Print this pageAttention all treasurers: ORCA version 1.300 is now available. This new Read more
Mar 15, 2020 11:00am - Alert: PDC office closed to public: staff are working remotely
Filer tips and updates
Here's where you can find updates to filer guidance and timely reminders about how to properly disclose campaign or lobbying activity.
News
January 13, 2021
January 5, 2021
In the PDC lobbying system, navigate to your lobbyist or lobbyist employer page. You’ll see the names of every employer that you’ve lobbied for. Next to the employer’s name is the word amend.
Click on amend. This is where you can change the details of your contract with this employer.
One section shows the months that you have lobbied, or will lobby, for your employer. There are check boxes for each month. If you try to submit a monthly L- Read more
December 10, 2020
Occasionally, a candidate receives money that is not a contribution. Typical examples are bank interest, vendor refunds, and a reimbursement from another campaign for shared expenses.
These funds are deposited in the campaign bank account and reported as an "other receipt" on a C-3 report.
Candidates that share expenses with another campaign would preferably follow the instructions found Read more
December 2, 2020
If you’re a candidate who wants to urge people to vote, your unpaid volunteers can help you with that. They can call or email people and urge them to vote or explain how to register to vote.
But when you spend your campaign contributions, you must use those funds to encourage people to vote for you – not just to vote in general.
If you want to encourage a generic get-out-the-vote effort, here’s how:
December 1, 2020
With the 2021 legislative session just around the corner, you may find you need to create a new contract for a lobbyist employer.
Start with the File Online link at the top right of the PDC homepage. Choose Lobbyists and Lobbyist Employers (L-1, L-2, and L-3).
Log in to the lobbyist site with your username and password. Click on your name under Lobbyists I File For. Now choose Read more
November 23, 2020
Wondering what you may do with campaign funds remaining when the election's over?
After you’ve repaid any loans to the campaign, whatever’s left is surplus campaign funds. There are seven ways that you may use that leftover money.
Some of those ways are:
- Donate to a charity registered with the Secretary of State’s office.
- Leave the surplus funds in the campaign account for use in a future election campaign.
- Return contributions to your Read more
November 17, 2020
Updated Jan. 14, 2021
Dealing with COVID-19 means that we do a lot of things differently, including lobbying. You probably won’t invite the whole Legislature to a reception for a while. But what if you send the drinks and snacks to them? Or schedule a Zoom happy hour?
November 5, 2020
With ballot counts beginning to wind down this week, many candidates will be looking to close out their PDC reporting. Things to consider when wrapping up that campaign:
If you still have debts or loans, you may continue to fundraise until Dec. 31. Remember that contribution limits for your contributors from before the election count towards the contributions given after the Read more
October 28, 2020
Lobbyists planning to lobby in 2021 and 2022 can complete their registration for the next biennium now.
State law requires registered lobbyists to file a new registration statement every two years. The deadline is the second Monday in January of odd-numbered years. Failure to do so terminates the lobbyist’s registration.
Before lobbyists register for the new biennium, they must certify that they have taken Read more
October 21, 2020
Your election campaign or political committee may wish to have a fundraiser with other candidates or committees. That’s OK. You just need to pay attention to a few details.
A candidate’s campaign can’t donate to another candidate or to a political committee. One exception: You can donate surplus funds to a party committee.
Any expenses for the joint Read more
October 15, 2020
We’re now in the 21 days before the general election.
During these 21 days, campaigns for candidates on the general election ballot may not accept more than $5,000 from any donor, even the candidate (An exception: the state committee of a major or minor political party may give more). Registered political committees may not accept more than that either — except for committees that support or oppose a ballot measure.
October 9, 2020
Any expenditure that is not directly related to the candidate’s election campaign is prohibited.
Candidate campaign contributions may not be used to defray non-reimbursed expenses related to public office, or for charitable donations, club memberships, newspaper subscriptions, constituent gifts and entertainment or other miscellaneous expenses that are not directly campaign- related.
Campaign contributions may be used to cover earnings lost as a result of Read more
October 1, 2020
If you choose full reporting, then any money that you contribute to or spend on your campaign must be reported – even if you accept no donations from anyone else.
There are several scenarios:
- Your funds go into the campaign bank account and the campaign wants the option to pay you back.
- Your funds go into the campaign bank account and there will be no repayment to you.
- You spend your own money on the campaign, Read more
September 23, 2020
Don’t get caught having to re-enter all your ORCA data if your computer hard drive crashes or you lose your laptop. ORCA data that you enter is only stored on your machine. The PDC retains only the completed reports you file with ORCA, not the data you entered to create those reports. If you lose your data, you will most likely have to re-create the entire campaign.
We suggest you regularly create a backup and keep your data for five years after the campaign ends. Read more
September 16, 2020
A political committee that wants to contribute to a candidate running for the Legislature or one of the state executive positions (governor, attorney general, state auditor, etc.) must be able to show Read more