Bill > S2430

Introduced Session

This bill revises "The New Jersey Campaign Contributions and Expenditures Reporting Act" to institute new reporting requirements on certain organizations, and increase the limits on the amount of money that may be contributed by individuals, candidates, and committees to other candidates and committees. Specifically, the bill would require disclosure by any independent expenditure committee. Such a committee is defined as any organization organized under section 527, or under paragraph (4) of subsection c. of section 501, of the federal Internal Revenue Code that engages in influencing or attempting to influence the outcome of any election or the nomination, election, or defeat of any person to any State or local elective public office or the passage or defeat of any public question, or in providing political information on any candidate or public question, and raises or expends $3,000 or more for any such purpose. It would require these committees to report contribution and expenditure information in excess of $300 to the Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC). The bill would prohibit a candidate from establishing, authorizing the establishment of, maintaining, or participating directly or indirectly, in the management or control of any independent expenditure committee. The bill defines the term "electioneering communication" to mean any communication that has a value of at least $10,000 and refers to: 1) a clearly identified candidate for office and promotes or supports a candidate for that office or opposes a candidate for that office, regardless of whether the communication expressly advocates a vote for or against a candidate; or 2) a public question and promotes or supports the passage or defeat of that question, regardless of whether the communication expressly advocates a vote for or against the passage of the question. The term includes communications published in any newspaper or periodical; or broadcast on radio, television, the Internet, or any public address system; placed on any billboard, outdoor facility, button, motor vehicle, window display, poster, card, pamphlet, leaflet, flyer, or other circular; or contained in any direct mailing, robotic phone calls, or mass e-mails. The term "independent expenditure" is defined in the bill to mean an expenditure by a person expressly advocating, or the functional equivalent thereof, the election or defeat of: 1) a clearly identified candidate that is not made in concert or cooperation with or at the request or suggestion of the candidate, the candidate's committee, a political party committee, or an agent thereof; or 2) a public question that is not made in concert or cooperation with or at the request or suggestion of the sponsors, organizers, or committee supporting or opposing the question, a political party, or agents thereof. The "functional equivalent" of expressly advocating means specific advocacy that can be interpreted by a reasonable person as advocating the election or defeat of a candidate, or the passage or defeat of a public question, taking into account whether the communication involved mentions a candidate, a political party, or a challenger to a candidate, or takes a position on a candidate's character, qualifications, or fitness for office, or that can be interpreted by a reasonable person as taking a position on the merits of a public question or taking a position in favor or against the passage or defeat of the public question. In addition the bill would: 1) increase the amount of money that can be contributed by an individual, a corporation or union, or a group to a candidate committee from $2,600 to $3,000 per election; 2) increase the amount of money that can be contributed by a political committee or a continuing political committee to a candidate committee from $8,200 to $9,300 per election; 3) increase the amount of money that can be contributed by an individual, a corporation or union, political committee, continuing political committee, candidate committee or joint candidates committee or any other group to: a) the State committee of a political party from $25,000 to $28,000 per year; b) a county committee of a political party from $37,000 to $42,000 per year; and c) a municipal committee of a political party from $7,200 to $8,200 per year; 4) increase the amount of money that the national committee of a political party can contribute to the State committee of a political party from $72,000 to $82,000 per year; 5) increase the amount of money that can be contributed by the candidate committee of one candidate to the candidate committee of another candidate from $8,200 to $9,300 per election; and 6) increase the amount of money that can be contributed to a political committee, or that one political committee or continuing political committee can contribute to another political committee or continuing political committee, from $7,200 to $8,200 per election or per year, as the case may be. The bill also repeals the current prohibition on the transfer of funds between county political party committees between January 1st and June 30th of each year.

AI Summary

Committee Categories

Nia Gill (D)*,  Joe Vitale (D)*,  Linda Greenstein (D),  Shirley Turner (D), 

Introduced in the Senate, Referred to Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee (on 06/27/2016)