2012 Connecticut General Statutes
Title 9 - Elections
Chapter 155 - Elections: Campaign Financing
Section 9-618 - (Formerly Sec. 9-333t). Contributions made or received by political committees organized for ongoing political activities.

(a) A political committee organized for ongoing political activities may make unlimited contributions to, or for the benefit of, any national committee of a political party; or a committee of a candidate for federal or out-of-state office. Except as provided in subdivision (3) of subsection (d) of this section, no such political committee shall make a contribution or contributions in excess of two thousand dollars to another political committee in any calendar year. No political committee organized for ongoing political activities shall make a contribution in excess of three hundred seventy-five dollars to an exploratory committee. If such an ongoing committee is established by an organization or a business entity, its contributions shall be subject to the limits imposed by sections 9-613 to 9-615, inclusive. A political committee organized for ongoing political activities may make contributions to a charitable organization which is a tax-exempt organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, as from time to time amended, or make memorial contributions.

(b) No political committee organized for ongoing political purposes, except a legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee, shall make a contribution or contributions to, for the benefit of, or pursuant to the authorization or request of, a candidate or a committee supporting or opposing any candidate’s campaign for nomination at a primary, or any candidate’s campaign for election, to the office of: (1) Governor, in excess of five thousand dollars; (2) Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of the State, Treasurer, Comptroller or Attorney General, in excess of three thousand dollars; (3) chief executive officer of a town, city or borough, in excess of one thousand five hundred dollars; (4) state senator or probate judge, in excess of one thousand five hundred dollars; (5) state representative, in excess of seven hundred fifty dollars; or (6) any other office of a municipality not previously included in this subsection, in excess of three hundred seventy-five dollars. The limits imposed by this subsection shall apply separately to primaries and elections.

(c) No political committee organized for ongoing political purposes, except a legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee, shall make a contribution or contributions in a calendar year to, or for the benefit of (1) the state central committee of a political party, in excess of seven thousand five hundred dollars; or (2) a town committee of a political party, in excess of one thousand five hundred dollars.

(d) (1) No legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee shall make a contribution or contributions to, for the benefit of, or pursuant to the authorization or request of, a candidate or a committee supporting or opposing any candidate’s campaign for nomination at a primary, or any candidate’s campaign for election, to the office of: (A) State senator, in excess of ten thousand dollars; or (B) state representative, in excess of five thousand dollars. The limits imposed by this subdivision shall apply separately to primaries and elections. No legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee shall make a contribution or contributions to, for the benefit of, or pursuant to the authorization or request of, a candidate or a committee supporting or opposing any candidate’s campaign for nomination at a primary, or any candidate’s campaign for election, to any office not included in this subdivision.

(2) No legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee shall make a contribution or contributions in any calendar year to, or for the benefit of, the state central committee of a political party, in excess of ten thousand dollars.

(3) No legislative caucus committee or legislative leadership committee shall make a contribution or contributions to, or for the benefit of, any committee except as provided in this subsection.

(e) A political committee organized for ongoing political activities may receive contributions from the federal account of a national committee of a political party, but may not receive contributions from any other account of a national committee of a political party or from a committee of a candidate for federal or out-of-state office.

(P.A. 86-99, S. 21, 34; P.A. 90-230, S. 77, 101; P.A. 98-7, S. 3, 4; Oct. 25 Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-5, S. 37; P.A. 08-2, S. 13.)

History: P.A. 90-230 made technical change; P.A. 98-7 amended Subsec. (b) to prohibit a political committee organized for ongoing political activities from receiving contributions from a nonfederal account of a national committee of a political party, effective January 1, 1999, and applicable to elections and primaries held on or after that date; Oct. 25 Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-5 amended Subsec. (a) by deleting provisions re authority of political committee organized for ongoing political activities to make unlimited contributions to a party or candidate committee and authority of political committee organized for ongoing political activities to make unlimited contributions to another such committee, adding exception re Subsec. (d)(2) and increasing limit on contributions to exploratory committee from $250 to $375, redesignated existing Subsec. (b) as Subsec. (e), added new Subsecs. (b) and (c) re limits on contributions to candidates and party committees by political committee organized for ongoing political purposes, except for legislative caucus or leadership committee, and added new Subsec. (d) re limits on contributions by legislative caucus or leadership committee to legislative candidates and party committees and prohibition on contributions to other candidates and committees, effective December 31, 2006, and applicable to elections held on or after that date; Sec. 9-333t transferred to Sec. 9-618 in 2007; P.A. 08-2 amended Subsec. (a) to change reference from Subsec. (d)(2) to Subsec. (d)(3), effective April 7, 2008.