Bill Text: CT HB06580 | 2013 | General Assembly | Comm Sub
Bill Title: An Act Concerning Disclosure Of Independent Expenditures And Changes To Other Campaign Finance Laws And Election Laws.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-1)
Status: (Passed) 2013-06-18 - Signed by the Governor [HB06580 Detail]
Download: Connecticut-2013-HB06580-Comm_Sub.html
General Assembly |
Raised Bill No. 6580 | ||
January Session, 2013 |
LCO No. 3900 | ||
*_____HB06580GAE___032813____* | |||
Referred to Committee on GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION AND ELECTIONS |
|||
Introduced by: |
|||
(GAE) |
|||
AN ACT CONCERNING FAILURE TO FILE A REPORT OF AN INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (e) of section 9-612 of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2013):
(e) (1) Any individual, entity or committee acting alone may make unlimited independent expenditures. Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, any such individual, entity or committee that makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures in excess of one thousand dollars, in the aggregate, shall file statements according to the same schedule and in the same manner as is required of a campaign treasurer of a candidate committee under section 9-608.
(2) Any individual, entity or committee that makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures to promote the success or defeat of a candidate for the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of the State, State Treasurer, State Comptroller, Attorney General, state senator or state representative, which exceeds one thousand dollars, in the aggregate, during a primary campaign or a general election campaign, as defined in section 9-700, on or after January 1, 2008, shall file a report of such independent expenditure to the State Elections Enforcement Commission. The report shall be in the same form as statements filed under section 9-608, except that such report shall be filed electronically. If the individual, entity or committee makes or obligates to make such independent expenditure or expenditures more than ninety days before the day of a primary or election, the individual, entity or committee shall file such report not later than forty-eight hours after such payment or obligation. If the individual, entity or committee makes or obligates to make such independent expenditure or expenditures ninety days or less before the day of a primary or election, the person shall file such report not later than twenty-four hours after such payment or obligation. The report shall be filed under penalty of false statement.
(3) The independent expenditure report shall (A) identify the candidate for whom the independent expenditure or expenditures is intended to promote the success or defeat, (B) affirm under penalty of false statement that the expenditure is an independent expenditure, and (C) provide any information that the State Elections Enforcement Commission requires to facilitate compliance with the provisions of this chapter or chapter 157.
(4) Any person may file a complaint with the commission upon the belief that (A) any such independent expenditure report or statement is false, or (B) any individual, entity or committee that is required to file an independent expenditure report under this subsection has failed to do so. The commission shall make a prompt determination on such a complaint.
(5) (A) If an individual, entity or committee fails to file a report required under subdivision (2) of this subsection in accordance with the provisions of this subsection for an independent expenditure or expenditures made or obligated to be made more than ninety days before the day of a primary or election, the person shall be subject to a civil penalty, imposed by the State Elections Enforcement Commission, of not more than [five thousand] seven thousand five hundred dollars. If an individual, entity or committee fails to file a report required under subdivision (2) in accordance with the provisions of this subsection for an independent expenditure or expenditures made or obligated to be made ninety days or less before the day of a primary or election, such individual, entity or committee shall be subject to a civil penalty, imposed by the State Elections Enforcement Commission, of not more than [ten] fifteen thousand dollars. (B) If any such failure is knowing and wilful, the person responsible for the failure shall also be fined not more than [five thousand] seven thousand five hundred dollars or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections: | ||
Section 1 |
July 1, 2013 |
9-612(e) |
GAE |
Joint Favorable |