HBA-JEK H.B. 2435 77(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 2435 By: Madden Elections 3/13/2001 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Under current law, a candidate or officeholder can be supported or assisted by more than one specificpurpose political committee. This may make full disclosure of campaign contributions more difficult. House Bill 2435 requires a candidate or officeholder to establish a single principal political committee to manage all of the individual's political contributions, and provides that a specific-purpose committee may only support or assist two or more candidates or officeholders. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 2435 amends the Election Code to require a candidate or officeholder to designate in writing a political committee to serve as the person's principal political committee under which a candidate is required to maintain all political contributions. The bill sets forth provisions relating to the creation and duties of a principal political committee. The bill prohibits a person from establishing a specific-purpose committee for supporting or opposing only one candidate or assisting only one officeholder (Sec. 251.010). The bill provides that a candidate or officeholder is civilly liable for an act or omission by the person's principal political committee only if the person authorized, requested, commanded, performed, or recklessly or negligently tolerated the act or omission (Sec. 251.011). The bill requires a person who is a candidate or officeholder on September 1, 2001 to designate a principal political committee by September 15, 2001, and requires a candidate or officeholder to transfer each applicable asset to the committee by the 15th day after the date the candidate or officeholder designates a committee (SECTION 62). H.B. 2435 prohibits a candidate or officeholder from accepting a political contribution in connection with the person's own candidacy or office unless it is being accepted on behalf of the person's principal political committee and the committee itself would be authorized to accept the contribution, and establishes penalties for a violation of this provision (Sec. 253.0311). The bill also prohibits a candidate or officeholder from making a political contribution or expenditure from personal funds in connection with the person's own candidacy or office unless the person makes the contribution or expenditure to the person's own principal political committee, and establishes penalties for a violation of this provision (Sec. 253.0312). The bill prohibits the committee of a judicial or nonjudicial candidate or officeholder from using political contributions to reimburse a political contribution expenditure made to the committee from the candidate's or officeholder's personal funds in an aggregate amount that exceeds: _$500,000 for governor; _$250,000 for a statewide office other than governor; _$100,000 for statewide judicial office; or _five times the applicable contribution limit for a judicial office to which the Judicial Campaign Fairness Act applies, other than a statewide judicial office. The bill prohibits the committee of a nonjudicial candidate or officeholder from using political contributions to repay a loan or extension of credit from certain persons related to the candidate or officeholder in an aggregate amount that exceeds the limits above. The bill prohibits the committee of a judicial candidate or officeholder form using political contributions to repay any such loans or extensions of credit (Secs. 253.042 and 253.162). The bill repeals the provision requiring a candidate or officeholder to file a report after appointing a campaign treasurer (SECTION 61). EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.