Disclosure The information in this presentation is designed to serve as a resource for completing campaign finance reports. It is not to be used for legal reference pertaining to Indiana campaign finance laws. Although the Allen County Election Board has taken every effort to ensure the accuracy of this information, where your legal rights are involved, do not rely on this information. Instead, review the law yourself or consult an attorney. You may also contact the Indiana Election Division at (800) 622-4941 for further questions regarding Indiana campaign finance laws.
Contents Completing the CFA-4 Form Contributions Expenditures Debts Disband Important Items
Important Items on Reports If report should be filed with Allen County Election Board Committee and Street Address provided Correct Type of Report Pre-Primary, Pre-Election, Annual, Nomination, Final Disband, Outgoing Treasurer, Pre-Convention, Post-Convention, Other Correct Reporting Period Cash on hand matches ending balance on last report filed Summary Sheet Contributions equal total contributions reported on Schedule A forms Contributor s names and addresses are provided Contributor s dates provided Contributor s dates are from correct reporting period Summary Sheet Expenditures equal total expenditures reported on Schedule B and/or C forms Expenditures names and addresses are provided Expenditures dates provided Expenditures dates are from correct reporting period Cash on hand at close of reporting period recorded correctly Debts Owed By are reported on Schedule D Debts Owed To are reported on Schedule E Forgiveness of campaign finance debt is filed properly Final/Disbands marked only if zero balance, zero debts and zero loans Signature of Treasurer matches CFA-1
Reports and Filing Deadlines Pre-Primary Filed by: A candidate whose name appears on a primary ballot for the calendar year All Political Action and Regular Party Committees Reporting period is from January 1 and ends 25 days before the primary election Filing deadline is by noon 7 days after the report period ends
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Pre-Election Filed by: A candidate whose name appears on a primary ballot for the calendar year All Political Action and Regular Party Committees Reporting period begins 24 days before the primary election and ends 25 days before the general election Filing deadline is by noon 7 days after the report period ends
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Annual Report Filed by: All committees with a current open status as of 11:59 pm December 31 Reporting period begins the day after the reporting of the most recent report filed by the committee and ends December 31of that year Ex. The reporting period for a candidate s committee who did not appear on a ballot for the year will be from January 1 through December 31 The report filing deadline is noon on the third Wednesday in January
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Nomination Filed by: Minor Party or Independent candidates nominated by petition Write-In candidates Candidates selected to fill an early ballot vacancy (occurring more than 30 days before the general or municipal election) Reporting period begins the day an individual becomes an candidate and ends 14 days after the nomination date Filing deadline is by noon 7 days after the report period ends
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Final/Disbanding Report The treasurer must file a complete report from the day after the reporting period of the most recent report filed through the close of the committee Filing deadline is by noon 30 days after a committee disbands
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Outgoing Treasurer The outgoing treasurer must file a report covering the period from the most recent report filed through the last day the individual was treasurer Filing deadline is by noon 30 days after vacancy occurs
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Pre-Convention Filed by: Candidates for offices nominated at political party convention The reporting period begins January 1 or the date an individual becomes a candidate, of the reporting year and ends 25 days before the convention Filing deadline is by noon 18 days before the convention
Reports and Filing Deadlines cont. Post-Convention Filed by: Candidates for offices nominated at political party convention and became a candidate after the preconvention reporting period deadline The reporting period begins the date an individual becomes a candidate and end the day following the adjournment of the convention Filing deadline is by noon 20 calendar days after the convention convenes
Contributions A contribution includes cash, checks, gifts of property or services, loans, in-kind contributions or any other things received by the committee that have value. A contribution is considered received and accepted by a committee when any member of the committee: Has physical possession of the contribution; and Manifests an intent to keep the contribution by depositing the contribution (continue on next page)
Contributions cont. Candidate s Contribution If a candidate gives money to the candidate s committee, this money must be treated as a contribution or a loan and so designated on the Schedule A form and reported on the Summary sheet Transfer-In A committee who receives money or things of value from another campaign finance committee is designated as a transfer-in. Regardless of the amount, it is required to be itemized during any reporting period on the Schedule A form and Summary sheet (continue on next page)
Contributions cont. In-kind In-Kind contributions are generally things or services that are paid for by another person or entity and then given to the committee or distributed by another In-Kind contributions are reported on Schedule A form under type of contributions as well as Schedule B form under type of expenditures for the same amounts. Establishing a zero balance between the two transactions on the Summary sheet (continue on next page)
Contributions cont. Itemized Contributions from a contributor whose individual contributions or cumulative contributions exceed $100 during any calendar year. Contributions must be itemized on the Schedule A form and totaled on the Summary sheet Unitemized Contributions from contributors whose total contributions for a calendar year do not exceed $100. These are reported on the Summary sheet Back to Table of Contents
Expenditures An expenditure is any payment, transfer or disbursements of money or things of value to another for political purposes Candidate s Expenditure If a candidate expends personal funds for political purposes, the amounts must be reported as a contribution to the candidate s committee and then as an expenditure by the committee (continue on next page)
Expenditures cont. Transfer-Out The transfer of money or things of value to another campaign finance committee is designated as a transfer-out. All transferouts, regardless of the amount, are required to be itemized during any report period on the Schedule B form and Summary sheet. (continue on next page)
Expenditures cont. Itemized Expenditures made by the committee to an individual, business, group or others in which the individual payment or cumulative payments exceed $100 during any calendar year. Expenditures must be itemized on the Schedule B form and the Summary sheet Unitemized Expenditures made by the committee to an individual, business, group or others in which the total does not exceed $100 during any calendar year needs to be reported on Summary sheet Back to Table of Contents
Debts Debts (loans) include all money or things of value that must be repaid or returned and include items borrowed, credit purchases, credit card accounts or other unpaid debts (continue on next page)
Debts cont. Debts Owed by Committee Items borrowed by the committee from an individual, business, lending institution, credit card company or another committee Credit cards, credit accounts, etc., must be listed on the Schedule D and Summary sheet, to the extent that there is still an outstanding balance. Payments made to pay off a credit purchase is considered an expenditure and must be itemized (continue on next page)
Debts cont. Debts Owed to Committee Items that the committee has loaned to another committee or other entity with the requirement that the item or money be returned Must be listed on the Schedule E and Summary sheet Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form For every report filed please ensure that all highlighted items are accurately completed on the Summary Sheet Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. The Reporting Period dates must be completed correctly Example: A candidate who won the Primary Election of 2012 and filed their Pre-Election report would list the reporting period From: 4/14/2012 Through: 10/12/2012 Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Cash on hand and investments on Summary Sheet Line 13 must match line 18 from the previous filed report, if applicable Line 14 reflects the amount of cash on hand as of January 1 of the reporting year. The amount will remain the same for all reports filed for the reporting year Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Contributions and Receipts on Summary Sheet Column A is for all contributions within the reporting period Line 15a will match the grand total of all attached Schedule A forms Complete line 15b for all Unitemized contributions Line 15c: add lines 15a and 15b Line 16: add lines 13 and 15c Column B is for all contributions within the reporting year Line 15a will match the grand total of all Schedule A forms year to date for the reporting year, including this report Line 15b is a grand total of all Unitemized contributions year to date for the reporting year Line 15c: add lines 15a and 15b Line 16: add lines 14 and 15c Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Expenditures on Summary Sheet Column A is for all expenditures within the reporting period Line 17a will match the grand total of all attached Schedule B forms Complete line 17b for all Unitemized expenditures Line 17c: add lines 17a and 17b Line 18: subtract 17c from 16 Column B is for all expenditures within the reporting year Line 17a will match the grand total of all Schedule B forms year to date for the reporting year Line 17b is a grand total of all Unitemized expenditures year to date for the reporting year Line 17c: add lines 17a and 17b Line 18: subtract 17c from 16 Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Debts Owed on Summary Sheet Line 19 is the total of all attached Schedule D forms Line 20 is the total of all attached Schedule E forms All debts will continue to be reported on subsequent reports until the outstanding balance is zero or the debt is forgiven and a letter of forgiveness is filed Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Certification on Summary Sheet All reports must be signed by the current Treasurer of the committee If the candidate is not the treasurer, both current treasurer and candidate must sign the report Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Itemized Contributions and Receipts on Schedule A (1-5) Forms All cumulative contributions and receipts over $100 per contributor, within a calendar year must be itemized All Transfer-In contributions must be itemized Contributor s Name and Address must be completed Occupation is required for an individual who contributed at least $1000 within a calendar year Contribution type needs to be provided Amounts received Date received must be within the reporting period Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Itemized Expenditures on Schedule B and C Forms All cumulative expenditures over $100 per person or vendor, within a calendar year must be itemized All Transfer-Out expenditures must be itemized Provide Text of Public Question for Schedule C Person or Vendor s Name and Address must be completed Refer to reverse side of Schedule B form for the list of codes for expenditures Type of Expenditure needs to be provided Amounts paid Date must be within the reporting period Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Debts Owed by Committee on Schedule D Form All debts and loans, regardless of amount, owed by the committee must be recorded The principal amount of a loan is recorded as a receipt on the Schedule A form for the recording period in which the loan was received For committee credit card purchases, enter the amount of each transaction Payments, interest and other finance charges paid by the committee, are recorded as expenditures on the Schedule B form, for the recording period in which the payment was made Name and Addresses must be provided Amount and Nature of Debt (ie. loan, open account) Must be recorded Back to Table of Contents
Completing CFA-4 form cont. Debts Owed To Committee on Schedule E form All debts and loans, regardless of amount, owed to committee must be recorded The amount of a loan is recorded as an expenditure on the Schedule B form for the recording period in which the loan was provided Payments made to the committee for the debt, will be recorded on the Schedule A form for the recording period in which the payment was received Name and Addresses must be provided Amount and Nature of Debt (ie. loan) Must be recorded Back to Table of Contents
Disbanding a Candidate s Committee A candidate s committee may disband at any time by giving written notification and filing a final report On the CFA-4 Summary sheet check the Final/Disbands box of section 11 The committee must have a reported balance of zero funds available on lines 17c and 18 Before disbanding, a surplus of funds may be transferred to one or any combination of, regular party committees, candidate s committees, the Election Division, an organization exempt from Federal income taxation under section 501 and/or contributors to the committee (on a pro rata basis) Funds may also be used to defray any reasonable expenses related to the committee s campaign, continuing political activity or to make an expenditure to any political party committee or another candidate s committee Any outstanding balance of debts must be paid or forgiven and a letter of debt forgiveness must be filed with the report Back to Table of Contents
Other Resources Indiana Secretary of State Campaign Finance Publications IN SOS Campaign Finance Website