This bill amends the Rhode Island Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting law to require treasurers of candidates or committees to file reports at ninety-day intervals, starting from the date the individual first becomes a candidate. The reports must include an account of contributions received and expenditures made on behalf of or in opposition to a candidate. The bill also removes the requirement for reports to be filed only in contested elections and instead requires reports to be filed for all elections, whether the candidate has a contested primary or not.

Additionally, the bill allows campaign treasurers to certify to the board of elections that the campaign fund has completed its business and been dissolved. Once the campaign fund is dissolved, no contributions intended to defray campaign expenditures can be accepted. The bill also establishes requirements for filing account statements from the officeholder's campaign account and exempts these statements from being public records. The bill further provides exemptions from filing expenditure reports if the total amount to be expended on behalf of the candidacy does not exceed $1,000, but requires reports to be made for contributions exceeding $100 from any one source within a calendar year. Finally, the bill allows campaign treasurers to file a sworn statement that they will not accept contributions or make expenditures exceeding the minimum amounts for which a report is required.

Statutes affected:
5455: 17-25-11