SENATE RULES COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
SENATE BILLS 116, 262, 346 & 521
49th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2009
AN ACT
RELATING TO ELECTIONS; LIMITING CONTRIBUTIONS BY PERSONS AND POLITICAL COMMITTEES TO CANDIDATES AND POLITICAL COMMITTEES IN ELECTIONS COVERED BY THE CAMPAIGN REPORTING ACT; ALLOWING DONATION OF CAMPAIGN FUNDS TO A POLITICAL COMMITTEE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
Section 1. A new section of the Campaign Reporting Act is enacted to read:
"[NEW MATERIAL] CONTRIBUTION LIMITATIONS--CANDIDATES--POLITICAL COMMITTEES.--
A. The following contributions shall not knowingly be made by the following persons, directly or indirectly, including a contribution earmarked or otherwise directed or coordinated through a third party:
(1) from a person, not including a political committee, to a:
(a) candidate for office, including the candidate's campaign committee, in an amount that will cause that person's aggregate amount of contributions to the candidate to exceed two thousand three hundred dollars ($2,300) in a calendar year;
(b) political committee other than a political party, in an amount that will cause that person's aggregate amount of contributions to the political committee to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) in a calendar year; or
(c) political party in an amount that will cause that person's aggregate amount of contributions to the political party to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in a calendar year;
(2) from a political committee, other than a political party, to:
(a) a candidate for office, including the candidate's campaign committee, in an amount that will cause that political committee's aggregate amount of contributions to the candidate to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) in a calendar year; or
(b) another political committee in an amount that will cause that political committee's aggregate amount of contributions to the political committee to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) in a calendar year; and
(3) from a political party to:
(a) a candidate for office, including the candidate's campaign committee, in an amount that will cause the combined total of all local and state chapters of that political party's aggregate amount of contributions to the candidate to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in a calendar year; or
(b) another political committee in an amount that will cause that political party's aggregate amount of contributions to the political committee to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000) in a calendar year.
B. All contributions made by a person, either directly or indirectly, including contributions that are in any way earmarked or otherwise directed through an intermediary or conduit to a candidate, shall be treated as contributions from the person to that candidate.
C. A person shall not knowingly accept or solicit a contribution, directly or indirectly, including a contribution earmarked or otherwise directed or coordinated through a third party, that violates the contribution limits provided for in this section.
D. The limitation on contributions to a candidate provided for in Subsection A of this section shall not apply to a candidate's own contribution from the candidate's personal funds to the candidate's own campaign."
Section 2. Section 1-19-29.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, Chapter 46, Section 6, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-19-29.1. CAMPAIGN FUNDS--LIMITATION ON USE.--
A. It is unlawful for [any] a candidate or [his] the candidate's agent to make an expenditure of contributions received, except for the following purposes or as otherwise provided in this section:
(1) expenditures of the campaign;
(2) expenditures of legislators that are reasonably related to performing the duties of the office held, including mail, telephone and travel expenditures to serve constituents, but excluding personal and legislative session living expenses;
(3) donations to the state general fund;
(4) donations to an organization to which a federal income tax deduction would be permitted under Subparagraph (A) of Paragraph (1) of Subsection (b) of Section 170 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended;
(5) expenditures to eliminate the campaign debt of the candidate for the office sought or expenditures incurred by the candidate when seeking election to another public office covered by the Campaign Reporting Act;
(6) donations to a political [party] committee or to another candidate seeking election to public office; or
(7) disbursements to return unused funds pro rata to the contributors if no campaign debt exists.
B. A judge subject to a nonpartisan retention election or a candidate for judicial office shall solicit or accept campaign funds and return unused funds in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Judicial Conduct.
C. No contributions solicited for or received in a federal election campaign may be used in a state election campaign."
Section 3. Section 1-19-34.3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1993, Chapter 46, Section 14, as amended) is amended to read:
"1-19-34.3. CONTRIBUTIONS IN ONE NAME GIVEN FOR ANOTHER PROHIBITED.--It is unlawful for a person [or political committee to make, or a candidate or his agent to accept, a contribution that is reported as coming from one person or entity when the candidate or his agent knows that the contribution is actually from another person or entity that directed that the contribution not be publicly reported] to make a contribution in the name of another person, and no person shall knowingly accept a contribution made by one person in the name of another person."
Section 4. DELAYED REPEAL.--Section 1 of this act is repealed effective January 1, 2013.
Section 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is January 1, 2011.
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