(a) No individual, political committee, or other entity shall contribute to any candidate or other political committee any money or make any other contribution in any election in excess of six thousand eight hundred dollars ($6,800) for that election.
(b) Effective for each odd-numbered calendar year beginning in 2015, the dollar amount of the contribution limitation established by subsections (a), (c), and (d) of this subsection shall be increased as provided in this subsection. On July 1 of each even-numbered year, the State Board of Elections shall calculate from data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor Register the percent difference between the price index for the July 1 of the previous even-numbered year. That percentage increase shall be multiplied by the previous dollar amount contribution limit, that number added to the previous dollar amount contribution limit, and the total shall become effective with respect to contributions made or accepted on or after January 1 of the next odd-numbered year. If the amount after adjustment is not a multiple of one hundred dollars ($100.00), the total shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of one hundred dollars ($100.00). As used in this subsection the term "price index" means the average over a calendar year of the Consumer Price Index (all items - United States city average) published monthly by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The revised amount of the dollar limit of contributions shall remain in effect for two calendar years until the next adjustment is made. The State Board of Elections shall publish the revised amount in the North Carolina Register and shall notify the Revisor of Statutes who shall adjust the dollar amounts in subsections (a), (c), and (d) of this section.
(c) No candidate or political committee shall accept or solicit any contribution from any individual, other political committee, or other entity of any money or any other contribution in any election in excess of six thousand eight hundred dollars ($6,800) for that election.
(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections (a) and (c) of this section, it shall be lawful for a candidate or a candidate's spouse to make a contribution to the candidate or to the candidate's treasurer of any amount of money or to make any other contribution in any election in excess of six thousand eight hundred dollars ($6,800) for that election.
(e) For the purposes of this section, the term "an election" means the period of time from January 1 of an odd-numbered year through the day of the primary, the day after the primary through the day of the second primary, or the day after the primary through December 31 of the next even-numbered year, without regard to whether the candidate is opposed or unopposed in the election, except that where a candidate is not on the ballot in a second primary, that second primary is not "an election" with respect to that candidate.
(f) Notwithstanding subsections (a) and (c) of this section, a candidate or political committee may accept a contribution knowing that the contribution is to be reimbursed to the entity making the contribution and knowing the candidate or political committee has funds sufficient to reimburse the entity making the contribution if all of the following conditions are met:
(1) The entity submits sufficient information of the contribution to the candidate or political committee for reimbursement within 45 days of the contribution.
(2) The candidate or political committee makes a reimbursement to the entity making the contribution within seven days of submission of sufficient information.
(3) The candidate or political committee indicates on its report under G.S. 163-278.11 that the good, service, or other item resulting in the reimbursement is an expenditure of the candidate or political committee, and notes if the contribution was by credit card.
(4) The contribution does not exceed one thousand dollars ($1,000.00).
(g) Any contribution, or portion thereof, made under subsection (f) of this section that is not submitted for reimbursement in accordance with subsection (f) of this section shall be treated as a contribution for purposes of this section. Any contribution, or portion thereof, made under subsection (f) of this section that is not reimbursed in accordance with subsection (f) of this section shall be treated as a contribution for purposes of this section.
(h) This section shall not apply to any national, State, district or county executive committee of any political party or an affiliated party committee. For the purposes of this section only, the term "political party" means only those political parties officially recognized under G.S. 163-96.
(i) No referendum committee which received any contribution from a corporation, labor union, insurance company, business entity, or professional association may make any contribution to another referendum committee, to a candidate or to a political committee.
(j) The contribution limits of subsections (a) and (c) of this section do not apply to contributions made to an independent expenditure political committee. For purposes of this section, an "independent expenditure political committee" is a political committee whose treasurer makes and abides by a certification to the State Board of Elections that the political committee does not and will not make contributions, directly or indirectly, to candidates or to political committees that make contributions to candidates. The State Board of Elections shall provide forms for implementation of this subsection. This subsection shall not apply to a candidate or a political committee controlled by a candidate. The exception of this subsection is in addition to any other exception provided by law. (1973, c. 1272, s. 1; 1979, c. 1073, ss. 8, 20; 1981, c. 225; 1987, c. 565, s. 15; 1993, c. 539, s. 1113; 1994, Ex. Sess., c. 24, s. 14(c); 1997-515, s. 8(a); 1999-31, s. 5(c); 2002-158, s. 2; 2006-192, ss. 15, 16, 17; 2007-391, s. 36; 2007-484, s. 43.8(c); 2007-510, s. 1(c); 2007-540, ss. 2, 3; 2008-150, ss. 6(c), 7(a); 2008-187, s. 33(a); 2013-360, s. 21.1(e), (f); 2013-381, ss. 38.1(h), (i), (j), 42.1, 42.2, 42.3, 53.1(a); 2015-258, s. 3(h); 2015-264, s. 27; 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).)
§ 163-278.13A: Repealed by Session Laws 1997-515, s. 9, effective January 1, 1998.
§ 163-278.13B. Limitation on fund-raising during legislative session.
(a) Definitions. - For purposes of this section:
(1) "Limited contributor" means a lobbyist registered under Chapter 120C of the General Statutes, that lobbyist's agent, that lobbyist's principal as defined in G.S. 120C-100(21) or a political committee that employs or contracts with or whose parent entity employs or contracts with a lobbyist registered under Chapter 120C of the General Statutes.
(2) "Limited contributee" means a member of or candidate for the Council of State, a member of or candidate for the General Assembly, an affiliated party committee, or a Council of State affiliated party committee.
(3) The General Assembly is in "regular session" from the date set by law or resolution that the General Assembly convenes until the General Assembly either adjourns sine die or recesses or adjourns for more than 10 days.
(4) A contribution is "made" during regular session if the check or other instrument is dated during the session, or if the check or other instrument is delivered to the limited contributee during session, or if the limited contributor pledges during the session to deliver the check or other instrument at a later time.
(5) A contribution is "accepted" during regular session if the check or other instrument is dated during the session, or if the limited contributee receives the check or other instrument during session and does not return it within 10 days, or agrees during session to receive the check or other instrument at a later time.
(b) Prohibited Solicitations. - While the General Assembly is in regular session, no limited contributee or the real or purported agent of a limited contributee shall:
(1) Solicit a contribution from a limited contributor to be made to that limited contributee or to be made to any other candidate, officeholder, or political committee; or
(2) Solicit a third party, requesting or directing that the third party directly or indirectly solicit a contribution from a limited contributor or relay to the limited contributor the limited contributee's solicitation of a contribution.
It shall not be deemed a violation of this section for a limited contributee to serve on a board or committee of an organization that makes a solicitation of a limited contributor as long as that limited contributee does not directly participate in the solicitation and that limited contributee does not directly benefit from the solicitation.
(c) Prohibited Contributions. - While the General Assembly is in regular session:
(1) No limited contributor shall make or offer to make a contribution to a limited contributee.
(2) No limited contributor shall make a contribution to any candidate, officeholder, or political committee, directing or requesting that the contribution be made in turn to a limited contributee.
(3) No limited contributor shall transfer any amount of money or anything of value to any entity, directing or requesting that the entity use what was transferred to contribute to a limited contributee.
(4) No limited contributee or the real or purported agent of a limited contributee prohibited from solicitation by subsection (b) of this section shall accept a contribution from a limited contributor.
(5) No limited contributor shall solicit a contribution from any individual or political committee on behalf of a limited contributee. This subdivision does not apply to a limited contributor soliciting a contribution on behalf of a political party executive committee or an affiliated party committee if the solicitation is solely for a separate segregated fund kept by the political party or affiliated party committee limited to use for activities that are not candidate-specific, including generic voter registration and get-out-the-vote efforts, pollings, mailings, and other general activities and advertising that do not refer to a specific individual candidate.
(d) Exception. - The provisions of this section do not apply with regard to a limited contributee during the three weeks prior to the day of a second primary if that limited contributee is a candidate who will be on the ballot in that second primary.
(e) Prosecution. - A violation of this section is a Class 2 misdemeanor. (1997-515, s. 9(b); 1999-31, s. 5(d); 1999-453, s. 6(a); 2000-136, s. 1; 2006-201, s. 21; 2015-258, s. 3(i), (s); 2015-264, s. 81(e); 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).)
§ 163-278.13C. Campaign contributions prohibition.
(a) No lobbyist may make a contribution as defined in G.S. 163-278.6 to a candidate or candidate campaign committee as defined in G.S. 163-278.38Z when that candidate meets any of the following criteria:
(1) Is a legislator as defined in G.S. 120C-100.
(2) Is a public servant as defined in G.S. 138A-3(30)a and G.S. 120C-104.
(b) No lobbyist may do any of the following with respect to a candidate or candidate campaign committee described in subdivisions (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this section:
(1) Collect a contribution or multiple contributions from one or more contributors intended for that candidate or candidate campaign committee.
(2) Take possession of a contribution or multiple contributions intended for that candidate or candidate campaign committee.
(3) Transfer or deliver a collected contribution or multiple contributions to the intended candidate or candidate campaign committee.
(c) This section shall not apply to a lobbyist, who has filed a notice of candidacy for office under G.S. 163-106 or Article 11 of this Chapter or has been nominated under G.S. 163-114 or G.S. 163-98, making a contribution to that lobbyist's candidate campaign committee.
(d) For purposes of this section, the term "lobbyist" shall mean an individual registered as a lobbyist under Chapter 120C of the General Statutes. (2006-201, s. 18; 2007-347, s. 5(a), (b); 2008-213, s. 86; 2013-381, s. 47.1(a); 2017-6, s. 3; 2018-146, s. 3.1(a), (b).)