Modifying certain election campaign finance provisions; clarifying the definition of contribution and expanding the definition of public official; eliminating the nonpublic data classification for advisory opinions of the state campaign finance and public disclosure board; modifying certain registration, reporting or filing failure notice service requirements of the board, extending certain filing deadlines and eliminating certain second notice requirements and criminal penalties; specifying certain financial records retention requirements of lobbyists and principals; clarifying the prohibition on lobbyist, political committee or political fund contributions during regular sessions of the legislature, authorizing party organizations to receive legislator dues during regular legislative sessions; clarifying the nonapplication of the prohibition to candidates for federal office ; clarifying and expanding the prohibition on gifts by lobbyists and principals; modifying the deadline for deposit of transfers into campaign accounts; clarifying the requirement for lobbyist or political committee or fund registration numbers on contribution checks, subjecting contributors to a civil penalty to be imposed by the board for improper identification, candidate not to be subject to the penalty; providing for the consideration of contributions from joint accounts as joint contributions upon contributor notice of intent; requiring political committees or funds making independent expenditures relating to special elections to file campaign expenditure reports before the special primary and special election and after the special election cycle; requiring the disclosure of independent expenditures made in support of a candidate in campaign reports; facilitating the submission of certain preelection reports by eliminating the certified mail requirement and authorizing facsimile or electronic transmission; modifying independent expenditure notice requirements; authorizing the payment of campaign report late filing fees from political committee or fund assets; authorizing candidates to petition the district court for immediate equitable relief against opponents failing to file timely reports; providing for notice of and imposing late filing penalties for failure to file corrected reports; increasing the campaign spending limits for certain constitutional officers; accelerating the date for candidate submission of public subsidy agreements to the board; prohibiting the payment of public subsidies to candidates failing to file campaign finance reports or owing money to the board; providing for financial institutions as additional payees on contribution checks; modifying the match requirement for candidates for special elections not coinciding with the general election; providing for the filing of spending limit agreements by candidates filling vacancies in nominations occurring after the agreement filing deadline; requiring return or destruction of unissued official refund receipt forms; expanding the authority of the board to demand return of public subsidies; authorizing board actions for recovery of civil penalties or public subsidies, prescribing a civil penalty for certain violations and providing for the award of costs to the board in prevailing actions, imposing a civil penalty for false complaints; defining party unit for general election regulation purposes; expanding campaign financial report content requirements; authorizing candidates and committees together to accept contributions from political party units in aggregate over the amount allowed to be contributed to the candidate; prohibiting the allocation to candidates of certain multicandidate political party expenditures; excluding party organizations within municipalities and precincts from the definition of major or minor party for income tax political contribution refund purposes; prohibiting circumvention of the prohibition on gifts to local officials and providing for certain remedies; repealing a certain economic interest statement filing notice requirement of the board (ra)