PRINTER'S NO. 361
No. 352 Session of 1997
INTRODUCED BY RHOADES, HECKLER, BRIGHTBILL, KUKOVICH, MOWERY,
WOZNIAK AND KASUNIC, FEBRUARY 5, 1997
REFERRED TO STATE GOVERNMENT, FEBRUARY 5, 1997
AN ACT
1 Amending the act of June 3, 1937 (P.L.1333, No.320), entitled
2 "An act concerning elections, including general, municipal,
3 special and primary elections, the nomination of candidates,
4 primary and election expenses and election contests; creating
5 and defining membership of county boards of elections;
6 imposing duties upon the Secretary of the Commonwealth,
7 courts, county boards of elections, county commissioners;
8 imposing penalties for violation of the act, and codifying,
9 revising and consolidating the laws relating thereto; and
10 repealing certain acts and parts of acts relating to
11 elections," limiting certain campaign contributions; further
12 regulating political committees and political action
13 committees; and further providing for expenditures and
14 reports.
15 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
16 hereby enacts as follows:
17 Section 1. Section 1622 of the act of June 3, 1937
18 (P.L.1333, No.320), known as the Pennsylvania Election Code,
19 amended or added October 4, 1978 (P.L.893, No.171) and July 11,
20 1980 (P.L.591, No.127), is amended to read:
21 Section 1622. Organization of Political Committees;
22 Treasurer and Assistant Treasurer; Records of Candidate and
23 Committees.--
1 (a) Only one (1) candidate's political committee may be
2 formed on behalf of a specified candidate and authorized by that
3 candidate to receive and disburse funds on behalf of his
4 candidacy. The staff of the candidate's political committee so
5 formed shall not be shared with any other candidate's political
6 committee, nor shall it share its staff with or utilize the
7 staff of any political action committee.
8 (a.1) Every political committee shall have a treasurer and a
9 chairman. No contribution shall be received nor shall any
10 expenditure be made when there is a vacancy in either one of
11 these offices. All money received and disbursed by a political
12 committee must be done through the treasurer of the committee.
13 (b) [Every candidate who authorizes a committee or
14 committees, to receive and disburse funds on behalf of this
15 candidacy, shall name a sole treasurer, irrespective of the
16 number of committees so authorized, to receive and disburse all
17 funds for said committees.] Nothing herein shall be construed to
18 prohibit a candidate from receiving or expending moneys on his
19 behalf or a treasurer of a political party committee or a
20 committee authorized to receive and distribute funds on behalf
21 of more than one (1) candidate from receiving or expending
22 moneys on behalf of said candidates, notwithstanding the
23 appointment of a sole treasurer. A sole treasurer may delegate
24 authority, in writing, to any number of assistant treasurers to
25 receive and disburse moneys collected on behalf of a candidate
26 for election. Nothing in this section shall prohibit authorized
27 individuals from selling tickets or soliciting funds when funds
28 are deposited in the campaign account of the candidate.
29 (c) Each candidate and committee shall keep records of the
30 names and addresses of each person from whom a contribution of
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1 over ten dollars ($10) has been received and a record of all
2 other information required to be reported pursuant to this act.
3 All such records shall be retained by the candidate or treasurer
4 for a period of three (3) years after such information is
5 reported as required by this act.
6 (d) Any person receiving any contribution on behalf of a
7 political committee or candidate shall turn such contributions
8 over to the treasurer of that committee or the candidate within
9 ten (10) days of its receipt.
10 Section 2. The act is amended by adding sections to read:
11 Section 1625.1. Political Action Committees.--
12 (a) Any political action committee which has given a
13 contribution or pledge, regardless of amount, to any candidate
14 shall be subject to the same registration and reporting
15 provisions as are political committees.
16 (b) The registration statement required by section 1624
17 shall be filed by a political action committee which has given a
18 contribution or pledge, regardless of amount, to any candidate.
19 (c) Upon registration, each political action committee shall
20 be assigned a registration number and shall enter that number,
21 together with the full name of the political action committee
22 and any acronym it may use, on all subsequent reports.
23 (d) The registration form for a political action committee
24 shall include a clear and precise statement by the political
25 action committee of the interests it represents, together with
26 the names, addresses and relationships of other affiliated or
27 connected organizations.
28 (e) Any given organization, together with its affiliated or
29 connected organizations, shall be limited to one (1) political
30 action committee.
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1 (f) One (1) political action committee shall not share a
2 staff with another political action committee, nor shall any
3 person be an officer of more than one (1) political action
4 committee.
5 Section 1625.2. Limitations on Contributions.--
6 (a) No person shall make contributions to any candidate for
7 a Statewide office or to his authorized political committee with
8 respect to any election which, in the aggregate, exceed one
9 thousand dollars ($1,000).
10 (b) No person shall make contributions to any candidate for
11 an office other than a Statewide office or to his authorized
12 political committee with respect to any election which, in the
13 aggregate, exceed five hundred dollars ($500).
14 (c) Contributions by a candidate and his spouse for his own
15 candidacy shall not be subject to the limitations set forth in
16 subsections (a) and (b).
17 (d) No political action committee shall make contributions
18 to any candidate for a Statewide office or to his authorized
19 political committee with respect to any election which, in the
20 aggregate, exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000).
21 (e) No political action committee shall make contributions
22 to any candidate for an office other than a Statewide office or
23 to his authorized political committee with respect to any
24 election which, in the aggregate, exceed one thousand dollars
25 ($1,000).
26 (f) A gift, subscription, loan, advance or deposit of money
27 or anything of value to a candidate shall be considered a
28 contribution both by the original source of the contribution and
29 by any intermediary or conduit if the intermediary or conduit:
30 (1) exercises any control or any direction over the making
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1 of the contribution; or
2 (2) solicits the contribution or arranges for the
3 contribution to be made and directly or indirectly makes the
4 candidate aware of such intermediary's or conduit's role in
5 soliciting or arranging the contribution for such candidate.
6 (g) For purposes of subsection (f), a contribution shall not
7 be considered to be a contribution by an intermediary or conduit
8 to the candidate if:
9 (1) the intermediary or conduit has been retained by the
10 candidate's committee for the purpose of fundraising and is
11 reimbursed for expenses incurred in soliciting contributions;
12 (2) in the case of an individual, the candidate has
13 expressly authorized the intermediary or conduit to engage in
14 fundraising or the individual occupies a significant position
15 within the candidate's campaign organization; or
16 (3) in the case of a political committee, the intermediary
17 or conduit is an authorized committee of the candidate.
18 Section 3. Section 1633(a) of the act, amended November 26,
19 1978 (P.L.1313, No.318), is amended to read:
20 Section 1633. Contributions or Expenditures by National
21 Banks, Partnerships, Corporations or Unincorporated
22 Associations.--
23 (a) It is unlawful for any National or State bank,
24 partnership or any corporation, incorporated under the laws of
25 this or any other state or any foreign country or any
26 unincorporated association, except those corporations formed
27 primarily for political purposes or as a political committee, to
28 make a contribution or expenditure in connection with the
29 election of any candidate or for any political purpose whatever
30 except in connection with any question to be voted on by the
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1 electors of this Commonwealth. Furthermore, it shall be unlawful
2 for any candidate, political committee, or other person to
3 knowingly accept or receive any contribution prohibited by this
4 section, or for any partner or any officer or any director of
5 any corporation, bank, partnership or any unincorporated
6 association to consent to any contribution or expenditure by the
7 corporation, bank or unincorporated association, as the case may
8 be, prohibited by this section.
9 * * *
10 Section 4. Section 1843 of the act, amended October 4, 1978
11 (P.L.893, No.171) and November 26, 1978 (P.L.1313, No.318), is
12 amended to read:
13 Section 1843. Contributions by Corporations, Partnerships or
14 Unincorporated Associations.--Any corporation, partnership or
15 unincorporated association, which shall pay, give or lend or
16 agree to pay, give or lend any money belonging to such
17 corporation, partnership or unincorporated association or in its
18 custody or control, in violation of the provisions of section
19 1633, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction
20 thereof, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than one
21 thousand dollars ($1,000) nor more than ten thousand dollars
22 ($10,000). Any director, officer, partner, agent or employe of
23 any corporation, partnership or unincorporated association who
24 shall on behalf of such corporation, partnership or
25 unincorporated association pay, give or lend or authorize to be
26 paid, given or lent any money belonging to such corporation,
27 partnership or unincorporated association or in its custody or
28 control in violation of the provisions of section 1633, shall be
29 guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon conviction thereof, shall be
30 sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars
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1 ($10,000), or to undergo an imprisonment of not less than one
2 (1) month nor more than two (2) years, or both, in the
3 discretion of the court.
4 Section 5. This act shall take effect January 1, 1998.
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