General Laws of Massachusetts - Chapter 55 Disclosure and Regulation of Campaign Expenditures and Contributions - Section 6 Restrictions on expenditures; penalties

Section 6. A political committee organized or operating on behalf of a candidate for the office of governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state secretary, treasurer and receiver general, or auditor may receive, pay and expend money or other things of value for reasonable and necessary expenses directly related to the campaign of such candidate but shall not make any expenditure that is primarily for the candidate’s or any other person’s personal use; provided, however, that no such committee may contribute to any other political committee or to the campaign fund of any other candidate, except that such committee may contribute to a political committee of a political party, provided that: (a) the aggregate of all contributions to any one such political committee shall not exceed the sum of one hundred dollars in any one calendar year; and (b) the aggregate of all such contributions shall not exceed the sum of fifteen hundred dollars in any one calendar year; and, provided further, that the director shall established reasonable rules and regulations concerning such expenditures.

Any other political committee, duly organized, may receive, pay and expend money or other things of value for the enhancement of the political future of the candidate or the principle, for which the committee was organized so long as such expenditure is not primarily for the candidate’s or any other person’s personal use, provided, however, that the director shall establish reasonable rules and regulations concerning such expenditures; and provided, further, that such committee may contribute to other political committees and may contribute to the campaign fund of a candidate; and provided, further, that the aggregate of all such contributions made by such a committee organized on behalf of a candidate to another non-elected political committee organized on behalf of a candidate shall not exceed in any one calendar year the sum of one hundred dollars; and provided further, that the aggregate of all such contributions made by such a committee organized on behalf of a candidate to other non-elected political committees organized on behalf of candidates shall not exceed in any one calendar year the sum of fifteen hundred dollars.

Except as otherwise provided in section six A or six B, a political committee not organized on behalf of an individual candidate may contribute to another political committee not organized on behalf of an individual candidate; provided, however, that the aggregate of all such contributions for the benefit of the political committees of any one political party shall not exceed in any one calendar year the sum of five thousand dollars; and provided, further, that the aggregate of all such contributions for the benefit of any one such political committee other than a political party committee shall not exceed in any one calendar year the sum of five hundred dollars. A political committee not organized on behalf of an individual candidate, other than a political party committee, may contribute to the campaign fund of a candidate; provided, however, that the aggregate of all such contributions for the benefit of any one candidate and such candidate’s committee shall not exceed the sum of five hundred dollars in any one calendar year. The political committee of a political party may contribute to the campaign fund of a candidate; provided, however, that the aggregate of all contributions of money for the benefit of any one candidate and the non-elected political committee organized on such candidate’s behalf shall not exceed in any one calendar year the sum of three thousand dollars in the case of the state committee and the sum of one thousand dollars in the case of each town or ward committee. For the purposes of the limitations established by this section, all campaign contributions made by political committees established, financed, maintained or controlled by any person, including any parent committee of a subsidiary committee or any person other than a natural person, shall be considered to have been made by a single political committee. Nothing in this section shall be construed to permit contributions to political committees which are otherwise prohibited by this chapter.

Such committee may place such funds in a savings account or money market to earn interest thereon but may not invest its funds or other things of value in any other manner.

For the purposes of this section the term “personal use” shall not include expenses relating to the provision of constituent or legislative services or to the opening or maintaining of a legislative district office, provided that (a) said expenses are not otherwise paid, provided or reimbursed by the commonwealth or any other governmental body.

For purposes of this section the term “personal use” shall include the payment of fines, penalties, restitution or damages incurred for a violation of chapters 268A and 268B, but shall not include payments made in relation to allegations of violations of such chapters.

Violation of any provision of this section or section six A or six B shall be punished by imprisonment for not more than one year or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars.

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Last modified: September 11, 2015