Read the full stored bill text
House of Representatives
HB5543 / File No. 523 1
General Assembly File No. 523
February Session, 2026 House Bill No. 5543
House of Representatives, April 8, 2026
The Committee on Government Administration and Elections
reported through REP. BLUMENTHAL of the 147th Dist.,
Chairperson of the Committee on the part of the House, that the
bill ought to pass.
AN ACT CONCERNING CERTAIN REVISIONS TO AGGREGATE AND
INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTION AMOUNTS UNDER THE CITIZENS'
ELECTION PROGRAM.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:
Section 1. Section 9-704 of the 2026 supplement to the general statutes 1
is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective 2
December 1, 2026): 3
(a) The amount of qualifying contributions that the candidate 4
committee of a candidate shall be required to receive in order to be 5
eligible for grants from the Citizens' Election Fund shall be: 6
(1) In the case of a candidate for nomination or election to the office 7
of Governor, contributions from individuals in the aggregate amount of 8
[two hundred fifty thousand] two hundred eighty-eight thousand eight 9
hundred dollars, of which [two hundred twenty -five thousand ] two 10
hundred fifty -nine thousand nine hundred dollars or more is 11
contributed by individuals residing in the state. [, except that in the case 12
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 2
of a primary or election held in 2022, or thereafter, the aggregate 13
contribution amounts shall be first adjusted under subdivision (1) of 14
subsection (b) of this section and then rounded to the nearest multiple 15
of one hundred dollars with exactly fifty dollars rounded upward.] The 16
provisions of this subdivision shall be subject to the following: (A) 17
Except as provided in subparagraph (C) of this subdivision and 18
subsection (g) of section 9 -610, (i) on and after January 1, 2019, the 19
candidate committee shall return the portion of any contribution or 20
contributions from any individual, including said candidate, that 21
exceeds two hundred fifty dollars, and (ii) any such excess portion shall 22
not be considered in calculating the aggregate contribution amounts 23
under this subdivision, (B) all contributions received by (i) an 24
exploratory committee established by said candidate, or (ii) an 25
exploratory committee or candidate committee of a candidate for the 26
office of Lieutenant Governor who is deemed to be jointly campaigning 27
with a candidate for nomination or election to the office of Governor 28
under subsection (a) of section 9 -709, which meet the criteria for 29
qualifying contributions to candidate committees under this section 30
shall be considered in calculating the aggregate contribution amounts, 31
and (C) in the case of a primary or election held in 2022, or thereafter, 32
the two-hundred-fifty-dollar maximum individual contribution amount 33
provided in subparagraph (A) of this subdivision shall be first adjusted 34
under subdivision (1) of subsection [(c)] (b) of this section and then 35
rounded to the nearest multiple of ten dollars with exactly five dollars 36
rounded upward. 37
(2) In the case of a candidate for nomination or election to the office 38
of Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, State Comptroller, State 39
Treasurer or Secretary of the State, contributions from individuals in the 40
aggregate amount of [seventy-five thousand ] eighty-six thousand six 41
hundred dollars, of which [sixty-seven thousand five hundred] seventy-42
eight thousand dollars or more is contributed by individuals residing in 43
the state. [, except that in the case of a primary or election for Lieutenant 44
Governor held in 2022, or thereafter, the aggregate contribution 45
amounts shall be first adjusted under subdivision (1) of subsection (b) 46
of this section and then rounded to the nearest multiple of one hundred 47
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 3
dollars with exactly fifty dollars rounded upward and in the case of a 48
primary or election for Attorney General, State Comptroller, State 49
Treasurer or Secretary of the State held in 2018, or thereafter, the 50
aggregate contribution amounts shall be first adjusted under 51
subdivision (2) of subsection (b) of this section and then rounded to the 52
nearest multiple of one hundred dollars with exactly fifty dollars 53
rounded upward.] The provisions of this subdivision shall be subject to 54
the following: (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (C) of this 55
subdivision and subsection (g) of section 9-610, (i) on and after January 56
1, 2019, the candidate committee shall return the portion of any 57
contribution or contributions from any individual, including said 58
candidate, that exceeds two hundred fifty dollars, and (ii) any such 59
excess portion shall not be considered in calculating the aggregate 60
contribution amounts under this subdivision, (B) all contributions 61
received by an exploratory committee established by said candidate that 62
meet the criteria for qualifying contributions to candidate committees 63
under this section shall be considered in calculating the aggregate 64
contribution amounts, and (C) in the case of a primary or election held 65
in 2022, or thereafter, the two -hundred-fifty-dollar maximum 66
individual contribution amount provided in subparagraph (A) of this 67
subdivision shall be first adjusted under subdivision (1) of subsection 68
[(c)] (b) of this section and then rounded to the nearest multiple of ten 69
dollars with exactly five dollars rounded upward. 70
(3) In the case of a candidate for nomination or election to the office 71
of state senator for a district, contributions from individuals in the 72
aggregate amount of [fifteen thousand ] seventeen thousand three 73
hundred dollars, including contributions from at least three hundred 74
individuals residing in municipalities included, in whole or in part, in 75
said district. [, except that in the case of a primary or election held in 76
2018, or thereafter, the aggregate contribution amount shall be first 77
adjusted under subdivision (3) of subsection (b) of this section and then 78
rounded to the nearest multiple of one hundred dollars with exactly fifty 79
dollars rounded upward. ] The provisions of this subdivision shall be 80
subject to the following: (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (D) of 81
this subdivision and subsection (g) of section 9 -610, (i) on and after 82
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 4
December 1, 2017, the candidate committee shall return the portion of 83
any contribution or contributions from any individual, including said 84
candidate, that exceeds two hundred fifty dollars, and (ii) any such 85
excess portion shall not be considered in calculating the aggregate 86
contribution amount under this subdivision, (B) no contribution shall be 87
counted for the purposes of the requirement under this subdivision for 88
contributions from at least three hundred individuals residing in 89
municipalities included, in whole or in part, in the district unless the 90
contribution is five dollars or more, [and] (C) all contributions received 91
by an exploratory committee established by said candidate that meet the 92
criteria for qualifying contributions to candidate committees under this 93
section shall be considered in calculating the aggregate contribution 94
amount under this subdivision and all such exploratory committee 95
contributions that also meet the requirement under this subdivision for 96
contributions from at least three hundred individuals residing in 97
municipalities included, in whole or in part, in the district shall be 98
counted for the purposes of said requirement, and (D) in the case of a 99
primary or election held in 2020, or thereafter, the two -hundred-fifty-100
dollar maximum individual contribution amount provided in 101
subparagraph (A) of this subdivision shall be adjusted under 102
subdivision (2) of subsection [(c)] (b) of this section and then rounded to 103
the nearest multiple of ten dollars with exactly five dollars rounded 104
upward. 105
(4) In the case of a candidate for nomination or election to the office 106
of state representative for a district, contributions from individuals in 107
the aggregate amount of [five thousand] five thousand eight hundred 108
dollars, including contributions from at least one hundred fifty 109
individuals residing in municipalities included, in whole or in part, in 110
said district. [, except that in the case of a primary or election held in 111
2018, or thereafter, the aggregate contribution amount shall be first 112
adjusted under subdivision (3) of subsection (b) of this section and then 113
rounded to the nearest multiple of one hundred dollars with exactly fifty 114
dollars rounded upward. ] The provisions of this subdivision shall be 115
subject to the following: (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (D) of 116
this subdivision and subsection (g) of section 9 -610, (i) on and after 117
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 5
December 1, 2017, the candidate committee shall return the portion of 118
any contribution or contributions from any individual, including said 119
candidate, that exceeds two hundred fifty dollars, and (ii) any such 120
excess portion shall not be considered in calculating the aggregate 121
contribution amount under this subdivision, (B) no contribution shall be 122
counted for the purposes of the requirement under this subdivision for 123
contributions from at least one hundred fifty individuals residing in 124
municipalities included, in whole or in part, in the district unless the 125
contribution is five dollars or more, (C) all contributions received by an 126
exploratory committee established by said candidate that meet the 127
criteria for qualifying contributions to candidate committees under this 128
section shall be considered in calculating the aggregate contribution 129
amount under this subdivision and all such exploratory committee 130
contributions that also meet the requirement under this subdivision for 131
contributions from at least one hundred fifty individuals residing in 132
municipalities included, in whole or in part, in the district shall be 133
counted for the purposes of said requirement, and (D) in the case of a 134
primary or election held in 2020, or thereafter, the two -hundred-fifty-135
dollar maximum individual contribution amount provided in 136
subparagraph (A) of this subdivision shall be adjusted under 137
subdivision (2) of subsection [(c)] (b) of this section and then rounded to 138
the nearest multiple of ten dollars with exactly five dollars rounded 139
upward. 140
(5) Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivisions (3) and (4) of this 141
subsection, in the case of a special election for the office of state senator 142
or state representative for a district, (A) the aggregate amount of 143
qualifying contributions that the candidate committee of a candidate for 144
such office shall be required to receive in order to be eligible for a grant 145
from the Citizens' Election Fund shall be seventy -five per cent or more 146
of the corresponding amount required under the applicable said 147
subdivision (3) or (4), [as adjusted and rounded pursuant to the 148
applicable provisions of subsection (b) of this section, ] and (B) the 149
number of contributions required from individuals residing in 150
municipalities included, in whole or in part, in said district shall be 151
seventy-five per cent or more of the corresponding number required 152
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 6
under the applicable said subdivision (3) or (4). 153
[(b) (1) (A) For elections for the office of Governor or Lieutenant 154
Governor held in 2026, the aggregate contribution amounts in 155
subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall 156
be adjusted by the State Elections Enforcement Commission not later 157
than January 15, 2026, in accordance with any change in the consumer 158
price index for all urban consumers as published by the United States 159
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the period 160
beginning on January 1, 2017, and ending on December thirty-first in the 161
year preceding the year in which said adjustment is to be made. 162
(B) For elections for the office of Governor or Lieutenant Governor 163
held in 2030, and thereafter, the aggregate contribution amounts in 164
subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall 165
be adjusted by the State Elections Enforcement Commission not later 166
than December 15, 2026, and quadrennially thereafter, in accordance 167
with any change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers as 168
published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 169
Statistics, during the period beginning on December 1, 2016, and ending 170
on November thirtieth in the year in which said adjustment is to be 171
made. 172
(2) (A) For elections for the office of Attorney General, State 173
Comptroller, State Treasurer or Secretary of the State held in 2026, the 174
aggregate contribution amounts in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of 175
this section shall be adjusted by the State Elections Enforcement 176
Commission not later than January 15, 2026, in accordance with any 177
change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers as 178
published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 179
Statistics, during the period beginning on January 1, 2017, and ending 180
on December thirty -first in the year preceding the year in which said 181
adjustment is to be made. 182
(B) For elections for the office of Attorney General, State Comptroller, 183
State Treasurer or Secretary of the State held in 2030, and thereafter, the 184
aggregate contribution amounts in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of 185
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 7
this section shall be adjusted by the State Elections Enforcement 186
Commission not later than December 15, 2026, and quadrennially 187
thereafter, in accordance with any change in the consumer price index 188
for all urban consumers as published by the United States Department 189
of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the period beginning on 190
December 1, 2016, and ending on November thirtieth in the year in 191
which said adjustment is to be made. 192
(3) (A) For elections for the office of state senator or state 193
representative held in 2018, and thereafter until December 31, 2025, the 194
aggregate contribution amounts in subdivision (3) or (4) of subsection 195
(a) of this section, as applicable, shall be adjusted by the State Elections 196
Enforcement Commission not later than January 15, 2018, and biennially 197
thereafter until December 31, 2025, in accordance with any change in the 198
consumer price index for all urban consumers as published by the 199
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, during 200
the period beginning on January 1, 2017, and ending on December 201
thirty-first in the year preceding the year in which said adjustment is to 202
be made. 203
(B) For elections for the office of state senator or state representative 204
held in 2026, and thereafter, the aggregate contribution amounts in 205
subdivision (3) or (4) of subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall 206
be adjusted by the State Elections Enforcement Commission not later 207
than December 15, 2025, and biennially thereafter, in accordance with 208
any change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers as 209
published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 210
Statistics, during the period beginning on December 1, 2016, and ending 211
on November thirtieth in the year in which said adjustment is to be 212
made.] 213
[(c) (1) (A) Subject to the provisions of subdivision (3) of this 214
subsection, for elections for the office of Governor, Lieutenant 215
Governor, Attorney General, State Comptroller, State Treasurer or 216
Secretary of the State held in 2026, the two -hundred-fifty-dollar 217
maximum individual contribution amount in subdivision (1) or (2) of 218
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 8
subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall be adjusted by the State 219
Elections Enforcement Commission not later than January 15, 2026, in 220
accordance with any change in the consumer price index for all urban 221
consumers as published by the United States Department of Labor, 222
Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the period beginning on January 1, 223
2017, and ending on December thirty-first in the year preceding the year 224
in which said adjustment is to be made.] 225
[(B)] (b) (1) Subject to the provisions of subdivision (3) of this 226
subsection, for elections for the office of Governor, Lieutenant 227
Governor, Attorney General, State Comptroller, State Treasurer or 228
Secretary of the State held in 2030, and thereafter, the two -hundred-229
fifty-dollar maximum individual contribution amount in subdivision (1) 230
or (2) of subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall be adjusted by 231
the State Elections Enforcement Commission not later than December 232
15, 2026, and quadrennially thereafter, in accordance with any change 233
in the consumer price index for all urban consumers as published by the 234
United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, during 235
the period beginning on December 1, 2016, and ending on November 236
thirtieth in the year in which said adjustment is to be made. 237
[(2) (A) Subject to the provisions of subdivision (3) of this subsection, 238
for elections for the office of state senator or state representative held in 239
2020, and thereafter until December 31, 2025, the two -hundred-fifty-240
dollar maximum individual contribution amount in subdivision (3) or 241
(4) of subsection (a) of this section, as applicable, shall be adjusted by 242
the State Elections Enforcement Commission not later than January 15, 243
2020, and biennially thereafter until December 31, 2025, in accordance 244
with any change in the consumer price index for all urban consumers as 245
published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor 246
Statistics, during the period beginning on January 1, 2017, and ending 247
on December thirty -first in the year preceding the year in which said 248
adjustment is to be made.] 249
[(B)] (2) Subject to the provisions of subdivision (3) of this subsection, 250
for elections for the office of state senator or state representative held in 251
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 9
[2026] 2028, and thereafter, the two -hundred-fifty-dollar maximum 252
individual contribution amount in subdivision (3) or (4) of subsection 253
(a) of this section, as applicable, shall be adjusted by the State Elections 254
Enforcement Commission not later than December 15, [2025] 2026, and 255
biennially thereafter, in accordance with any change in the consumer 256
price index for all urban consumers as published by the United States 257
Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, during the period 258
beginning on December 1, 2016, and ending on November thirtieth in 259
the year in which said adjustment is to be made. 260
(3) (A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this subdivision, on 261
and after December 15, 2025, the maximum individual contribution 262
amount resulting from any adjustment made by the State Elections 263
Enforcement Commission, pursuant to subdivision (1) or (2) of this 264
subsection, as applicable, shall remain in effect until the immediately 265
following adjustment is made by the commission, at which time a new 266
maximum individual contribution amount shall take effect. 267
(B) In the event that any adjustment made by the State Elections 268
Enforcement Commission, pursuant to subdivision (1) or (2) of this 269
subsection, as applicable, results in a new maximum individual 270
contribution amount that would be less than the maximum individual 271
contribution amount that resulted from the immediately preceding 272
adjustment, (i) such new maximum individual contribution amount 273
shall not take effect, and (ii) the maximum individual contribution 274
amount that resulted from the immediately preceding adjustment shall 275
remain in effect until the next adjustment made by the commission 276
pursuant to subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection, as applicable. 277
[(d)] (c) Each individual who makes a contribution of more than fifty 278
dollars to a candidate committee established to aid or promote the 279
success of a participating candidate for nomination or election shall 280
include with the contribution a certification that contains the same 281
information described in subdivision (3) of subsection (c) of section 9 -282
608 and shall follow the same procedure prescribed in said subsection. 283
[(e)] (d) (1) The following shall not be deemed to be qualifying 284
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 10
contributions under subsection (a) of this section and shall be returned 285
to the contributor by the treasurer of the candidate committee in 286
accordance with the provisions of subdivision (2) of subsection (d) of 287
section 9 -706 or donated to a charitable organization which is a tax -288
exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue 289
Code of 1986, or any subsequent corresponding internal revenue code 290
of the United States, as amended from time to time: 291
(A) A contribution from a principal of a state contractor or 292
prospective state contractor; 293
(B) A contribution of less than five dollars; 294
(C) A contribution under subdivision (1) or (2) of subsection (a) of 295
this section from an individual who does not reside in the state, in excess 296
of the applicable limit on contributions from out -of-state individuals in 297
subsection (a) of this section; and 298
(D) A contribution made by a youth who is less than twelve years of 299
age. 300
(2) A contribution of five dollars or more from an individual who 301
does not provide the full name and complete address of such individual 302
shall not be deemed to be a qualifying contribution under subsection (a) 303
of this section and shall be returned to the contributor by the treasurer 304
of the candidate committee, if practicable, or transmitted to the State 305
Elections Enforcement Commission for deposit in the Citizens' Election 306
Fund. 307
[(f)] (e) After a candidate committee receives the applicable aggregate 308
amount of qualifying contributions under subsection (a) of this section, 309
the candidate committee shall transmit any additional contributions 310
that it receives to the State Treasurer for deposit in the Citizens' Election 311
Fund. 312
[(g)] (f) As used in this section, "principal of a state contractor or 313
prospective state contractor" has the same meaning as provided in 314
subsection (g) of section 9 -612, and "individual" shall include sole 315
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 11
proprietorships. 316
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following
sections:
Section 1 December 1, 2026 9-704
GAE Joint Favorable
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 12
The following Fiscal Impact Statement and Bill Analysis are prepared for the benefit of the members of
the General Assembly, solely for purposes of information, summarization and explanation and do not
represent the intent of the General Assembly or either chamber thereof for any purpose. In general,
fiscal impacts are based upon a variety of informational sources, including the analyst’s professional
knowledge. Whenever applicable, agency data is consulted as part of the analysis, however final
products do not necessarily reflect an assessment from any specific department.
OFA Fiscal Note
State Impact:
Agency Affected Fund-Effect FY 27 $ FY 28 $
Resources of the Citizens'
Election Fund
CEF - Cost See Below See Below
Note: GF=General Fund
Municipal Impact: None
Explanation
The bill adjusts the aggregate contribution amounts to qualify for
grants under the Citizens' Election Program (CEP) at the 2022 level and
eliminates the inflationary adjustment for aggregate contribution
amounts following the 2026 election cycle, resultin g in a cost to the
resources of the Citizens' Election Fund (CEF) beginning in FY 27. This
cost is associated with the lower qualification threshold for CEP
funding, enabling more candidates to access it. The exact cost will
depend on the number of additio nal candidates who qualify for the
program and the value of the grants issued.
The Out Years
The annualized ongoing fiscal impact identified above would
continue into the future subject to i nflation, the number of additional
qualified applicants, and the value of the grants issued.
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 13
OLR Bill Analysis
HB 5543
AN ACT CONCERNING CERTAIN REVISIONS TO AGGREGATE
AND INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTION AMOUNTS UNDER THE
CITIZENS' ELECTION PROGRAM.
SUMMARY
This bill changes how inflation affects the qualifying contribution
(QC) amounts in the Citizens’ Election Program (CEP). By law,
candidates qualify for the CEP by raising a certain number of QCs,
which must come from individual donors. Under state law, the base
individual QC amounts may range from $5 to $250.
Current law requires the State Elections Enforcement Commission to
adjust the maximum QC amount for inflation every two years on
December 15 of odd-numbered years (currently, the $250 maximum has
been adjusted for inflation to $340). Starting with the 2028 legislative
elections, the bill instead requires these amounts to be adjusted on the
same day in even-numbered years (for example, December 15, 2026, for
the 2028 elections).
Additionally, to qualify for the CEP, a candidate must also raise an
overall threshold amount of QCs from individual donors. The law also
requires candidates for governor and other statewide offices to raise a
specified amount from state residents. The aggregate threshold amounts
specified in law vary depending on the office sought.
The bill eliminates the requirement that these threshold amounts be
adjusted for inflation, including for state legislator special elections. It
also replaces the current statutory base amounts with the amounts as
they were for the 2022 election cycle, as described in the table below.
HB5543 File No. 523
HB5543 / File No. 523 14
Table: Aggregate CEP Fundraising Thresholds
Office
Current Law
Aggregate
Threshold,
Adjusted for
Inflation
The Bill’s
Aggregate
Threshold
Current Law
Resident
Threshold,
Adjusted for
Inflation
The Bill’s
Resident
Threshold
Governor $335,500 $288,800 $302,000 $259,900
Lt. governor 100,700 86,600 90,600 78,000
State senator 20,100 17,300 N/A N/A
State representative 6,700 5,800 N/A N/A
Lastly, the bill makes technical and conforming changes, including
deleting obsolete language.
EFFECTIVE DATE: December 1, 2026
COMMITTEE ACTION
Government Administration and Elections Committee
Joint Favorable
Yea 15 Nay 3 (03/20/2026)