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121.120 Duties and powers of registry -- Appointment of certain employees -Electronic reporting system.
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
The registry may:
(a) Require by special or general orders, any person to submit, under oath, any
written reports and answers to questions as the registry may prescribe;
(b) Administer oaths or affirmations;
(c) Require by subpoena, signed by the chairman, the attendance and testimony of
witnesses and the production of all documentary evidence, excluding
individual and business income tax records, relating to the execution of its
duties;
(d) In any proceeding or investigation, to order testimony to be taken by
deposition before any person who is designated by the registry and has the
power to administer oaths and, in those instances, to compel testimony and the
production of evidence in the same manner as authorized under paragraph (c)
of this subsection;
(e) Initiate, through civil actions for injunctive, declaratory, or other appropriate
relief, defend, or appeal any civil action in the name of the registry to enforce
the provisions of this chapter through its legal counsel;
(f) Render advisory opinions under KRS 121.135;
(g) Promulgate administrative regulations necessary to carry out the provisions of
this chapter;
(h) Conduct investigations and hearings expeditiously, to encourage voluntary
compliance, and report apparent campaign finance law violations to the
appropriate law enforcement authorities;
(i) Petition any court of competent jurisdiction to issue an order requiring
compliance with an order or subpoena issued by the registry. Any failure to
obey the order of the court may be punished by the court as contempt; and
(j) Conduct random audits of receipts and expenditures of committees which
have filed registration papers with the registry pursuant to KRS 121.170.
No person shall be subject to civil liability to any person other than the registry or
the Commonwealth for disclosing information at the request of the registry.
The registry may appoint a full-time executive director, legal counsel, and an
accountant for auditing purposes, all of whom shall serve at the pleasure of the
registry. The registry may also appoint such other employees as are necessary to
carry out the purposes of this chapter. All requests for personnel appointments shall
be forwarded by the registry directly to the secretary of the Personnel Cabinet and
shall be subject to his review and certification only.
The registry shall adopt official forms and perform other duties necessary to
implement the provisions of this chapter. The registry shall not require the listing of
a person's Social Security number on any form developed by the registry. Without
limiting the generality of the foregoing, the registry shall:
(a) Develop prescribed forms for the making of the required reports;
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
Prepare and publish a manual for all candidates, slates of candidates, and
committees, describing the requirements of the law, including uniform
methods of bookkeeping and reporting, requirements as to reporting dates, and
the length of time that candidates, slates of candidates, and committees are
required to keep any records pursuant to the provisions of this chapter;
Develop a filing, coding, and cross-indexing system;
Make each report filed available for public inspection and copying during
regular office hours at the expense of any person requesting copies of them;
Preserve all reports for at least six (6) years from the date of receipt. Duly
certified reports shall be admissible as evidence in any court in the
Commonwealth;
Prepare and make available for public inspection a summary of all reports
grouped according to candidates, slates of candidates, committees,
contributing organizations, and parties containing the total receipts and
expenditures; and
1.
For each contribution made by a permanent committee of any amount to
a candidate or slate of candidates, the date, name, and business address
of the permanent committee, the amount contributed, and a description
of the major business, social, or political interest represented by the
permanent committee;
2.
For each contribution in excess of one hundred dollars ($100) made to a
candidate or slate of candidates for a statewide-elected state office, to a
campaign committee for a candidate or slate of candidates for a
statewide-elected state office, the date, name, address, occupation, and
employer of each contributor and the spouse of the contributor or, if the
contributor or spouse of the contributor is self-employed, the name
under which he is doing business, and the amount contributed by each
contributor, listed alphabetically; and
3.
For each contribution in excess of one hundred dollars ($100) made to
any candidate or campaign committee other than those specified in
subparagraph 2., the date, name, address, occupation, and employer of
each other contributor or, if the contributor is self-employed, the name
under which he is doing business, and the amount contributed by each
contributor, listed alphabetically;
Prepare and publish an annual report with cumulative compilations named in
paragraph (f) of this subsection;
Distribute upon request, for a nominal fee, copies of all summaries and
reports;
Determine whether the required reports have been filed and if so, whether they
conform with the requirements of this chapter; give notice to delinquents to
correct or explain defections; issue an order, if appropriate, as provided in
KRS 121.140; and make public the fact that a violation has occurred and the
nature thereof;
(j)
(5)
(6)
Conduct random audits of receipts and expenditures of candidates running for
city, county, urban-county government, charter county government, and
district offices. When the registry audits the records of any selected candidate,
it shall also audit the records of all other candidates running for the same
office in the selected city, county, urban-county government, charter county
government, or district office;
(k) Conduct audits of receipts and expenditures of all candidates or slates of
candidates running for statewide office;
(l) Require that candidates and slates of candidates shall maintain their records
for a period of six (6) years from the date of the regular election in their
respective political races;
(m) Initiate investigations and make investigations with respect to reports upon
complaint by any person and initiate proceedings on its own motion; and
(n) Forward to the Attorney General or the appropriate Commonwealth's or
county attorney any violations of this chapter which may become the subject
of civil or criminal prosecution.
All policy and enforcement decisions concerning the regulation of campaign finance
shall be the ultimate responsibility of the registry. No appointed or elected state
officeholder or any other person shall, directly or indirectly, attempt to secure or
create privileges, exemptions, or advantages for himself or others in derogation of
the public interest at large in a manner that seeks to leave any registry member or
employee charged with the enforcement of the campaign finance laws no alternative
but to comply with the wishes of the officeholder or person. Registry members and
employees shall be free of obligation or the appearance of obligation to any interest
other than the fair and efficient enforcement of the campaign finance laws and
administrative regulations. It shall not be considered a violation of this subsection
for an officeholder or other person to seek remedies in a court of law to any policy
or enforcement decision he considers to be an abridgement of his legal rights.
If adequate and appropriate agency funds are available, the registry shall:
(a) Develop or acquire a system for electronic reporting for use by individuals and
entities required to file campaign finance reports with the registry under this
chapter. The registry shall promulgate administrative regulations under KRS
Chapter 13A which provide for a nonproprietary standardized format or
formats, using industry standards, for the transmission of data required under
this chapter;
(b) Accept test files from software vendors and persons wishing to file reports
electronically for the purpose of determining whether the file format complies
with the nonproprietary standardized format developed under paragraph (a) of
this subsection and is compatible with the registry's system for receiving the
data;
(c) Make all paper or electronic reports filed with the registry pertaining to
candidates for the General Assembly and statewide office available on the
Internet free of charge, in an easily understood format that allows the public to
(7)
browse, search, and download the data contained in the reports by each of the
reporting categories required by this chapter, including but not limited to:
1.
The name of each candidate or committee;
2.
The office sought by each candidate;
3.
The name of each contributor;
4.
The address of each contributor;
5.
The employer or business occupation of each contributor, or if the
contributor is a permanent committee, a description of the major
business, social, or political interest represented by the permanent
committee;
6.
The date of each contribution; and
7.
The amount of each contribution;
(d) Make all data specified in paragraph (c) of this subsection available on the
Internet no later than ten (10) business days after its receipt by the registry. If a
contribution or expenditure report is filed late with the registry, that data shall
be made available on the Internet within twenty-four (24) hours of the
registry's receipt of the data;
(e) Make filer-side software available free of charge to all individuals or entities
subject to the reporting requirements of this chapter;
(f) Establish a training program on the electronic reporting program and make it
available free of charge to all individuals and entities subject to the reporting
requirements of this chapter;
(g) Maintain all campaign finance data pertaining to legislative and statewide
candidates on-line for twenty (20) years after the date the report containing the
data is filed, and then archive the data in a secure format; and
(h) Require candidates and slates of candidates running for statewide office, and
campaign committees of candidates and slates of candidates registered to run
for statewide office, beginning with elections scheduled in 2015, to
electronically report all election finance reports that must be submitted to the
registry under this chapter. If any statewide candidate, slate of candidates, or
campaign committee of a statewide candidate or slate of candidates submits
an election finance report in a nonelectronic format for an election scheduled
in 2015 or later, the registry shall require the statewide candidate, slate of
candidates, or campaign committee of the statewide candidate or slate of
candidates to resubmit the election finance report in an electronic format the
first time that entity files an electronic report for that election.
In conjunction with the program of electronic reporting set out in subsection (6) of
this section, the registry shall deem an electronic report to be filed when submitted
by either of the following methods:
(a) Online Internet transmission; or
(b) Delivery by mail or hand delivery of the electronic report saved on optical or
magnetic disk.
Effective: July 12, 2012
History: Amended 2012 Ky. Acts ch. 48, sec. 1, effective July 12, 2012. -- Amended
2005 Ky. Acts ch. 105, sec. 4, effective March 16, 2005. -- Amended 2000 Ky. Acts
ch. 398, sec. 3, effective July 14, 2000. -- Amended 1998 Ky. Acts ch. 154, sec. 75,
effective July 15, 1998. -- Amended 1996 Ky. Acts ch. 155, sec. 2, effective July 15,
1996; ch. 240, sec. 1, effective July 15, 1996; and ch. 252, sec. 1, effective January 1,
1997. -- Amended 1994 Ky. Acts ch. 458, sec. 6, effective July 15, 1994. -- Amended
1993 (1st Extra. Sess.) Ky. Acts ch. 4, sec. 56, effective November 3, 1993. -Amended 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 288, sec. 44, effective July 14, 1992. -- Amended 1988
Ky. Acts ch. 341, sec. 41, effective July 15, 1988. -- Amended 1986 Ky. Acts ch.
100, sec. 2, effective July 15, 1986. -- Amended 1980 Ky. Acts ch. 292, sec. 4,
effective July 15, 1980. -- Created 1974 Ky. Acts ch. 130, sec. 186.
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