Election Law - Campaign Finance Entities - Oversight and Control of Campaign Funds

EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO EXISTING LAW.
[Brackets] indicate matter deleted from existing law.
Underlining indicates amendments to bill.
Strike out indicates matter stricken from the bill by amendment or deleted from the law by
amendment.
Italics indicate opposite chamber/conference committee amendments.
*sb0153*

SENATE BILL 153
G1 (6lr0079)
ENROLLED BILL
— Education, Energy, and the Environment/Government, Labor, and Elections —
Introduced by Chair, Education, Energy, and the Environment Committee (By
Request – Departmental – State Board of Elections)

Read and Examined by Proofreaders:

_______________________________________________
Proofreader.
_______________________________________________
Proofreader.

Sealed with t he Great Seal and presented to the Governor, for his approval this

_______ day of _______________ at ________________________ o’clock, ________M.

______________________________________________
President.

CHAPTER ______

AN ACT concerning 1

Election Law – Campaign Finance Entities – Oversight and Control of Campaign 2
Funds 3

FOR the purpose of altering the manner in which a campaign manager may be appointed; 4
requiring the candidate to appoint the chair and treasurer of an authorized candidate 5
campaign committee; repealing the requirement that a campaign manager be a 6
registered voter of the State; altering the offices that a candidate is prohibited from 7
holding in a campaign; providing that the treasurer is the financial steward of a 8
campaign finance entity; altering requirements for assets received by or on behalf of 9
a campaign finance entity and disbursements made by or on behalf of a campaign 10
finance entity; repealing the a uthority of the chair of a campaign finance entity to 11
approve a disbursement on behalf of the campaign finance entity under certain 12
circumstances; authorizing the treasurer a candidate or the responsible officers of a 13
campaign finance entity to designate authorized agents to make disbursements carry 14
2 SENATE BILL 153

out duties on behalf of the campaign finance entity; prohibiting a candidate from 1
having access to, or making a disbursement from, campaign funds in the designated 2
campaign account; requiring a candidate to have knowledge of all disbursements 3
made from the designated campaign account of the candidate’s authorized candidate 4
campaign committee; and generally relating to campaign finance entities and 5
oversight and control of campaign funds. 6

BY repealing and reenacting, without amendments, 7
Article – Election Law 8
Section 1–101(a), 13–248, and 13–604.1(f) 13–604.1(d) and (f) 9
Annotated Code of Maryland 10
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 11

BY repealing and reenacting, with amendments, 12
Article – Election Law 13
Section 1–101(j) and (mm), 2–301(b)(1)(iii), 13–207(c) and (d), 13–212, 13–215(a) and 14
(c), 13–215, 13–218, 13–220(e), 13–246, 13–304(b), and 13–604.1(b)(1) and (d) 15
Annotated Code of Maryland 16
(2022 Replacement Volume and 2025 Supplement) 17

SECTION 1. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF MARYLAND, 18
That the Laws of Maryland read as follows: 19

Article – Election Law 20

1–101. 21

(a) In this article the following words have the meanings indicated unless a 22
different meaning is clearly intended from the context. 23

(j) “Campaign manager” means a person designated by a candidate [,] or [the 24
candidate’s representative,] CHAIR OF A CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY to exercise general 25
overall responsibility for the conduct of the candidate’s political campaign. 26

(mm) “Responsible officers” means the [chairman] CHAIR and treasurer of a 27
political committee. 28

2–301. 29

(b) (1) An individual subject to this section may not, while holding the position: 30

(iii) except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, as to any 31
candidate or any matter that is subject to an election under this article: 32

1. be a campaign manager; 33

SENATE BILL 153 3

2. be a treasurer [or subtreasurer] for a campaign finance 1
entity; or 2

3. take any other active part in political management or a 3
political campaign. 4

13–207. 5

(c) To establish a political committee: 6

(1) a [chairman] CHAIR and a treasurer shall be appointed on a form that 7
the State Board prescribes and that is signed by the [chairman] CHAIR and treasurer and 8
includes: 9

(i) the residence addresses of the [chairman] CHAIR and the 10
treasurer; 11

(ii) if the [chairman] CHAIR and treasurer affirmatively consent to 12
receiving notice under this title only by electronic mail, the electronic mail address of the 13
[chairman] CHAIR and the treasurer; and 14

(iii) the information required by § 13–208 of this subtitle; and 15

(2) the form shall be filed with the State Board. 16

(3) THE CANDIDATE SHALL APPOINT THE CHAIR AND TREASURER OF 17
AN AUTHORIZED CANDIDATE CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE. 18

(3) (4) The [chairman] CHAIR or treasurer of a political committee shall 19
notify the State Board of a change in the residence address of the [chairman] CHAIR or 20
treasurer no later than 21 days before the day on which the political committee’s next 21
campaign finance report is due under § 13–309 of this title. 22

(4) (5) The [chairman] CHAIR or treasurer of a political committee shall 23
notify the State Board of a change in the electronic mail address of the [chairman] CHAIR 24
or treasurer by the date specified in paragrap h (3) of this subsection if the [chairman] 25
CHAIR and treasurer of the political committee have affirmatively consented to receiving 26
notice under this title only by electronic mail. 27

(d) (1) A [chairman] CHAIR or treasurer of a political committee may resi gn 28
by completing a resignation form that the State Board prescribes and filing the form with 29
the State Board. 30

4 SENATE BILL 153

(2) If a vacancy occurs in the office of [chairman] CHAIR or the office of 1
treasurer, the political committee promptly shall appoint a new [chairman] CHAIR or 2
treasurer in accordance with this section. 3

(3) A political committee may not receive or disburse money or any other 4
thing of value if there is a vacancy in the office of [chairman] CHAIR or the office of 5
treasurer. 6

13–212. 7

[An individual] A CANDIDATE, CANDIDATE’S REPRESENTATIVE, OR CHAIR OF A 8
CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY may appoint a campaign manager by: 9

(1) completing a form that the State Board prescribes and that includes the 10
name and address of that campaign manager; and 11

(2) filing the form with the [board where the individual is required to file 12
a certificate of candidacy] STATE BOARD. 13

13–215. 14

(a) Each [chairman] CHAIR, AND treasurer, and campaign manager shall be a 15
registered voter of the State. 16

(b) (1) Subject to paragraph (2) of this subsection, a candidate may not act: 17

(i) as the treasurer of a campaign finance entity of the candidate; or 18

(ii) with respect to any other campaign finance entity: 19

1. as [the campaign manager or treasurer] A RESPONSIBLE 20
OFFICER; or 21

2. in any other position that exercises general overall 22
responsibility for the conduct of the entity. 23

(2) (i) An incumbent member of a central committee who is a candidate 24
for election to party office may act as a responsible officer of that central committee. 25

(ii) With respect to any campaign finance entity other than the 26
candidate’s own campaign finance entity, a candidate for delegate to the Democratic 27
National Convention or a candidate for delegate to the Republican National Convention may 28
act: 29

SENATE BILL 153 5

1. as [the campaign manager or treasurer] A RESPONSIBLE 1
OFFICER; or 2

2. in any other position that exercises general overall 3
responsibility for the conduct of the entity. 4

(c) Subject to subsection (b) of this section, the [chairman] CHAIR, treasurer, or 5
campaign manager of a campaign finance entity may serve as the [chairman] CHAIR, 6
treasurer, or campaign manager of another campaign finance entity. 7

13–218. 8

(a) THE TREASURER IS THE FINANCIAL STEWARD OF THE CAMPAIGN 9
FINANCE ENTITY. 10

(B) All assets received by or on behalf of a campaign finance entity shall be: 11

(1) delivered to AND MANAGED BY the [treasurer] CAMPAIGN FINANCE 12
ENTITY; [and] 13

(2) maintained by the treasurer for the purposes of the campaign finance 14
entity; 15

(3) ACCOUNTED FOR IN ACC ORDANCE WITH § 13–221 OF THIS 16
SUBTITLE; AND 17

(4) CONSIDERED OWNED BY THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY. 18

[(b)] (C) (1) Assets of a campaign finance entity may be disbursed only: 19

(i) if [they have passed through the hands of the treasurer] 20
ACCOUNTED FOR IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 13–221 OF THIS SUBTITLE; and 21

(ii) in accordance with the purposes of the entity AND THIS TITLE. 22

(2) Subject to § 13–220(b)(2) and (c) of this subtitle and except as provided 23
in subsection [(d)] (E) of this section, the treasurer shall approve all disbursements for the 24
campaign finance entity. 25

[(c)] (D) (1) The treasurer of a State or county central committee of a political 26
party may not approve any disbursement of the central committee’s assets, o r incur any 27
liability on its behalf, without authority and direction from the [chairman] CHAIR of the 28
central committee. 29

6 SENATE BILL 153

(2) THE TREASURER OF A PO LITICAL ACTION COMMI TTEE OF A 1
POLITICAL PARTY MAY NOT APPROVE ANY DISB URSEMENT OF THE POLI TICAL 2
ACTION COMMITTEE’S ASSETS, OR INCUR ANY LIABILITY ON ITS BEHALF , WITHOUT 3
AUTHORITY AND DIRECT ION FROM THE CHAIR O F THE POLITICAL ACTI ON 4
COMMITTEE. 5

[(d)] (E) [(1) If the treasurer of a campaign finance entity is temporarily 6
unable to perform the duties of the office, the chairman of the campaign finance entity may 7
approve a disbursement on behalf of the campaign finance entity in the same manner as 8
the treasurer. 9

(2) If the chairman approves a disbursement under this subsection, within 10
7 days after approvin g the disbursement, the chairman shall submit a report to the 11
treasurer for the account book of the campaign finance entity, including: 12

(i) a statement of the expenditure approved under the authority of 13
the chairman; 14

(ii) the name and address of the person to whom the expenditure was 15
made; 16

(iii) the purpose for which the expenditure was made; and 17

(iv) a copy of the receipt for the expenditure that was made.] 18

(1) THE TREASURER A CANDIDATE OR THE RES PONSIBLE OFFICERS 19
MAY DESIGNATE AUTHORIZED AGENTS OF THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY TO MAKE 20
DISBURSEMENTS CARRY OUT DUTIES ON BEHALF OF AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE 21
PURPOSE OF THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY. 22

(2) THE DESIGNATION OF AN AUTHORIZED AGENT MUST BE MADE IN 23
WRITING BEFORE THE FIRST DISBURSEMENT IS MADE BY THE AUTHORIZED AGENT. 24

(3) ANY ACTION TAKEN BY THE DESIGNATED AUTHORIZED AGENT ON 25
BEHALF OF THE CAMPAI GN FINANCE ENTITY IS THE RESPONSIBILITY O F THE 26
TREASURER. 27

(4) A DESIGNATED AUTHORIZED AGENT: 28

(I) HAS A FIDUCIARY DUTY TO THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY 29
FOR THE AGENT ’S CONDUCT IN MAKING DISBURSEMENTS ON BEH ALF OF THE 30
CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY; AND 31

SENATE BILL 153 7

(II) SHALL CONFIRM THE AG ENT’S UNDERSTANDING OF T HE 1
FIDUCIARY DUTY BY SI GNING THE WRITTEN DE SIGNATION THAT INCLU DES A 2
STATEMENT OF THE DUTY. 3

(5) (2) A DESIGNATED AUTHORIZE D AGENT MAY ASSIST T HE 4
TREASURER IN THE PRE PARATION OF ANY REQU IRED FILINGS WITH TH E STATE 5
BOARD. 6

[(3)] (6) (3) A [chairman who is a ] candidate may not [approve] HAVE A 7
CANDIDATE MAY NOT ACCESS TO, OR MAKE a disbursement for a campaign finance 8
entity FROM, FUNDS DEPOSITED IN T HE DESIGNATED CAMPAI GN ACCOUNT 9
ESTABLISHED UNDER § 13–220 OF THIS SUBTITLE. 10

(4) A CANDIDATE SHALL HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF ALL DISBURSEMENTS 11
MADE FROM THE DESIGN ATED CAMPAIGN ACCOUNT OF THE CANDI DATE’S 12
AUTHORIZED CANDIDATE CAMPAIGN COMMITTEE. 13

13–220. 14

(e) Within 30 days after filing a campaign finance report at the State Board, the 15
treasurer of an authorized candidate campaign committee shall provide both the candidate 16
and th e [chairman] CHAIR with a copy of the most recent campaign account bank 17
statement. 18

13–246. 19

A person who claims that money is due from a campaign finance entity shall present 20
a claim for payment to the treasurer [or subtreasurer] not later than 30 days a fter the 21
election for which the liability was incurred. 22

13–248. 23

If a responsible officer of a campaign finance entity has a compensation agreement 24
with the campaign finance entity, before making a disbursement for the compensation, the 25
campaign finance entity shall submit to the State Board: 26

(1) a copy of the compensation agreement; and 27

(2) if the campaign finance entity is an authorized candidate campaign 28
committee, the written consent of the candidate. 29

13–304. 30

(b) A campaign finance report filed by a campaign finance entity under subsection 31
(a) of this section shall include: 32
8 SENATE BILL 153

(1) the information required by the State Board with respect to all 1
contributions received and all expenditures made by or on behalf of the campaign finance 2
entity during the designated reporting period; [and] 3

(2) the information regarding the occupations and employers of 4
contributors required to be recorded by the treasurer of a campaign finance entity under § 5
13–221 of this title; AND 6

(3) THE WRITTEN DESIGNATIONS NAMING THE AUTHORIZED AGENTS 7
WHO MAY ACT ON THE TREASURER’S BEHALF, IF ANY. 8

13–604.1. 9

(b) The State Board may impose a civil penalty in accordance with this section for 10
the following violations: 11

(1) making a disbursement in a manner not [authorized in § 13–218(b)(2), 12
(c), and (d)] IN ACCORDANCE WITH § 13–218(C)(2), (D), AND (E)(6) (E)(3) of this title; 13

(d) (1) Except as otherwise provided in this title or as provided in paragraph 14
(2) of this subsection, the amount of a civil penalty imposed under th is section may not 15
exceed $1,000 for each violation. 16

(2) As to a violation of § 13 –235 of this title, the campaign finance entity 17
that receives a contribution as a result of a violation shall: 18

(i) refund the contribution to the contributor; and 19

(ii) pay a civil penalty that equals $1,000 plus the amount of the 20
contribution, unless the State Board at its discretion assesses a lesser penalty for good 21
cause. 22

(3) AS TO A VIOLATION OF § 13–218(E)(2) OR § 13–248 OF THIS TITLE, 23
THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE ENTITY OR OTHER PERSO N THAT COMMITTED THE 24
VIOLATION SHALL PAY A CIVIL PENALTY THAT EQUALS $1,000 PLUS THE AMOUNT 25
OF THE DISBURSEMENT MADE WITHOUT THE REQUIRED APPROVAL. 26

(f) (1) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection, a civil penalty 27
imposed under this section shall be paid by the campaign finance entity. 28

(2) If the campaign finance entity has insufficient funds with which to pay 29
the full amount of the civil penalty in a timely manner, after the campaign account of the 30
finance entity is exhausted the balance of the civil penalty is the joint and several liability 31
of the responsible officers. 32

SENATE BILL 153 9

(3) If a violation is committed by a person not acting on behalf of, or at the 1
request or suggestion of, a candidate or a campaign finance entity, th e civil penalty shall 2
be paid by the person who committed the violation. 3

SECTION 2. AND BE IT FURTHER ENACTED, That this Act shall take effect 4
January 1, 2027. 5

Approved:
________________________________________________________________________________
Governor.
________________________________________________________________________________
President of the Senate.
________________________________________________________________________________
Speaker of the House of Delegates.