supervisors shall notify
the appropriate election board inspector of all candidates who have properly
filed such statements. In the case of a city or town election, the
city or town clerk shall notify the appropriate election board inspector of
candidates properly filed. No other write-ins shall be
counted. The election board inspector shall post the notice of
official write-in candidates in a conspicuous location within the polling
place.

F. Except as provided in section 16-343,
subsection E, a candidate may not file pursuant to this section if any of the
following applies:

1. For a candidate in the general election, the
candidate ran in the immediately preceding primary election and failed to be
nominated to the office sought in the current election.

2. For a candidate in the general election, the
candidate filed a nomination petition for the immediately preceding primary
election for the office sought and failed to provide a sufficient number of
valid petition signatures as prescribed by section 16-322.

3. For a candidate in the primary election, the
candidate filed a nomination petition for the current primary election for the
office sought and failed to provide a sufficient number of valid petition
signatures as prescribed by section 16-322, withdrew from the primary
election after a challenge was filed or was removed from or otherwise
determined by court order to be ineligible for the primary election ballot.

4. For a candidate in the general election, the
candidate filed a nomination petition for nomination other than by primary
election for the office sought and failed to provide a sufficient number of
valid petition signatures as prescribed by section 16-341.

G. A person who files a nomination paper pursuant to
this section for the office of president of the United States shall designate
in writing to the secretary of state at the time of filing the name of the
candidate's vice presidential running mate, the names of presidential electors
who will represent that candidate and a statement signed by the vice
presidential running mate and designated presidential electors that indicates
their consent to be designated.� A nomination paper for each presidential elector
designated shall be filed with the candidate's nomination paper. The
number of presidential electors shall equal the number of United States
senators and representatives in Congress from this state.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 3. Section 16-341, Arizona Revised
Statutes, is amended to read:

START_STATUTE
16-341.

Nomination petition; method and time of filing; form;
qualifications and number of petitioners required; statement of interest

A. Any qualified elector who is not a registered
member of a political party that is recognized pursuant to this title may be
nominated as a candidate for public office otherwise than by primary election
or by party committee pursuant to this section.

B. This article shall not be used to place on the
general election ballot the name of a political party that fails to meet the
qualifications specified in section 16-802 or 16-804, or the name
of any candidate representing such party or the name of a candidate who has
filed a nomination petition in the immediately preceding primary election and
has failed to qualify as the result of an insufficient number of valid
signatures.

C. A nomination petition stating the name of the
office to be filled, the name and residence of the candidate, or, if the
candidate does not have an actual residence address, a description of place of
residence and post office address, or, if the person's actual residence address
is protected pursuant to section 16-153, a post office box or private
mailbox address in the candidate's district, precinct or municipality, as
applicable for a district, precinct or municipal office, and other information
required by this section shall be filed with the same officer with whom primary
nomination papers and petitions are required to be filed as prescribed in
section 16-311. Except for candidates for the office of
presidential elector filed pursuant to this section, the petition shall be
filed not less than one hundred twenty days nor more than one hundred fifty
days before the primary election.� The petition shall be signed only by voters
who have not signed the nomination petitions of a candidate for the office to be
voted for at that primary election.

D. The nomination petition shall be in substantially
the following form, except that if the candidate does not have an actual
residence address, the candidate may use a description of place of residence
and post office address, or, if the candidate's actual residence address is
protected pursuant to section 16-153, a post office box or private
mailbox address in the candidate's district, precinct or municipality, as
applicable for a district, precinct or municipal office, is sufficient:

The undersigned, qualified electors of __________ county,
state of Arizona, do hereby nominate __________, who resides at __________ in
the county of __________, as a candidate for the office of _______ at the
general (or special, as the case may be) election to be held on the ________
day of _________, _____.

I hereby declare that I have not signed the nomination
petitions of any candidate for the office to be voted for at this primary
election, and I do hereby select the following designation under which name the
said candidate shall be placed on the official ballot (here insert such
designation not exceeding three words in length as the signers may select).

E. The nomination petition shall conform as nearly
as possible to the provisions relating to nomination petitions of candidates to
be voted for at primary elections and shall be signed by at least the number of
persons who are registered to vote determined by calculating three percent of
the persons who are registered to vote of the state, county, subdivision or
district for which the candidate is nominated who are not members of a
political party that is qualified to be represented by an official party ballot
at the next ensuing primary election and accorded representation on the general
election ballot.

F. The percentage of persons who are registered to
vote necessary to sign the nomination petition shall be determined by the total
number of registered voters from other than political parties that are
qualified to be represented by an official party ballot at the next ensuing
primary election and accorded representation on the general election ballot in
the state, county, subdivision or district on January 2 of the year in which
the general election is held. Notwithstanding the method prescribed
by subsection E of this section and this subsection for calculating the minimum
number of signatures necessary, any person who is registered to vote in the
state, county, subdivision or district for which the candidate is nominated is
eligible to sign the nomination petition without regard to the signer's party
affiliation.

G. A nomination petition for any candidate may be
circulated by a person who is not a resident of this state but who is otherwise
eligible to register to vote in this state if that person registers as a
circulator with the secretary of state before circulating
petitions. The nomination petition for the office of presidential
elector shall include a group of names of candidates equal to the number of
United States senators and representatives in Congress from this state instead
of separate nomination petitions for each candidate for the office of
presidential elector. A valid signature on a petition containing a
group of presidential electors candidates is counted as a signature for the
nomination of each of the candidates. The presidential candidate
whom the candidates for presidential elector will represent shall designate in
writing to the secretary of state the names of the candidates who will
represent the presidential candidate before any signatures for the candidate
can be accepted for filing. A nomination petition for the office of
presidential elector shall be filed not less than eighty nor more than one
hundred days before the general election. The petition shall be
signed only by qualified electors who have not signed the nomination petitions
of a candidate for the office of presidential elector to be voted for at that
election.

H. The secretary of state shall require in the
instructions and procedures manual issued pursuant to section 16-452 that
persons who circulate nomination petitions pursuant to this section and who are
not residents of this state but who are otherwise eligible to register to vote
in this state shall register as circulators with the office of the secretary of
state before circulating petitions. The secretary of state shall provide for a
method of receiving service of process for those petition circulators who are
registered.

I. Not later than the date of
the first petition signature on a nomination petition, a person who may be a
candidate for office pursuant to this section shall file a statement of
interest with the appropriate filing officer for that office.� The statement of
interest shall contain the name of the person, the political party, if any, and
the name of the office that may be sought. Any nomination petition signatures
collected before the date the statement of interest is filed are invalid and
subject to challenge. This subsection does not apply to:

1. Candidates for elected office for special taxing
districts that are established pursuant to title 48.

2. Candidates for precinct committeeman.

3. Candidates for president or vice president of the
United States.

J. A person who files a nomination paper pursuant to
this section for the office of president of the United States shall designate
in writing to the secretary of state at the time of filing the name of the
candidate's vice presidential running mate, the names of the presidential
electors who will represent that candidate and a statement that is signed by
the vice presidential running mate and the designated presidential electors and
that indicates their consent to be designated.� A nomination paper for each
presidential elector designated shall be filed with the candidate's nomination
paper. The number of presidential electors shall equal the number of
United States senators and representatives in Congress from this state.

K. A candidate who does not file a timely nomination
petition that complies with this section is not eligible to have the
candidate's name printed on the official ballot for that office.� The filing
officer shall not accept the nomination paper of a candidate for state or local
office unless the candidate provides or has provided all of the following:

1. The financial disclosure statement as prescribed
for candidates for that office.

2. The declaration of qualification and eligibility
as prescribed in section 16-311.

L. Not later than sixty days before the date of the
general election, a candidate for governor who files a nomination petition
pursuant to this section shall submit to the secretary of state the name of the
person who will be the joint candidate for lieutenant governor with that
gubernatorial candidate and whose name will appear on the general election
ballot jointly with the candidate for governor.

M. Except in cases where the liability is being
appealed, the filing officer shall not accept the nomination paper of a
candidate for state or local office if the person is liable for an aggregation
of $1,000 or more in fines, penalties
,

or
late fees
or administrative or civil judgments
,
including any interest or costs, in any combination, that have not been fully
satisfied at the time of the attempted filing of the nomination paper and the
liability arose from failure to comply with or enforcement of chapter 6 of this
title.

N. The secretary of state may authorize for
statewide and legislative offices the creation, use and submission of petitions
prescribed by this section in electronic form if those petitions provide for an
appropriate method to verify signatures of petition circulators and signers.
The secretary of state may require use of a unique marking system for petition
pages, including a bar code, a quick response code or another similar marking
system.
END_STATUTE

Sec. 4. 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 shall include a listing of all committees that owe fines 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. 5. 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 the maximum amount that a committee may accrue for each late report
in a single reporting period is $5,000
.
Within
thirty days after the end of a reporting period, a committee must SATISFY or
dispute with the filing officer all late fines, penalties or fees.

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.
� For
committees that file with the secretary of state and before any REFERRAL to the
attorney general pursuant to this section or section 16-938, the secretary of
state may waive accrued penalties for good cause, such as the death of the
treasurer or candidate or an information technology failure.

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

eliminates
a
committee's continuing obligation to file reports
and pay any
outstanding
and
accruing penalties to provided by law
limits the accrual of penalties to those penalties incurred by the
failure to file three reports
.

F. For any committee that has no
activity for two years after the date of the suspension prescribed by
subsection E of this section, the secretary of state may deem the committee
terminated.

G. An individual who serves as an
officer of a committee that has accrued penalties pursuant to this SECTION may
not form or serve on any other committee that is required to file with any
filing officer prescribed by section 16-928 until the accrued penalties are
paid.

END_STATUTE

Sec. 6.
Committee
compliance period; waiver

Notwithstanding any other law, during
the six months after the effective date of this act, the secretary of state may
accept committee filings and may waive penalties of more than $1,000 without
referral to the attorney general under section 16-937, Arizona Revised
Statutes, as amended by this act, or section 16-938, Arizona Revised
Statutes.