Political Reform Act of 1974: committee termination.

Plain English Breakdown

The official source material does not specify that committees must respond with an objection to avoid termination, only that the Secretary of State may terminate if no objection is made.

Political Reform Act: Ending Inactive Committees

The bill allows the Secretary of State to terminate inactive political committees if they meet certain conditions and do not respond within a set time frame.

What This Bill Does

• Requires the Secretary of State to send a notice to political committees that receive $2,000 or more in contributions per year if those committees fail to file reports for at least one year under specific circumstances.
• Specifies two conditions: either the committee has not filed a report and has less than $3,000 cash on hand, or it owes money to a candidate and has less than $5,000 in cash.
• Allows the Secretary of State to terminate committees 180 days after sending notice if no objection is made by the committee or commission within that time.

Who It Names or Affects

• Political committees receiving $2,000 or more in contributions per year
• The Secretary of State

Terms To Know

campaign report

A document that lists the money a political committee receives and spends.

Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC)

An agency that makes rules about campaign finance reporting.

Limits and Unknowns

• The bill does not specify what happens to funds if a committee is terminated.
• It's unclear how many committees will be affected by this change.
• The bill relies on the Secretary of State and Fair Political Practices Commission to enforce these rules.

Official Summary Text

AB 2421, as amended, Valencia.
Political Reform Act of 1974: committee termination.
The Political Reform Act of 1974 provides for the comprehensive regulation of campaign financing, including requiring the filing of reports of contributions and expenditures. The act requires committees and candidates to terminate their filing obligation, as provided by the Fair Political Practices Commission by regulation, ensuring that the committee or candidate will have no activity that must be disclosed subsequent to the termination.
This bill would provide that if
the Secretary of State determines that
either of 2 conditions is present, the Secretary of State must provide notice to committees that receive contributions totaling $2,000 or more per year that the committee may be terminated 180 days after the notice is sent. Those
conditions are: 1) The committee failed to submit a campaign report for at least the preceding 12 months and either had an ending cash balance of $3,000 or less on its last campaign statement or had an ending cash balance of $5,000 or less on its last campaign statement and owes $2,000 or more to the controlling candidate; 2) The committee filed a statement of organization in error. The bill would specify that if an objection to the termination notice is not filed by the committee or the commission with the Secretary of State within 180 days after the notice is sent, the Secretary of State may terminate the committee.
The Political Reform Act of 1974, an initiative measure, provides that the Legislature may amend the act to further the act’s purposes upon a
2
/
3
vote of each house of the Legislature and compliance with specified procedural
requirements.
This bill would declare that it furthers the purposes of the act.

Current Bill Text

Download Bill PDF