Requires the filing of additional transferor and contributor identification information in campaign receipt and expenditure statements for the receipt of amounts over one hundred dollars, including the occupation, employer and employer's address in the case of an individual, and the full name and address of any partnership, committee, association, corporation, labor organization or group of persons.

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S3725-2011 Actions

• Mar 2, 2011: REFERRED TO ELECTIONS

S3725-2011 Memo

BILL NUMBER:S3725

TITLE OF BILL:
An act
to amend the election law, in relation to requiring additional
transferor and contributor identification information in campaign
receipt and expenditure statements

PURPOSE:
This bill would require a political committee to disclose a
contributor's occupation, employer and full name and address.

SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 of the bill would amend subdivision 1 of section 14-102 of
the election law, as amended by chapter 8 of the laws of 1978 and as
redesignated by chapter 9 of the laws of 1978, to require a political
committee to disclose additional information regarding contributors
who give $100 or more to a political committee. For individual
contributors giving $100 or more, the contributor's occupation,
employer, and employer's address would be required. For
organizational contributors delineated in the amended text, the
additional information would be the full name and address of the
organization.

Section 2 of the bill establishes the effective date.

JUSTIFICATION:
Campaign fundraising practices are having a corrosive
effect on the public's confidence in the integrity of government. Too
often, citizens feel that their individual votes are of little
consequence. The cumulative impact is a significant threat to the
fundamental values of democracy. A fundamental component of campaign
finance laws is that campaign committees must disclose the identity
of contributors. The rationale is that public awareness of who has
contributed may reduce the possibility of elected officials favoring
contributors. Requiring that significant contributors disclose their
occupations and employers is necessary to ensure that contributors
are adequately identified and to provide the public with additional
information that may be useful in assessing where a contributor's
interests may lie-and how an elected official might favor that
contributor. The additional identification information required by
the bill is the same as is required under federal law for
contributions to federal political committees.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2010: A.4012A (Kavanagh) - Election Law
2009: A.4012  (Kavanagh) - Election Law

FISCAL IMPACT ON THE STATE:
None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the first of December
next succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.

S3725-2011 Text

                      S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
  ________________________________________________________________________

      S. 3725                                                  A. 5857

                         2011-2012 Regular Sessions

                        SENATE - ASSEMBLY

                                March 2, 2011
                                 ___________

  IN  SENATE -- Introduced by Sen. KRUGER -- read twice and ordered print-
    ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Elections

  IN ASSEMBLY -- Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH -- read once and referred
    to the Committee on Election Law

  AN ACT to amend the election law, in relation  to  requiring  additional
    transferor  and  contributor  identification  information  in campaign
    receipt and expenditure statements

    THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
  BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:


    Section  1.  Subdivision  1  of section 14-102 of the election law, as
  amended by chapter 8 of the laws of 1978 and as redesignated by  chapter
  9 of the laws of 1978, is amended to read as follows:

    1.  The  treasurer of every political committee which, or any officer,
  member or agent of any  such  committee  who,  in  connection  with  any
  election,  receives  or  expends  any  money  or other valuable thing or
  incurs any liability to pay money or its equivalent  shall  file  state-
  ments  sworn,  or subscribed and bearing a form notice that false state-
  ments made therein are punishable as a class A misdemeanor  pursuant  to
  section 210.45 of the penal law, at the times prescribed by this article
  setting forth all the receipts, contributions to and the expenditures by
  and  liabilities  of  the  committee,  and  of its officers, members and
  agents in its behalf. Such statements shall include the dollar amount of
  any receipt, contribution or transfer, or the fair market value  of  any
  receipt,  contribution  or  transfer,  which is other than of money, the
  name [and], address AND OTHER IDENTIFICATION of the transferor, contrib-
  utor or person from whom received, and if the transferor, contributor or
  person is a political committee; the name  of  and  the  political  unit
  represented by the committee, the date of its receipt, the dollar amount
  of  every expenditure, the name and address of the person to whom it was
  made or the name of and the political unit represented by the  committee

   EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                        [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                             LBD00054-01-1

 S. 3725                             2                            A. 5857

  to  which  it was made and the date thereof, and shall state clearly the
  purpose of such expenditure.  THE REQUIREMENT TO INCLUDE OTHER IDENTIFI-
  CATION SHALL APPLY ONLY WITH RESPECT TO A TRANSFER OR CONTRIBUTION  FROM
  ANY  ONE TRANSFEROR OR CONTRIBUTOR WHICH EITHER RESULTS IN THE AGGREGATE
  TRANSFERS OR CONTRIBUTIONS  FROM  THAT  ONE  TRANSFEROR  OR  CONTRIBUTOR
  EXCEEDING  THE  SUM  OF NINETY-NINE DOLLARS OR IS A TRANSFER OR CONTRIB-
  UTION WHICH OCCURS AFTER SUCH NINETY-NINE DOLLAR THRESHOLD  IS  REACHED.
  THE OTHER IDENTIFICATION REQUIRED WITH RESPECT TO AN INDIVIDUAL TRANSFE-
  ROR  OR CONTRIBUTOR SHALL BE HIS OR HER OCCUPATION, EMPLOYER AND EMPLOY-
  ER'S ADDRESS. THE OTHER IDENTIFICATION  REQUIRED  WITH  RESPECT  TO  ANY
  PARTNERSHIP,  COMMITTEE, ASSOCIATION, CORPORATION, LABOR ORGANIZATION OR
  OTHER ORGANIZATION OR GROUP OF  PERSONS  SHALL  BE  ITS  FULL  NAME  AND
  ADDRESS. Any statement reporting a loan shall have attached to it a copy
  of  the  evidence  of  indebtedness.  Expenditures  in  sums under fifty
  dollars need not be specifically accounted for by separate items in said
  statements, and receipts and contributions  aggregating  not  more  than
  ninety-nine  dollars,  from any one contributor need not be specifically
  accounted for by separate items in said  statements,  provided  however,
  that  such  expenditures, receipts and contributions shall be subject to
  the other provisions of section 14-118 of this article.
    S 2.   This act shall take  effect  on  the  first  of  December  next
  succeeding the date on which it shall have become a law.