CANDIDATE CONTROLLED COMMITTEES REQUIREMENTS FOR REPORTING EXPENDITURES FOR GIFTS, MEALS, AND TRAVEL
The Political Reform Act 1 requires California state and local candidates and campaign committees to file periodic reports disclosing contributions received and expenditures made. Section 84211 requires expenditures of $100 or more to be itemized on campaign reports, including a brief description of the consideration for which the payment was made. The Commission has created a group of codes for describing expenditures on Schedules E, F, and G of the Recipient Committee Campaign Statement (Form 460). The instructions page for Schedule E contains an explanation of the codes. Expenditures not accurately described by the existing codes must be explained in the “Description of Payment” column of Schedules E, F, and G. Whether or not a code is used to explain an expenditure by a candidate controlled committee for a gift, meal, or travel, all itemized expenditures for gifts, meals, or travel must be further explained in the “Description of Payment” column of Schedules E, F, and G under new Regulation 18421.7. 2 (A copy of Regulation 18421.7 is available on the FPPC website at www.fppc.ca.gov .) Additional Requirements for Committees Controlled by State and Local Candidates When Reporting Expenditures for Gifts, Meals, and Travel First, it is important to note that under the Act, all expenditures made from a committee’s campaign funds must be reasonably related to a political, legislative, or governmental purpose. An expenditure must be directly related to a political, legislative, or governmental purpose if it confers a substantial personal benefit 3 on, or pays for the travel or accommodations of, the controlling candidate, elected officer, or an individual authorized to approve committee expenditures. An expenditure must also be directly related to a political, legislative, or governmental purpose if it is made for a personal gift. 1 The Political Reform Act is contained in Government Code Sections 81000 through 91014. All statutory references are to the Government Code, unless otherwise indicated. The regulations of the Fair Political Practices Commission are contained in Sections 18110 through 18997 of Title 2 of the California Code of Regulations. All regulatory references are to Title 2, Division 6 of the California Code of Regulations, unless otherwise indicated. 2 For purposes of electronic reporting, candidate controlled committees should utilize the “memo” field of the electronic Form 460 to provide the required description of expenditures for gifts, meals, and travel if the expenditures cannot be fully described within the character limitations of the “Description of Payment” column of Schedules E, F, and G. 3 See Sections 89510-89519. “Substantial personal benefit” means a payment that results in a direct personal benefit of $200 or more on the candidate, elected officer, or any individual with the authority to approve the expenditure of campaign funds. Detailed information about the permissible uses of campaign funds can be found in the campaign disclosure manuals for state candidates (Manual 1) and local candidates (Manual 2), available on the FPPC website (www.fppc.ca.gov).
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Fair Political Practices Commission 1/866-ASK FPPC (1/866-275-3772) June 2008
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