Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a) For
reporting required under §
RSA
254.031 of the Election Code, the purpose of
an expenditure means:
(1) A description of
the category of goods, services, or other thing of value for which an
expenditure is made. Examples of acceptable categories include:
(A) advertising expense;
(B) accounting/banking;
(C) consulting expense;
(D) contributions/donations made by
candidate/officeholder/political committee;
(E) event expense;
(F) fees;
(G) food/beverage expense;
(H) gifts/awards/memorials expense;
(I) legal services;
(J) loan repayment/reimbursement;
(K) office overhead/rental expense;
(L) polling expense;
(M) printing expense;
(N) salaries/wages/contract labor;
(O) solicitation/fundraising
expense;
(P) transportation
equipment and related expense;
(Q)
travel in district;
(R) travel out
of district;
(S) other political
expenditures; and
(2) A
brief statement or description of the candidate, officeholder, or political
committee activity that is conducted by making the expenditure and an
additional indication if the expenditure is an officeholder expenditure for
living in Austin, Texas. The brief statement or description must include the
item or service purchased and must be sufficiently specific, when considered
within the context of the description of the category, to make the reason for
the expenditure clear. Merely disclosing the category of goods, services, or
other thing of value for which the expenditure is made does not adequately
describe the purpose of an expenditure.
(3) For purposes of this section,
"consulting" means advice and strategy. "Consulting" does not include providing
other goods or services, including without limitation media production, voter
contact, or political advertising.
(b) An expenditure other than a reimbursement
to a person, including a vendor, for more than one type of good or service must
be reported by the filer as separate expenditures for each type of good or
service provided by the person in accordance with this rule.
(c) The description of a political
expenditure for travel outside of the state of Texas must provide the
following:
(1) The name of the person or
persons traveling on whose behalf the expenditure was made;
(2) The means of transportation;
(3) The name of the departure city or the
name of each departure location;
(4) The name of the destination city or the
name of each destination location;
(5) The dates on which the travel occurred;
and
(6) The campaign or
officeholder purpose of the travel, including the name of a conference,
seminar, or other event.
(d) Except as provided by subsection (e) of
this section, this rule applies to expenditures made on or after July 1,
2010.
(e) The requirement to
include an additional indication if an expenditure is an officeholder
expenditure for living in Austin, Texas, applies to an expenditure made on or
after July 1, 2014.
(f) Comments:
The purpose of an expenditure must include both a description of the category
of goods or services received in exchange for the expenditure and a brief
statement or description of the candidate, officeholder, or political committee
activity that is conducted by making the expenditure. A description of an
expenditure that merely states the item or service purchased is not adequate
because doing so does not allow a person reading the report to know the
allowable activity for which an expenditure was made. The following is a list
of examples that describe how the purpose of an expenditure may be reported
under section 20.61. This list is for illustrative purposes only. It is
intended to provide helpful information and to assist filers in reporting the
purpose of an expenditure under this rule. However, it is not, and is not
intended to be, an exhaustive or an exclusive list of how a filer may
permissibly report the purpose of an expenditure under this rule. The rule does
not require the candidate or officeholder to identify by name or affiliation an
individual or group with whom the candidate or officeholder meets.
(1) Example: Candidate X is seeking the
office of State Representative, District 2000. She purchases an airline ticket
from ABC Airlines to attend a campaign rally within District 2000. The
acceptable category for this expenditure is "travel in district." The candidate
activity that is accomplished by making the expenditure is to attend a campaign
rally. An acceptable brief statement is "airline ticket to attend campaign
event."
(2) Example: Candidate X
purchases an airline ticket to attend a campaign event outside of District 2000
but within Texas, the acceptable category is "travel out of district." The
candidate activity that is accomplished by making the expenditure is to attend
a campaign event. An acceptable brief statement is "airline ticket to attend
campaign or officeholder event."
(3) Example: Candidate X purchases an airline
ticket to attend an officeholder related seminar outside of Texas. The
acceptable method for the purpose of this expenditure is by selecting the
"travel out of district" category and completing the "Schedule T" (used to
report travel outside of Texas).
(4) Example: Candidate X contracts with an
individual to do various campaign related tasks such as work on a campaign
phone bank, sign distribution, and staffing the office. The acceptable category
is "salaries/wages/contract labor." The candidate activity that is accomplished
by making the expenditure is to compensate an individual working on the
campaign. An acceptable brief statement is "contract labor for campaign
services."
(5) Example:
Officeholder X is seeking re-election and makes an expenditure to purchase a
vehicle to use for campaign purposes and permissible officeholder purposes. The
acceptable category is "transportation equipment and related expenses" and an
acceptable brief description is "purchase of campaign/officeholder
vehicle."
(6) Example: Candidate X
makes an expenditure to repair a flat tire on a campaign vehicle purchased with
political funds. The acceptable category is "transportation equipment and
related expenses" and an acceptable brief description is "campaign vehicle
repairs."
(7) Example: Officeholder
X purchases flowers for a constituent. The acceptable category is
"gifts/awards/memorials expense" and an acceptable brief description is
"flowers for constituent."
(8)
Example: Political Committee XYZ makes a political contribution to Candidate X.
The acceptable category is "contributions/donations made by
candidate/officeholder/political committee" and an acceptable brief description
is "campaign contribution."
(9)
Example: Candidate X makes an expenditure for a filing fee to get his name on
the ballot. The acceptable category is "fees" and an acceptable brief
description is "candidate filing fee."
(10) Example: Officeholder X makes an
expenditure to attend a seminar related to performing a duty or engaging in an
activity in connection with the office. The acceptable category is "fees" and
an acceptable brief description is "attend officeholder seminar."
(11) Example: Candidate X makes an
expenditure for political advertising to be broadcast by radio. The acceptable
category is "advertising expense" and an acceptable brief description is
"political advertising." Similarly, Candidate X makes an expenditure for
political advertising to appear in a newspaper. The acceptable category is
"advertising expense" and an acceptable brief description is "political
advertising."
(12) Example:
Officeholder X makes expenditures for printing and postage to mail a letter to
all of her constituents, thanking them for their participation during the
legislative session. Acceptable categories are "advertising expense" OR
"printing expense" and an acceptable brief description is "letter to
constituents."
(13) Example:
Officeholder X makes an expenditure to pay the campaign office electric bill.
The acceptable category is "office overhead/rental expense" and an acceptable
brief description is "campaign office electric bill."
(14) Example: Officeholder X makes an
expenditure to purchase paper, postage, and other supplies for the campaign
office. The acceptable category is "office overhead/rental expense" and an
acceptable brief description is "campaign office supplies."
(15) Example: Officeholder X makes an
expenditure to pay the campaign office monthly rent. The acceptable category is
"office overhead/rental expense" and an acceptable brief description is
"campaign office rent."
(16)
Example: Candidate X hires a consultant for fundraising services. The
acceptable category is "consulting expense" and an acceptable brief description
is "campaign services."
(17)
Example: Candidate/Officeholder X pays his attorney for legal fees related to
either campaign matters or officeholder matters. The acceptable category is
"legal services" and an acceptable brief description is "legal fees for
campaign" or "for officeholder matters."
(18) Example: Candidate/Officeholder X makes
food and beverage expenditures for a meeting with her constituents. The
acceptable category is "food/beverage expense" and an acceptable brief
statement is "meeting with constituents."
(19) Example: Candidate X makes food and
beverage expenditures for a meeting to discuss candidate issues. The acceptable
category is "food/beverage expense" and an acceptable brief statement is
"meeting to discuss campaign issues."
(20) Example: Officeholder X makes food and
beverage expenditures for a meeting to discuss officeholder issues. The
acceptable category is "food/beverage expense" and an acceptable brief
statement is "meeting to discuss officeholder issues."
(21) Example: Candidate/Officeholder X makes
food and beverage expenditures for a meeting to discuss campaign and
officeholder issues. The acceptable category is "food/beverage expense" and an
acceptable brief statement is "meeting to discuss campaign/officeholder
issues."
