2020 -- H 7548

========

LC004464

========

     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2020

____________

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS - RHODE ISLAND CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS AND

EXPENDITURES REPORTING

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Caldwell, Millea, McEntee, Ajello, and Speakman

     Date Introduced: February 12, 2020

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

1

     SECTION 1. Section 17-25-7.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 17-25 entitled "Rhode

2

Island Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting" is hereby amended to read as

3

follows:

4

     17-25-7.2. Personal use of campaign funds prohibited.

5

     (a) The personal use by any elected public office holder or by any candidate for public

6

office, as defined in § 17-25-3, of campaign funds contributed after April 29, 1992, is prohibited.

7

For the purposes of this section, "personal use" is defined as any use other than expenditures

8

related to gaining or holding public office and for which the candidate for public office or elected

9

public official would be required to treat the amount of the expenditure as gross income under §

10

61 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 61, or any subsequent corresponding

11

Internal Revenue Code of the United States, as from time to time amended.

12

     (b) Expenditures that are specifically prohibited under this chapter include:

13

     (1) Any residential or household items, supplies, or expenditures, including mortgage,

14

rent, or utility payments for any part of any personal residence of a candidate or officeholder or a

15

member of the candidate's or officeholder's family;

16

     (2) Mortgage, rent, or utility payments for any part of any non-residential property that is

17

owned by a candidate or officeholder or a member of a candidate's or officeholder's family and

18

used for campaign purposes, to the extent the payments exceed the fair-market value of the

 

1

property usage;

2

     (3) Funeral, cremation, or burial expenses, including any expenses related to deaths

3

within a candidate's or officeholder's family;

4

     (4) Clothing, other than items of de minimis value that are used in the campaign;

5

     (5) Tuition payments;

6

     (6) Dues, fees, or gratuities at a country club, health club, recreational facility or other

7

nonpolitical organization, unless they are part of a specific fundraising event that takes place on

8

the organization's premises;

9

     (7) Salary payments to a member of a candidate's family, unless the family member is

10

providing bona fide services to the campaign. If a family member provides bona fide services to a

11

campaign, any salary payments in excess of the fair-market value of the services provided is

12

personal use;

13

     (8) Admission to a sporting event, concert, theater, or other form of entertainment, unless

14

part of a specific campaign or officeholder activity;

15

     (9) Payment of any fines, fees, or penalties assessed pursuant to this chapter.

16

     (c) Any expense that results from campaign or officeholder activity is permitted use of

17

campaign funds. Such expenditures may include:

18

     (1) The defrayal of ordinary and necessary expenses of a candidate or officeholder;

19

     (2) Office expenses and equipment, provided the expenditures and the use of the

20

equipment can be directly attributable to the campaign or the officeholder's duties and

21

responsibilities;

22

     (3) Donations to charitable organizations, provided the candidate or officeholder does not

23

personally benefit from the donation or receive compensation from the recipient organization;

24

     (4) Travel expenses for an officeholder, provided that the travel is undertaken as an

25

ordinary and necessary expense of seeking, holding, or maintaining public office, or seeking,

26

holding, or maintaining a position within the legislature or other publicly elected body. If a

27

candidate or officeholder uses campaign funds to pay expenses associated with travel that

28

involves both personal activities and campaign or officeholder activities, the incremental

29

expenses that result from the personal activities are personal use, unless the person(s) benefiting

30

from this use reimburse(s) the campaign account within thirty (30) days for the amount of the

31

incremental expenses;

32

     (5) Gifts of nominal value and donations of a nominal amount made on a special occasion

33

such as a holiday, graduation, marriage, retirement, or death, unless made to a member of the

34

candidate's or officeholder's family;

 

LC004464 - Page 2 of 5

1

     (6) Meal expenses that are incurred as part of a campaign activity or as a part of a

2

function that is related to the candidate's or officeholder's responsibilities, including meals

3

between and among candidates and/or officeholders that are incurred as an ordinary and

4

necessary expense of seeking, holding, or maintaining public office, or seeking, holding, or

5

maintaining a position within the legislature or other publicly elected body;

6

     (7) Food and beverages that are purchased as part of a campaign or officeholder activity;

7

     (8) Communication access expenses that are incurred as part of a campaign activity and

8

operation to ensure that deaf and hard-of-hearing citizens are fully participating, are volunteers,

9

and/or are otherwise maintaining a position with the campaign committee. Examples of

10

communication access expenses include, but are not limited to, the following: captioning on

11

television advertisements; video clips; sign language interpreters; computer-aided real-time

12

(CART) services; and assistive listening devices.;

13

     (9) Child care expenses that are incurred as a result of campaign activity.

14

     (d) Any campaign funds not used to pay for the expenses of gaining or holding public

15

office may:

16

     (1) Be maintained in a campaign account(s);

17

     (2) Be donated to a candidate for public office, to a political organization, or to a political

18

action committee, subject to the limitation on contributions in § 17-25-10.1;

19

     (3) Be transferred, in whole or in part, into a newly established political action committee

20

or ballot question advocate;

21

     (4) Be donated to a tax-exempt charitable organization as that term is used in § 501(c)(3)

22

of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 501, or any subsequent, corresponding

23

internal revenue code of the United States as from time to time amended;

24

     (5) Be donated to the state of Rhode Island; or

25

     (6) Be returned to the donor; provided, however:

26

     (e) Any funds remaining in a campaign account(s) of a candidate or officeholder, or

27

former candidate or former officeholder, who dies, after repayment of loans and accounts

28

payable, shall be disposed, in accordance with the instructions in writing, on a form prescribed by

29

the board of elections, which funds may:

30

     (1) Be donated to a candidate for public office, to a political organization, or to a political

31

action committee, subject to the limitation on contributions in § 17-25-10.1;

32

     (2) Be transferred, in whole or in part, into a newly established political action committee

33

or ballot question advocate;

34

     (3) Be donated to a tax-exempt charitable organization as that term is used in § 501(c)(3)

 

LC004464 - Page 3 of 5

1

of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 26 U.S.C. § 501, or any subsequent, corresponding

2

internal revenue code of the United States as from time to time amended; or

3

     (4) Be returned to the donor.

4

     (5) The candidate's or officeholder's, or former candidate's or former officeholder's,

5

campaign account(s) shall be dissolved by the board of elections;

6

     (6) Any penalties assessed to the candidate or officeholder, or former candidate or former

7

officeholder, that are outstanding at the time of their death shall be waived by the board of

8

elections.

9

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

========

LC004464

========

 

LC004464 - Page 4 of 5

EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO ELECTIONS - RHODE ISLAND CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS AND

EXPENDITURES REPORTING

***

1

     This act would permit campaign funds to be used to pay all child care expenses that are

2

incurred as a direct result of campaign activity.

3

     This act would take effect upon passage.

========

LC004464

========

 

LC004464 - Page 5 of 5