Office of the Revisor of Statutes
Minnesota Administrative Rules
4503.0500 CONTRIBUTIONS.
Subpart 1.
All receipts are contributions.
Any donation of money, goods, or services received by a principal campaign committee, political party unit, political committee, or political fund is considered a contribution at the time the item is received.
Subp. 2a.
Contribution processors and professional fundraisers.
A vendor may solicit, process, collect, or otherwise facilitate the accumulation of contributions made to a principal campaign committee, political party unit, political committee, or political fund, and may temporarily retain or control any contributions collected, without thereby making a contribution to the intended recipient of the contributions, if the vendor is paid the fair market value of the services provided. Contributions collected must be transmitted to the intended recipient, minus any fees withheld by the vendor. A vendor that is paid the fair market value of any goods or services provided is not a political committee or a political fund by virtue of providing those goods or services. A vendor that determines which principal campaign committee, political party unit, political committee, or political fund receives the contributions collected is a political committee or political fund as provided in Minnesota Statutes, section 10A.01, even if the recipient of the contributions pays the vendor the fair market value of the services provided to collect the contributions.
Subp. 3.
Transmission of contributions.
Promptly after receipt of any contribution intended for a principal campaign committee, political party unit, political committee, or political fund, or on demand of the treasurer, any individual, association, or vendor retaining or controlling the contribution must transmit the contribution together with any required record to the treasurer.
Subp. 4.
Identification of contributor.
An individual or association that pays for or provides goods or services, or makes goods or services available, with the knowledge that they will be used for the benefit of a principal campaign committee, political party unit, political committee, or political fund, is the contributor of those goods or services.
Subp. 6.
Contributions by joint check.
A contribution given by a check written on a joint account is considered to be a contribution by the persons who signed the check in equal proportions unless the candidate or treasurer of the committee or fund has personal knowledge or affirmatively ascertains from any account holder who did not sign the check that the person is a joint contributor. In such cases, a written notation of the basis for considering the contribution to be a joint contribution must be made at the time the contribution is deposited and kept with the committee's or fund's official records.
Subp. 7.
Forwarding anonymous contributions.
An anonymous contribution in excess of $20 must be forwarded to the board in its entirety within 14 days after its receipt by the treasurer along with a statement of the amount of the contribution and the date on which it was received.
Subp. 10.
Underlying sources of funding of unregistered associations.
A principal campaign committee, party unit, or political committee or fund that is not an independent expenditure or ballot question political committee or fund, must consider an association's sources of funding in determining whether a contribution may be accepted from an association that is not registered with the board as a principal campaign committee, a party unit, a political committee, or the supporting association of a political fund. A contribution from an unregistered association is prohibited if any of that association's sources of funding would be prohibited from making the contribution directly under Minnesota Statutes, section 211B.15, subdivision 2.
History:
20 SR 2504; 17 SR 1779; L 2005 c 156 art 6 s 68; 30 SR 903; L 2017 1Sp4 art 3 s 18; L 2018 c 119 s 34; 49 SR 979
Published Electronically:
March 17, 2025
Official Publication of the State of Minnesota
Revisor of Statutes