UNDERSTANDING THE RULES OF THE GAME:

UNDERSTANDING THE RULES OF

THE GAME:

A Campaign Finance Playbook For

Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC) Candidates

Office of Campaign Finance

1015 Half Street, SE, Suite 775

Washington, D.C. 20003

202.671.0547

July – December, 2020

CANDIDATE STATUS

3DCMR §§ 3002.6

 The ANC Summary Financial Statement must be filed by:

• Candidates who qualified for the ballot through the write-in process;

• Candidates who qualified for the ballot through the nominating

petition process;

• Candidates who accepted contributions or made expenditures, and

did not qualify for the ballot; and

• Candidates who qualified for selection in the ANC vacancy filling

process.

Registration Requirements

• Registration Requirements: Candidates for ANC

are automatically registered by the Office of

Campaign Finance based on a list of ANC

candidates provided by the Board of

Elections. Registration documents are not

required to be submitted by the candidate.

MANDATORY FINANCIAL

REPORTING REQUIREMENT

3DCMR §§ 3002.6

 The Summary Financial Statement of Candidate for The Office Of

Member of An Advisory Neighborhood Commission (ANC), aka

ANC Summary Financial Statement (OCF Form 18), shall be filed no

later than sixty (60) days after the certification of election results by

the DC Board of Elections (BOE).

 This report cannot be filed until after the election or the candidate

withdrawing from the election.

 Regardless of the outcome of an election, i.e., Win or Lose; or

 Whether or not a contribution was accepted, or an expenditure was

made.

MANDATORY ELECTRONIC

FILING REQUIREMENT

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE § 1-1163.04(1a); 3 DCMR §§ 3002.7, 3002.8 and 3002.9

 All reports filed with the Office of Campaign Finance (OCF) are

required to be filed online, provided that reasonable

accommodations are made where an actual hardship is

demonstrated (no later than 15 days prior to the filing deadline).

 Manual filing of the ANC Summary Financial Statement will not be

accepted and will be considered a failure to file.

 OCF will provide log-in information to access the online filing

system after the election results have been certified by the DC Board

of Elections.

RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENT

3DCMR §3400.1(a), 3400.2 and 3400.7

 ANC candidates must maintain and preserve detailed records of

all contributions and expenditures disclosed in reports for a

period of three (3) years from the date of filing.

CONTRIBUTION LIMITATIONS

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE § 1-1163.33(a)(7)

 Contributions from Candidates: No contribution limit

applies. Candidates may contribute any amount in support of

their own campaigns.

 Contributions from Individuals/Organizations: Contributions

are limited to a maximum of $25.00.

 An Expenditure by a Candidate must also be reported as a

contribution by the candidate.

LOANS TO CAMPAIGNS

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE §§ 1-1163.09(c)(4) and 1-1163.33(j)(1)

 Loans of $50 or more by an ANC Candidate to his or her own

campaign must be reported on the ANC Summary Financial

Statement as “Debts and Obligations owed To the Candidate.”

 A Loan Agreement must be memorialized in writing to include

the: (1) full name and address of the ANC candidate; (2)

amount of the loan(s); and (3) loan repayment terms.

CAMPAIGN LITERATURE

REQUIREMENTS (DISCLAIMERS)

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE § 1-1163.15(a) and (b)

 All campaign literature must include the notice: “PAID FOR

BY”, and followed by the name and address of the PAYER; or

the name and address of the COMMITTEE; or the name and

address of any OTHER PERSON AND THE TREASURER on

whose behalf the material appears.

INTERPRETATIVE OPINIONS

3 DCMR § 9900 and § 3305.1

 Legal opinions may be obtained from the Director of the Office of

Campaign Finance (OCF) upon WRITTEN REQUEST on issues

under OCF’s jurisdiction, including:

• Solicitation of funds;

• Circulation of campaign literature;

• Contribution limitations;

• Permissible use of campaign funds, and more.

 Please visit OCF’s website at (www.ocf.dc.gov) for additional

information.

ENFORCEMENT

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE § 1-1163.35(a)(4) and (a)(5); 3DCMR §§ 3711.2(s) and 3711.10

 Ministerial fines may be imposed by the Director of Campaign

Finance for certain violations of District of Columbia Campaign

Finance Laws and OCF regulations.

 Failure to file an ANC Summary Financial Statement may result in a

fine of $50.00 for each day of noncompliance.

 Petitions for Enforcement of the Director’s Orders, where

compliance has not been obtained, are filed with the DC Board of

Elections (BOE). Cases that are not settled by the Board may be

referred to the District of Columbia Superior Court for enforcement.

INCREASED CIVIL PENALTIES

AND PERSONAL LIABILITY

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE §§ 1-1163.35(a)(1) and (a)(2) and 1-1163.35(c)

 A Candidate or other person charged with responsibility for filing

reports and documents (e.g., treasurer), who fails, neglects or omits

to file such report or document accurately and timely, may be

assessed a civil penalty of not more than $4,000 for the first offense

and not more than $10,000 for the second and each subsequent

offense.

 FELONY PROSECUTIONS FOR KNOWING VIOLATIONS

• Any person who knowingly violates provisions of District of Columbia

Campaign Finance Laws shall be subject to criminal prosecution and

shall be fined or imprisoned for not more than five (5) years or both.

PROSECUTION OF CAMPAIGN

FINANCE LAWS

D.C. OFFICIAL CODE § 1-1163.35(d) and (e)

 The United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and the

Attorney General for the District of Columbia have concurrent

prosecutorial jurisdiction over violations of District of Columbia

Campaign Finance Laws.

 Misdemeanor violations of District of Columbia Campaign Finance

Laws may be brought by either the United States or the District of

Columbia for faster prosecution of these violations.

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS (Q&A)

For additional information or questions regarding any

information contained in this guide, please contact:

The Office of Campaign Finance

Wesley Williams, Public Affairs Manager

(202) 671-0551; wesleyw[email protected]v