2005 Connecticut Code - Sec. 9-348ee. Filing of campaign finance statements in electronic form.

      Sec. 9-348ee. Filing of campaign finance statements in electronic form. (a) The Secretary of the State shall (1) not later than July 1, 1998, create a software program or programs for the preparation of financial disclosure statements required by section 9-333j, and (2) not later than July 1, 1999, prescribe the standard reporting format and specifications for other software programs created by vendors for such purpose, subject to the approval, for legal sufficiency, of the State Elections Enforcement Commission. No software program created by a vendor may be used for the electronic submission of such financial disclosure statements, until the Secretary of the State determines that the program provides for the standard reporting format, and complies with the specifications, which are prescribed under subdivision (2) of this subsection for vendor software programs. The secretary, in consultation with the commission, shall provide training in the use of the software program or programs created by the secretary.

      (b) On and after January 1, 1999, the campaign treasurer of the candidate committee for each candidate for nomination or election to the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, State Comptroller, State Treasurer or Secretary of the State who raises or spends two hundred fifty thousand dollars or more during an election campaign shall file in electronic form all financial disclosure statements required by said section 9-333j by either transmitting disks, tapes or other electronic storage media containing the contents of such statements to the office of the Secretary of the State or transmitting the statements on-line to said office. Each such campaign treasurer shall use either (1) a software program created by the Secretary of the State under subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section, for all such statements filed on or after January 1, 1999, or (2) another software program which provides for the standard reporting format, and complies with the specifications, which are prescribed by the secretary under subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section, for all such statements filed on or after July 1, 1999. The office of the Secretary of the State shall accept any statement that uses any such software program. Once any such candidate committee has raised or spent two hundred fifty thousand dollars or more during an election campaign, all previously filed statements required by said section 9-333j, which were not filed in electronic form shall be refiled in such form, using such a software program, not later than the date on which the campaign treasurer of the committee is required to file the next regular statement under said section 9-333j.

      (c) On and after January 1, 1999, (1) the campaign treasurer of the candidate committee for any other candidate, as defined in section 9-333a, who is required to file the financial disclosure statements required by section 9-333j with the office of the Secretary of the State and (2) the campaign treasurer of any political committee or party committee, may file in electronic form any financial disclosure statements required by said section 9-333j. Such filings may be made by either transmitting disks, tapes or other electronic storage media containing the contents of such statements to the proper authority under section 9-333e or transmitting the statements on-line to such proper authority. Each such campaign treasurer shall use either (A) a software program created by the Secretary of the State under subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of this section, for all such statements filed in electronic form on or after January 1, 1999, or (B) another software program which provides for the standard reporting format, and complies with the specifications, which are prescribed by the secretary under subdivision (2) of subsection (a) of this section, for all such statements filed in electronic form on or after July 1, 1999. The proper authority under section 9-333e shall accept any statement that uses any such software program.

      (June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-5, S. 1, 19.)

      History: June 18 Sp. Sess. P.A. 97-5 effective July 1, 1997 (Revisor's note: In Subsec. (b) the second occurrence of the word "or" in the phrase "or (2) or another ..." was deleted editorially by the Revisors for grammatical accuracy).