Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 410 - Board of Elections › Chapter 10 - Campaign Finance › Subchapter 00 - N/A › Part 13 - Disclosure of Independent Expenditures, Electioneering Communications, and Covered Transfers › Section 410-RICR-10-00-13.8 - FINES; CONTESTING FINES; WAIVER

Current through June 14, 2024
A. The Board of
				  Elections shall send a notice of noncompliance, by certified mail, to any
				  person who fails to comply with the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws §
										17-25.3-1 et seq. A person who has
				  been sent a notice of noncompliance and fails to correct the violation within
				  seven (7) days of receipt of the notice may be assessed a fine by the Board of
				  Elections pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws § 17-25.34.
B. When the Board of Elections assesses a
				  person with a fine for failure to comply with the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws
				  §
										17-25.3-1 et seq., and the person
				  is subsequently notified by certified mail of the imposition of the fine, the
				  person may appeal the fine on grounds that the fine was incorrectly imposed
				  within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notice of non-compliance or, in the
				  event that the notice is not claimed, within forty-five (45) days of the date
				  on which the notice was sent. A failure to file a timely appeal shall be deemed
				  an admission. Requests for appeals shall be in accordance with the Rules of
				  Practice and Procedure in Adjudicatory Hearings before the Board of
				  Elections.
C. A person seeking a
				  waiver of fines imposed under R.I. Gen. Laws §
										17-25.3-4 may request a waiver by
				  the Board of Elections for good cause shown within sixty (60) days of receipt
				  of the notice of non-compliance or, if the notice is not claimed, within
				  seventy-five (75) days of the date on which the notice was sent. All waiver
				  requests shall be submitted to the Board of Elections either in writing or
				  electronically and contain the person's name, street address, a statement
				  specifying the fines to be waived, and cause for the noncompliance.
D. The Board of Elections authorizes its
				  Supervisory Staff to administratively review and act upon all waiver requests,
				  including setting conditions for any full or partial waivers, where the amount
				  of fines does not exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000). Waiver requests where
				  the amount of fines exceeds five thousand dollars ($5,000) will be submitted to
				  the Board of Elections for public hearing, provided that the Board of Elections
				  hereby authorizes its legal counsel to take whatever action is available under
				  the law to collect any outstanding penalties and, with the consent of the
				  Supervisory Staff, to set conditions for any full or partial waivers.
E. A person may appeal a decision by the
				  Supervisory Staff on any waiver request for a de novo public hearing to the
				  Board of Elections within forty-five (45) days of the date of notice of the
				  decision, which shall contain a statement of the person's right of appeal. All
				  requests for a hearing shall be in writing and in compliance with the Rules of
				  Practice and Procedure in Adjudicatory Hearings before the Rhode Island Board
				  of Elections.
F. Nothing in this
				  section shall prohibit the Board of Elections from acting on its own motion to
				  waive any fines imposed.