AN ACT relating to campaign finance.

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AN ACT relating to campaign finance. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 121.015 is amended to read as follows: 3
As used in this chapter: 4
(1) "Registry" means the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance; 5
(2) "Election" means any primary, regular, or special election to fill vacancies 6
regardless of whether a candidate or sl ate of candidates is opposed or unopposed in 7
an election. Each primary, regular, or special election shall be considered a separate 8
election; 9
(3) "Committee" includes the following: 10
(a) "Campaign committee," which means one (1) or more persons who receive 11
contributions and make expenditures to support or oppose one (1) or more 12
specific candidates or slates of candidates for nomination or election to any 13
state, county, city, or district office, that is authorized by the candidate or slate 14
of candidates to receive contributions, make expenditures, and generally 15
conduct a campaign for the candidate or slate of candidates, but does not 16
include an entity established solely by a candidate which is managed solely by 17
a candidate and a campaign treasurer and whose name is generic in nature, 18
such as "Friends of (the candidate)," and does not reflect that other persons 19
have structured themselves as a committee, designated officers of the 20
committee, an d assigned responsibilities and duties to each officer with the 21
purpose of managing a campaign to support or oppose a candidate in an 22
election; 23
(b) "Independent expenditure -only committee," which means one (1) or more 24
persons who receive unlimited contribu tions for the purpose of making only 25
independent expenditures to support or oppose one (1) or more specific 26
candidates or slates of candidates for nomination or election to any state, 27
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county, city, or district office; 1
(c) "Caucus campaign committee," which means members of one (1) of the 2
following caucus groups who receive contributions and make expenditures to 3
support or oppose one (1) or more specific candidates or slates of candidates 4
for nomination or election, or a committee: 5
1. House Democratic caucus campaign committee; 6
2. House Republican caucus campaign committee; 7
3. Senate Democratic caucus campaign committee; 8
4. Senate Republican caucus campaign committee; or 9
5. Subdivisions of the state executive committee of a minor political party, 10
which serve the same function as the above -named committees, as 11
determined by regulations promulgated by the registry; 12
(d) "Political issues committee," which means three (3) or more persons joining 13
together to advocate or oppose a ballot measure if that committee rec eives or 14
expends money in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000); 15
(e) "Permanent committee," which means a group of individuals, including an 16
association, committee, or organization, other than a campaign committee, 17
independent expenditure -only committee, federally registered political 18
committee, political issues committee, inaugural committee, caucus campaign 19
committee, or party executive committee, which is established as, or intended 20
to be, a permanent organization having as a primary purpose expressly 21
advocating the election or defeat of one (1) or more clearly identified 22
candidates, slates of candidates, or political parties, which functions on a 23
regular basis throughout the year; 24
(f) [An ] "Executive committee of a political party ," which means a polit ical 25
committee that is a subdivision of a national political party committee and 26
operates within the structure and under the supervision of the state 27
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executive committee of that same political party. Political parties may 1
support candidates for public offi ce, raise and spend money for their 2
internal operations, and are governed by a committee that is elected by the 3
voters in that subdivision in a manner not inconsistent with the rules of that 4
same political party; and 5
(g) "Inaugural committee," which means one (1) or more persons who receive 6
contributions and make expenditures in support of inauguration activities for 7
any candidate or slate of candidates elected to any state, county, city, or 8
district office; 9
(4) "Contributing organization" means a group whi ch merely contributes to candidates, 10
slates of candidates, campaign committees, caucus campaign committees, or 11
executive committees from time to time from funds derived solely from within the 12
group, and which does not solicit or receive funds from sources outside the group 13
itself. Any contributions made by the groups in excess of one hundred dollars 14
($100) shall be reported to the registry; 15
(5) "Testimonial affair" means an affair held in honor of a person who holds or who is 16
or was a candidate for nominati on or election to a political office in this state 17
designed to raise funds for any purpose not charitable, religious, or educational; 18
(6) "Contribution" means any: 19
(a) Payment, distribution, loan, deposit, or gift of money or other thing of value, 20
to a can didate, his or her agent, a slate of candidates, its authorized agent, a 21
committee, or contributing organization. As used in this subsection, "loan" 22
shall include a guarantee, endorsement, or other form of security where the 23
risk of nonpayment rests with t he surety, guarantor, or endorser, as well as 24
with a committee, contributing organization, candidate, slate of candidates, or 25
other primary obligor. No person shall become liable as surety, endorser, or 26
guarantor for any sum in any one (1) election which, when combined with all 27
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other contributions the individual makes to a candidate, his or her agent, a 1
slate of candidates, its agent, a committee, or a contributing organization, 2
exceeds the contribution limits provided in KRS 121.150; 3
(b) Payment by any per son other than the candidate, his or her authorized 4
treasurer, a slate of candidates, its authorized treasurer, a committee, or a 5
contributing organization, of compensation for the personal services of 6
another person which are rendered to a candidate, slat e of candidates, 7
committee, or contributing organization, or for inauguration activities; 8
(c) Goods, advertising, or services with a value of more than one hundred dollars 9
($100) in the aggregate in any one (1) election which are furnished to a 10
candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization or for 11
inauguration activities without charge, or at a rate which is less than the rate 12
normally charged for the goods or services; or 13
(d) Payment by any person other than a candidate, his or her authorized treasurer, 14
a slate of candidates, its authorized treasurer, a committee, or contributing 15
organization for any goods or services with a value of more than one hundred 16
dollars ($100) in the aggregate in any one (1) election which are utilized by a 17
candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, or for 18
inauguration activities; 19
(7) Notwithstanding the foregoing meanings of "contribution," the word shall not be 20
construed to include: 21
(a) Services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering a portion 22
or all of their time on behalf of a candidate, a slate of candidates, committee, 23
or contributing organization; 24
(b) A loan of money by any financial institution doing business in Kentucky 25
made in accordance with applica ble banking laws and regulations and in the 26
ordinary course of business; or 27
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(c) An independent expenditure by any individual or permanent committee; 1
(8) "Candidate" means any person who has received contributions or made 2
expenditures, has appointed a campa ign treasurer, or has given his or her consent 3
for any other person to receive contributions or make expenditures with a view to 4
bringing about his or her nomination or election to a nonfederal public office, 5
except as provided in KRS 121.180(10)(b); 6
(9) "Slate of candidates" means: 7
(a) Between the time a certificate or petition of nomination has been filed for a 8
candidate for the office of Governor under KRS 118.365 and the time the 9
candidate designates a running mate for the office of Lieutenant Governor 10
under KRS 118.126, a slate of candidates consists of the candidate for the 11
office of Governor; and 12
(b) After that candidate has designated a running mate under KRS 118.126, that 13
same slate of candidates consists of that same candidate for the office of 14
Governor and the candidate's running mate for the office of Lieutenant 15
Governor. Unless the context requir es otherwise, any provision of law that 16
applies to a candidate shall also apply to a slate of candidates; 17
(10) "Knowingly" means, with respect to conduct or to a circumstance described by a 18
statute defining an offense, that a person is aware or should have been aware that 19
his or her conduct is of that nature or that the circumstance exists; 20
(11) "Fundraiser" means an individual who directly solicits and secures contributions on 21
behalf of a candidate or slate of candidates for a statewide -elected state office or an 22
office in a jurisdiction with a population in excess of two hundred thousand 23
(200,000) residents; 24
(12) "Independent expenditure" means: 25
(a) The expenditure of money or other things of value for a communication which 26
expressly advocates the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate or 27
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slate of candidates, and which: 1
1. Is made without any coordination, consultation, or cooperation with any 2
candidate, slate of candidates, campaign committee, or any authorized 3
person acting on behalf of any of them; and 4
2. Is not made in concert with, or at the request or suggestion of any 5
candidate, slate of candidates, campaign committee, or any authorized 6
person acting on behalf of any of them; or 7
(b) The expenditure of money or other things of value for a communication which 8
expressly advocates or opposes a ballot measure, and which: 9
1. Is made without any coordination, consultation, or cooperation with any 10
political issues committee, or any authorized person acting on behalf of 11
a political issues committee; and 12
2. Is not made in concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, any 13
political issues committee, or any authorized person acting on behalf of 14
a political issues committee; 15
(13) "Electronic reporting" means the use of technology, having electrical , digital, 16
magnetic, wireless, optical, electromagnetic, or similar capabilities, by which an 17
individual or other entity submits, compiles, or transmits campaign finance reports 18
to the registry, or by which the registry receives, stores, analyzes, or discl oses the 19
reports; 20
(14) "Security procedure" means a procedure employed for the purpose of verifying that 21
an electronic signature, record, or performance is that of a specific person or for 22
detecting changes or errors in the information in an electronic rec ord. The term 23
includes a procedure that requires the use of algorithms or other codes, identifying 24
words or numbers, encryption, or callback or other acknowledgment procedures; 25
(15) "Electronic signature" means an electronic sound, symbol, or process attac hed to or 26
logically associated with a record and executed or adopted by a person with the 27
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intent to sign the record; 1
(16) "Filer" means any candidate, a slate of candidates, committee, or other individual or 2
entity required to submit financial disclosure reports to the registry; 3
(17) "Filer-side software" means software provided to or used by the filer that enables 4
transmittal of financial reports to the registry; 5
(18) "Form" means an online web page or an electronic document designed to capture, 6
validate, and submit data for processing to the registry, unless the context otherwise 7
prescribes; 8
(19) "Reasonable cause" means an event, happening, or circumstance entirely beyond 9
the knowledge or control of the candidate, slate of candidates, or committee, which 10
has exercised due care and prudence in maintaining the records of the campaign or 11
committee pursuant to statute or administrative regulation; 12
(20) "Foreign national" means: 13
(a) An individual who is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident of the United 14
States; 15
(b) A government, political subdivision, or municipality of a foreign country; 16
(c) A foreign political party; 17
(d) Any entity, including but not limited to a partnership, association, corporation, 18
organization, or other combination of persons, that i s organized under the 19
laws of or has its principal place of business in a foreign country; or 20
(e) Any entity in the United States, including but not limited to a partnership, 21
association, corporation, or organization that is wholly or majority owned by 22
any foreign national, unless: 23
1. Any contribution or expenditure the entity makes derives entirely from 24
funds generated by the entity's United States operations; and 25
2. All decisions concerning the contribution or expenditure, except for 26
setting overall budget amounts, are made by individuals who are United 27
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States citizens or permanent residents; 1
(21) "Ballot measure" means a question, other than the nomination or election of a 2
candidate for public office, which has been: 3
(a) Approved by a political subdivisio n or the General Assembly and is required 4
by law to be placed before the voters of the territory affected; or 5
(b) Initiated or referred by citizen petition as authorized by KRS 242.020 and 6
placed before the voters of the territory affected; 7
(22) "Preliminary activity" includes but is not limited to: 8
(a) Participating in focus groups; 9
(b) Making telephone calls; 10
(c) Traveling; 11
(d) Conducting polls; and 12
(e) Drafting ballot measure language; and 13
(23) "Tax-exempt organization" means an organization described in 26 U.S.C. sec. 14
501(c) and exempt from federal taxation under 26 U.S.C. sec. 501(a). This 15
subsection shall not be construed to treat a political organization under 26 U.S.C. 16
sec. 527 as a tax-exempt organization for purposes of this chapter. 17
Section 2. KRS 121.150 is amended to read as follows: 18
(1) No contribution shall be made or r eceived, directly or indirectly, other than an 19
independent expenditure, to support inauguration activities or to support or defeat a 20
candidate, slate of candidates, constitutional amendment, or public question which 21
will appear on the ballot in an election, except through the duly appointed campaign 22
manager, or campaign treasurer of the candidate, slate of candidates, or registered 23
committee. Any person making an independent expenditure, shall report these 24
expenditures when the expenditures by that person e xceed five hundred dollars 25
($500) in the aggregate in any one (1) election, on a form provided or using a 26
format approved by the registry and shall sign a statement on the form, under 27
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penalty of perjury, that the expenditure was an actual independent expen diture and 1
that there was no prior communication with the campaign on whose behalf it was 2
made. 3
(2) Except as provided in KRS 121.180(10), the solicitation from and contributions by 4
campaign committees, independent expenditure -only committees, caucus campa ign 5
committees, political issues committees, permanent committees, and party 6
executive committees to any religious, charitable, civic, eleemosynary, or other 7
causes or organizations established primarily for the public good is expressly 8
prohibited; except that it shall not be construed as a violation of this section for a 9
candidate or a slate of candidates to contribute to religious, civic, or charitable 10
groups. 11
(3) No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor 12
anyone acting on their behalf, shall accept any anonymous contribution in excess of 13
one hundred dollars ($100), and all anonymous contributions in excess of one 14
hundred dollars ($100) shall be returned to the donor, if the donor can be 15
determined. If no donor is found , the contribution shall escheat to the state. No 16
candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone 17
acting on their behalf shall accept anonymous contributions in excess of two 18
thousand dollars ($2,000) in the aggregate in any one (1) election. Anonymous 19
contributions in excess of two thousand dollars ($2,000) in the aggregate which are 20
received in any one (1) election shall escheat to the state. 21
(4) No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization , nor 22
anyone on their behalf, shall accept a cash contribution in excess of one hundred 23
dollars ($100) in the aggregate from each contributor in any one (1) election. No 24
candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone 25
on their behalf, shall accept a cashier's check or money order in excess of the 26
maximum cash contribution limit unless the instrument clearly identifies both the 27
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payor and the payee. A contribution made by cashier's check or money order which 1
identifies both the payor and payee shall be treated as a contribution made by check 2
for purposes of the contribution limits contained in this section. No person shall 3
make a cash contribution in excess of one hundred dollars ($100) in the aggregate 4
in any one (1) electi on to a candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or 5
contributing organization, nor anyone on their behalf. 6
(5) No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, contributing organization, nor anyone 7
on their behalf, shall accept any contribution in excess of one hundred dollars 8
($100) from any person who shall not become eighteen (18) years of age on or 9
before the day of the next general election. 10
(6) Except as provided in subsection (22) of this section, no candidate, slate of 11
candidates, campaign committee, nor anyone acting on their behalf, shall accept a 12
contribution of more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) as indexed for inflation 13
every odd -numbered year using the preceding year's percent increase in the non -14
seasonally adjusted annual average Consumer P rice Index for all Urban Consumers 15
(CPI-U), U.S. City Average, All Items, for that year as published by the United 16
States Bureau of Labor Statistics and rounded to the nearest hundred dollars, from 17
any person, permanent committee, or contributing organizat ion in any one (1) 18
election. No person, permanent committee, or contributing organization shall 19
contribute more than two thousand dollars ($2,000) as indexed for inflation every 20
odd-numbered year using the preceding year's percent increase in the non -21
seasonally adjusted annual average Consumer Price Index for all Urban Consumers 22
(CPI-U), U.S. City Average, All Items, as published by the United States Bureau of 23
Labor Statistics and rounded to the nearest hundred dollars, to any one (1) 24
candidate, campaign co mmittee, nor anyone acting on their behalf, in any one (1) 25
election. 26
(7) Permanent committees or contributing organizations affiliated by bylaw structure or 27
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by registration, as determined by the Registry of Election Finance, shall be 1
considered as one (1) committee for purposes of applying the contribution limits of 2
subsection (6) of this section. 3
(8) No permanent committee shall contribute funds to another permanent committee for 4
the purpose of circumventing contribution limits of subsection (6) of this se ction. A 5
permanent committee or independent expenditure -only committee may make 6
unlimited contributions to an independent expenditure -only committee, or as 7
allowed by federal law to a federally registered political committee, provided that if 8
a contributio n is earmarked for a particular independent expenditure, the person 9
making the independent expenditure shall disclose the contribution when reporting 10
the independent expenditure pursuant to subsection (1) of this section. 11
(9) No person shall contribute fun ds to a permanent committee, political issues 12
committee, or contributing organization for the purpose of circumventing the 13
contribution limits of subsection (6) of this section. 14
(10) No person shall contribute more than two thousand dollars ($2,000)as inde xed for 15
inflation every odd -numbered year using the preceding year's percent increase in 16
the non -seasonally adjusted annual average Consumer Price Index for all Urban 17
Consumers (CPI-U), U.S. City Average, All Items, for that year as published by the 18
United States Bureau of Labor Statistics and rounded to the nearest hundred dollars, 19
to a permanent committee or contributing organization in any one (1) year. 20
(11) (a) No person shall contribute more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) to the 21
state executive co mmittee of a political party in any one (1) year. The 22
contribution limit in this paragraph shall not apply to a contribution 23
designated exclusively for a state executive committee's building fund account 24
established under KRS 121.172. 25
(b) No person shall c ontribute more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) to a 26
subdivision or affiliate of a state political party in any one (1) year. 27
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(c) No person shall contribute more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) to a 1
caucus campaign committee in any one (1) year. 2
(12) No person shall make a payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of 3
money to another person to contribute to a candidate, a slate of candidates, 4
committee, contributing organization, or anyone on their behalf. No candidate, slate 5
of candidat es, committee, contributing organization, nor anyone on their behalf 6
shall accept a contribution made by one (1) person who has received a payment, 7
distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money from another person to 8
contribute to a candidate, a s late of candidates, committee, contributing 9
organization, or anyone on their behalf. 10
(13) Subject to the provisions of subsection (17) of this section, no candidate or slate of 11
candidates for nomination to any state, county, city, or district office, nor t heir 12
campaign committees, nor anyone on their behalf, shall solicit or accept 13
contributions for primary election expenses after the date of the primary. No person 14
other than the candidate or slate of candidates shall contribute for primary election 15
expenses after the date of the primary. 16
(14) Subject to the provisions of subsection (17) of this section, no candidate or slate of 17
candidates for any state, county, city, or district office at a regular election, nor their 18
campaign committees, nor anyone on thei r behalf, shall solicit or accept 19
contributions for regular election expenses after the date of the regular election. No 20
person other than the candidate or slate of candidates shall contribute for regular 21
election expenses after the date of the regular election. 22
(15) Subject to the provisions of subsection (17) of this section, no candidate or slate of 23
candidates for nomination or election to any state, county, city, or district office, 24
nor their campaign committees, nor anyone on their behalf, shall solici t or accept 25
contributions for special election expenses after the date of the special election. No 26
person other than the candidate or slate of candidates shall contribute for special 27
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election expenses after the date of the special election. 1
(16) The provisions of subsections (13) and (14) of this section shall apply only to those 2
candidates in a primary or regular election which shall be conducted subsequent to 3
January 1, 1989. The provisions of subsection (15) of this section shall apply only 4
to those candidates or slates of candidates in a special election which shall be 5
conducted subsequent to January 1, 1993. 6
(17) A candidate, slate of candidates, or a campaign committee may solicit and accept 7
contributions after the date of a primary election, regular election, or special 8
election to defray necessary expenses that arise after the date of the election 9
associated with election contests, recounts, and recanvasses of a specific election, 10
complaints regarding alleged campaign finance violations that are filed with the 11
registry pertaining to a specific election, or other legal actions pertaining to a 12
specific election to which a candidate, slate of candidates, or campaign committee 13
is a party, and for repayment of debts and obligations owed by the cam paign or 14
previous campaign for the same office. Reports of contributions received and 15
expenditures made after the date of the specific election shall be made in 16
accordance with KRS 121.180. 17
(18) No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, except a politi cal issues committee, 18
independent expenditure-only committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone 19
on their behalf, shall knowingly accept a contribution from a corporation, directly 20
or indirectly, except to the extent that the contribution is designat ed to a state 21
executive committee's building fund account established under KRS 121.172. 22
(19) Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict the ability of a corporation to 23
administer its permanent committee insofar as its actions can be deemed not to 24
influence an election as prohibited by KRS 121.025. 25
(20) No candidate, slate of candidates, or committee, nor anyone on their behalf, shall 26
solicit a contribution of money or services from a state employee, whether or not 27
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the employee is covered by the classified service provisions of KRS Chapter 18A. 1
However, it shall not be a violation of this subsection for a state employee to 2
receive a solicitation directed to him as a registered voter in an identified precinct as 3
part of an overall plan to contact voters not identified as state employees. 4
(21) No candidate or slate of candidates for any office in this state shall accept a 5
contribution, including an in -kind contribution, which is made from funds in a 6
federal campaign account. No person shall make a c ontribution, including an in -7
kind contribution, from funds in a federal campaign account to any candidate or 8
slate of candidates for any office in this state. 9
(22) It shall be permissible for a married couple to make a contribution with one (1) 10
check that reflects the combined individual contribution limits of each individual 11
spouse per election, as set forth in subsection (6) of this section, for all elections in 12
a calendar year and the following shall be required to be written on the check: 13
(a) The signatures of both spouses on the signature line of the check; and 14
(b) The designation of each contribution amount and the election or elections to 15
which they apply shall be memorialized on the memo line of the check. 16
(23) Nothing in this section or in any other provision of this chapter shall be 17
construed to prohibit a qualified political party committee, including a state or 18
county executive committee, from endorsing, supporting, opposing, or making 19
otherwise lawful contributions or expenditures supporting or o pposing a 20
candidacy designated as nonpartisan under state law. The endorsement, support, 21
or opposition by a political party committee shall not affect the nonpartisan status 22
of the office or the candidate. 23