(a)Any person, as defined in section 9-601, may, unless otherwise restricted or prohibited by law, including, but not limited to, any provision of this chapter or chapter 157, make unlimited independent expenditures, as defined in section 9-601c, and accept unlimited covered transfers, as defined in said section 9-601. Except as provided pursuant to this section, any such person who makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures in excess of one thousand dollars, in the aggregate, shall file statements according to the same schedule and in the same manner as is required of a treasurer of a candidate committee pursuant to section 9-608.
(b)Any person who makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures in an election or primary for the office of
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(a) Any person, as defined in section 9-601, may, unless otherwise restricted or prohibited by law, including, but not limited to, any provision of this chapter or chapter 157, make unlimited independent expenditures, as defined in section 9-601c, and accept unlimited covered transfers, as defined in said section 9-601. Except as provided pursuant to this section, any such person who makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures in excess of one thousand dollars, in the aggregate, shall file statements according to the same schedule and in the same manner as is required of a treasurer of a candidate committee pursuant to section 9-608. (b) Any person who makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure or expenditures in an election or primary for the office of Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of the State, State Treasurer, State Comptroller, Attorney General, state senator or state representative, which exceed one thousand dollars, in the aggregate, during a primary campaign or a general election campaign, as defined in section 9-700 , shall file, electronically, a long-form and a short-form report of such independent expenditure or expenditures with the State Elections Enforcement Commission pursuant to subsections (c) and (d) of this section. The person that makes or obligates to make such independent expenditure or expenditures shall file such reports not later than twenty-four hours after (1) making any such payment, or (2) obligating to make any such payment, with respect to the primary or election. If any such person makes or incurs a subsequent independent expenditure, such person shall report such expenditure pursuant to subsection (d) of this section. Such reports shall be filed under penalty of false statement. (c) The independent expenditure long-form report shall identify: (1) The name of the person making or obligating to make such independent expenditure or expenditures and, in the case of a person other than an individual, provide a certification that the person making such independent expenditure is not a foreign national; (2) the tax exempt status of such person, if applicable; (3) the mailing address of such person; (4) the principal business address of the person, if different from the mailing address; (5) the address, telephone number and electronic mail address of the agent for service of process in this state of such person; (6) the date of the primary or election for which the independent expenditure or expenditures were made or obligated to be made; (7) the name of any candidate who was the subject of any independent expenditure or expenditures and whether the independent expenditure or expenditures were in support of or in opposition to such candidate; and (8) the name, telephone number and electronic mail address for the individual filing such report. Such individual filing such report shall affirm that the expenditure reported is an independent expenditure under penalty of false statement. (d) As part of any filing made pursuant to subsection (c) of this section and for each subsequent independent expenditure made or obligated to be made by a person with respect to the primary or election for which a long-form report pursuant to subsection (c) of this section has been filed on behalf of such person, an individual shall file, electronically, a short-form report for each such independent expenditure, not later than twenty-four hours after such person makes a payment for an independent expenditure or obligates to make such an independent expenditure. Such short-form report shall identify: (1) The name of the person making or obligating to make such independent expenditure; (2) the amount of the independent expenditure; (3) whether the independent expenditure was in support of or in opposition to a candidate and the name of such candidate; (4) a brief description of the expenditure made, including the type of communication, based on categories determined by the State Elections Enforcement Commission, and the allocation of such expenditure in support of or in opposition to each candidate, if such expenditure was made in support of or in opposition to more than one candidate; and (5) the name, telephone number and electronic mail address for the individual filing such report. Such individual filing such report shall affirm that the expenditure reported is an independent expenditure under penalty of false statement. (e) No person reporting an independent expenditure pursuant to the provisions of subsection (c) or (d) of this section shall be required to file a statement pursuant to section 9-608 for such independent expenditure. (f) (1) Except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection, as part of any statement filed pursuant to this section, if a person who makes or obligates to make an independent expenditure (A) has received a covered transfer during the twelve-month period prior to a primary or election, as applicable to the reported expenditure, for an office that a candidate described in subdivision (7) of subsection (c) of this section is seeking, and (B) such independent expenditure is made or obligated to be made on or after the date that is one hundred eighty days prior to such primary or election, such person shall disclose the source and the amount of any such covered transfer such person received that is in an amount that is five thousand dollars or more, in the aggregate, during the twelve-month period prior to such primary or election, as applicable to the reported expenditure. (2) The provisions of subdivision (1) of this subsection shall not apply to any person who discloses the source and amount of a covered transfer described in subdivision (1) of this subsection as part of any report to the Federal Election Commission or the Internal Revenue Service, provided such person includes a copy of any such report as part of the report of each applicable independent expenditure pursuant to this section. If a source and amount of a covered transfer is not included as part of any such report, the maker of the expenditure shall disclose the source and amount of such covered transfer pursuant to subdivision (1) of this subsection, if applicable. (g) (1) A person may, unless otherwise restricted or prohibited by law, including, but not limited to, any provision of this chapter or chapter 157, establish a dedicated independent expenditure account, for the purpose of engaging in independent expenditures, that is segregated from all other accounts controlled by such person. Such dedicated independent expenditure account may receive covered transfers directly from persons other than the person establishing the dedicated account and may not receive transfers from another account controlled by the person establishing the dedicated account, except as provided in subdivision (2) of this subsection. If an independent expenditure is made from such segregated account, any report required pursuant to this section or disclaimer required pursuant to section 9-621 may include only those persons who made covered transfers directly to the dedicated independent expenditure account. (2) If a person who has made a covered transfer to another account controlled by the person establishing a dedicated independent expenditure account requests that such covered transfer be used for the purposes of making an independent expenditure from the dedicated independent expenditure account, the amount of such covered transfer may be transferred to the dedicated independent expenditure account and shall be treated as a covered transfer directly to the dedicated independent expenditure account. (h) Any person may file a complaint with the commission upon the belief that (1) any such independent expenditure report or statement is false, or (2) any person who is required to file an independent expenditure report under this subsection has failed to do so. The commission shall make a prompt determination on such a complaint. (i) (1) If a person fails to file a report in accordance with the provisions of this section for an independent expenditure or expenditures made or obligated to be made more than ninety days before the day of a primary or election, the person shall be subject to a civil penalty, imposed by the State Elections Enforcement Commission, of not more than ten thousand dollars. If a person fails to file a report required in accordance with the provisions of this section for an independent expenditure or expenditures made or obligated to be made ninety days or less before the day of a primary or election, such person shall be subject to a civil penalty, imposed by the State Elections Enforcement Commission, of not more than twenty thousand dollars. (2) If any such failure is knowing and wilful, the person responsible for the failure shall also be fined not more than fifty thousand dollars and the commission may refer the matter to the office of the Chief State's Attorney.