HB1765 104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB104 07776 SPS 17821 b

104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2025 and 2026
HB1765

Introduced 1/28/2025, by Rep. Christopher "C.D." Davidsmeyer

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

10 ILCS 5/9-8.5

Amends the Election Code. Removes a provision that provides that the State Board of Elections shall adjust the amounts of the contribution limits for inflation.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning elections.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Election Code is amended by changing Section 9-8.5 as follows:

(10 ILCS 5/9-8.5)

Sec. 9-8.5. Limitations on campaign contributions.

(a) It is unlawful for a political committee to accept contributions except as provided in this Section.

(b) During an election cycle, a candidate political committee may not accept contributions with an aggregate value over the following: (i) $5,000 from any individual, (ii) $10,000 from any corporation, labor organization, or association, or (iii) $50,000 from a candidate political committee or political action committee. A candidate political committee may accept contributions in any amount from a political party committee. A candidate political committee established to elect a candidate to the General Assembly may accept contributions from only one legislative caucus committee. A candidate political committee may not accept contributions from a ballot initiative committee or from an independent expenditure committee.

(b-5) Judicial elections.

(1) In addition to any other provision of this Section, a candidate political committee established to support or oppose a candidate seeking nomination to the Supreme Court, Appellate Court, or Circuit Court may not:

(A) accept contributions from any entity that does not disclose the identity of those who make contributions to the entity, except for contributions that are not required to be itemized by this Code; or

(B) accept contributions from any out-of-state person, as defined in this Article.

(1.1) In addition to any other provision of this Section, a political committee that is self-funding, as described in subsection (h) of this Section, and is established to support or oppose a candidate seeking nomination, election, or retention to the Supreme Court, the Appellate Court, or the Circuit Court may not accept contributions from any single person, other than the judicial candidate or the candidate's immediate family, in a cumulative amount that exceeds $500,000 in any election cycle. Any contribution in excess of the limits in this paragraph (1.1) shall escheat to the State of Illinois. Any political committee that receives such a contribution shall immediately forward the amount that exceeds $500,000 to the State Treasurer who shall deposit the funds into the State Treasury.

(1.2) In addition to any other provision of this Section, an independent expenditure committee established to support or oppose a candidate seeking nomination, election, or retention to the Supreme Court, the Appellate Court, or the Circuit Court may not accept contributions from any single person in a cumulative amount that exceeds $500,000 in any election cycle. Any contribution in excess of the limits in this paragraph (1.2) shall escheat to the State of Illinois. Any independent expenditure committee that receives such a contribution shall immediately forward the amount that exceeds $500,000 to the State Treasurer who shall deposit the funds into the State Treasury.

(1.3) In addition to any other provision of this Section, if a political committee established to support or oppose a candidate seeking nomination, election, or retention to the Supreme Court, the Appellate Court, or the Circuit Court receives a contribution in excess of $500 from: (i) any committee that is not required to disclose its contributors under this Act; (ii) any association that is not required to disclose its contributors under this Act; or (iii) any other organization or group of persons that is not required to disclose its contributors under this Act, then that contribution shall be considered an anonymous contribution that shall escheat to the State, unless the political committee reports to the State Board of Elections all persons who have contributed in excess of $500 during the same election cycle to the committee, association, organization, or group making the contribution. Any political committee that receives such a contribution and fails to report this information shall forward the contribution amount immediately to the State Treasurer who shall deposit the funds into the State Treasury.

(2) As used in this subsection, "contribution" has the meaning provided in Section 9-1.4 and also includes the following that are subject to the limits of this Section:

(A) expenditures made by any person in concert or cooperation with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate, his or her designated committee, or their agents; and

(B) the financing by any person of the dissemination, distribution, or republication, in whole or in part, of any broadcast or any written, graphic, or other form of campaign materials prepared by the candidate, his or her campaign committee, or their designated agents.

(3) As to contributions to a candidate political committee established to support a candidate seeking nomination to the Supreme Court, Appellate Court, or Circuit Court:

(A) No person shall make a contribution in the name of another person or knowingly permit his or her name to be used to effect such a contribution.

(B) No person shall knowingly accept a contribution made by one person in the name of another person.

(C) No person shall knowingly accept reimbursement from another person for a contribution made in his or her own name.

(D) No person shall make an anonymous contribution.

(E) No person shall knowingly accept any anonymous contribution.

(F) No person shall predicate (1) any benefit, including, but not limited to, employment decisions, including hiring, promotions, bonus compensation, and transfers, or (2) any other gift, transfer, or emolument upon:

(i) the decision by the recipient of that benefit to donate or not to donate to a candidate; or

(ii) the amount of any such donation.

(4) No judicial candidate or political committee established to support a candidate seeking nomination to the Supreme Court, Appellate Court, or Circuit Court shall knowingly accept any contribution or make any expenditure in violation of the provisions of this Section. No officer or employee of a political committee established to support a candidate seeking nomination to the Supreme Court, Appellate Court, or Circuit Court shall knowingly accept a contribution made for the benefit or use of a candidate or knowingly make any expenditure in support of or opposition to a candidate or for electioneering communications in relation to a candidate in violation of any limitation designated for contributions and expenditures under this Section.

(5) Where the provisions of this subsection (b-5) conflict with any other provision of this Code, this subsection (b-5) shall control.

(c) During an election cycle, a political party committee may not accept contributions with an aggregate value over the following: (i) $10,000 from any individual, (ii) $20,000 from any corporation, labor organization, or association, or (iii) $50,000 from a political action committee. A political party committee may accept contributions in any amount from another political party committee or a candidate political committee, except as provided in subsection (c-5). Nothing in this Section shall limit the amounts that may be transferred between a political party committee established under subsection (a) of Section 7-8 of this Code and an affiliated federal political committee established under the Federal Election Code by the same political party. A political party committee may not accept contributions from a ballot initiative committee or from an independent expenditure committee. A political party committee established by a legislative caucus may not accept contributions from another political party committee established by a legislative caucus.

(c-5) (Blank).

(c-10) (Blank).

(d) During an election cycle, a political action committee may not accept contributions with an aggregate value over the following: (i) $10,000 from any individual, (ii) $20,000 from any corporation, labor organization, political party committee, or association, or (iii) $50,000 from a political action committee or candidate political committee. A political action committee may not accept contributions from a ballot initiative committee or from an independent expenditure committee.

(e) A ballot initiative committee may accept contributions in any amount from any source, provided that the committee files the document required by Section 9-3 of this Article and files the disclosure reports required by the provisions of this Article.

(e-5) An independent expenditure committee may accept contributions in any amount from any source, provided that the committee files the document required by Section 9-3 of this Article and files the disclosure reports required by the provisions of this Article.

(e-10) A limited activity committee shall not accept contributions, except that the officer or a candidate the committee has designated to support may contribute personal funds in order to pay for maintenance expenses. A limited activity committee may only make expenditures that are: (i) necessary for maintenance of the committee; (ii) for rent or lease payments until the end of the lease in effect at the time the officer or candidate is confirmed by the Senate; (iii) contributions to 501(c)(3) charities; or (iv) returning contributions to original contributors.

(f) Nothing in this Section shall prohibit a political committee from dividing the proceeds of joint fundraising efforts; provided that no political committee may receive more than the limit from any one contributor, and provided that an independent expenditure committee may not conduct joint fundraising efforts with a candidate political committee or a political party committee.

(g) (Blank). On January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the State Board of Elections shall adjust the amounts of the contribution limitations established in this Section for inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers as issued by the United States Department of Labor and rounded to the nearest $100. The State Board shall publish this information on its official website.

(h) Self-funding candidates. If a public official, a candidate, or the public official's or candidate's immediate family contributes or loans to the public official's or candidate's political committee or to other political committees that transfer funds to the public official's or candidate's political committee or makes independent expenditures for the benefit of the public official's or candidate's campaign during the 12 months prior to an election in an aggregate amount of more than (i) $250,000 for statewide office or (ii) $100,000 for all other elective offices, then the public official or candidate shall file with the State Board of Elections, within one day, a Notification of Self-funding that shall detail each contribution or loan made by the public official, the candidate, or the public official's or candidate's immediate family. Within 2 business days after the filing of a Notification of Self-funding, the notification shall be posted on the Board's website and the Board shall give official notice of the filing to each candidate for the same office as the public official or candidate making the filing, including the public official or candidate filing the Notification of Self-funding. Notice shall be sent via first class mail to the candidate and the treasurer of the candidate's committee. Notice shall also be sent by e-mail to the candidate and the treasurer of the candidate's committee if the candidate and the treasurer, as applicable, have provided the Board with an e-mail address. Upon posting of the notice on the Board's website, all candidates for that office, including the public official or candidate who filed a Notification of Self-funding, shall be permitted to accept contributions in excess of any contribution limits imposed by subsection (b). If a public official or candidate filed a Notification of Self-funding during an election cycle that includes a general primary election or consolidated primary election and that public official or candidate is nominated, all candidates for that office, including the nominee who filed the notification of self-funding, shall be permitted to accept contributions in excess of any contribution limit imposed by subsection (b) for the subsequent election cycle. For the purposes of this subsection, "immediate family" means the spouse, parent, or child of a public official or candidate.

(h-5) If a natural person or independent expenditure committee makes independent expenditures in support of or in opposition to the campaign of a particular public official or candidate in an aggregate amount of more than (i) $250,000 for statewide office or (ii) $100,000 for all other elective offices in an election cycle, as reported in a written disclosure filed under subsection (a) of Section 9-8.6 or subsection (e-5) of Section 9-10, then the State Board of Elections shall, within 2 business days after the filing of the disclosure, post the disclosure on the Board's website and give official notice of the disclosure to each candidate for the same office as the public official or candidate for whose benefit or detriment the natural person or independent expenditure committee made independent expenditures. Upon posting of the notice on the Board's website, all candidates for that office in that election, including the public official or candidate for whose benefit or detriment the natural person or independent expenditure committee made independent expenditures, shall be permitted to accept contributions in excess of any contribution limits imposed by subsection (b).

(h-10) If the State Board of Elections receives notification or determines that a natural person or persons, an independent expenditure committee or committees, or combination thereof has made independent expenditures in support of or in opposition to the campaign of a particular public official or candidate in an aggregate amount of more than (i) $250,000 for statewide office or (ii) $100,000 for all other elective offices in an election cycle, then the Board shall, within 2 business days after discovering the independent expenditures that, in the aggregate, exceed the threshold set forth in (i) and (ii) of this subsection, post notice of this fact on the Board's website and give official notice to each candidate for the same office as the public official or candidate for whose benefit or detriment the independent expenditures were made. Notice shall be sent via first class mail to the candidate and the treasurer of the candidate's committee. Notice shall also be sent by e-mail to the candidate and the treasurer of the candidate's committee if the candidate and the treasurer, as applicable, have provided the Board with an e-mail address. Upon posting of the notice on the Board's website, all candidates of that office in that election, including the public official or candidate for whose benefit or detriment the independent expenditures were made, may accept contributions in excess of any contribution limits imposed by subsection (b).

(i) For the purposes of this Section, a corporation, labor organization, association, or a political action committee established by a corporation, labor organization, or association may act as a conduit in facilitating the delivery to a political action committee of contributions made through dues, levies, or similar assessments and the political action committee may report the contributions in the aggregate, provided that: (i) contributions made through dues, levies, or similar assessments paid by any natural person, corporation, labor organization, or association in a calendar year may not exceed the limits set forth in this Section; (ii) the corporation, labor organization, association, or a political action committee established by a corporation, labor organization, or association facilitating the delivery of contributions maintains a list of natural persons, corporations, labor organizations, and associations that paid the dues, levies, or similar assessments from which the contributions comprising the aggregate amount derive; and (iii) contributions made through dues, levies, or similar assessments paid by any natural person, corporation, labor organization, or association that exceed $1,000 in a quarterly reporting period shall be itemized on the committee's quarterly report and may not be reported in the aggregate. A political action committee facilitating the delivery of contributions or receiving contributions shall disclose the amount of contributions made through dues delivered or received and the name of the corporation, labor organization, association, or political action committee delivering the contributions, if applicable. On January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the State Board of Elections shall adjust the amounts of the contribution limitations established in this subsection for inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers as issued by the United States Department of Labor and rounded to the nearest $100. The State Board shall publish this information on its official website.

(j) A political committee that receives a contribution or transfer in violation of this Section shall dispose of the contribution or transfer by returning the contribution or transfer, or an amount equal to the contribution or transfer, to the contributor or transferor or donating the contribution or transfer, or an amount equal to the contribution or transfer, to a charity. A contribution or transfer received in violation of this Section that is not disposed of as provided in this subsection within 30 days after the Board sends notification to the political committee of the excess contribution by certified mail shall escheat to the General Revenue Fund and the political committee shall be deemed in violation of this Section and subject to a civil penalty not to exceed 150% of the total amount of the contribution.

(k) For the purposes of this Section, "statewide office" means the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Secretary of State, Comptroller, and Treasurer.

(l) This Section is repealed if and when the United States Supreme Court invalidates contribution limits on committees formed to assist candidates, political parties, corporations, associations, or labor organizations established by or pursuant to federal law.

(Source: P.A. 102-664, eff. 1-1-22; 102-668, eff. 11-15-21; 102-909, eff. 5-27-22; 103-600, eff. 7-1-24.)