16-937. Failure to file; penalties; notice; suspension; waiver

A. If a committee fails to timely file a complete report as prescribed by articles 1, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5 and 1.6 of this chapter, the filing officer shall send a written notice by email to the committee within five days after the filing deadline that identifies the late report, describes how fines accrue and identifies methods of payment.

B. A committee that fails to timely file a report shall pay the filing officer a penalty of $10 for each day that the filing is late during the first fifteen days after the filing deadline and $25 for each subsequent day that the filing is late.  Penalties accrue until the late report is filed, except that:

1. Penalties shall not be assessed and any accrued penalties are void if the committee certifies that it received no contributions and made no expenditures during the reporting period to which the untimely report corresponds and files a termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B.

2. Beginning July 1, 2026, the maximum amount of penalties that a committee may accrue for each late report is $5,000.

C. If a committee fails to file a complete report within thirty days after the filing deadline and after providing notice pursuant to subsection A of this section, the filing officer may notify the appropriate enforcement officer prescribed in this article.

D. For any political action committee or political party that fails to file three consecutive complete reports, the filing officer shall send by email to the committee a notice of temporary suspension and the following apply:

1. On receipt, the committee's authority to operate in the jurisdiction is temporarily suspended.

2. The notice shall state that failure to comply with all filing and payment requirements within thirty days after the date of the notice shall result in permanent suspension of the committee's authority to operate in that jurisdiction.

E. After compliance with subsection D of this section, the filing officer may permanently suspend the committee and shall notify the committee by email and is not required to provide any further notice.  Permanent or temporary suspension does not eliminate a committee's continuing obligation to file reports and pay any outstanding and accruing penalties provided by law.

F. For a committee that files a termination statement as prescribed by section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 1 that states that the committee received no contributions, the following apply:

1. Penalties may not be assessed against and may not accrue against the committee.

2. Any penalties that are assessed or that accrue against a committee that subsequently files a termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 1 are deemed void retroactively.

3. For any enforcement action initiated by the enforcement officer against a committee that subsequently files a termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 1, the enforcement officer is deemed without jurisdiction and if the matter is before a court, the court shall dismiss the matter promptly.

G. For a committee that files a termination statement pursuant to section 16-934, subsection B, paragraph 2 and that has accrued penalties for untimely reports corresponding to reporting periods during which the committee received no contributions and made no expenditures, the following apply:

1. Penalties may not be assessed against and may not accrue against the committee in connection with those reports.

2. Any penalties that are assessed or that accrue against the committee in connection with those reports are deemed void retroactively.

3. For any enforcement action initiated by the enforcement officer against the committee in connection with those reports, the enforcement officer is deemed without jurisdiction and if the matter is before a court, the court shall dismiss the matter promptly.

H. On compliance with section 16-934, a filing officer may waive any penalties accrued under this section from a candidate committee's failure to file a report if the report was due after that candidate's death.