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121.150 Campaign contribution and loan restrictions and expenditure
limitations.
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No contribution shall be made or received, directly or indirectly, other than an
independent expenditure, to support inauguration activities or to support or
defeat a candidate, slate of candidates, constitutional amendment, or public
question which will appear on the ballot in an election, except through the duly
appointed campaign manager, or campaign treasurer of the candidate, slate of
candidates, or registered committee. Any person making an independent
expenditure, shall report these expenditures when the expenditures by that
person exceed five hundred dollars ($500) in the aggregate in any one (1)
election, on a form provided or using a format approved by the registry and
shall sign a statement on the form, under penalty of perjury, that the
expenditure was an actual independent expenditure and that there was no prior
communication with the campaign on whose behalf it was made.
Except as provided in KRS 121.180(10), the solicitation from and contributions
by campaign committees, caucus campaign committees, political issues
committees, permanent committees, and party executive committees to any
religious, charitable, civic, eleemosynary, or other causes or organizations
established primarily for the public good is expressly prohibited; except that it
shall not be construed as a violation of this section for a candidate or a slate of
candidates to contribute to religious, civic, or charitable groups.
No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor
anyone acting on their behalf, shall accept any anonymous contribution in
excess of fifty dollars ($50), and all anonymous contributions in excess of fifty
dollars ($50) shall be returned to the donor, if the donor can be determined. If
no donor is found, the contribution shall escheat to the state. No candidate,
slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone acting
on their behalf shall accept anonymous contributions in excess of one
thousand dollars ($1,000) in the aggregate in any one (1) election. Anonymous
contributions in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000) in the aggregate
which are received in any one (1) election shall escheat to the state.
No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor
anyone on their behalf, shall accept a cash contribution in excess of fifty dollars
($50) in the aggregate from each contributor in any one (1) election. No
candidate, slate of candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor
anyone on their behalf, shall accept a cashier's check or money order in
excess of the maximum cash contribution limit unless the instrument clearly
identifies both the payor and the payee. A contribution made by cashier's check
or money order which identifies both the payor and payee shall be treated as a
contribution made by check for purposes of the contribution limits contained in
this section. No person shall make a cash contribution in excess of fifty dollars
($50) in the aggregate in any one (1) election to a candidate, slate of
candidates, committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone on their behalf.
No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, contributing organization, nor
anyone on their behalf, shall accept any contribution in excess of one hundred
dollars ($100) from any person who shall not become eighteen (18) years of
age on or before the day of the next general election.
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No candidate, slate of candidates, campaign committee, political issues
committee, nor anyone acting on their behalf, shall accept a contribution of
more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) from any person, permanent
committee, or contributing organization in any one (1) election. No person,
permanent committee, or contributing organization shall contribute more than
one thousand dollars ($1,000) to any one (1) candidate, campaign committee,
political issues committee, nor anyone acting on their behalf, in any one (1)
election.
Permanent committees or contributing organizations affiliated by bylaw
structure or by registration, as determined by the Registry of Election Finance,
shall be considered as one (1) committee for purposes of applying the
contribution limits of subsection (6) of this section.
No permanent committee shall contribute funds to another permanent
committee for the purpose of circumventing contribution limits of subsection (6)
of this section.
No person shall contribute funds to a permanent committee, political issues
committee, or contributing organization for the purpose of circumventing the
contribution limits of subsection (6) of this section.
No person shall contribute more than one thousand five hundred dollars
($1,500) to all permanent committees and contributing organizations in any one
(1) year.
No person shall contribute more than two thousand five hundred dollars
($2,500) to the state executive committee of a political party and its
subdivisions and affiliates in any one (1) year. No person shall contribute more
than two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) to a caucus campaign
committee in any one (1) year. Contributions a person makes to any executive
committee other than the state executive committee in excess of one thousand
dollars ($1,000) in any one (1) year shall be deposited in a separate account
which the state executive committee maintains for the exclusive purpose of
paying administrative costs incurred by the political party.
No person shall make a payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of
money to another person to contribute to a candidate, a slate of candidates,
committee, contributing organization, or anyone on their behalf. No candidate,
slate of candidates, committee, contributing organization, nor anyone on their
behalf shall accept a contribution made by one (1) person who has received a
payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money from another
person to contribute to a candidate, a slate of candidates, committee,
contributing organization, or anyone on their behalf.
No candidates running as a slate for the offices of Governor and Lieutenant
Governor shall make combined total personal loans to their committee in
excess of fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in any one (1) election. No candidate
for any other statewide elected state office shall lend to his committee any
amount in excess of twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000) in any one (1)
election. In campaigning for all other offices, no candidate shall lend to his
committee more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in any one (1) election.
Subject to the provisions of subsection (18) of this section, no candidate or
slate of candidates for nomination to any state, county, city, or district office,
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nor their campaign committees, nor anyone on their behalf, shall solicit or
accept contributions for primary election expenses after the date of the primary.
No person other than the candidate or slate of candidates shall contribute for
primary election expenses after the date of the primary.
Subject to the provisions of subsection (18) of this section, no candidate or
slate of candidates for any state, county, city, or district office at a regular
election, nor their campaign committees, nor anyone on their behalf, shall
solicit or accept contributions for regular election expenses after the date of the
regular election. No person other than the candidate or slate of candidates
shall contribute for regular election expenses after the date of the regular
election.
Subject to the provisions of subsection (18) of this section, no candidate or
slate of candidates for nomination or election to any state, county, city, or
district office, nor their campaign committees, nor anyone on their behalf, shall
solicit or accept contributions for special election expenses after the date of the
special election. No person other than the candidate or slate of candidates
shall contribute for special election expenses after the date of the special
election.
The provisions of subsections (14) and (15) of this section shall apply only to
those candidates in a primary or regular election which shall be conducted
subsequent to January 1, 1989. The provisions of subsection (16) of this
section shall apply only to those candidates or slates of candidates in a special
election which shall be conducted subsequent to January 1, 1993.
A candidate, slate of candidates, or a campaign committee may solicit and
accept contributions after the date of a primary election, regular election, or
special election to defray necessary expenses that arise after the date of the
election associated with election contests, recounts, and recanvasses of a
specific election, complaints regarding alleged campaign finance violations that
are filed with the registry pertaining to a specific election, or other legal actions
pertaining to a specific election to which a candidate, slate of candidates, or
campaign committee is a party. Reports of contributions received and
expenditures made after the date of the specific election shall be made in
accordance with KRS 121.180.
No slate of candidates for Governor and Lieutenant Governor or their
immediate families shall loan any money, service, or other thing of value to
their campaign, and all moneys, services, or other things of value which are
loaned shall be deemed a contribution, which may not be recovered by the
slate of candidates, except to the extent of a combined total of fifty thousand
dollars ($50,000).
No candidate, slate of candidates, committee, except a political issues
committee, or contributing organization, nor anyone on their behalf, shall
knowingly accept a contribution from a corporation, directly or indirectly.
Nothing in this section shall be construed to restrict the ability of a corporation
to administer its permanent committee insofar as its actions can be deemed
not to influence an election as prohibited by KRS 121.025.
No candidate, slate of candidates, or committee, nor anyone on their behalf,
shall solicit a contribution of money or services from a state employee, whether
or not the employee is covered by the classified service provisions of KRS
Chapter 18A. However, it shall not be a violation of this subsection for a state
employee to receive a solicitation directed to him as a registered voter in an
identified precinct as part of an overall plan to contact voters not identified as
state employees.
(23) (a) A candidate or a slate of candidates for elective public office shall not
accept contributions from permanent committees which, in the aggregate,
exceed fifty percent (50%) of the total contributions accepted by the
candidate or a slate of candidates in any one (1) election or ten thousand
dollars ($10,000) in any one (1) election, whichever is the greater amount.
The percentage of the total contributions or dollar amounts of
contributions accepted by a candidate or a slate of candidates in an
election that is accepted from permanent committees shall be calculated
as of the day of each election. Funds in a candidate's or a slate of
candidates' campaign account which are carried forward from one (1)
election to another shall not be considered in calculating the acceptable
percentage or dollar amount of contributions which may be accepted from
permanent committees for the election for which the funds are carried
forward. A candidate or a slate of candidates may, without penalty,
contribute funds to his campaign account not later than sixty (60) days
following the election so as not to exceed the permitted percentage or
dollar amount of contributions which may be accepted from permanent
committees or the candidate or a slate of candidates may, not later than
sixty (60) days after the end of the election, refund any excess permanent
committee contributions on a pro rata basis to the permanent committees
whose contributions are accepted after the aggregate limit has been
reached.
(b) The provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection regarding the receipt of
aggregate contributions from permanent committees in any one (1)
election shall also apply separately to the receipt of aggregate
contributions from executive committees of any county, district, state, or
federal political party in any one (1) election.
(c) The provisions of paragraph (a) of this subsection regarding the receipt of
aggregate contributions from permanent committees in any one (1)
election shall also apply separately to the receipt of aggregate
contributions from caucus campaign committees.
(24) No candidate or slate of candidates for any office in this state shall accept a
contribution, including an in-kind contribution, which is made from funds in a
federal campaign account. No person shall make a contribution, including an
in-kind contribution, from funds in a federal campaign account to any candidate
or slate of candidates for any office in this state.
Effective:June 8, 2011
History: Amended 2011 Ky. Acts ch. 51, sec. 1, effective June 8, 2011. -Amended 2008 Ky. Acts ch. 129, sec. 11, effective July 15, 2008. -- Amended
2005 Ky. Acts ch. 105, sec. 5, effective March 16, 2005. -- Amended 2000 Ky.
Acts ch. 398, sec. 4, effective July 14, 2000. -- Amended 1998 Ky. Acts ch. 599,
sec. 1, effective July 15, 1998. -- Amended 1996 Ky. Acts ch. 153, sec. 3,
effective July 15, 1996; ch. 188, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1996; and ch. 372,
sec. 1, effective April 12, 1996. -- Amended 1994 Ky. Acts ch. 458, sec. 8,
effective July 15, 1994. -- Amended 1993 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 4,
sec. 57, effective September 16, 1993. -- Amended 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 288,
sec. 25, effective July 14, 1992. -- Amended 1990 Ky. Acts ch. 314, sec. 1,
effective July 13, 1990; and ch. 476, Pt. II, sec. 73, effective July 13, 1990. -Amended 1988 Ky. Acts ch. 15, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1988; ch. 55, sec. 1,
effective March 11, 1988; ch. 118, sec. 2, effective 1991; and ch. 341, sec. 43,
effective July 15, 1988. -- Amended 1986 Ky. Acts ch. 100, sec. 4, effective July
15, 1986; and ch. 168, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1986. -- Amended 1980 Ky.
Acts ch. 292, sec. 6, effective July 15, 1980. -- Created 1974 Ky. Acts ch. 130,
sec. 187.
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