1997 Minnesota Statutes

     10A.44 Congressional campaign spending limits. 

    Subdivision 1.    Limits.  During the calendar year in 
 which an election is held for an office sought by a 
 congressional candidate, no expenditures may be made by the 
 authorized committees of that congressional candidate that 
 result in an aggregate amount in excess of the following: 

    (1) for United States senator, $3,400,000; and 

    (2) for representative in Congress, $425,000. 

    A congressional candidate whose name will appear on the 
 ballot in more than one general or special election in a year is 
 subject to a separate spending limit for each election.  For a 
 candidate for representative in Congress in a special election, 
 the expenditure limits apply during the ten months before and 
 the two months after the special election.  For purposes of 
 calculating aggregate expenditure amounts under this section, an 
 expenditure by an authorized committee of a congressional 
 candidate does not include an expenditure from an authorized 
 committee of a congressional candidate to a state political 
 party. 

    Subd. 2.    Adjustment by consumer price index.  (a) The 
 dollar amounts provided in subdivision 1 must be adjusted for 
 general election years as provided in this subdivision.  By June 
 1 of the general election year, the executive director of the 
 board shall determine the percentage increase in the consumer 
 price index from December of the year preceding the last general 
 election year to December of the year preceding the year in 
 which the determination is made.  The dollar amounts used for 
 the last general election year must be multiplied by that 
 percentage.  The product of the calculation must be added to 
 each dollar amount to produce the dollar limitations to be in 
 effect for the next general election and any special elections 
 for which filings open before a new limit is set.  The product 
 must be rounded up to the next highest whole dollar.  The index 
 used must be the revised consumer price index for all urban 
 consumers for the St. Paul-Minneapolis metropolitan area 
 prepared by the United States Department of Labor with 1982 as a 
 base year. 

    (b) The dollar amounts in subdivision 1 must be adjusted 
 for races in years subsequent to 1990 in the manner provided in 
 paragraph (a), and the last general election year must be 
 considered to be 1990 and the dollar amounts used for the last 
 general election year for the offices of United States senator 
 and representative in Congress must be $3,400,000 and $425,000 
 respectively. 

    (c) By June 15 of each year, the board shall publish in the 
 State Register the expenditure limit for each office for that 
 calendar year as adjusted under this subdivision. 

    Subd. 3.    Contested primary races.  Notwithstanding 
 the limits imposed by subdivisions 1 and 2, the winning 
 congressional candidate in a contested race in a primary who 
 receives less than twice as many votes as any one of the 
 candidate's opponents in that primary may make aggregate 
 expenditures equal to 120 percent of the applicable amount under 
 subdivisions 1 and 2. 

    Subd. 4.    Postelection year expenditures.  In any year 
 preceding or following an election year for the office held or 
 sought, the aggregate amount of expenditures on behalf of a 
 congressional candidate for or holder of that office must not 
 exceed 20 percent of the expenditure limit in subdivisions 1 and 
 2. 

    Subd. 5.    Limitation conditional.  (a) The expenditure 
 limits imposed by this section apply as provided by this 
 subdivision. 

    (b) If all the congressional candidates seeking an office 
 agree to be bound by the limits, no candidate may receive an 
 incentive, but all candidates are bound by the limits. 

    (c) If all major political party congressional candidates 
 seeking an office agree to be bound by the limits, no such 
 candidate of a major political party may receive an incentive, 
 but all such candidates are bound by the limits. 

    (d) If a candidate of a major political party, minor 
 political party or new political party, or an independent 
 candidate, (i) agrees to be bound by the limits, and (ii) has an 
 opponent who is a candidate of a major political party and who 
 declines to be bound by the limits, the candidate who agrees to 
 limits is eligible to receive an incentive and is not bound by 
 the limits. 

    Subd. 6.    Certain postelection costs.  After the 
 election, a congressional candidate who is not a congressional 
 incumbent and has been elected to Congress may spend an amount 
 up to ten percent of the limits under subdivision 1 or 2 to 
 defray transition costs, unless restricted by federal law.  This 
 money may be spent only for the costs of the transition that are 
 incurred between the election and the date on which the elected 
 candidate begins congressional service and cannot be used to 
 retire debts remaining from the primary or general election 
 campaign. 

    HIST: 1990 c 608 art 4 s 5; 1991 c 291 art 6 s 5; 1991 c 349 s 
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