Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

H.B. 89 Second Substitute (2015GS)

Sponsor

Rep. Powell, K.

Final action

House/ filed 3/12/2015

Outcome

Failed / filed without passage

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• requires the lieutenant governor to establish and maintain, on the lieutenant governor's website, a searchable database of reporting entities, principals, and lobbyists;
• requires a detailed listing in a financial statement to indicate whether the individual or source that makes a contribution or provides public service assistance is a reporting entity, principal, or lobbyist;
• imposes criminal penalties and a civil fine against a reporting entity that fails to timely file a corrected financial statement after the lieutenant governor provides notice that the reporting entity failed to comply with the requirements described in the preceding paragraph; and
• makes technical changes.

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION AND PUBLIC SERVICE
ASSISTANCE DISCLOSURE AMENDMENTS
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Kraig Powell
Senate Sponsor: 
____________
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill modifies the Election Code by amending provisions relating to campaign
contributions and public service assistance.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ requires the lieutenant governor to establish and maintain, on the lieutenant
governor's website, a searchable database of reporting entities, principals, and
lobbyists;
▸ requires a detailed listing in a financial statement to indicate whether the individual
or source that makes a contribution or provides public service assistance is a
reporting entity, principal, or lobbyist;
▸ imposes criminal penalties and a civil fine against a reporting entity that fails to
timely file a corrected financial statement after the lieutenant governor provides
notice that the reporting entity failed to comply with the requirements described in
the preceding paragraph; and
▸ makes technical changes.
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
AMENDS:
20A-11-101
, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2014, Chapters 18, 158, and 337
ENACTS:
20A-11-105
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
20A-11-101
 is amended to read:
20A-11-101.
Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Address" means the number and street where an individual resides or where a
reporting entity has its principal office.
(2) "Agent of a reporting entity" means:
(a) a person acting on behalf of a reporting entity at the direction of the reporting
entity;
(b) a person employed by a reporting entity in the reporting entity's capacity as a
reporting entity;
(c) the personal campaign committee of a candidate or officeholder;
(d) a member of the personal campaign committee of a candidate or officeholder in the
member's capacity as a member of the personal campaign committee of the candidate or
officeholder; or
(e) a political consultant of a reporting entity.
(3) "Ballot proposition" includes initiatives, referenda, proposed constitutional
amendments, and any other ballot propositions submitted to the voters that are authorized by
the Utah Code Annotated 1953.
(4) "Candidate" means any person who:
(a) files a declaration of candidacy for a public office; or
(b) receives contributions, makes expenditures, or gives consent for any other person to
receive contributions or make expenditures to bring about the person's nomination or election
to a public office.
(5) "Chief election officer" means:
(a) the lieutenant governor for state office candidates, legislative office candidates,
officeholders, political parties, political action committees, corporations, political issues
committees, state school board candidates, judges, and labor organizations, as defined in
Section 
20A-11-1501
; and
(b) the county clerk for local school board candidates.
(6) (a) "Contribution" means any of the following when done for political purposes:
(i) a gift, subscription, donation, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of
value given to the filing entity;
(ii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make a gift,
subscription, donation, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, or deposit of money or
anything of value to the filing entity;
(iii) any transfer of funds from another reporting entity to the filing entity;
(iv) compensation paid by any person or reporting entity other than the filing entity for
personal services provided without charge to the filing entity;
(v) remuneration from:
(A) any organization or its directly affiliated organization that has a registered lobbyist;
or
(B) any agency or subdivision of the state, including school districts;
(vi) a loan made by a candidate deposited to the candidate's own campaign; and
(vii) in-kind contributions.
(b) "Contribution" does not include:
(i) services provided by individuals volunteering a portion or all of their time on behalf
of the filing entity if the services are provided without compensation by the filing entity or any
other person;
(ii) money lent to the filing entity by a financial institution in the ordinary course of
business; or
(iii) goods or services provided for the benefit of a candidate or political party at less
than fair market value that are not authorized by or coordinated with the candidate or political
party.
(7) "Coordinated with" means that goods or services provided for the benefit of a
candidate or political party are provided:
(a) with the candidate's or political party's prior knowledge, if the candidate or political
party does not object;
(b) by agreement with the candidate or political party;
(c) in coordination with the candidate or political party; or
(d) using official logos, slogans, and similar elements belonging to a candidate or
political party.
(8) (a) "Corporation" means a domestic or foreign, profit or nonprofit, business
organization that is registered as a corporation or is authorized to do business in a state and
makes any expenditure from corporate funds for:
(i) the purpose of expressly advocating for political purposes; or
(ii) the purpose of expressly advocating the approval or the defeat of any ballot
proposition.
(b) "Corporation" does not mean:
(i) a business organization's political action committee or political issues committee; or
(ii) a business entity organized as a partnership or a sole proprietorship.
(9) "County political party" means, for each registered political party, all of the persons
within a single county who, under definitions established by the political party, are members of
the registered political party.
(10) "County political party officer" means a person whose name is required to be
submitted by a county political party to the lieutenant governor in accordance with Section
20A-8-402
.
(11) "Detailed listing" means:
(a) for each contribution or public service assistance:
(i) the name and address of the individual or source making the contribution or public
service assistance;
(ii) if, when the reporting entity files the financial statement, the individual or source
that made the contribution or provided the public service assistance being reported is listed on
the lieutenant governor's website as a reporting entity, a principal as defined in Section
36-11-102
, or a lobbyist as defined in Section 
36-11-102
, an indication that the individual or
source is:
(A) a reporting entity;
(B) a principal as defined in Section 
36-11-102
; or
(C) a lobbyist as defined in Section 
36-11-102
;
[
(ii)
] 
(iii)
 the amount or value of the contribution or public service assistance; and
[
(iii)
] 
(iv)
 the date the contribution or public service assistance was made; and
(b) for each expenditure:
(i) the amount of the expenditure;
(ii) the person or entity to whom it was disbursed;
(iii) the specific purpose, item, or service acquired by the expenditure; and
(iv) the date the expenditure was made.
(12) (a) "Donor" means a person that gives money, including a fee, due, or assessment
for membership in the corporation, to a corporation without receiving full and adequate
consideration for the money.
(b) "Donor" does not include a person that signs a statement that the corporation may
not use the money for an expenditure or political issues expenditure.
(13) "Election" means each:
(a) regular general election;
(b) regular primary election; and
(c) special election at which candidates are eliminated and selected.
(14) "Electioneering communication" means a communication that:
(a) has at least a value of $10,000;
(b) clearly identifies a candidate or judge; and
(c) is disseminated through the Internet, newspaper, magazine, outdoor advertising
facility, direct mailing, broadcast, cable, or satellite provider within 45 days of the clearly
identified candidate's or judge's election date.
(15) (a) "Expenditure" means any of the following made by a reporting entity or an
agent of a reporting entity on behalf of the reporting entity:
(i) any disbursement from contributions, receipts, or from the separate bank account
required by this chapter;
(ii) a purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money,
or anything of value made for political purposes;
(iii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any
purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of
value for political purposes;
(iv) compensation paid by a filing entity for personal services rendered by a person
without charge to a reporting entity;
(v) a transfer of funds between the filing entity and a candidate's personal campaign
committee; or
(vi) goods or services provided by the filing entity to or for the benefit of another
reporting entity for political purposes at less than fair market value.
(b) "Expenditure" does not include:
(i) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering a portion or all
of their time on behalf of a reporting entity;
(ii) money lent to a reporting entity by a financial institution in the ordinary course of
business; or
(iii) anything listed in Subsection (15)(a) that is given by a reporting entity to
candidates for office or officeholders in states other than Utah.
(16) "Federal office" means the office of president of the United States, United States
Senator, or United States Representative.
(17) "Filing entity" means the reporting entity that is required to file a financial
statement required by this chapter or Chapter 12, Part 2, Judicial Retention Elections.
(18) "Financial statement" includes any summary report, interim report, verified
financial statement, or other statement disclosing contributions, expenditures, receipts,
donations, or disbursements that is required by this chapter or Chapter 12, Part 2, Judicial
Retention Elections.
(19) "Governing board" means the individual or group of individuals that determine the
candidates and committees that will receive expenditures from a political action committee,
political party, or corporation.
(20) "Incorporation" means the process established by Title 10, Chapter 2, Part 1,
Incorporation, by which a geographical area becomes legally recognized as a city or town.
(21) "Incorporation election" means the election authorized by Section 
10-2-111
 or
10-2-127
.
(22) "Incorporation petition" means a petition authorized by Section 
10-2-109
 or
10-2-125
.
(23) "Individual" means a natural person.
(24) "In-kind contribution" means anything of value, other than money, that is accepted
by or coordinated with a filing entity.
(25) "Interim report" means a report identifying the contributions received and
expenditures made since the last report.
(26) "Legislative office" means the office of state senator, state representative, speaker
of the House of Representatives, president of the Senate, and the leader, whip, and assistant
whip of any party caucus in either house of the Legislature.
(27) "Legislative office candidate" means a person who:
(a) files a declaration of candidacy for the office of state senator or state representative;
(b) declares oneself to be a candidate for, or actively campaigns for, the position of
speaker of the House of Representatives, president of the Senate, or the leader, whip, and
assistant whip of any party caucus in either house of the Legislature; or
(c) receives contributions, makes expenditures, or gives consent for any other person to
receive contributions or make expenditures to bring about the person's nomination, election, or
appointment to a legislative office.
(28) "Major political party" means either of the two registered political parties that
have the greatest number of members elected to the two houses of the Legislature.
(29) "Officeholder" means a person who holds a public office.
(30) "Party committee" means any committee organized by or authorized by the
governing board of a registered political party.
(31) "Person" means both natural and legal persons, including individuals, business
organizations, personal campaign committees, party committees, political action committees,
political issues committees, and labor organizations, as defined in Section 
20A-11-1501
.
(32) "Personal campaign committee" means the committee appointed by a candidate to
act for the candidate as provided in this chapter.
(33) "Personal use expenditure" has the same meaning as provided under Section
20A-11-104
.
(34) (a) "Political action committee" means an entity, or any group of individuals or
entities within or outside this state, a major purpose of which is to:
(i) solicit or receive contributions from any other person, group, or entity for political
purposes; or
(ii) make expenditures to expressly advocate for any person to refrain from voting or to
vote for or against any candidate or person seeking election to a municipal or county office.
(b) "Political action committee" includes groups affiliated with a registered political
party but not authorized or organized by the governing board of the registered political party
that receive contributions or makes expenditures for political purposes.
(c) "Political action committee" does not mean:
(i) a party committee;
(ii) any entity that provides goods or services to a candidate or committee in the regular
course of its business at the same price that would be provided to the general public;
(iii) an individual;
(iv) individuals who are related and who make contributions from a joint checking
account;
(v) a corporation, except a corporation a major purpose of which is to act as a political
action committee; or
(vi) a personal campaign committee.
(35) (a) "Political consultant" means a person who is paid by a reporting entity, or paid
by another person on behalf of and with the knowledge of the reporting entity, to provide
political advice to the reporting entity.
(b) "Political consultant" includes a circumstance described in Subsection (35)(a),
where the person:
(i) has already been paid, with money or other consideration;
(ii) expects to be paid in the future, with money or other consideration; or
(iii) understands that the person may, in the discretion of the reporting entity or another
person on behalf of and with the knowledge of the reporting entity, be paid in the future, with
money or other consideration.
(36) "Political convention" means a county or state political convention held by a
registered political party to select candidates.
(37) (a) "Political issues committee" means an entity, or any group of individuals or
entities within or outside this state, a major purpose of which is to:
(i) solicit or receive donations from any other person, group, or entity to assist in
placing a ballot proposition on the ballot, assist in keeping a ballot proposition off the ballot, or
to advocate that a voter refrain from voting or vote for or vote against any ballot proposition;
(ii) make expenditures to expressly advocate for any person to sign or refuse to sign a
ballot proposition or incorporation petition or refrain from voting, vote for, or vote against any
proposed ballot proposition or an incorporation in an incorporation election; or
(iii) make expenditures to assist in qualifying or placing a ballot proposition on the
ballot or to assist in keeping a ballot proposition off the ballot.
(b) "Political issues committee" does not mean:
(i) a registered political party or a party committee;
(ii) any entity that provides goods or services to an individual or committee in the
regular course of its business at the same price that would be provided to the general public;
(iii) an individual;
(iv) individuals who are related and who make contributions from a joint checking
account; or
(v) a corporation, except a corporation a major purpose of which is to act as a political
issues committee.
(38) (a) "Political issues contribution" means any of the following:
(i) a gift, subscription, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, or deposit of money or
anything of value given to a political issues committee;
(ii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make a political
issues donation to influence the approval or defeat of any ballot proposition;
(iii) any transfer of funds received by a political issues committee from a reporting
entity;
(iv) compensation paid by another reporting entity for personal services rendered
without charge to a political issues committee; and
(v) goods or services provided to or for the benefit of a political issues committee at
less than fair market value.
(b) "Political issues contribution" does not include:
(i) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering a portion or all
of their time on behalf of a political issues committee; or
(ii) money lent to a political issues committee by a financial institution in the ordinary
course of business.
(39) (a) "Political issues expenditure" means any of the following when made by a
political issues committee or on behalf of a political issues committee by an agent of the
reporting entity:
(i) any payment from political issues contributions made for the purpose of influencing
the approval or the defeat of:
(A) a ballot proposition; or
(B) an incorporation petition or incorporation election;
(ii) a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, or gift of money made for
the express purpose of influencing the approval or the defeat of:
(A) a ballot proposition; or
(B) an incorporation petition or incorporation election;
(iii) an express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any
political issues expenditure;
(iv) compensation paid by a reporting entity for personal services rendered by a person
without charge to a political issues committee; or
(v) goods or services provided to or for the benefit of another reporting entity at less
than fair market value.
(b) "Political issues expenditure" does not include:
(i) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering a portion or all
of their time on behalf of a political issues committee; or
(ii) money lent to a political issues committee by a financial institution in the ordinary
course of business.
(40) "Political purposes" means an act done with the intent or in a way to influence or
tend to influence, directly or indirectly, any person to refrain from voting or to vote for or
against any candidate or a person seeking a municipal or county office at any caucus, political
convention, or election.
(41) (a) "Poll" means the survey of a person regarding the person's opinion or
knowledge of an individual who has filed a declaration of candidacy for public office, or of a
ballot proposition that has legally qualified for placement on the ballot, which is conducted in
person or by telephone, facsimile, Internet, postal mail, or email.
(b) "Poll" does not include:
(i) a ballot; or
(ii) an interview of a focus group that is conducted, in person, by one individual, if:
(A) the focus group consists of more than three, and less than thirteen, individuals; and
(B) all individuals in the focus group are present during the interview.
(42) "Primary election" means any regular primary election held under the election
laws.
(43) "Public office" means the office of governor, lieutenant governor, state auditor,
state treasurer, attorney general, state school board member, state senator, state representative,
speaker of the House of Representatives, president of the Senate, and the leader, whip, and
assistant whip of any party caucus in either house of the Legislature.
[
(45)
] 
(44)
 "Publicly identified class of individuals" means a group of 50 or more
individuals sharing a common occupation, interest, or association that contribute to a political
action committee or political issues committee and whose names can be obtained by contacting
the political action committee or political issues committee upon whose financial statement the
individuals are listed.
[
(44)
] 
(45)
 (a) "Public service assistance" means the following when given or provided
to an officeholder to defray the costs of functioning in a public office or aid the officeholder to
communicate with the officeholder's constituents:
(i) a gift, subscription, donation, unpaid or partially unpaid loan, advance, or deposit of
money or anything of value to an officeholder; or
(ii) goods or services provided at less than fair market value to or for the benefit of the
officeholder.
(b) "Public service assistance" does not include:
(i) anything provided by the state;
(ii) services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering a portion or all
of their time on behalf of an officeholder;
(iii) money lent to an officeholder by a financial institution in the ordinary course of
business;
(iv) news coverage or any publication by the news media; or
(v) any article, story, or other coverage as part of any regular publication of any
organization unless substantially all the publication is devoted to information about the
officeholder.
(46) "Receipts" means contributions and public service assistance.
(47) "Registered lobbyist" means a person registered under Title 36, Chapter 11,
Lobbyist Disclosure and Regulation Act.
(48) "Registered political action committee" means any political action committee that
is required by this chapter to file a statement of organization with the Office of the Lieutenant
Governor.
(49) "Registered political issues committee" means any political issues committee that
is required by this chapter to file a statement of organization with the Office of the Lieutenant
Governor.
(50) "Registered political party" means an organization of voters that:
(a) participated in the last regular general election and polled a total vote equal to 2%
or more of the total votes cast for all candidates for the United States House of Representatives
for any of its candidates for any office; or
(b) has complied with the petition and organizing procedures of Chapter 8, Political
Party Formation and Procedures.
(51) (a) "Remuneration" means a payment:
(i) made to a legislator for the period the Legislature is in session; and
(ii) that is approximately equivalent to an amount a legislator would have earned
during the period the Legislature is in session in the legislator's ordinary course of business.
(b) "Remuneration" does not mean anything of economic value given to a legislator by:
(i) the legislator's primary employer in the ordinary course of business; or
(ii) a person or entity in the ordinary course of business:
(A) because of the legislator's ownership interest in the entity; or
(B) for services rendered by the legislator on behalf of the person or entity.
(52) "Reporting entity" means a candidate, a candidate's personal campaign committee,
a judge, a judge's personal campaign committee, an officeholder, a party committee, a political
action committee, a political issues committee, a corporation, or a labor organization, as
defined in Section 
20A-11-1501
.
(53) "School board office" means the office of state school board.
(54) (a) "Source" means the person or entity that is the legal owner of the tangible or
intangible asset that comprises the contribution.
(b) "Source" means, for political action committees and corporations, the political
action committee and the corporation as entities, not the contributors to the political action
committee or the owners or shareholders of the corporation.
(55) "State office" means the offices of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general,
state auditor, and state treasurer.
(56) "State office candidate" means a person who:
(a) files a declaration of candidacy for a state office; or
(b) receives contributions, makes expenditures, or gives consent for any other person to
receive contributions or make expenditures to bring about the person's nomination, election, or
appointment to a state office.
(57) "Summary report" means the year end report containing the summary of a
reporting entity's contributions and expenditures.
(58) "Supervisory board" means the individual or group of individuals that allocate
expenditures from a political issues committee.
Section 2. Section 
20A-11-105
 is enacted to read:
 20A-11-105.
Database of reporting entities, principals, and lobbyists.
(1) As used in this section:
(a) "Lobbyist" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
36-11-102
.
(b) "Principal" means the same as that term is defined in Section 
36-11-102
.
(2) Beginning on July 1, 2015, the lieutenant governor shall establish and maintain a
database of each reporting entity, principal, or lobbyist.
(3) The lieutenant governor shall:
(a) ensure that the database described in Subsection (2):
(i) identifies whether each person in the database is a reporting entity, a principal, or a
lobbyist; and
(ii) is accessible and searchable by name from:
(A) a conspicuous link on the home page of the lieutenant governor's website; and
(B) the location on the lieutenant governor's website where a reporting entity completes
a financial statement; and
(b) keep a record of the day on which the lieutenant governor adds:
(i) a reporting entity, principal, or lobbyist to the database; or
(ii) a designation that a person in the database is a reporting entity, principal, or
lobbyist.
(4) (a) If it appears that a reporting entity has failed to include in a detailed listing an
indication required under Subsection 
20A-11-101
(11)(a)(ii), the lieutenant governor shall,
within five days after the day on which the lieutenant governor discovers the failure, notify the
reporting entity of the failure and direct the reporting entity to file a financial statement
correcting the failure.
(b) It is unlawful for a reporting entity to fail to file a corrected financial statement
described in Subsection (4)(a) within seven days after the day on which the reporting entity
receives the notice described in Subsection (4)(a). 
(c) A reporting entity that violates Subsection (4)(b) is guilty of a class B
misdemeanor.
(d) The lieutenant governor shall report all violations of Subsection (4)(b) to the
attorney general.
(e) In addition to the criminal penalty described in Subsection (4)(c), the lieutenant
governor shall impose a civil fine of $100 against a reporting entity that violates Subsection
(4)(b).
Legislative Review Note
 as of 6-3-14 9:42 AM
Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel