SB2257sam001 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

Sen. Kwame Raoul

Filed: 3/18/2009

09600SB2257sam001 LRB096 11450 JAM 23884 a

AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 2257

AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 2257 by replacing everything after the enacting clause with the following:

"Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing the heading of Article 9 and Sections 9-1, 9-1.4, and 9-1.5 and by adding Sections 9-1.18, 9-1.20, 9-1.21, 9-1.22, 9-8.5, and 9-8.7 as follows:

(10 ILCS 5/Art. 9 heading)

ARTICLE 9. DISCLOSURE AND REGULATION OF CAMPAIGN

CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDITURES

(10 ILCS 5/9-1) (from Ch. 46, par. 9-1)

Sec. 9-1. As used in this Article, unless the context otherwise requires, the terms defined in Sections 9-1.1 through 9-1.22 9-1.13, have the respective meanings as defined in those Sections.

(Source: P.A. 86-873.)

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.4) (from Ch. 46, par. 9-1.4)

Sec. 9-1.4. Contribution.

(A) "Contribution" means-

(1) a gift, subscription, donation, dues, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value, knowingly received in connection with the nomination for election, or election, or retention of any person to or in public office, in connection with the election of any person as ward or township committeeman in counties of 3,000,000 or more population, or in connection with any question of public policy;

(1.5) a gift, subscription, donation, dues, loan, advance, deposit of money, or anything of value that constitutes an electioneering communication regardless of whether the communication is made in concert or cooperation with or at the request, suggestion, or knowledge of a candidate, a candidate's authorized local political committee, a State political committee, a political committee in support of or opposition to a question of public policy, or any of their agents;

(2) the purchase of tickets for fund-raising events, including but not limited to dinners, luncheons, cocktail parties, and rallies made in connection with the nomination for election, or election, or retention of any person to or in public office, in connection with the election of any person as ward or township committeeman in counties of 3,000,000 or more population, or in connection with any question of public policy;

(3) a transfer of funds between political committees; and

(4) the services of an employee donated by an employer, in which case the contribution shall be listed in the name of the employer, except that any individual services provided voluntarily and without promise or expectation of compensation from any source shall not be deemed a contribution; but

(5) does not include--

(a) the use of real or personal property and the cost of invitations, food, and beverages, voluntarily provided by an individual in rendering voluntary personal services on the individual's residential premises for candidate-related activities; provided the value of the service provided does not exceed an aggregate of $150 in a reporting period;

(b) the sale of any food or beverage by a vendor for use in a candidate's campaign at a charge less than the normal comparable charge, if such charge for use in a candidate's campaign is at least equal to the cost of such food or beverage to the vendor.

(c) communications on any subject by a corporation to its stockholders and executive or administrative personnel and their families, by a labor organization to its members and their families, or by an association to its members and their families;

(d) voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns that make no mention of any clearly identified candidate, public question, or political party, or group or combination thereof;

(e) the establishment, administration, and solicitation of contributions to a separate segregated fund to be used for political purposes by a corporation, labor organization, or association; or

(f) a secured loan of money by a national or State bank or credit union made in accordance with the applicable banking laws and regulations and in the ordinary course of business; however, the use, ownership, or control of any security for such a loan, if provided by a person other than the candidate or his or her committee, qualifies as a contribution.

(B) Interest or other investment income, earnings or proceeds, and refunds or returns of all or part of a committee's previous expenditures, shall not be considered contributions for the purposes of Section 9-8.5 but shall be listed with contributions on disclosure reports required by this Article.

(Source: P.A. 94-645, eff. 8-22-05.)

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.5) (from Ch. 46, par. 9-1.5)

Sec. 9-1.5. Expenditure defined.

"Expenditure" means-

(1) a payment, distribution, purchase, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money or anything of value, in connection with the nomination for election, or election, or retention of any person to or in public office, in connection with the election of any person as ward or township committeeman in counties of 3,000,000 or more population, or in connection with any question of public policy. "Expenditure" also includes a payment, distribution, purchase, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money or anything of value that constitutes an electioneering communication regardless of whether the communication is made in concert or cooperation with or at the request, suggestion, or knowledge of a candidate, a candidate's authorized local political committee, a State political committee, a political committee in support of or opposition to a question of public policy, or any of their agents. However, expenditure does not include -

(a) the use of real or personal property and the cost of invitations, food, and beverages, voluntarily provided by an individual in rendering voluntary personal services on the individual's residential premises for candidate-related activities; provided the value of the service provided does not exceed an aggregate of $150 in a reporting period. ;

(b) the sale of any food or beverage by a vendor for use in a candidate's campaign at a charge less than the normal comparable charge, if such charge for use in a candidate's campaign is at least equal to the cost of such food or beverage to the vendor.

(2) a transfer of funds between political committees.

(3) a payment for electioneering communications.

(Source: P.A. 93-574, eff. 8-21-03; 93-615, eff. 11-19-03; 93-847, eff. 7-30-04.)

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.18 new)

Sec. 9-1.18. Regular election period. "Regular election period" means any of:

(a) the period beginning on January 1 immediately following the date of the general election for the office to which a candidate seeks nomination or election and ending the day of the General primary election for that office;

(b) the period beginning on the day after the general primary election for the office to which the candidate seeks nomination or election and ending on the December 31 after the general election for that office;

(c) the period beginning on the date on which a sitting judge declares for retention and ending 90 days after the retention election.

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.20 new)

Sec. 9-1.20. Labor organization. The term "labor organization" means any organization of any kind or any agency or employee representation committee or plan in which employees participate and that exists for the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, rates of pay, hours of employment, or conditions of work.

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.21 new)

Sec. 9-1.21. Corporation. The term "corporation" includes a limited liability company, partnership, professional practice, cooperative, or sole proprietorship, whether organized on a for-profit or non-profit basis.

(10 ILCS 5/9-1.22 new)

Sec. 9-1.22. Association. The term "association" means any group, club, meeting, collective, membership organization, collection of persons, any entity organized under Section 501 or 527 of the Internal Revenue Code, or any other entity other than a natural person, except that an association does not include a political committee organized under this Article.

(10 ILCS 5/9-8.5 new)

Sec. 9-8.5. Limitation on contributions.

(a) It shall be unlawful for any person to make contributions to a political committee except as provided in this Section.

(b) For all political committees:

(1) Natural persons may contribute no more than $7,500 during any regular election period in which the candidate who designated the committee is seeking nomination or election.

(2) A corporation, labor organization, or association may contribute from its own treasuries no more than $20,000 during each election period. All contributions from associated entities, including political committees for which the corporation, labor organization, or association is the sponsoring entity, shall be aggregated for the purposes of this Section. If a corporation, labor organization, or association donates in aggregate $10,000 or more during the period, such donations shall be reported to the State Board within 2 business days.

(c) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit political committees from dividing the proceeds of joint fund raising efforts; provided that no political committee may receive more than the limit from any one donor and all donations shall be listed as from their true origin.

(d) On January 1 of every odd-numbered year, the State Board of Elections shall adjust the limits established in subsection (b) for inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers as issued by the United States Department of Labor and rounded to the nearest $100.

(e) In any instance where a corporation and any of its subsidiaries, branches, divisions, departments, or local units; a labor organization and any of its subsidiaries, branches, divisions, departments, or local units; or an association or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, branches, divisions, departments, or local units contribute to one or more political committees or establish, maintain, or control more than one separate segregated fund qualified as a political committee, all of the related contributing entities shall be treated as a single contributing entity for the purposes of the limitations provided by this Section.

(f) No candidate or political committee shall knowingly accept any contribution in violation of the provisions of this Section. No officer or employee of a political committee shall knowingly accept a contribution made for the benefit or use of a candidate in violation of any limitation designated for contributions under this Section.

(g) Complaints.

(1) The Board shall receive complaints alleging violations of this Section. The Board may bring complaints and investigations on its own initiative when the Board has reason to believe that a violation of this Section has occurred.

(2) Upon receipt of a complaint, the Board shall hold a closed preliminary hearing to determine whether or not the complaint appears to have been filed on justifiable grounds. Such closed preliminary hearing shall be conducted as soon as practicable after affording reasonable notice, a copy of the complaint, and an opportunity to testify at such hearing to both the person making the complaint and the person against whom the complaint is directed. If the Board determines that the complaint has not been filed on justifiable grounds, it shall issue a written order to dismiss the complaint without further hearing, specifying the defect in the original complaint.

(3) The Board shall have the authority to promulgate procedural rules governing the filing and hearing of complaints under this Section that are not inconsistent with this Section.

(h) Penalties.

(1) Any person who violates this Section shall be fined the greater of $10,000 or 3 times the value of the excess contribution.

(2) The State Board of Elections shall assess a penalty of up to $5,000 for each violation against the recipient of any contribution in violation of this Section if the recipient knew that the donation was in violation of this Section. For purposes of this Section, a recipient knew that the donation was in violation of this Section if the candidate, the committee chairman or treasurer, or any natural person paid to perform regular campaign tasks knew that the donation was in violation of this Section.

(10 ILCS 5/9-8.7 new)

Sec. 9-8.7. Soliciting of contributions by associations, corporations, or labor organizations.

(a) It is unlawful for any person affiliated in any way with a corporation knowingly soliciting an employee of that corporation for a contribution to a political committee to fail to inform the employee at the time of the solicitation of the political purposes of the fund. It is unlawful for any person affiliated in any way with a labor organization or association knowingly soliciting an member of that labor organization or association for a contribution to a political committee to fail to inform the member at the time of the solicitation of the political purposes of the fund.

(b) It is unlawful for any person affiliated in any way with a corporation knowingly soliciting an employee of that corporation for a contribution to a political committee to fail to inform the employee at the time of the solicitation of the employee's right to refuse to contribute without any reprisal. It is unlawful for any person affiliated in any way with a labor organization or association knowingly soliciting any member of the same labor organization or association for a contribution to a political committee to fail to inform the employee at the time of the solicitation of the employee's right to refuse to contribute without any reprisal.

(c) Complaints.

(1) The Board shall receive complaints alleging violations of this Section. The Board may bring complaints and investigations on its own initiative when the Board has reason to believe that a violation of this Section has occurred.

(2) Upon receipt of a complaint, the Board shall hold a closed preliminary hearing to determine whether or not the complaint appears to have been filed on justifiable grounds. Such closed preliminary hearing shall be conducted as soon as practicable after affording reasonable notice, a copy of the complaint, and an opportunity to testify at such hearing to both the person making the complaint and the person against whom the complaint is directed. If the Board determines that the complaint has not been filed on justifiable grounds, it shall issue a written order to dismiss the complaint without further hearing, specifying the defect in the original complaint.

(3) The Board shall have the authority to promulgate procedural rules governing the filing and hearing of complaints under this Section that are not inconsistent with this Section.

(4) In addition to any other penalties authorized by this Article, the State Board of Elections, any political committee, or any person may apply to the circuit court for a temporary restraining order or a preliminary or permanent injunction against a political committee or any other entity to cease the expenditure of funds in violation of this Section and to cease operations until the Board determines that the committee or entity is in compliance with this Section.

(d) Penalties. Any person who violates this Section shall be fined $200 for each person improperly solicited. Contributions received from any donor within 6 months after an improper solicitation of that donor must be returned to the donor.

Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are severable. If any provision of this Act is held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity does not affect other provisions of the Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision. ".