Substitute Senate Bill No. 387 with File No. 470 proposes amendments to the general statutes regarding political campaign contributions and expenditures, specifically targeting online donation platforms. The bill revises section 9-601a subsection (b) to include a list of 19 items that are not considered contributions, such as loans from banks, use of personal property for campaign events, sale of food or beverages at a discount, and volunteer services. It sets cumulative value limits for these activities and clarifies that certain activities, like displaying lawn signs or a candidate paying their own committee, are not contributions if within set value limits. The bill also adds voluntary payments made by contributors to online platforms for their operations to the list of items not considered expenditures, and it amends the definition of "expenditure" in section 9-601b(b) accordingly.

The bill further specifies that communications with endorsements from unopposed candidates and campaign training events by legislative caucus committees are not expenditures if they meet certain criteria. It clarifies that the use of online platforms to request voluntary payments is not an expenditure, provided the payments are for the platform's operations. The bill, which has a Joint Favorable Substitute from the Government Administration and Elections Committee with a vote of 13-6, is effective upon passage and indicates no fiscal impact on the state or municipalities.

Statutes affected:
Raised Bill: 9-622