0001| SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
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0002| SENATE BILL 112
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0003| 43rd legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 1997
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0004|
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0005|
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0006|
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0007|
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0008|
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0009|
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0010|
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0011| AN ACT
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0012| RELATING TO ELECTIONS; ENACTING THE CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
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0013| ACT; PROVIDING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION LIMITS; PRESCRIBING CIVIL
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0014| PENALTIES; DECLARING AN EMERGENCY.
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0015|
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0016| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
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0017| Section 1. SHORT TITLE.--This act may be cited as the
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0018| "Campaign Finance Reform Act".
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0019| Section 2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Campaign Finance
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0020| Reform Act:
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0021| A. "campaign committee" means two or more persons
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0022| authorized by a candidate to raise, collect or expend
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0023| contributions on the candidate's behalf for the purpose of
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0024| electing the candidate to office;
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0025| B. "candidate" means an individual who seeks or
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0001| considers an office, other than a federal office, in an
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0002| election covered by the Campaign Finance Reform Act, including
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0003| a public official, who either has filed a declaration of
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0004| candidacy or nominating petition or:
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0005| (1) for a nonstatewide office, has received
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0006| contributions or made expenditures of one thousand dollars
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0007| ($1,000) or more or authorized another person or campaign
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0008| committee to receive contributions or make expenditures of one
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0009| thousand dollars ($1,000) or more for the purpose of seeking
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0010| election to the office; or
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0011| (2) for a statewide office, has received
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0012| contributions or made expenditures of two thousand five hundred
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0013| dollars ($2,500) or more or authorized another person or
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0014| campaign committee to receive contributions or make
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0015| expenditures of two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) or
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0016| more for the purpose of seeking election to the office or for
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0017| candidacy exploration purposes in the years prior to the year
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0018| of the election;
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0019| C. "contribution" means a gift, subscription, loan,
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0020| advance or deposit of money or other thing of value, including
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0021| the estimated value of an in-kind contribution, that is made or
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0022| received for a political purpose, including payment of a debt
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0023| incurred in an election campaign, but does not include the
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0024| value of services provided without compensation or unreimbursed
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0025| travel or other personal expenses of individuals who volunteer
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0001| a portion or all of their time on behalf of a candidate or
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0002| political committee, nor does it include the administrative or
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0003| solicitation expenses of a political committee that are paid by an
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0004| organization that sponsors the committee;
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0005| D. "election" means any primary, general or statewide
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0006| special election in New Mexico and includes judicial retention and
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0007| public regulation commission elections but excludes county,
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0008| municipal, school board and special district elections;
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0009| E. "person" means an individual or entity;
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0010| F. "personal funds" means any funds over which the
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0011| candidate has control, including funds in a joint bank account and
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0012| any money loaned to the candidate or his campaign committee by a
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0013| financial institution or individual;
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0014| G. "political committee" means two or more persons,
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0015| other than members of a candidate's immediate family or campaign
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0016| committee or a husband and wife who make a contribution out of a
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0017| joint account, who are selected, appointed, chosen, associated,
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0018| organized or operated primarily for a political purpose and
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0019| includes political action committees or similar organizations
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0020| composed of employees or members of any corporation, labor
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0021| organization, trade or professional association or any other
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0022| similar group that raises, collects, expends or contributes money
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0023| or any other thing of value for a political purpose; provided that
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0024| a "political committee" includes a single individual who by his
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0025| actions represents that he is a political committee;
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0001| H. "political purpose" means influencing or attempting
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0002| to influence an election or pre-primary convention, including a
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0003| constitutional amendment or other question submitted to the
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0004| voters; and
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0005| I. "proper filing office" means the county clerk for a
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0006| candidate seeking election to a state legislative office wholly
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0007| within one county and the secretary of state for all other
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0008| candidates covered by the Campaign Finance Reform Act.
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0009| Section 3. CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION LIMITS--RESTRICTIONS AND
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0010| REQUIREMENTS.--
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0011| A. No person, campaign committee or political committee
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0012| shall make contributions that, in the aggregate, exceed:
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0013| (1) five hundred dollars ($500) to a candidate or
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0014| his campaign committee with respect to an election for a state
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0015| legislative or nonstatewide judicial office;
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0016| (2) one thousand dollars ($1,000) to a candidate or
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0017| his campaign committee with respect to an election for a statewide
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0018| office; and
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0019| (3) one thousand dollars ($1,000) to a political
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0020| committee in any calendar year.
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0021| B. A candidate may make contributions of any amount of
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0022| his personal funds to his campaign committee. However, with
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0023| respect to an election for a nonfederal office covered by the
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0024| Campaign Finance Reform Act, if a candidate for:
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0025| (1) a state legislative, nonstatewide judicial or
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0001| public regulation commission office makes contributions that, in
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0002| the aggregate, exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) of his
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0003| personal funds to his campaign committee, except as provided in
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0004| Subsection E of this section, then the restrictions on
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0005| contributions in excess of the limit in Paragraph (1) of
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0006| Subsection A of this section do not apply to the candidate's
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0007| opponents and the opponents' campaign committees, but remain in
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0008| effect for the candidate and his campaign committee; or
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0009| (2) a statewide office makes contributions that, in
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0010| the aggregate exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) of his
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0011| personal funds to his campaign committee, except as provided in
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0012| Subsection E of this section, then the restrictions on
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0013| contributions in excess of the limit in Paragraph (2) of
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0014| Subsection A of this section do not apply to the candidate's
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0015| opponents and the opponents' campaign committees, but remain in
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0016| effect for the candidate and his campaign committee.
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0017| C. Each candidate shall file a declaration stating
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0018| whether the candidate agrees to be bound by the voluntary limits
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0019| on his personal funds, as set forth in Subsection B of this
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0020| section with the proper filing officer at the time the candidate
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0021| files his declaration of candidacy or nominating petition. For
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0022| the primary election, the declaration concerning the voluntary
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0023| limits on the candidate's personal funds shall be filed no later
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0024| than the deadline for filing for a primary election. For the
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0025| general election, the declaration concerning the voluntary limits
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0001| on the candidate's personal funds shall be filed no later than
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0002| thirty days after the primary election. Nominees appointed to
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0003| fill a vacancy shall file the declaration concerning the voluntary
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0004| limits on the candidate's personal funds within one week of their
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0005| nomination. Once filed, the declaration concerning the voluntary
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0006| limits on the candidate's personal funds shall not be withdrawn,
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0007| rescinded or changed.
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0008| D. If a candidate agrees to be bound by the voluntary
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0009| contribution limit for an election, he shall not exceed the
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0010| voluntary contribution limit for that election. If a candidate in
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0011| a primary election agrees to be bound by the voluntary
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0012| contribution limit for an election and exceeds that limit, then
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0013| his name will not be printed upon the general election ballot
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0014| unless he pays a fine of three times the amount by which he
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0015| exceeded the limit within thirty days after the primary election.
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0016| If a candidate in a general election agrees to be bound by the
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0017| voluntary contribution limit for an election and exceeds the
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0018| limit, then he shall not receive his certificate of election
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0019| unless he pays a fine of three times the amount by which he
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0020| exceeded the limit within thirty days after the general election.
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0021| A candidate who fails or refuses to file a declaration concerning
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0022| the voluntary limits on the candidate's personal funds shall be
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0023| presumed to have stated an intent not to abide by the voluntary
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0024| limits, as set forth in Subsection B of this section.
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0025| E. No candidate shall personally make outstanding loans
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0001| to his campaign or campaign committee that total at any one time
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0002| more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000).
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0003| F. For the purposes of this section:
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0004| (1) a contribution made to a candidate or his
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0005| campaign committee following the last election year for the office
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0006| that the candidate is seeking and prior to December 31 of the year
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0007| of the election in which the candidate is participating shall be
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0008| considered to be made for the election in which the candidate is
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0009| participating. This provision shall only apply to contributions
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0010| made after November 1, 1996; and
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0011| (2) all contributions made by political committees
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0012| established, maintained or controlled by the same person shall be
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0013| considered to be made by a single person and such contributions
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0014| shall be aggregated.
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0015| G. Any unexpended campaign contributions on the
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0016| effective date of the Campaign Finance Reform Act retained by a
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0017| candidate's campaign committee for use in a subsequent election
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0018| cycle shall be returned to the state's party or to the general
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0019| fund. Expenditure of these unexpended campaign contributions by
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0020| the candidate's campaign committee is prohibited by the Campaign
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0021| Finance Reform Act.
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0022| H. A campaign committee or political committee that
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0023| endorses or contributes to a candidate shall provide all
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0024| candidates in that race a certified list of all members of that
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0025| campaign committee or political committee that are eligible to
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0001| vote for that office.
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0002| Section 4. DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY OF STATE--ENFORCEMENT--
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0003| RULES AND REGULATIONS.--
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0004| A. The secretary of state shall:
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0005| (1) administer the provisions of the Campaign
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0006| Finance Reform Act;
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0007| (2) prepare forms for candidates to declare their
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0008| voluntary compliance with the contribution limits established by
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0009| the Campaign Finance Reform Act;
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0010| (3) make any declarations filed with the secretary
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0011| of state's office available for public inspection and may charge a
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0012| reasonable fee for providing copies of the declarations;
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0013| (4) impose penalties against a campaign committee,
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0014| candidate, person or political committee that violates a provision
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0015| of the Campaign Finance Reform Act; and
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0016| (5) adopt and promulgate rules and regulations to
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0017| implement the provisions of the Campaign Finance Reform Act in
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0018| accordance with the State Rules Act.
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0019| B. Any person who believes that a violation of the
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0020| Campaign Finance Reform Act has occurred may file a written
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0021| complaint with the secretary of state no later than ninety days
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0022| after the alleged violation. The secretary of state may also
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0023| initiate investigations if the secretary determines that a
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0024| violation has occurred.
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0025| Section 5. CIVIL PENALTY.--The attorney general or district
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0001| attorney may institute a civil action in district court for a
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0002| violation of a provision of the Campaign Finance Reform Act. An
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0003| action for relief may include a permanent or temporary injunction,
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0004| a restraining order or any other appropriate order, including a
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0005| civil penalty not to exceed three times the amount of any
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0006| contribution in violation of the provisions of the Campaign
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0007| Finance Reform Act and the forfeiture of that illegal
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0008| contribution.
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0009| Section 6. APPLICABILITY.--The provisions of the Campaign
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0010| Finance Reform Act do not apply to a candidate subject to the
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0011| provisions of federal law pertaining to campaign practices and
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0012| campaign finance.
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0013| Section 7. SEVERABILITY.--If any part or application of the
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0014| Campaign Finance Reform Act is held invalid, the remainder or its
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0015| application to other situations or persons shall not be affected.
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0016| Section 8. EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public peace,
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0017| health and safety that this act take effect immediately.
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0018|
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