The treasurer of a political committee registered with the Federal Election Commission is legally responsible for that committee's compliance with the federal campaign finance laws. The Commission has developed this page to help treasurers fulfill that responsibility.
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As you'll see, this page not only provides links to an array of helpful publications, online presentations and other pages, it also offers timely tips and reminders to help treasurers meet their obligations under the law. As an added feature, you can subscribe to receive automatic notification of updates to this page via RSS. We also invite you to ask questions, provide feedback and offer your own compliance tips by e-mail to info@fec.gov.
In addition to these online resources, the FEC staffs a toll-free information hotline (800-424-9530), and offers periodic educational workshops for treasurers. Please visit our Outreach page for details, and sign-up to receive program updates by e-mail at Conferences@fec.gov.
This section offers helpful tips -- both from the FEC and from your fellow treasurers -- to help you meet your obligations under the federal campaign finance law. To suggest a tip, please e-mail us at info@fec.gov. Click here to receive the tips as an RSS feed.
| November 16, 2009 | November Reporting Reminder. Monthly filing committees are reminded that they have a regular report due Friday, November 20, covering the month of October. |
| November 9, 2009 | Party Guide (2009 Edition) Now Available in Hard Copy. Printed versions of the July 2009 updated version of the FEC's Campaign Guide for Political Party Committees are now available free of charge from the FEC's Information Division. To order, call 1-800/424-9530 (press 6), or send an e-mail to info@fec.gov. |
| November 2, 2009 | FEC Introduces New Disclosure Tools. The Commission has just introduced a new disclosure data catalog for downloading data files from its website. The data catalog offers users increased flexibility and choice to customize their searches. The Commission has also launched a new disclosure data blog to increase the exchange of information between the website’s managers and users. On the blog, the Commission will post information about disclosure files and its future plans, and solicit questions, ideas and suggestions from users. |
| October 27, 2009 | EMILY's List v. FEC Update. On October 22, the Commission announced it would not seek rehearing en banc in EMILY’s List v. FEC. On September 24, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ordered that the district court vacate the challenged regulations, saying they “exceed the FEC’s statutory authority.” Two of the three judges also concluded that these regulations “violate the First Amendment.”The regulations at issue concern funds received in response to solicitations (11 C.F.R. 100.57), the method for allocating administrative expenses, costs of generic voter drives, and certain public communications (11 C.F.R. 106.6(c)), and payments for public communications and voter drives that refer to one or more clearly identified federal or non-federal candidates (11 C.F.R. 106.6(f)). Commissioners’ statements on the rehearing issue are here. |
| October 20, 2009 | Notices of Proposed Rulemaking Implementing the Recent Shays Decision are now Available for Comment. On October 8, the Commission approved two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRMs) implementing the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion in Shays v. FEC (Shays III) that found invalid aspects of some of the rules the Commission promulgated to implement the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 (BCRA). The NPRM on Federal Election Activity addresses definitions of get-out-the-vote and voter registration activity. The Commission will hold a hearing on this NPRM on December 16, 2009. Comments from the public are due by November 20. The NPRM on Coordinated Communications proposes possible alternatives to the regulations that govern communications made in coordination with federal candidates, their authorized committees or political parties but paid for by other persons. The NPRM also proposes to define “promote, attack, support, or oppose.” Comments on this NPRM are due on or before January 19, 2010, and the Commission will hold a hearing at a later date. |
For more, visit our Timely Tips Archive.
This section provides links to publications designed specifically for committee treasurers. Additional publications are available in the FEC Library, through our Quick Answers pages and on our Publications page.
Monthly Newsletter
All committee treasurers automatically receive a free subscription to the FEC's monthly newsletter, the Record. Reading the Record each month is one of the best ways to stay current on the law and your obligations as a treasurer. Every issue of the Record from 1996 - present is available online. To subscribe to the Record, send an e-mail with your name and address to info@fec.gov.
Campaign Guides
Campaign Guides are compliance manuals for committees registered with the FEC. The guide supplements summarize relevant post-publication rules and opinions.
- Campaign Guide for Congressional Candidates and Committees (April 2008) [PDF]
- Candidate Guide Supplement (November 2009) [PDF]
- Campaign Guide for Corporations and Labor Organizations (January 2007) [PDF]
- Corporate Guide Supplement (November 2009) [PDF]
- Campaign Guide for Nonconnected Committees (May 2008) [PDF]
- Nonconnected Guide Supplement (November 2009) [PDF]
- Campaign Guide for Political Party Committees (July 2009) [PDF]
- Party Guide Supplement (November 2009) [PDF]
- 2009 Coordinated Party Expenditure (441a(d)) Limits [PDF]
Brochures and Handouts
Brochure Title Advisory Opinions Alternative Dispute Resolution Program Candidate Registration Committee Treasurers Compliance with Laws Outside the FEC's Jurisdiction HTML Contributions Federal and State Campaign Finance Laws Filing a Complaint Foreign Nationals Independent and Coordinated Expenditures Internet Communications and Activity Local Party Activity Retiring Campaign Debt Special Notices on Political Ads and Solicitations Separate Segregated Funds and Nonconnected PACs Volunteer Activity Winding Down Your Federal Campaign Other
- Guideline for Presentation in Good Order (2008) (for Presidential campaigns seeking public funding) [PDF] [Word] [Appendices]
This section supplements the reporting and filing information contained in the publications listed above with links to additional information. Treasurers may also seek reporting and filing assistance from the Campaign Finance Analyst who reviews the committee's reports. To reach the Reports Analysis Division, call 1-800-424-9530 (press 5).