Commission cites committees for failure to file Arizona Pre-Primary report (2012)
On August 24, 2012, the Commission cited two campaign committees for failing to file the 12-Day Pre-Primary Election Report required by the Federal Election Campaign Act (the Act) for the Arizona primary election held on August 28, 2012.
As of August 23, 2012, the required disclosure report had not been received from:
- Bryan Hackbarth for United States Senate
- Guerra for Congress (AZ/03)
The report was due on August 16, 2012, and should have included financial activity for the period July 1, 2012, through August 8, 2012. If sent by certified or registered mail, the report should have been postmarked by August 13, 2012.
Some individuals and their committees have no obligation to file reports under federal campaign finance law, even though their names may appear on state ballots. If an individual raises or spends $5,000 or less, he or she is not considered a "candidate"
subject to reporting under the Act.
The Commission notified committees involved in the Arizona primary elections of their potential filing requirements on July 23, 2012. Those committees that did not file on the due date were sent notification on August 17, 2012 that their reports had not been received and that their names would be published if they did not respond within four business days.
Other political committees that support Senate and House candidates in elections, but are not authorized units of a candidate''s campaign, are also required to file quarterly reports, unless they report monthly. Those committee names are not published by the FEC.
Further Commission action against non-filers and late filers is decided on a case-by-case basis. Federal law gives the FEC broad authority to initiate enforcement actions, and the FEC has implemented an Administrative Fine program with provisions for assessing monetary penalties.
Resources:
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- Myles Martin
- Public Affairs Specialist
- Myles Martin