HF 736

as introduced - 93rd Legislature (2023 - 2024) Posted on 01/23/2023 03:31pm

A bill for an act
relating to campaign finance; designating certain expenses as noncampaign
disbursements; amending Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 10A.01, subdivision
26.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

Minnesota Statutes 2022, section 10A.01, subdivision 26, is amended to read:

Subd. 26.

Noncampaign disbursement.

(a) "Noncampaign disbursement" means a
purchase or payment of money or anything of value made, or an advance of credit incurred,
or a donation in kind received, by a principal campaign committee for any of the following
purposes:

(1) payment for accounting and legal services;

(2) return of a contribution to the source;

(3) repayment of a loan made to the principal campaign committee by that committee;

(4) return of a public subsidy;

(5) payment for food, beverages, and necessary utensils and supplies, entertainment,
and facility rental for a fundraising event;

(6) services for a constituent by a member of the legislature or a constitutional officer
in the executive branch as provided in section 10A.173, subdivision 1;

(7) payment for food and beverages consumed by a candidate or volunteers while they
are engaged in campaign activities;

(8) payment for food or a beverage consumed while attending a reception or meeting
directly related to legislative duties;

(9) payment of expenses incurred by elected or appointed leaders of a legislative caucus
in carrying out their leadership responsibilities;

(10) payment by a principal campaign committee of the candidate's expenses for serving
in public office, other than for personal uses;

(11) costs of child care for the candidate's children when campaigning;

(12) fees paid to attend a campaign school;

(13) costs of a postelection party during the election year when a candidate's name will
no longer appear on a ballot or the general election is concluded, whichever occurs first;

(14) interest on loans paid by a principal campaign committee on outstanding loans;

(15) filing fees;

(16) post-general election holiday or seasonal cards, thank-you notes, or advertisements
in the news media mailed or published prior to the end of the election cycle;

(17) the cost of campaign material purchased to replace defective campaign material, if
the defective material is destroyed without being used;

(18) contributions to a party unit;

(19) payments for funeral gifts or memorials;

(20) the cost of a magnet less than six inches in diameter containing legislator contact
information and distributed to constituents;

(21) costs associated with a candidate attending a political party state or national
convention in this state;

(22) other purchases or payments specified in board rules or advisory opinions as being
for any purpose other than to influence the nomination or election of a candidate or to
promote or defeat a ballot question;

(23) costs paid to a third party for processing contributions made by a credit card, debit
card, or electronic check;

(24) new text begin costs paid by a candidate's principal campaign committee to support the candidate's
participation in a recount of ballots affecting the candidate's election;
new text end

new text begin (25) new text end a contribution to a fund established to support a candidate's participation in a recount
of ballots affecting that candidate's election;

deleted text begin (25) deleted text end new text begin (26) new text end costs paid by a candidate's principal campaign committee for a single reception
given in honor of the candidate's retirement from public office after the filing period for
affidavits of candidacy for that office has closed;

deleted text begin (26) deleted text end new text begin (27) new text end a donation from a terminating principal campaign committee to the state general
fund;

deleted text begin (27) deleted text end new text begin (28) new text end a donation from a terminating principal campaign committee to a county
obligated to incur special election expenses due to that candidate's resignation from state
office; and

deleted text begin (28) deleted text end new text begin (29) new text end during a period starting January 1 in the year following a general election and
ending on December 31 of the year of general election, total payments of up to $3,000 for
security expenses for a candidate, including home security hardware, maintenance of home
security hardware, identity theft monitoring services, and credit monitoring services new text begin ; and
new text end

new text begin (30) costs paid to repair or replace campaign property that is documented to have been
lost, damaged, or stolen, including but not limited to campaign lawn signs new text end .

(b) The board must determine whether an activity involves a noncampaign disbursement
within the meaning of this subdivision.

(c) A noncampaign disbursement is considered to be made in the year in which the
candidate made the purchase of goods or services or incurred an obligation to pay for goods
or services.