HB2477 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB094 10012 JAM 40270 b

94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2005 and 2006
HB2477

Introduced 02/17/05, by Rep. Dave Winters

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

10 ILCS 5/9-10

from Ch. 46, par. 9-10

Amends the Election Code. Makes a technical change in a provision concerning campaign finance disclosure reports.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning elections.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing Section 9-10 as follows:

(10 ILCS 5/9-10) (from Ch. 46, par. 9-10)

Sec. 9-10. Financial reports.

(a) The treasurer of every every state political committee and the treasurer of every local political committee shall file with the Board, and the treasurer of every local political committee shall file with the county clerk, reports of campaign contributions, and semi-annual reports of campaign contributions and expenditures on forms to be prescribed or approved by the Board. The treasurer of every political committee that acts as both a state political committee and a local political committee shall file a copy of each report with the State Board of Elections and the county clerk. Entities subject to Section 9-7.5 shall file reports required by that Section at times provided in this Section and are subject to the penalties provided in this Section.

(b) Reports of campaign contributions shall be filed no later than the 15th day next preceding each election including a primary election in connection with which the political committee has accepted or is accepting contributions or has made or is making expenditures. Such reports shall be complete as of the 30th day next preceding each election including a primary election. The Board shall assess a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for a violation of this subsection, except that for State officers and candidates and political committees formed for statewide office, the civil penalty may not exceed $10,000. The fine, however, shall not exceed $500 for a first filing violation for filing less than 10 days after the deadline. There shall be no fine if the report is mailed and postmarked at least 72 hours prior to the filing deadline. For the purpose of this subsection, "statewide office" and "State officer" means the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, and Treasurer. However, a continuing political committee that neither accepts contributions nor makes expenditures on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate or public question on the ballot at an election shall not be required to file the reports heretofore prescribed but may file in lieu thereof a Statement of Nonparticipation in the Election with the Board or the Board and the county clerk.

(b-5) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (b) and Section 1.25 of the Statute on Statutes, any contribution of more than $500 received in the interim between the last date of the period covered by the last report filed under subsection (b) prior to the election and the date of the election shall be filed with and must actually be received by the State Board of Elections within 2 business days after receipt of such contribution. The State Board shall allow filings of reports of contributions of more than $500 under this subsection (b-5) by political committees that are not required to file electronically to be made by facsimile transmission. For the purpose of this subsection, a contribution is considered received on the date the public official, candidate, or political committee (or equivalent person in the case of a reporting entity other than a political committee) actually receives it or, in the case of goods or services, 2 business days after the date the public official, candidate, committee, or other reporting entity receives the certification required under subsection (b) of Section 9-6. Failure to report each contribution is a separate violation of this subsection. In the final disposition of any matter by the Board on or after the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 93rd General Assembly, the Board may impose fines for violations of this subsection not to exceed 100% of the total amount of the contributions that were untimely reported, but in no case when a fine is imposed shall it be less than 10% of the total amount of the contributions that were untimely reported. When considering the amount of the fine to be imposed, the Board shall consider, but is not limited to, the following factors:

(1) whether in the Board's opinion the violation was committed inadvertently, negligently, knowingly, or intentionally;

(2) the number of days the contribution was reported late; and

(3) past violations of Sections 9-3 and 9-10 of this Article by the committee.

(c) In addition to such reports the treasurer of every political committee shall file semi-annual reports of campaign contributions and expenditures no later than July 31st, covering the period from January 1st through June 30th immediately preceding, and no later than January 31st, covering the period from July 1st through December 31st of the preceding calendar year. Reports of contributions and expenditures must be filed to cover the prescribed time periods even though no contributions or expenditures may have been received or made during the period. The Board shall assess a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for a violation of this subsection, except that for State officers and candidates and political committees formed for statewide office, the civil penalty may not exceed $10,000. The fine, however, shall not exceed $500 for a first filing violation for filing less than 10 days after the deadline. There shall be no fine if the report is mailed and postmarked at least 72 hours prior to the filing deadline. For the purpose of this subsection, "statewide office" and "State officer" means the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, and Treasurer.

(c-5) A political committee that acts as either (i) a State and local political committee or (ii) a local political committee and that files reports electronically under Section 9-28 is not required to file copies of the reports with the appropriate county clerk if the county clerk has a system that permits access to, and duplication of, reports that are filed with the State Board of Elections. A State and local political committee or a local political committee shall file with the county clerk a copy of its statement of organization pursuant to Section 9-3.

(d) A copy of each report or statement filed under this Article shall be preserved by the person filing it for a period of two years from the date of filing.

(Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03; 93-615, eff. 11-19-03; revised 12-17-03.)