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ARIZONA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES57th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session |
House: FMAE DP 7-0-0-0 | Third Read 54-0-0-0Senate: JUDE DPA 5-0-2-0 | Third Read 16-12-2-0 Final Read: 28-0-2-0 |50-4-6-0 Chapter: 260 |
HB 2874: campaign committees; termination statements; contributions
Sponsor: Representative Weninger, LD 13
Signed by the Governor
Overview
Amends the conditions required for a candidate committee, political action committee or political party to file a termination statement. Prohibits penalties and enforcement actions against committees that meet specified conditions.
History
Currently, a committee may terminate only when the committee treasurer files a termination statement with the filing officer with whom the committee's statement of interest was filed. In the termination statement, the committee treasurer must certify under penalty of perjury that all of the following apply:
1) the committee will no longer receive any contributions or make any disbursements;
2) the committee either:
a. has no outstanding debts or obligations; or
b. has outstanding debts or obligations that are all more than five years old, and that committee's creditors have agreed to discharge the debts and obligations and have agreed to the termination of the committee;
3) any surplus monies are disposed of and the committee has no cash on hand; and
4) all contributions and expenditures have been reported, including any disposal of surplus monies (A.R.S. § 16-934).
A committee means a candidate committee, a political action committee or a political party.
A candidate for election or retention must register as a candidate committee if the candidate receives contributions or makes expenditures of at least $1,000 in connection with that candidacy. An entity is required to register as a political action committee if both of the following apply:
1) the entity is organized for the primary purpose of influencing the result of an election; and
2) the entity knowingly receives contributions or makes expenditures of at least $1,000 in connection with any election during a calendar year (A.R.S. §§ 16-901, 16-905).
Provisions
1. Requires a filing officer, within five days after the closing date for filing a report, to publish a listing of all active committees that owe penalties for late filing of reports. (Sec. 1)
2. Requires a committee treasurer, in a termination statement, to certify under penalty of perjury that either of the following applies:
a. the committee received no contributions; or
b. the committee received contributions and all of the following apply:
i. the committee will no longer receive any contributions or make any disbursements;
ii. the committee either has no outstanding debts, obligations or void penalties or has outstanding debts that are all more than five years old and its creditors have discharged the debts and obligations and agreed to the termination;
iii. any surplus monies are disposed of and the committee has no cash on hand; and
iv. all contributions and expenditures have been reported, including any disposal of surplus monies. (Sec. 2)
3. Prohibits penalties from being assessed against a committee for failure to file a timely campaign finance report and voids any such accrued penalties if the committee:
a. certifies that it received no contributions and made no expenditures during the applicable reporting period; and
b. files a termination statement as outlined by the act. (Sec. 3)
4. Limits the maximum amount of penalties that a committee may accrue for each late report to $5,000 beginning July 1, 2026. (Sec. 3)
5. States that, for a committee that files a termination statement and received no contributions, all of the following apply:
a. penalties may not be assessed or accrue against the committee;
b. any penalties that are assessed or accrue against such a committee are deemed void retroactively; and
c. for any enforcement action initiated by an enforcement officer against such a committee, the enforcement officer is deemed without jurisdiction and, if the matter is before a court, the court must dismiss the matter promptly. (Sec. 3)
6. States that, for a committee that files a termination statement and that has accrued penalties for late campaign finance reports corresponding to periods during which the committee received no contributions and made no expenditures, all of the following apply:
a. penalties may not be assessed or accrue against the committee in connection with such late reports;
b. any penalties that are assessed or accrue against a committee in connection with such late reports are deemed void retroactively; and
c. for any enforcement action initiated by an enforcement officer against such a committee in connection with such late reports, the enforcement officer is deemed without jurisdiction and, if the matter is before a court, the court must dismiss the matter promptly. (Sec. 3)
7. Prohibits, as session law, penalties against a committee that accrues such penalties for filing untimely reports and deems such penalties that accrue as void if:
a. the penalties were accrued during a reporting period for which the committee certifies and files complete reports that the committee received no contributions and made no expenditures during the reporting period and of the committee subsequently receives contributions and makes expenditures, the committee files complete reports for the reporting periods; and
b. the committee files a termination statement on or before December 31, 2026. (Sec. 4)
8. Makes the legislation retroactive to from and after July 5, 2016. (Sec. 5)
9. Contains an emergency clause. (Sec. 6)
10. Makes conforming changes. (Sec. 2)
11. Makes technical changes. (Sec. 2, 3)
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15. Initials GG HB 2874
16. 6/22/2026 Page 0 Signed by the Governor
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