HB 1218

Abstract

Campaign finance; prohibited personal use of campaign funds; civil penalty. Prohibits any person from making personal use of campaign contributions to a candidate or his campaign committee, or of items acquired using such contributions, for a strictly personal purpose that has no intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the candidate's campaign or public office. Any person who contributes to a candidate or a candidate's campaign committee or who is qualified to vote for a candidate may file a written complaint with the State Board of Elections (State Board) alleging a violation of the personal use prohibition by such candidate, and the State Board is tasked with reviewing the specific use alleged in the complaint. The bill provides that the State Board may initiate a review of a specific use of campaign contributions on its own motion. The subject of the review has 30 days to either (i) reimburse the campaign committee the complained-of amount or (ii) provide to the State Board documentation or other evidence that the use of the campaign funds had an intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the campaign or the candidate's public office. If the subject of the review provides such documentation or other evidence, the State Board shall review the response and determine whether the use of campaign funds had any intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefit to the campaign or the candidate's public office. If the State Board determines that there were no intended, reasonable, or foreseeable benefits and the complained-of amount has not been reimbursed, it shall call a public hearing. A person found by a unanimous vote of the State Board to have willfully and knowingly violated the prohibition on personal use of campaign funds must repay to the campaign committee the amount unlawfully converted to the personal use of the candidate or a member of the candidate's immediate family. The State Board may also assess an additional civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $1,000. The bill also authorizes the State Board to provide, upon request, to any person subject to the personal use prohibition a formal advisory opinion regarding a specific use of campaign funds. The bill also requires the State Board to develop and publish guidance on the personal use prohibition.