2023 CODE OF GEORGIA › Title 21 - ELECTIONS (§§ 21-1-1 — 21-5-76) › Chapter 5 - GEORGIA GOVERNMENT TRANSPARENCY AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE (§§ 21-5-1 — 21-5-76) › Article 2A - CONTRIBUTIONS TO CANDIDATES FOR PUBLIC OFFICE (§§ 21-5-40 — 21-5-45) › Section 21-5-43 - Accounting for and expenditure of campaign contributions

(a)
(1)
A candidate or campaign committee may separately account for contributions for each election in an election cycle for which contributions are accepted. If no contributions are accepted for an election, no corresponding accounting shall be required. Subject to the contribution limits of this chapter, contributions so separately accounted for may be accepted at any time in the election cycle. Upon the conclusion of each election, contributions not exceeding such limits may continue to be accepted for repayment of campaign obligations incurred as a candidate in that election.
(2)
A candidate who wishes to accept contributions for more than one election at a time shall separately account for such campaign contributions and shall file an "Option to Choose Separate Accounting" form with the commission prior to accepting contributions for any election other than the candidate's next upcoming election; provided, however, that a candidate shall only be required to file one such form which shall be utilized for all subsequent elections to the same elective office, regardless of whether an election occurs in a new election cycle.
(3)
A candidate who accepts contributions for more than one election at a time may allocate contributions received from a single contributor to any election in the election cycle, provided that the contributions shall not violate maximum allowable contribution limits for any election; provided, however, that in order to allocate contributions to a past election, the candidate shall have outstanding campaign debt from the previous election.
(b)
Contributions separately accounted for shall not be expended on a prior election except in conformance with this Code section. Contributions separately accounted for in a primary election may be expended at any time during the election cycle prior to and including the date of the primary.
(c)
Contributions remaining unexpended after the date of an election in which the candidate does appear on the ballot may be expended for any future election in the same election cycle without regard to the limitations of Code Section
21-5-41
. If there are no further elections in the election cycle or if the candidate or the candidate of the campaign committee is not on the ballot of a further election in the election cycle, any remaining contributions may be used only as provided in Code Section
21-5-33
.
(d)
Contributions accepted and separately accounted for in an election in which the candidate does not appear on the ballot, if unexpended, shall be returned to the contributors thereof pro rata without interest. Any portion thereof which cannot be returned to the original contributor thereof shall be expended only as provided in Code Section
21-5-33
.
(e)
For purposes of separate accounting, a candidate shall be deemed to have advanced to the next election in the election cycle upon the official certification of the election result by the Secretary of State, or upon the concession of the candidate's election opponents, or upon receiving a preliminary consolidated election return of 50 percent plus one for advancement to a general election, or upon receiving a preliminary consolidated election return of 50 percent or less for a runoff election and placing in one of the two spots that will advance to the runoff election, whichever event shall first occur. In the event that the official certification of the election result by the Secretary of State differs from or is in conflict with a preliminary consolidated election return for advancement to a general or runoff election, the official certification of the election result by the Secretary of State shall control for purposes of this Code section.
(f)
The commission shall adopt such rules and regulations as are necessary to carry out the purposes of this Code section in accordance with Chapter 13 of Title 50, the "Georgia Administrative Procedure Act."
Amended by 2022 Ga. Laws 521,§ 11, eff. 3/2/2022.
Amended by 2005 Ga. Laws 212,§ 17, eff. 1/9/2006.