Source: https://transition.fec.gov/rad/pacs/FederalElectionCommission-RAD-PACs.shtml
Timestamp: 2019-04-24 02:35:01+00:00

Document:
This page provides answers to frequently asked reporting questions pertaining to political action committees. If you don't find an answer to your question here, please contact the FEC's Information Division, toll free at 800-424-9530 or by e-mail at info@fec.gov. Committee staff may also speak with the Campaign Finance Analyst who reviews the committee's reports by calling the Reports Analysis Division, toll free at 800-424-9530 (press 5). Additionally, electronic filers may contact the Commission's Electronic Filing Office for technical assistance, toll free at 800-424-9530 (press 4).
When do I need to file / When are my reports due?
Where do I send my FEC reports? What methods should I use to mail my reports?
What happens if I file my report late?
Can I get a filing extension?
Do I have to file a report even if my committee had no activity during the reporting period?
Where can I find copies of our filed reports or RFAIs sent to the committee?
How do I respond to a Request for Additional Information (RFAI) letter?
The committee has a new treasurer/address/committee name/bank/affiliate, what should I do?
Do I have to file a pre-primary report?
What state should be disclosed for the “in the state of” field on the 12 Day Pre-General and 30 Day Post-General Reports?
What does multicandidate status mean?
When does a contribution from an individual need to be itemized?
What information is required for contributions from individuals?
How do I report contributions received via payroll deduction?
How do I report an in-kind contribution received from an individual?
How do I report contributions from LLCs or partnerships?
How does the committee establish “best efforts” for obtaining required information from our contributors?
What information is required for contributions from other political committees?
How do I report a receipt from a federal committee?
How do I report a transfer received from an affiliated committee?
How do I report receipts from a joint fundraiser?
How do I report an in-kind contribution from a committee?
How do I report a receipt from a non-federal committee?
How do I report a refund or rebate received from a previous disbursement?
How do I report a refund for a contribution we made to a federal candidate or committee?
How do I report interest or dividends received from our bank or investment accounts?
How do I report a reimbursement from our connected organization for previously paid administrative expenses?
How do I report the sale of committee goods or services?
Who can pay for our separate segregated fund’s administrative expenses?
On what line are administrative expenses reported?
What information do I need to include for itemized administrative expenses?
When do disbursements need to be itemized on Line 21(b), Schedule B?
Does our committee have to report bank fees?
How do I report credit card payments?
How do I report reimbursements to individuals?
What is the difference between federal and non-federal candidates and committees?
What is the difference between a candidate’s campaign committee and a candidate’s leadership PAC?
How do I report contributions to federal candidates and committees?
How do I report contributions to affiliated federal committees?
How do I report contributions to non-federal candidates and committees?
How do I report an in-kind contribution to federal candidates and committees?
How do I report refunded contributions?
A contribution check was lost in the mail or was never delivered to the committee. How do I report that the check was never cashed?
What does it mean to designate a contribution to a federal candidate?
The election is over, can I still make a contribution to a candidate for that election?
We made an excessive contribution to a candidate. What should I do now?
How do I report a new Loan?
How do I report receiving the funds?
When do I file Schedule C and C-1?
I file electronically, why do I also need to mail a copy of the Schedule C-1?
We obtained a Line of Credit (LOC), how do I disclose each draw?
Do I need to file a new Schedule C-1 if we re-finance or extend the loan?
Do I file Schedule C on every report?
Do I file Schedule C-1 on every report?
How do I report a loan (principal) payment?
How do I report an interest payment?
Is a loan from an individual a contribution from that person?
Do I have to file a Schedule C-1 for a loan from an individual?
How do I report a loan owed to the Committee?
When do I have to report debts?
How do I report a debt?
How do I report a payment of a debt?
How do I report a disputed debt?
How do I report a forgiven debt?
Do I have to file a Schedule D on every report?
How do I report an estimated debt?
How do I report a debt owed to the Committee?
What are the reporting requirements for independent expenditure?
When do I have to file 24/48-Hour Reports?
How do I file 24/48-Hour Reports?
What should be included on a 24/48-Hour Reports?
How are independent expenditures aggregated?
How are independent expenditures for presidential primary elections aggregated?
How do I report an independent expenditure that is disseminated on a different day than the payment to the vendor?
How do I determine the dissemination date?
How do I report an independent expenditure when, at the time of dissemination, we have an estimate of what the cost will be?
The 24/48-Hour Report discloses an estimated amount and the vendor has since sent an invoice with the actual amount owed.
of the corresponding regularly scheduled report (Form 3X)?
What is an Independent Expenditure-Only Committee?
How do I register as an Independent Expenditure-Only Committee?
How do I notify the Commission of my Committee’s intent to operate under Carey v. FEC?
How do I report as a committee operating under Carey v. FEC?
For Political Committees with Non-Contribution Accounts, if the committee makes an independent expenditure for a specific candidate from both the Non-Contribution Account and the Contribution Account what should be reflected in the "Calendar Year To Date Per Year For Office Sought" field?
If a donor to the Non-Contribution Account is refunded some or all of their contribution, what line should the refund be disclosed?
When do I need to file?/ When are my reports due?
Your reporting schedule depends on the type of committee. Please consult the Filing Frequency by Type of Filer section of the website for more information.
Note: Committees required to file electronically must submit their reports, statements and notices electronically. For more information, consult the Electronic Filing section of the website.
Registered and Certified Mail. Reports sent by registered or certified mail must be postmarked on or before the mailing deadline to be considered timely filed.
Other Means of Filing. Reports sent by other means - including first class mail and courier- must be received by the FEC before close of business on the filing deadline.
Under the FEC's Administrative Fine Program, failure to file reports on time could result in penalties ranging from $30 to $16,000 (or more for repeat late- and non-filers). For more information, please consult the Administrative Fine Program or to determine the amount of a possible fine consult the Administrative Fine Calculator.
No. The Commission does not have statutory authority to extend any filing deadlines. All reports and other filings are due on or before the established filing deadlines.
Yes, you must file every report, regardless of the amount of activity.
Where can I find copies of our filed reports or Requests for Additional Information(RFAI) letters sent to the committee?
Images of filed reports and/or RFAIs can be found by using the FEC's Candidate and Committee Viewer. Enter your Committee ID, and you will be able to view a summary of the committee's activity by category, report and filings bases on the election cycle.
How do I respond to a RFAI letter?
For more information on responding to an RFAI, please consult Requests for Additional Information (RFAIs) section of the website.
We have a new treasurer/address/committee name/bank/affiliate, what should I do?
PACs filing on a quarterly basis in an election year are subject to pre-election reporting requirements if they make previously undisclosed contributions or expenditures in connection with any primary and/or runoff. Please refer to Congressional Pre-Election Reporting Dates (2016) for more information.
When filing the 12 Day Pre-General and 30 Day Post-General Reports, you will need to complete the "in the state of" field. Please note that since the general election is held nationwide, you may enter any state in the field.
3. made contributions to at least five federal candidates.
Multicandidate committees (also referred to as "qualified" committees) have different contribution limits than committees that are not qualified. Please refer to the Contribution Limits Chart [PDF] for more information.
Contributions from individuals need to be itemized when the contributor gives more than $200 during the calendar year. If the contribution is itemized, it should be reported on Line 11(a)(i). If it is unitemized, it should be reported on Line 11(a)(ii).
A payroll contribution should be reported with the same information as a normal individual contribution but instead of putting a date, the committee can add a description that includes the frequency and amount of the payroll deduction. Thus, a committee would only need to have one entry for multiple payroll deductions for a reporting period.
How do I report an in-kind contribution received by our committee from an individual?
In order to avoid inflating/deflating the cash on hand amount, the amount of an in-kind contribution from an individual should be disclosed as a receipt on Line 11(a)(i) of the Detailed Summary Page (Contributions from Individuals/Persons) and a disbursement on Line 21(b) of the Detailed Summary Page(Other Federal Operating Expenditures).
Some LLCs are treated as partnerships and can give money to political committees while attributing a share to each partner.
Receipts from LLCs/partnerships should be disclosed on 11(a)(i) and the share of receipts from each partner should be disclosed as memo entries below, so as to not inflate cash on hand levels.
How do we establish “best efforts” for obtaining required information from our contributors?
1. A clear and conspicuous request for the contributor information on the original solicitation and must also inform the contributor of the requirements of federal law for the reporting of such information.
• if the request is written, include a pre-addressed post card or return envelope.
3. If you receive contributor information after the contribution(s) has been reported, you shall either a) file with your next regularly scheduled report, an amended memo Schedule A listing all the contributions for which additional information was received; or b) file on or before your next regularly scheduled reporting date, amendments to the report(s) originally disclosing the contribution(s).
Contributions from federal committees should be disclosed on Line 11(c).
Contributions from affiliated committees should be itemized the same as contributions from non-affiliated committees but they should be itemized on Line 12 rather than Line 11(c). Make sure the committee has disclosed all affiliated committees on the most recent statement of organization.
The transfer-in of net proceeds from the joint fundraising representative should be disclosed on Schedule A, supporting Line 12 (Transfers From Affiliated/Other Party Committees).
The original contributors to the joint fundraiser should be itemized as MEMO entries on Schedule A, supporting Line 12.
The Date of Receipt is the date the joint fundraising representative received the contribution(s) from the original contributor(s).
The Amount of Each Receipt this Period is the total (gross) amount of the contribution to the committee.
In order to avoid inflating/deflating the cash on hand amount, the amount of an in-kind contribution from an individual should be disclosed as a receipt on Line 11(c) of the Detailed Summary Page and a disbursement on Line 21(b) of the Detailed Summary Page, regardless of amount.
The committee must verify that the contribution from the non-federal committee contains only federally permissible funds.
If the contribution is over $1000, the donor committee is required to register with the FEC.
How do I report a refund or rebate received for a previous disbursement?
The rebate/refund should be disclosed on Schedule A, supporting Line 15 and should indicate the nature of the transaction (refund, rebate, etc.).
Itemize offsets to operating expenditures when they aggregate over $200 per calendar year from the same source.
How do I report interest/dividends received from our bank/investment accounts?
The receipt of funds should be disclosed on Schedule A, supporting Line 17 and should indicate the nature of the transaction (bank interest, stock dividends, etc).
Who can pay for the SSF’s administrative expenses?
Administrative expenses (setting up and administering the SSF, raising money) paid solely from the federal account should be listed on Line 21(b).
Administrative expenses allocated between the federal and non-federal accounts should be disclosed in the “Administrative” category on Schedule H4. For more information on allocating expenses, click here.
Yes, a non-exhaustive list of purposes that the Commission deems inadequate can be found here. See also the Federal Register Notice: Commission's Statement of Policy on Purpose of Disbursement. A non-exhaustive list of acceptable purposes can be found here.
Do I have to report bank fees?
If the committee pays for all its administrative costs, bank fees should be reported on line 21(b) like any other administrative cost.
If the committee’s connected organization pays for administrative costs, bank fees don’t need to be listed.
How do we report credit card payments?
Schedule B, Line 21(b): The payment to the credit card company should be disclosed on Line 21(b) and MEMO entries to identify the original vendor(s) are required if payments to the vendor(s) exceed $200 during the calendar year.
How do we report reimbursements to individuals?
Schedule B, Line 21(b): The reimbursement to the individual should be disclosed on Line 21(b) and the purpose should indicate that it is for travel/subsistence reimbursement. If the travel/subsistence reimbursement is greater than $500, MEMO entries to identify the original vendor(s) are required if payments to the vendor(s) exceed $200 during the calendar year.
If there are multiple reimbursements on a report you should clearly identify which reimbursement each memo entry relates to.
Payments to payroll companies should be on Line 21(b) for non-connected committees and SSFs.
The lump sum paid to the payroll company must be followed by MEMO entries that include the individuals that were the ultimate recipients of the salary payments.
What is the difference between federal and nonfederal candidates/committees?
A federal candidate is a candidate that is running in an election for the U.S. House of Representatives, U.S. Senate, or President. Candidates running in these elections must register their committees with the FEC.
An authorized committee is the principal campaign committee or any other political committee authorized by a candidate to received contributions or make expenditures on behalf of such candidate. (11 CFR §100.5(f)(1)) Authorized committees are not affiliated with leadership PACs. Authorized committees have per-election contribution limits.
A leadership PAC is a non-connected committee that supports/opposes more than one federal candidate and that is directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by a federal candidate or office holder which is neither an authorized committee nor affiliated with the candidate’s authorized committee. (52 U.S.C. 30104(i)(8)(B)) Leadership PACs have yearly contributions limits.
A candidates’ authorized committee and leadership PAC are not affiliated and have different contribution limits.
For example, Rep. Eric Cantor’s authorized committee is called Cantor for Congress and his leadership PAC is called Every Republican Is Crucial (ERICPAC).
How do I report contributions to federal candidates/committees?
Contributions to federal candidates/committees should be listed on Line 23 and include the full committee name, address, date and amount.
For contributions to federal candidates, contributions should also include office sought, state and district (if applicable).
Contributions to non-federal candidates/committees should be itemized on Line 29 and require the name, address, date and amount of contribution. They should also include a purpose indicating the contribution is to a non-federal candidate (“non-federal contribution”). Office sought, state and district are not required.
1. The entry on Line 21(b) should be a MEMO entry itemized to the vendor that provided the service that the committee paid for on behalf of the candidate or committee with additional text that links the memo to the Line 23 entry.
2. The entry on Line 23 should be itemized the same as the Line 21(b) entry, but it should not be a MEMO entry and it should include the candidate’s name, office sought, state and district (if applicable).
Contributions refunded back to individuals should be disclosed on Line 28(a) of the Detailed Summary Page (Refunds of contributions to individuals/persons other than political committees).
If the refund is for a contribution(s) received in a prior year(s), the amount of the refund should not be included in the calculation of the individual’s aggregate year to date total for the current year.
Negative entries on Schedule A should only be used to disclose returned or bounced contribution checks and not for refunds made by the committee.
A contribution check was lost in the mail or was never delivered, how do I report that it was never cashed?
The election is over, can I still make contributions to candidates for that election?
We made an excessive contribution. What should we do now?
All loans received by the Committee must be itemized on Schedule A, supporting Line 13, regardless of amount.
For each loan, provide the identification of the person making the loan (name and address), the amount of the loan, the date, and the aggregate year-to-date total.
On Schedule C, for each loan, provide the identification of the person making the loan (name and address), the amount of the loan, the interest rate, the date incurred, and the due date.
The committee must also identify any endorser and the amount of such endorsement.
If the loan is from a lending institution, the Committee is also required to file a Schedule C-1 with the first report after the loan is obtained, restructured, or a draw is made on the line of credit.
Each loan owed by the reporting committee at the close of the reporting period must be reported on Schedule C and include the name, mailing address and zip code of the creditor, the original amount of the loan, the cumulative payment to date on the loan, and the outstanding balance at the close of the reporting period.
Be sure to carry the total amounts of outstanding loans to line 10 of the Summary Page.
Do I file a Schedule C-1 on every report?
Report the interest paid on a loan as an operating expenditure on Schedule B, Line 21(b) once interest payments to the payee aggregate over $200.
A loan, to the extent it is repaid, is no longer a contribution.
No. Loans from individuals do not require the Committee to file a Schedule C-1.
A debt of $500 or less is reportable once it has been outstanding 60 days from the date incurred. These debts should be disclosed on the next regular report.
Use Schedule D to report the outstanding amount owed on a debt or obligation including any unpaid interest accrued on a loan and any payments made to reduce the debt.
Disclose the full name, mailing address, the amount of the debt outstanding at the beginning of the reporting period, the amount of debt incurred this reporting period, the payment(s) made during the reporting period, the outstanding balance of the debt at the end of the reporting period, and the purpose of the debt or obligation.
How do I report a payment of the debt?
Report debt payments on the appropriate Line of the Detailed Summary Page. For example, if the debt is for an administrative expense, the payment should be reported on Schedule B, Line 21(b). If the debt is for an independent expenditure, the payment should be reported on Schedule E, Line 24.
Any amount(s) paid during the reporting period should be included in the “Payment this Period” column on Schedule D.
Do I have to file Schedule D on every report?
For more information about independent expenditures see FEC Record.
On Schedule E, enter the full name, mailing address, the date and amount of the independent expenditure, and the purpose of the independent expenditure. Also include identification of the candidate the independent expenditure is supporting or opposing, office, state, and district (if applicable) for which the candidate is running, whether the independent expenditure is supporting or opposing the candidate, and the election for which the independent expenditure was made.
In addition, committees may need to file 24/48-Hour Reports depending on the amount and dissemination date of the entry on Schedule E. Continue below for further information.
As states establish their election schedules, the Commission calculates the applicable 24/48-Hour Report periods. Please refer to 2017 24/48 Hour Report Schedule for more information.
Use a separate, stand alone Schedule E to file 24/48-Hour Reports and check the appropriate box to indicate which it is.
The Report must disclose all independent expenditures leading up to the $10,000 or $1,000 threshold, as appropriate; however expenditures that have already been disclosed in a previous report do not have to be included in the Report.
Example: an independent expenditure totaling $9,000 was made on 6/25/08 (within 48-Hour time frame) for a Virginia Senate candidate in the general election. No prior expenditures were made for this election. The expenditure does not require a 48-Hour Report and is disclosed on the July Monthly Report. On 7/25/08 a $5,000 independent expenditure was made for the Virginia Senate candidate in the general election. A 48-Hour Report is required because the independent expenditures for the Virginia Senate general election aggregate over $10,000 ($9,000 + $5,000 =$14,000). The Report should disclose the $5,000 expenditure from 7/25/08 but need not include the $9,000 expenditure that was already reported on the July Monthly Report.
Independent expenditures are aggregated on a per calendar year, per election, per office sought basis.
In the reporting period during which payment is made, report the payment on Schedule B, Line 21(b) as an operating expenditure. In the reporting period in which the independent expenditure is disseminated, itemize the independent expenditure and its date of dissemination on Schedule E, and itemize the previous expenditure on Schedule B again as a negative entry. This will prevent inflating the total disbursement.
The alternate method is to report the Independent Expenditure on Schedule E on the report in which the payment is made. In this case the only additional reporting requirements would be any necessary 24/48-Hour Reports.
In situations where the independent expenditure is disseminated in one reporting period and payment will be made in a future reporting period, report the reportable debt on Schedule D, and the itemized independent expenditure on Schedule E as a MEMO entry, referencing the debt on Schedule D. In the future reporting period when payment is made, itemize the independent expenditure again on Schedule E (no MEMO entry this time). Be sure to report the amount in the “Payment made this period” column on Schedule D.
1. Independent Expenditures are considered made when the communication is publicly distributed or otherwise publicly disseminated. If the dates are different on the 24/48-Hour Report and Schedule E of a regular report, the date on the 24/48-Hour Report is the date of dissemination, while the date on Schedule E of the regular report is the date of payment. If the dissemination date occurs before payment, the dissemination date should be on the 24/48-Hour Reports.
For more information on determining the date of dissemination, please see the FEC Record.
If a committee is unsure of the cost of an independent expenditure at the time of dissemination, they should estimate the cost on the 24/48-Hour Report and indicate that the amount is an estimate.
The 24/48-Hour Report discloses an estimated amount and the vendor has since sent an invoice with the actual amount owed. Now that we know the actual cost, how do we reconcile the amount on the 24/48-Hour Report with the amount on Schedule E of the corresponding regularly scheduled report (Form 3X)?
When payment is made, the Committee should report the payment on Schedule E (for the correct amount) and include memo text tying the payment to the report, and explaining that the amount on Schedule E is the correct amount, and the amount on the 24/48-Hour Report is an estimate.
When the committee sells any bitcoins purchased from funds transferred from a campaign depository, the committee must report any earnings or losses as an "other receipt" (Line 14 for Form 3 filers; Line 21 for Form 3P filers; Line 17 for Form 3X filers). Losses should be reported as a negative entry.
An Independent Expenditure-Only Committee is a registered political committee that intends to make only independent expenditures. This committee may not give direct contributions to any federally registered committees or candidates, with the exception of other Independent Expenditure-Only Committees. The committee may solicit and accept unlimited contributions from individuals, political committees, corporations and labor organizations for the purpose of making independent expenditures.
In July 2010, in accordance with the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals decision in SpeechNow v. FEC, the Commission approved two advisory opinions concerning the application of the Act in regards to groups solely making independent expenditures.
In AO 2010-09 (Club for Growth), The Commission concluded that a 501(c)(4) corporation can establish a political committee that will make only independent expenditures and may solicit unlimited contributions from individuals in the general public.
In AO 2010-11 (Commonsense Ten), The Commission concluded that a registered nonconnected political committee that intends to make only independent expenditures may solicit and accept unlimited contributions from individuals, political committees, corporations and labor organizations for the purpose of making independent expenditures.
"This committee intends to make unlimited independent expenditures, and consistent with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit decision in SpeechNow v. FEC, it therefore intends to raise funds in unlimited amounts. This committees will not use those funds to make contributions, whether direct, in-kind, or via coordinated communications, to federal candidates or committees."
"Consistent with the stipulated judgment in Carey v. FEC, this committee intends to establish a separate bank account to deposit and withdraw funds raised in unlimited amounts from individuals, corporations, labor organizations, and/or other political committees. The funds maintained in this separate account will not be used to make contributions, whether direct, in-kind, or via coordinated communications, or coordinated expenditures, to federal candidates or committees."
Nonconnected political committees that wish to establish a separate non-contribution account must report all receipts and disbursements for both accounts pursuant to the Act and Commission regulations and should follow the interim reporting guidance issued by the Commission until such time as a rulemaking is adopted.
For more information please see Carey v. FEC and the FEC Statement on Carey v. FEC.
The Calendar Year To Date Per Year for Office Sought total should reflect independent expenditures made from both accounts since the total represents the independent expenditures made by the committee as a whole.
Refunds should be disclosed on Line 28 with a notation that the refund is occurring from the non-contribution account.

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