California Fair Political Practices Commission Frequently Asked Questions: Campaign Activity
adequately perform the duties, the treasurer must have a basic understanding of the campaign finance laws and the responsibilities of a committee treasurer. 6. Q. May a candidate serve as their own committee’s treasurer? A. Yes. 7. Q. Who is considered the principal officer for a non-candidate controlled committee? A. The principal officer(s) is the individual or individuals responsible for approving the political activities of a committee, including: 1) authorizing the content of committee communications; 2) authorizing the committee’s expenditures; and, 3) determining the committee’s campaign strategy. The principal officer must ensure that accurate records are maintained and may be held liable for violations. A committee may have several principal officers. If there are more than three individuals serving as principal officers, only three must be identified on the Form 410. If no individual other than the treasurer is a principal officer, the treasurer must be identified as both the treasurer and the principal officer. 8. Q. After filing a Form 410, what is the next form required to be filed? A. Typically, the Form 497 (24-Hour Contribution Report) is the next required form. In fact, the Form 497 may be required to be filed before the Form 410 is required if the committee qualifies within the 90 days before the election or on the date of the election. During this period, a committee must file a Form 497 within 24 hours each time it receives contributions that total $1,000 or more in the aggregate from a single source. 9. Q. What are the requirements for naming a candidate’s committee or a committee primarily formed to support or oppose a ballot measure? A. For a candidate’s campaign committee, the name must include the candidate’s last name, office sought, and year of the election. For example, “Wallace for Supervisor 2022” or “Re-Elect Rosa in 2022 for Water Board” would meet the naming requirements. For a primarily formed ballot measure committee, the name must include: · The measure’s designation (e.g., Proposition 124; Measure BB); · The committee’s position (support or oppose) on the measure; · If sponsored, the name(s) of the sponsor(s) (e.g., “sponsored by the Auto Dealers Association”); For a comprehensive list of all committee naming requirements, see the Form 410 instructions. 10. Q. May a committee use an electronic recordkeeping system or are records required to be kept on paper? A. Electronic records are permitted so long as all of the required information is collected and recorded in a timely and uniform manner that ensures the information is accurate and reliable. Committees are responsible for ensuring that electronic records can be read and/or printed for auditing purposes during the required retention period – four years from the date the campaign statement was filed.
www.fppc.ca.gov FPPC Advice: advice@fppc.ca.gov (866.275.3772) FPPC EAEU • 016 11-2022 • Page 2 of 11
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