Sub. H. B. No. 1 As Reported by the Senate Rules Committee

Representatives DeWine, White

Senators Randy Gardner, Jacobson

A BILL

To amend sections 102.03, 2921.01, 2921.43, 3501.38, 1
3503.14, 3513.07, 3513.10, 3513.261, 3517.01, 2
3517.08, 3517.09, 3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.102, 3
3517.103, 3517.104, 3517.105, 3517.106, 3517.108, 4
3517.109, 3517.11, 3517.13, 3517.151, 3517.152, 5
3517.154, 3517.155, 3517.16, 3517.17, 3517.20, 6
3517.23, 3517.992, and 3599.031, to enact new 7
section 3599.03 and sections 3501.381, 3517.1011, 8
3517.1012, 3517.1013, and 3599.111, and to repeal 9
section 3599.03 of the Revised Code to revise the 10
Campaign Finance Law. 11

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1. That sections 102.03, 2921.01, 2921.43, 3501.38, 12
3503.14, 3513.07, 3513.10, 3513.261, 3517.01, 3517.08, 3517.09, 13
3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.102, 3517.103, 3517.104, 3517.105, 14
3517.106, 3517.108, 3517.109, 3517.11, 3517.13, 3517.151, 15
3517.152, 3517.154, 3517.155, 3517.16, 3517.17, 3517.20, 3517.23, 16
3517.992, and 3599.031 be amended and new section 3599.03 and 17
sections 3501.381, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, 3517.1013, and 3599.111 18
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows: 19

       Sec. 102.03. (A)(1) No present or former public official or 20
employee shall, during public employment or service or for twelve 21
months thereafter, represent a client or act in a representative 22
capacity for any person on any matter in which the public official 23
or employee personally participated as a public official or 24
employee through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation, 25
the rendering of advice, investigation, or other substantial 26
exercise of administrative discretion. 27

       (2) For twenty-four months after the conclusion of service, 28
no former commissioner or attorney examiner of the public 29
utilities commission shall represent a public utility, as defined 30
in section 4905.02 of the Revised Code, or act in a representative 31
capacity on behalf of such a utility before any state board, 32
commission, or agency. 33

       (3) For twenty-four months after the conclusion of employment 34
or service, no former public official or employee who personally 35
participated as a public official or employee through decision, 36
approval, disapproval, recommendation, the rendering of advice, 37
the development or adoption of solid waste management plans, 38
investigation, inspection, or other substantial exercise of 39
administrative discretion under Chapter 343. or 3734. of the 40
Revised Code shall represent a person who is the owner or operator 41
of a facility, as defined in section 3734.01 of the Revised Code, 42
or who is an applicant for a permit or license for a facility 43
under that chapter, on any matter in which the public official or 44
employee personally participated as a public official or employee. 45

       (4) For a period of one year after the conclusion of 46
employment or service as a member or employee of the general 47
assembly, no former member or employee of the general assembly 48
shall represent, or act in a representative capacity for, any 49
person on any matter before the general assembly, any committee of 50
the general assembly, or the controlling board. Division (A)(4) of 51
this section does not apply to or affect a person who separates 52
from service with the general assembly on or before December 31, 53
1995. As used in division (A)(4) of this section "person" does not 54
include any state agency or political subdivision of the state. 55

       (5) As used in divisions (A)(1), (2), and (3) of this 56
section, "matter" includes any case, proceeding, application, 57
determination, issue, or question, but does not include the 58
proposal, consideration, or enactment of statutes, rules, 59
ordinances, resolutions, or charter or constitutional amendments. 60
As used in division (A)(4) of this section, "matter" includes the 61
proposal, consideration, or enactment of statutes, resolutions, or 62
constitutional amendments. As used in division (A) of this 63
section, "represent" includes any formal or informal appearance 64
before, or any written or oral communication with, any public 65
agency on behalf of any person. 66

       (6) Nothing contained in division (A) of this section shall 67
prohibit, during such period, a former public official or employee 68
from being retained or employed to represent, assist, or act in a 69
representative capacity for the public agency by which the public 70
official or employee was employed or on which the public official 71
or employee served. 72

       (7) Division (A) of this section shall not be construed to 73
prohibit the performance of ministerial functions, including, but 74
not limited to, the filing or amendment of tax returns, 75
applications for permits and licenses, incorporation papers, and 76
other similar documents. 77

       (B) No present or former public official or employee shall 78
disclose or use, without appropriate authorization, any 79
information acquired by the public official or employee in the 80
course of the public official's or employee's official duties that 81
is confidential because of statutory provisions, or that has been 82
clearly designated to the public official or employee as 83
confidential when that confidential designation is warranted 84
because of the status of the proceedings or the circumstances 85
under which the information was received and preserving its 86
confidentiality is necessary to the proper conduct of government 87
business. 88

       (C) No public official or employee shall participate within 89
the scope of duties as a public official or employee, except 90
through ministerial functions as defined in division (A) of this 91
section, in any license or rate-making proceeding that directly 92
affects the license or rates of any person, partnership, trust, 93
business trust, corporation, or association in which the public 94
official or employee or immediate family owns or controls more 95
than five per cent. No public official or employee shall 96
participate within the scope of duties as a public official or 97
employee, except through ministerial functions as defined in 98
division (A) of this section, in any license or rate-making 99
proceeding that directly affects the license or rates of any 100
person to whom the public official or employee or immediate 101
family, or a partnership, trust, business trust, corporation, or 102
association of which the public official or employee or the public 103
official's or employee's immediate family owns or controls more 104
than five per cent, has sold goods or services totaling more than 105
one thousand dollars during the preceding year, unless the public 106
official or employee has filed a written statement acknowledging 107
that sale with the clerk or secretary of the public agency and the 108
statement is entered in any public record of the agency's 109
proceedings. This division shall not be construed to require the 110
disclosure of clients of attorneys or persons licensed under 111
section 4732.12 or 4732.15 of the Revised Code, or patients of 112
persons certified under section 4731.14 of the Revised Code. 113

       (D) No public official or employee shall use or authorize the 114
use of the authority or influence of office or employment to 115
secure anything of value or the promise or offer of anything of 116
value that is of such a character as to manifest a substantial and 117
improper influence upon the public official or employee with 118
respect to that person's duties. 119

       (E) No public official or employee shall solicit or accept 120
anything of value that is of such a character as to manifest a 121
substantial and improper influence upon the public official or 122
employee with respect to that person's duties. 123

       (F) No person shall promise or give to a public official or 124
employee anything of value that is of such a character as to 125
manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the public 126
official or employee with respect to that person's duties. 127

       (G) In the absence of bribery or another offense under the 128
Revised Code or a purpose to defraud, contributions made to a 129
campaign committee, political party, legislative campaign fund, or 130
political action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ on 131
behalf of an elected public officer or other public official or 132
employee who seeks elective office shall be considered to accrue 133
ordinarily to the public official or employee for the purposes of 134
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section. 135

       As used in this division, "contributions," "campaign 136
committee," "political party," "legislative campaign fund," and 137
"political action committee," ~~and "political contributing entity"~~ 138
have the same meanings as in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code. 139

       (H)(1) No public official or employee, except for the 140
president or other chief administrative officer of or a member of 141
a board of trustees of a state institution of higher education as 142
defined in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code, who is required 143
to file a financial disclosure statement under section 102.02 of 144
the Revised Code shall solicit or accept, and no person shall give 145
to that public official or employee, an honorarium. Except as 146
provided in division (H)(2) of this section, this division and 147
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section do not prohibit a 148
public official or employee who is required to file a financial 149
disclosure statement under section 102.02 of the Revised Code from 150
accepting and do not prohibit a person from giving to that public 151
official or employee the payment of actual travel expenses, 152
including any expenses incurred in connection with the travel for 153
lodging, and meals, food, and beverages provided to the public 154
official or employee at a meeting at which the public official or 155
employee participates in a panel, seminar, or speaking engagement 156
or provided to the public official or employee at a meeting or 157
convention of a national organization to which any state agency, 158
including, but not limited to, any state legislative agency or 159
state institution of higher education as defined in section 160
3345.011 of the Revised Code, pays membership dues. Except as 161
provided in division (H)(2) of this section, this division and 162
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section do not prohibit a 163
public official or employee who is not required to file a 164
financial disclosure statement under section 102.02 of the Revised 165
Code from accepting and do not prohibit a person from promising or 166
giving to that public official or employee an honorarium or the 167
payment of travel, meal, and lodging expenses if the honorarium, 168
expenses, or both were paid in recognition of demonstrable 169
business, professional, or esthetic interests of the public 170
official or employee that exist apart from public office or 171
employment, including, but not limited to, such a demonstrable 172
interest in public speaking and were not paid by any person or 173
other entity, or by any representative or association of those 174
persons or entities, that is regulated by, doing business with, or 175
seeking to do business with the department, division, institution, 176
board, commission, authority, bureau, or other instrumentality of 177
the governmental entity with which the public official or employee 178
serves. 179

       (2) No person who is a member of the board of a state 180
retirement system, a state retirement system investment officer, 181
or an employee of a state retirement system whose position 182
involves substantial and material exercise of discretion in the 183
investment of retirement system funds shall solicit or accept, and 184
no person shall give to that board member, officer, or employee, 185
payment of actual travel expenses, including expenses incurred 186
with the travel for lodging, meals, food, and beverages. 187

       (I) A public official or employee may accept travel, meals, 188
and lodging or expenses or reimbursement of expenses for travel, 189
meals, and lodging in connection with conferences, seminars, and 190
similar events related to official duties if the travel, meals, 191
and lodging, expenses, or reimbursement is not of such a character 192
as to manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the 193
public official or employee with respect to that person's duties. 194
The house of representatives and senate, in their code of ethics, 195
and the Ohio ethics commission, under section 111.15 of the 196
Revised Code, may adopt rules setting standards and conditions for 197
the furnishing and acceptance of such travel, meals, and lodging, 198
expenses, or reimbursement. 199

       A person who acts in compliance with this division and any 200
applicable rules adopted under it, or any applicable, similar 201
rules adopted by the supreme court governing judicial officers and 202
employees, does not violate division (D), (E), or (F) of this 203
section. This division does not preclude any person from seeking 204
an advisory opinion from the appropriate ethics commission under 205
section 102.08 of the Revised Code. 206

       (J) For purposes of divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this 207
section, the membership of a public official or employee in an 208
organization shall not be considered, in and of itself, to be of 209
such a character as to manifest a substantial and improper 210
influence on the public official or employee with respect to that 211
person's duties. As used in this division, "organization" means a 212
church or a religious, benevolent, fraternal, or professional 213
organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and 214
described in subsection 501(c)(3), (4), (8), (10), or (19) of the 215
"Internal Revenue Code of 1986." This division does not apply to a 216
public official or employee who is an employee of an organization, 217
serves as a trustee, director, or officer of an organization, or 218
otherwise holds a fiduciary relationship with an organization. 219
This division does not allow a public official or employee who is 220
a member of an organization to participate, formally or 221
informally, in deliberations, discussions, or voting on a matter 222
or to use his official position with regard to the interests of 223
the organization on the matter if the public official or employee 224
has assumed a particular responsibility in the organization with 225
respect to the matter or if the matter would affect that person's 226
personal, pecuniary interests. 227

       (K) It is not a violation of this section for a prosecuting 228
attorney to appoint assistants and employees in accordance with 229
division (B) of section 309.06 and section 2921.421 of the Revised 230
Code, for a chief legal officer of a municipal corporation or an 231
official designated as prosecutor in a municipal corporation to 232
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with sections 233
733.621 and 2921.421 of the Revised Code, for a township law 234
director appointed under section 504.15 of the Revised Code to 235
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with sections 236
504.151 and 2921.421 of the Revised Code, or for a coroner to 237
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with division (B) 238
of section 313.05 of the Revised Code. 239

       As used in this division, "chief legal officer" has the same 240
meaning as in section 733.621 of the Revised Code. 241

       Sec. 2921.01. As used in sections 2921.01 to 2921.45 of the 242
Revised Code: 243

       (A) "Public official" means any elected or appointed officer, 244
or employee, or agent of the state or any political subdivision, 245
whether in a temporary or permanent capacity, and includes, but is 246
not limited to, legislators, judges, and law enforcement officers. 247

       (B) "Public servant" means any of the following: 248

       (1) Any public official; 249

       (2) Any person performing ad hoc a governmental function, 250
including, but not limited to, a juror, member of a temporary 251
commission, master, arbitrator, advisor, or consultant; 252

       (3) A person who is a candidate for public office, whether or 253
not the person is elected or appointed to the office for which the 254
person is a candidate. A person is a candidate for purposes of 255
this division if the person has been nominated according to law 256
for election or appointment to public office, or if the person has 257
filed a petition or petitions as required by law to have the 258
person's name placed on the ballot in a primary, general, or 259
special election, or if the person campaigns as a write-in 260
candidate in any primary, general, or special election. 261

       (C) "Party official" means any person who holds an elective 262
or appointive post in a political party in the United States or 263
this state, by virtue of which the person directs, conducts, or 264
participates in directing or conducting party affairs at any level 265
of responsibility. 266

       (D) "Official proceeding" means any proceeding before a 267
legislative, judicial, administrative, or other governmental 268
agency or official authorized to take evidence under oath, and 269
includes any proceeding before a referee, hearing examiner, 270
commissioner, notary, or other person taking testimony or a 271
deposition in connection with an official proceeding. 272

       (E) "Detention" means arrest; confinement in any vehicle 273
subsequent to an arrest; confinement in any public or private 274
facility for custody of persons charged with or convicted of crime 275
in this state or another state or under the laws of the United 276
States or alleged or found to be a delinquent child or unruly 277
child in this state or another state or under the laws of the 278
United States; hospitalization, institutionalization, or 279
confinement in any public or private facility that is ordered 280
pursuant to or under the authority of section 2945.37, 2945.371, 281
2945.38, 2945.39, 2945.40, 2945.401, or 2945.402 of the Revised 282
Code; confinement in any vehicle for transportation to or from any 283
facility of any of those natures; detention for extradition or 284
deportation; except as provided in this division, supervision by 285
any employee of any facility of any of those natures that is 286
incidental to hospitalization, institutionalization, or 287
confinement in the facility but that occurs outside the facility; 288
supervision by an employee of the department of rehabilitation and 289
correction of a person on any type of release from a state 290
correctional institution; or confinement in any vehicle, airplane, 291
or place while being returned from outside of this state into this 292
state by a private person or entity pursuant to a contract entered 293
into under division (E) of section 311.29 of the Revised Code or 294
division (B) of section 5149.03 of the Revised Code. For a person 295
confined in a county jail who participates in a county jail 296
industry program pursuant to section 5147.30 of the Revised Code, 297
"detention" includes time spent at an assigned work site and going 298
to and from the work site. 299

       (F) "Detention facility" means any public or private place 300
used for the confinement of a person charged with or convicted of 301
any crime in this state or another state or under the laws of the 302
United States or alleged or found to be a delinquent child or 303
unruly child in this state or another state or under the laws of 304
the United States. 305

       (G) "Valuable thing or valuable benefit" includes, but is not 306
limited to, a contribution. This inclusion does not indicate or 307
imply that a contribution was not included in those terms before 308
September 17, 1986. 309

       (H) "Campaign committee," "contribution," "political action 310
committee," "legislative campaign fund," and "political party," 311
~~and "political contributing entity"~~ have the same meanings as in 312
section 3517.01 of the Revised Code. 313

       (I) "Provider agreement" and "medical assistance program" 314
have the same meanings as in section 2913.40 of the Revised Code. 315

       Sec. 2921.43. (A) No public servant shall knowingly solicit 316
or accept, and no person shall knowingly promise or give to a 317
public servant, either of the following: 318

       (1) Any compensation, other than as allowed by divisions (G), 319
(H), and (I) of section 102.03 of the Revised Code or other 320
provisions of law, to perform the public servant's official 321
duties, to perform any other act or service in the public 322
servant's public capacity, for the general performance of the 323
duties of the public servant's public office or public employment, 324
or as a supplement to the public servant's public compensation; 325

       (2) Additional or greater fees or costs than are allowed by 326
law to perform the public servant's official duties. 327

       (B) No public servant for the public servant's own personal 328
or business use, and no person for the person's own personal or 329
business use or for the personal or business use of a public 330
servant or party official, shall solicit or accept anything of 331
value in consideration of either of the following: 332

       (1) Appointing or securing, maintaining, or renewing the 333
appointment of any person to any public office, employment, or 334
agency; 335

       (2) Preferring, or maintaining the status of, any public 336
employee with respect to compensation, duties, placement, 337
location, promotion, or other material aspects of employment. 338

       (C) No person for the benefit of a political party, campaign 339
committee, legislative campaign fund, or political action 340
committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ shall coerce any 341
contribution in consideration of either of the following: 342

       (1) Appointing or securing, maintaining, or renewing the 343
appointment of any person to any public office, employment, or 344
agency; 345

       (2) Preferring, or maintaining the status of, any public 346
employee with respect to compensation, duties, placement, 347
location, promotion, or other material aspects of employment. 348

       (D) Whoever violates this section is guilty of soliciting 349
improper compensation, a misdemeanor of the first degree. 350

       (E) A public servant who is convicted of a violation of this 351
section is disqualified from holding any public office, 352
employment, or position of trust in this state for a period of 353
seven years from the date of conviction. 354

       (F) Divisions (A), (B), and (C) of this section do not 355
prohibit a person from making voluntary contributions to a 356
political party, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, or 357
political action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ or 358
prohibit a political party, campaign committee, legislative 359
campaign fund, or political action committee~~, or political~~ 360
~~contributing entity~~ from accepting voluntary contributions. 361

       Sec. 3501.38. All declarations of candidacy, nominating 362
petitions, or other petitions presented to or filed with the 363
secretary of state or a board of elections or with any other 364
public office for the purpose of becoming a candidate for any 365
nomination or office or for the holding of an election on any 366
issue shall, in addition to meeting the other specific 367
requirements prescribed in the sections of the Revised Code 368
relating to them, be governed by the following rules: 369

       (A) Only electors qualified to vote on the candidacy or issue 370
which is the subject of the petition shall sign a petition. Each 371
signer shall be a registered elector pursuant to section 3503.11 372
of the Revised Code. The facts of qualification shall be 373
determined as of the date when the petition is filed. 374

       (B) Signatures shall be affixed in ink. Each signer may also 375
print the signer's name, so as to clearly identify the signer's 376
signature. 377

       (C) Each signer shall place on the petition after the 378
signer's name the date of signing and the location of the signer's 379
voting residence, including the street and number if in a 380
municipal corporation or the rural route number, post office 381
address, or township if outside a municipal corporation. The 382
voting address given on the petition shall be the address 383
appearing in the registration records at the board of elections. 384

       (D) No person shall write any name other than the person's 385
own on any petition. No person may authorize another to sign for 386
the person. ~~Where~~If a petition contains the signature of an 387
elector two or more times, only the first signature shall be 388
counted. 389

       (E)(1) On each petition paper, the circulator shall indicate 390
the number of signatures contained on it, and shall sign a 391
statement made under penalty of election falsification that the 392
circulator witnessed the affixing of every signature, that all 393
signers were to the best of the circulator's knowledge and belief 394
qualified to sign, and that every signature is to the best of the 395
circulator's knowledge and belief the signature of the person 396
whose signature it purports to be. On the circulator's statement 397
for a declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, or 398
declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for a person 399
seeking to become a statewide candidate or for a statewide 400
initiative or a statewide referendum petition, the circulator 401
shall identify the name and address of the person employing the 402
circulator to circulate the petition, if any. 403

       (2) As used in division (E) of this section, "statewide 404
candidate" means the joint candidates for the offices of governor 405
and lieutenant governor or a candidate for the office of secretary 406
of state, auditor of state, treasurer of state, or attorney 407
general. 408

       (F) If a circulator knowingly permits an unqualified person 409
to sign a petition paper or permits a person to write a name other 410
than the person's own on a petition paper, that petition paper is 411
invalid; otherwise, the signature of a person not qualified to 412
sign shall be rejected but shall not invalidate the other valid 413
signatures on the paper. 414

       (G) The circulator of a petition may, before filing it in a 415
public office, strike from it any signature the circulator does 416
not wish to present as a part of the petition. 417

       (H) Any signer of a petition may remove the signer's 418
signature from that petition at any time before the petition is 419
filed in a public office by striking the signer's name from the 420
petition; no signature may be removed after the petition is filed 421
in any public office. 422

       (I)(1) No alterations, corrections, or additions may be made 423
to a petition after it is filed in a public office. 424

       (2) No petition may be withdrawn after it is filed in a 425
public office. Nothing in this division prohibits a person from 426
withdrawing as a candidate as otherwise provided by law. 427

       (J) All declarations of candidacy, nominating petitions, or 428
other petitions under this section shall be accompanied by the 429
following statement in boldface capital letters: WHOEVER COMMITS 430
ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY OF THE FIFTH DEGREE. 431

       (K) All separate petition papers shall be filed at the same 432
time, as one instrument. 433

       (L) If a board of elections distributes for use a petition 434
form for a declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, 435
declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate, or any type of 436
question or issue petition that does not satisfy the requirements 437
of law as of the date of that distribution, the board shall not 438
invalidate the petition on the basis that the petition form does 439
not satisfy the requirements of law, if the petition otherwise is 440
valid. Division (L) of this section applies only if the candidate 441
received the petition from the board within ninety days of when 442
the petition is required to be filed. 443

       Sec. 3501.381. (A)(1) Any person who will receive 444
compensation for supervising, managing, or otherwise organizing 445
any effort to obtain signatures for a declaration of candidacy, 446
nominating petition, or declaration of intent to be a write-in 447
candidate for a person seeking to become a statewide candidate or 448
for a statewide initiative petition or a statewide referendum 449
petition shall file a statement to that effect with the office of 450
the secretary of state before any signatures are obtained for the 451
petition or before the person is engaged to supervise, manage, or 452
otherwise organize the effort to obtain signatures for the 453
petition, whichever is later. 454

       (2) Any person who will compensate a person for supervising, 455
managing, or otherwise organizing any effort to obtain signatures 456
for a declaration of candidacy, nominating petition, or 457
declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for a person 458
seeking to become a statewide candidate or for a statewide 459
initiative or a statewide referendum petition shall file a 460
statement to that effect with the office of the secretary of state 461
before any signatures are obtained for the petition or before the 462
person engages a person to supervise, manage, or otherwise 463
organize the effort to obtain signatures for the petition, 464
whichever is later. 465

       (B) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form and 466
content of the statements required under division (A) of this 467
section. 468

       (C) Whoever violates division (A) of this section is guilty 469
of a misdemeanor of the first degree, and the petition for which a 470
person was compensated for supervising, managing, or otherwise 471
organizing the effort to obtain signatures shall be deemed 472
invalid. 473

       (D) As used in this section, "statewide candidate" means the 474
joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant 475
governor or a candidate for the office of secretary of state, 476
auditor of state, treasurer of state, or attorney general. 477

       Sec. 3503.14. (A) The secretary of state shall prescribe the 478
form and content of the registration and change of residence and 479
change of name form used in this state. The form shall set forth 480
the eligibility requirements needed to qualify as an elector and 481
meet the requirements of the National Voter Registration Act of 482
1993. The form shall include a space on which the person 483
registering an applicant shall sign the person's name and a space 484
on which the person registering an applicant shall name the 485
employer who is employing that person to register the applicant. 486
No election official or employee of a designated agency who is 487
registering an applicant shall be required to sign the election 488
official's or employee's name or to name the employer who is 489
employing the election official or employee to register an 490
applicant on a form prepared under this section. 491

       (B) Any applicant who is unable to sign ~~his~~the applicant's 492
own name shall make an "X," if possible, which shall be certified 493
by the signing of the name of the applicant by the person filling 494
out the ~~registration~~ form, who shall add ~~his~~the person's own 495
signature. If an applicant is unable to make an "X," hethe 496
applicant shall indicate in some manner that hethe applicant 497
desires to register to vote or to change ~~his~~the applicant's name 498
or residence. The person registering ~~such an~~the applicant shall 499
sign the form and attest that the applicant indicated that hethe 500
applicant desired to register to vote or to change ~~his~~the 501
applicant's name or residence. 502

       (C) No registration and change of residence and change of 503
name form shall be rejected solely on the basis that a person 504
registering an applicant failed to sign the person's name or 505
failed to name the employer who is employing that person to 506
register the applicant as required under division (A) of this 507
section. 508

       (D) As used in this section, "registering an applicant" 509
includes any effort, for compensation, to provide voter 510
registration forms or to assist persons in completing those forms 511
or returning them to the board of elections, the office of the 512
secretary of state, or another appropriate public office. 513

       Sec. 3513.07. The form of declaration of candidacy and 514
petition of a person desiring to be a candidate for a party 515
nomination or a candidate for election to an office or position to 516
be voted for at a primary election shall be substantially as 517
follows: 518

"DECLARATION OF CANDIDACY PARTY PRIMARY ELECTION 519

       I, ........................... (Name of Candidate), the 520
undersigned, hereby declare under penalty of election 521
falsification that my voting residence is in ............... 522
precinct of the ............................. (Township) or (Ward 523
and City or Village) in the county of ................, Ohio; that 524
my voting residence is ............... (Street and Number, if any, 525
or Rural Route and Number) of the ............................. 526
(City or Village) of ................., Ohio; and that I am a 527
qualified elector in the precinct in which my voting residence is 528
located. I am a member of the ........ Party. I hereby declare 529
that I desire to be .................... (a candidate for 530
nomination as a candidate of the Party for election to the office 531
of .............) (a candidate for election to the office or 532
position of ..............) for the ............ in the state, 533
district, (Full term or unexpired term ending ...............) 534
county, city, or village of ..................., at the primary 535
election to be held on the ............. day of ........., ...., 536
and I hereby request that my name be printed upon the official 537
primary election ballot of the said .......... Party as a 538
candidate for ......... (such nomination) or (such election) as 539
provided by law. 540

       I further declare that, if elected to said office or 541
position, I will qualify therefor, and that I will support and 542
abide by the principles enunciated by the ............ Party. 543

       Dated this .......... day of ................., ......... 544

............................. 545

(Signature of candidate) 546

       WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY 547
OF THE FIFTH DEGREE. 548

PETITION OF CANDIDATE 549

       We, the undersigned, qualified electors of the state of Ohio, 550
whose voting residence is in the county, city, village, ward, 551
township, or school district, and precinct set opposite our names, 552
and members of the ....................................... Party, 553
hereby certify that ............................ (Name of 554
candidate) whose declaration of candidacy is filed herewith, is a 555
member of the ............ Party, and is, in our opinion, well 556
qualified to perform the duties of the office or position to which 557
that candidate desires to be elected. 558

Street City, 559

and Village or 560

Signature Number Township Ward Precinct County Date 561

(Must use address on file with the board of elections) 562

.................................................................... 563

.................................................................... 564

.................................................................... 565

       ....................................... (Name of circulator 566
of petition), declares under penalty of election falsification 567
that the circulator of the petition is a qualified elector of the 568
state of Ohio and resides at the address appearing below the 569
signature of that circulator; that the circulator is a member of 570
the ........... Party; that the circulator is the circulator of 571
the foregoing petition paper containing ............. (Number) 572
signatures; that the circulator witnessed the affixing of every 573
signature; that all signers were to the best of the circulator's 574
knowledge and belief qualified to sign; and that every signature 575
is to the best of the circulator's knowledge and belief the 576
signature of the person whose signature it purports to be. 577

578

(Signature of circulator) 579

580

(Address of circulator) 581
582
(If petition is for a statewide 583
candidate, the name and address 584
of person employing 585
circulator to circulate 586
petition, if any) 587

       WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY 588
OF THE FIFTH DEGREE." 589

       The secretary of state shall prescribe a form of declaration 590
of candidacy and petition, and the form shall be substantially 591
similar to the declaration of candidacy and petition set forth in 592
this section, that will be suitable for joint candidates for the 593
offices of governor and lieutenant governor. 594

       The petition provided for in this section shall be circulated 595
only by a member of the same political party as the candidate. 596

       Sec. 3513.10. (A) At the time of filing a declaration of 597
candidacy for nomination for any office, or a declaration of 598
intent to be a write-in candidate, each candidate, except joint 599
candidates for governor and lieutenant governor, shall pay a fee 600
as follows: 601

For statewide office $100 602

For court of appeals judge $ 50 603

For court of common pleas judge $ 50 604

For county court judge $ 50 605

For municipal court judge $ 50 606

For district office, including member 607
of the United States house of 608
representatives and member of the 609
general assembly $ 50 610

For county office $ 50 611

For city office $ 20 612

For village office $ 10 613

For township office $ 10 614

For member of state board of education $ 20 615

For member of local, city, or 616
exempted village board of education 617
or educational service center 618
governing board $ 10 619

       At the time of filing a declaration of candidacy or a 620
declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate for the offices 621
of governor and lieutenant governor, the joint candidates shall 622
jointly pay to the secretary of state a fee of one hundred 623
dollars. 624

       (B)(1) At the same time the fee required under division (A) 625
of this section is paid, each candidate shall pay an additional 626
fee as follows: 627

For the joint candidates for governor 628
and lieutenant governor $ 50 629

For statewide office $ 50 630

For district office, including member 631

of the United States house of 632
representatives and member of the 633

general assembly $ 35 634
For member of state board of education $ 35 635

For court of appeals judge $ 30 636
For court of common pleas judge $ 30 637
For county court judge $ 30 638
For municipal court judge $ 30 639
For county office $ 30 640
For city office $ 25 641
For village office $ 20 642

For township office $ 20 643

For member of local, city, ~~county,~~ 644

or exempted village board of education 645

or educational service center 646

governing board $ 20 647

       (2) Whoever seeks to propose a ballot question or issue to be 648
submitted to the electors shall pay the following fee at the time 649
the petition proposing the question or issue is filed: 650

       (a) If the question or issue is to be submitted to the 651
electors throughout the entire state, twenty-five dollars; 652

       (b) If the question or issue is to be submitted to the 653
electors of a county or of a district that consists of all or part 654
of two or more counties but less than the entire state, fifteen 655
dollars; 656

       (c) If the question or issue is to be submitted to the 657
electors of a city, twelve dollars and fifty cents; 658

       (d) If the question or issue is to be submitted to the 659
electors of a village, a township, a local, city, county, or 660
exempted village school district, a precinct, or another district 661
consisting of less than an entire county, ten dollars. 662

       (C) No fee shall be required of candidates filing for the 663
office of delegate or alternate to the national convention of 664
political parties, member of the state central committee of a 665
political party, or member of the county central committee of a 666
political party. 667

       (D) All fees required under division (A) of this section 668
immediately shall be paid by the officer receiving them into the 669
state treasury to the credit of the general revenue fund, in the 670
case of fees received by the secretary of state, and into the 671
county treasury to the credit of the county general fund, in the 672
case of fees received by a board of elections. 673

       (E) The officer who receives a fee required under division 674
(B) of this section immediately shall pay the fee to the credit of 675
the Ohio elections commission fund~~, which is hereby~~ created ~~in the~~ 676
~~state treasury. All moneys credited to the fund shall be used~~ 677
~~solely for the purpose of paying expenses related to the operation~~ 678
~~of the Ohio elections commission~~by division (I) of section 679
3517.152 of the Revised Code. 680

       (F)(1) In no case shall a fee paid under this section be 681
returned to a candidate. 682

       (2) Whenever a section of law refers to a filing fee to be 683
paid by a candidate or by a committee proposing a ballot question 684
or issue to be submitted to the electors, that fee includes the 685
fees required under divisions (A) and (B) of this section. 686

       (G) As used in divisions (A) and (B) of this section, 687
"statewide office" means the office of secretary of state, auditor 688
of state, treasurer of state, attorney general, justice and chief 689
justice of the supreme court, and member of the United States 690
senate. 691

       Sec. 3513.261. A nominating petition may consist of one or 692
more separate petition papers, each of which shall be 693
substantially in the form prescribed in this section. If the 694
petition consists of more than one separate petition paper, the 695
statement of candidacy of the candidate or joint candidates named 696
need be signed by the candidate or joint candidates on only one of 697
such separate petition papers, but the statement of candidacy so 698
signed shall be copied on each other separate petition paper 699
before the signatures of electors are placed on it. Each 700
nominating petition containing signatures of electors of more than 701
one county shall consist of separate petition papers each of which 702
shall contain signatures of electors of only one county; provided 703
that petitions containing signatures of electors of more than one 704
county shall not thereby be declared invalid. In case petitions 705
containing signatures of electors of more than one county are 706
filed, the board of elections shall determine the county from 707
which the majority of the signatures came, and only signatures 708
from this county shall be counted. Signatures from any other 709
county shall be invalid. 710

       All signatures on nominating petitions shall be written in 711
ink or indelible pencil. 712

       At the time of filing a nominating petition, the candidate 713
designated in the nominating petition, and joint candidates for 714
governor and lieutenant governor, shall pay to the election 715
officials with whom it is filed the fees specified for the office 716
under divisions (A) and (B) of section 3513.10 of the Revised 717
Code. The fees shall be disposed of by those election officials in 718
the manner that is provided in section 3513.10 of the Revised Code 719
for the disposition of other fees, and in no case shall a fee 720
required under that section be returned to a candidate. 721

       Candidates or joint candidates whose names are written on the 722
ballot, and who are elected, shall pay the same fees under section 723
3513.10 of the Revised Code that candidates who file nominating 724
petitions pay. Payment of these fees shall be a condition 725
precedent to the granting of their certificates of election. 726

       Each nominating petition shall contain a statement of 727
candidacy that shall be signed by the candidate or joint 728
candidates named in it. Such statement of candidacy shall contain 729
a declaration made under penalty of election falsification that 730
the candidate desires to be a candidate for the office named in 731
it, and that the candidate is an elector qualified to vote for the 732
office the candidate seeks. 733

       The form of the nominating petition and statement of 734
candidacy shall be substantially as follows: 735

"STATEMENT OF CANDIDACY 736

       I, ................................... (Name of candidate), 737
the undersigned, hereby declare under penalty of election 738
falsification that my voting residence is in ................ 739
.......... Precinct of the ......................... (Township) or 740
(Ward and City, or Village) in the county of ............... Ohio; 741
that my post-office address is ............................ 742
(Street and Number, if any, or Rural Route and Number) of the 743
............................... (City, Village, or post office) of 744
...................., Ohio; and that I am a qualified elector in 745
the precinct in which my voting residence is located. I hereby 746
declare that I desire to be a candidate for election to the office 747
of .............. in the ........................ (State, 748
District, County, City, Village, Township, or School District) for 749
the ...................................... (Full term or unexpired 750
term ending ................) at the General Election to be held 751
on the ........... day of ..............., .... 752

       I further declare that I am an elector qualified to vote for 753
the office I seek. Dated this ....... day of .............., .... 754

755

(Signature of candidate) 756

       WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY 757
OF THE FIFTH DEGREE. 758

       I, ................................., hereby constitute the 759
persons named below a committee to represent me: 760

Name Residence 761
762
763
764
765
766

NOMINATING PETITION 767

       We, the undersigned, qualified electors of the state of Ohio, 768
whose voting residence is in the County, City, Village, Ward, 769
Township or Precinct set opposite our names, hereby nominate 770
.................... as a candidate for election to the office of 771
........................... in the ............................ 772
(State, District, County, City, Village, Township, or School 773
District) for the ................. (Full term or unexpired term 774
ending ...................) to be voted for at the general 775
election next hereafter to be held, and certify that this person 776
is, in our opinion, well qualified to perform the duties of the 777
office or position to which the person desires to be elected. 778

779
Street 780
Address 781
or R.F.D. 782
(Must use 783
address on City, 784
file with Village 785
the board of or Date of 786
Signature elections) Township Ward Precinct County Signing 787
788
789
790
791

..........................., declares under penalty of election 792
falsification that such person is a qualified elector of the state 793
of Ohio and resides at the address appearing below such person's 794
signature hereto; that such person is the circulator of the 795
foregoing petition paper containing ................ signatures; 796
that such person witnessed the affixing of every signature; that 797
all signers were to the best of such person's knowledge and belief 798
qualified to sign; and that every signature is to the best of such 799
person's knowledge and belief the signature of the person whose 800
signature it purports to be. 801

802

(Signature of circulator) 803

804

(Address) 805
806
(If petition is for a statewide 807
candidate, the name and address 808
of person employing circulator 809
to circulate petition, if any) 810

       WHOEVER COMMITS ELECTION FALSIFICATION IS GUILTY OF A FELONY 811
OF THE FIFTH DEGREE." 812

       The secretary of state shall prescribe a form of nominating 813
petition for a group of candidates for the office of member of a 814
board of education, township office, and offices of municipal 815
corporations of under two thousand population. 816

       The secretary of state shall prescribe a form of statement of 817
candidacy and nominating petition, which shall be substantially 818
similar to the form of statement of candidacy and nominating 819
petition set forth in this section, that will be suitable for 820
joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant 821
governor. 822

       If such petition nominates a candidate whose election is to 823
be determined by the electors of a county or a district or 824
subdivision within the county, it shall be filed with the board of 825
such county. If the petition nominates a candidate whose election 826
is to be determined by the voters of a subdivision located in more 827
than one county, it shall be filed with the board of the county in 828
which the major portion of the population of such subdivision is 829
located. 830

       If the petition nominates a candidate whose election is to be 831
determined by the electors of a district comprised of more than 832
one county but less than all of the counties of the state, it 833
shall be filed with the board of elections of the most populous 834
county in such district. If the petition nominates a candidate 835
whose election is to be determined by the electors of the state at 836
large, it shall be filed with the secretary of state. 837

       The secretary of state or a board of elections shall not 838
accept for filing a nominating petition of a person seeking to 839
become a candidate if that person, for the same election, has 840
already filed a declaration of candidacy, a declaration of intent 841
to be a write-in candidate, or a nominating petition, or has 842
become a candidate through party nomination at a primary election 843
or by the filling of a vacancy under section 3513.30 or 3513.31 of 844
the Revised Code for any state or county office, if the nominating 845
petition is for a state or county office, or for any municipal or 846
township office, for member of a city, local, or exempted village 847
board of education, or for member of a governing board of an 848
educational service center, if the nominating petition is for a 849
municipal or township office, or for member of a city, local, or 850
exempted village board of education, or for member of a governing 851
board of an educational service center. 852

       Sec. 3517.01. (A)(1) A political party within the meaning of 853
Title XXXV of the Revised Code is any group of voters that, at the 854
most recent regular state election, polled for its candidate for 855
governor in the state or nominees for presidential electors at 856
least five per cent of the entire vote cast for that office or 857
that filed with the secretary of state, subsequent to any election 858
in which it received less than five per cent of that vote, a 859
petition signed by qualified electors equal in number to at least 860
one per cent of the total vote for governor or nominees for 861
presidential electors at the most recent election, declaring their 862
intention of organizing a political party, the name of which shall 863
be stated in the declaration, and of participating in the 864
succeeding primary election, held in even-numbered years, that 865
occurs more than one hundred twenty days after the date of filing. 866
No such group of electors shall assume a name or designation that 867
is similar, in the opinion of the secretary of state, to that of 868
an existing political party as to confuse or mislead the voters at 869
an election. If any political party fails to cast five per cent of 870
the total vote cast at an election for the office of governor or 871
president, it shall cease to be a political party. 872

       (2) A campaign committee shall be legally liable for any 873
debts, contracts, or expenditures incurred or executed in its 874
name. 875

       (B) Notwithstanding the definitions found in section 3501.01 876
of the Revised Code, as used in this section,and sections 3517.08 877
to 3517.14, ~~and section~~ 3517.99, and 3517.992 of the Revised Code: 878

       (1) "Campaign committee" means an entity that is formed by a 879
candidate or a combination of two or more persons authorized by a 880
candidate under section 3517.081 of the Revised Code to receive 881
contributions and make expenditures and that is legally liable for 882
any debts, contracts, or expenditures incurred or executed in its 883
name. 884

       (2) "Campaign treasurer" means an individual appointed by a 885
candidate under section 3517.081 of the Revised Code. 886

       (3) "Candidate" has the same meaning as in division (H) of 887
section 3501.01 of the Revised Code and also includes any person 888
who, at any time before or after an election, receives 889
contributions or makes expenditures or other use of contributions, 890
has given consent for another to receive contributions or make 891
expenditures or other use of contributions, or appoints a campaign 892
treasurer, for the purpose of bringing about the person's 893
nomination or election to public office. When two persons jointly 894
seek the offices of governor and lieutenant governor, "candidate" 895
means the pair of candidates jointly. "Candidate" does not include 896
candidates for election to the offices of member of a county or 897
state central committee, presidential elector, and delegate to a 898
national convention or conference of a political party. 899

       (4) "Continuing association" means an association, other than 900
a campaign committee, political party, legislative campaign fund, 901
~~political contributing entity,~~ or labor organization, that is 902
intended to be a permanent organization that has a primary purpose 903
other than supporting or opposing specific candidates, political 904
parties, or ballot issues, and that functions on a regular basis 905
throughout the year. "Continuing association" includes 906
organizations that are determined to be not organized for profit 907
under subsection 501 and that are described in subsection 908
501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), or 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code. 909

       (5) "Contribution" means a loan, gift, deposit, forgiveness 910
of indebtedness, donation, advance, payment, or transfer of funds 911
or ~~transfer of~~ anything of value, including a transfer of funds 912
from an inter vivos or testamentary trust or decedent's estate, 913
and the payment by any person other than the person to whom the 914
services are rendered for the personal services of another person, 915
which contribution is made, received, or used for the purpose of 916
influencing the results of an election. ~~"Contribution"~~Any loan, 917
gift, deposit, forgiveness of indebtedness, donation, advance, 918
payment, or transfer of funds or of anything of value, including a 919
transfer of funds from an inter vivos or testamentary trust or 920
decedent's estate, and the payment by any campaign committee, 921
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, political 922
party, or person other than the person to whom the services are 923
rendered for the personal services of another person, that is 924
made, received, or used by a state or county political party, 925
other than moneys a state or county political party receives from 926
the Ohio political party fund pursuant to section 3517.17 of the 927
Revised Code and the moneys a state or county political party may 928
receive under sections 3517.101, 3517.1012, and 3517.1013 of the 929
Revised Code, shall be considered to be a "contribution" for the 930
purpose of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code and shall be 931
included on a statement of contributions filed under that section. 932

       "Contribution" does not include any of the following: 933

       (a) Services provided without compensation by individuals 934
volunteering a portion or all of their time on behalf of a person; 935

       (b) Ordinary home hospitality; 936

       (c) The personal expenses of a volunteer paid for by that 937
volunteer campaign worker; 938

       (d) Any gift given to a state or county political party 939
pursuant to section 3517.101 of the Revised Code. As used in 940
division (B)(5)(d) of this section, "political party" means only a 941
major political party; 942

       (e) Any contribution as defined in section 3517.1011 of the 943
Revised Code that is made, received, or used to pay the direct 944
costs of producing or airing an electioneering communication; 945

       (f) Any gift given to a state or county political party for 946
the party's restricted fund under division (A)(2) of section 947
3517.1012 of the Revised Code; 948

       (g) Any gift given to a state political party for deposit in 949
a levin account pursuant to section 3517.1013 of the Revised Code. 950
As used in this division, "levin account" has the same meaning as 951
in that section. 952

       (6) "Expenditure" means the disbursement or use of a 953
contribution for the purpose of influencing the results of an 954
election or of making a charitable donation under division (G) of 955
section 3517.08 of the Revised Code. Any disbursement or use of a 956
contribution by a state or county political party is an 957
expenditure and shall be considered either to be made for the 958
purpose of influencing the results of an election or to be made as 959
a charitable donation under division (G) of section 3517.08 of the 960
Revised Code and shall be reported on a statement of expenditures 961
filed under section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. During the thirty 962
days preceding a primary or general election, any disbursement to 963
pay the direct costs of producing or airing a broadcast, cable, or 964
satellite communication that refers to a clearly identified 965
candidate shall be considered to be made for the purpose of 966
influencing the results of that election and shall be reported as 967
an expenditure or as an independent expenditure under section 968
3517.10 or 3517.105 of the Revised Code, as applicable, except 969
that the information required to be reported regarding 970
contributors for those expenditures or independent expenditures 971
shall be the same as the information required to be reported under 972
division (D)(1) and (2) of section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 973

       As used in this division, "broadcast, cable, or satellite 974
communication" and "refers to a clearly identified candidate" have 975
the same meanings as in section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 976

       (7) "Personal expenses" includes, but is not limited to, 977
ordinary expenses for accommodations, clothing, food, personal 978
motor vehicle or airplane, and home telephone. 979

       (8) "Political action committee" means a combination of two 980
or more persons, the primary or ~~incidental~~major purpose of which 981
is to support or oppose any candidate, political party, or issue, 982
or to influence the result of any election through express 983
advocacy, and that is not a political party, a campaign committee, 984
~~a political contributing entity,~~ or a legislative campaign fund. 985
"Political action committee" does not include a continuing 986
association that makes disbursements for the direct costs of 987
producing or airing electioneering communications and that does 988
not engage in express advocacy. 989

       (9) "Public office" means any state, county, municipal, 990
township, ~~and~~or district office, except an office of a political 991
party, that is filled by an election and the offices of United 992
States senator and ~~congressman~~representative. 993

       (10) "Anything of value" has the same meaning as in section 994
1.03 of the Revised Code. 995

       (11) "Beneficiary of a campaign fund" means a candidate, a 996
public official or employee for whose benefit a campaign fund 997
exists, and any other person who has ever been a candidate or 998
public official or employee and for whose benefit a campaign fund 999
exists. 1000

       (12) "Campaign fund" means money or other property, including 1001
contributions. 1002

       (13) "Public official or employee" has the same meaning as in 1003
section 102.01 of the Revised Code. 1004

       (14) "Caucus" means all of the members of the house of 1005
representatives or all of the members of the senate of the general 1006
assembly who are members of the same political party. 1007

       (15) "Legislative campaign fund" means a fund that is 1008
established as an auxiliary of a state political party and 1009
associated with one of the houses of the general assembly. 1010

       (16) "In-kind contribution" means anything of value other 1011
than money that is used to influence the results of an election or 1012
is transferred to or used in support of or in opposition to a 1013
candidate, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, 1014
political party, or political action committee~~, or political~~ 1015
~~contributing entity~~ and that is made with the consent of, in 1016
coordination, cooperation, or consultation with, or at the request 1017
or suggestion of the benefited candidate, committee, fund, or 1018
party~~, or entity~~. The financing of the dissemination, 1019
distribution, or republication, in whole or part, of any broadcast 1020
or of any written, graphic, or other form of campaign materials 1021
prepared by the candidate, the candidate's campaign committee, or 1022
their authorized agents is an in-kind contribution to the 1023
candidate and an expenditure by the candidate. 1024

       (17) "Independent expenditure" means an expenditure by a 1025
person advocating the election or defeat of an identified 1026
candidate or candidates, that is not made with the consent of, in 1027
coordination, cooperation, or consultation with, or at the request 1028
or suggestion of any candidate or candidates or of the campaign 1029
committee or agent of the candidate or candidates. As used in 1030
division (B)(17) of this section: 1031

       (a) "Person" means an individual, partnership, unincorporated 1032
business organization or association, political action committee, 1033
~~political contributing entity,~~ separate segregated fund, 1034
association, or ~~any~~ other organization or group of persons, but 1035
not a labor organization or a corporation ~~unless the labor~~ 1036
~~organization or corporation is a political contributing entity~~. 1037

       (b) "Advocating" means any communication containing a message 1038
advocating election or defeat. 1039

       (c) "Identified candidate" means that the name of the 1040
candidate appears, a photograph or drawing of the candidate 1041
appears, or the identity of the candidate is otherwise apparent by 1042
unambiguous reference. 1043

       (d) "Made in coordination, cooperation, or consultation with, 1044
or at the request or suggestion of, any candidate or the campaign 1045
committee or agent of the candidate" means made pursuant to any 1046
arrangement, coordination, or direction by the candidate, the 1047
candidate's campaign committee, or the candidate's agent prior to 1048
the publication, distribution, display, or broadcast of the 1049
communication. An expenditure is presumed to be so made when it is 1050
any of the following: 1051

       (i) Based on information about the candidate's plans, 1052
projects, or needs provided to the person making the expenditure 1053
by the candidate, or by the candidate's campaign committee or 1054
agent, with a view toward having an expenditure made; 1055

       (ii) Made by or through any person who is, or has been, 1056
authorized to raise or expend funds, who is, or has been, an 1057
officer of the candidate's campaign committee, or who is, or has 1058
been, receiving any form of compensation or reimbursement from the 1059
candidate or the candidate's campaign committee or agent; 1060

       (iii) ~~Made~~Except as otherwise provided in division (D) of 1061
section 3517.105 of the Revised Code, made by a political party in 1062
support of a candidate, unless the expenditure is made by a 1063
political party to conduct voter registration or voter education 1064
efforts. 1065

       (e) "Agent" means any person who has actual oral or written 1066
authority, either express or implied, to make or to authorize the 1067
making of expenditures on behalf of a candidate, or means any 1068
person who has been placed in a position with the candidate's 1069
campaign committee or organization such that it would reasonably 1070
appear that in the ordinary course of campaign-related activities 1071
the person may authorize expenditures. 1072

       (18) "Labor organization" means a labor union; an employee 1073
organization; a federation of labor unions, groups, locals, or 1074
other employee organizations; an auxiliary of a labor union, 1075
employee organization, or federation of labor unions, groups, 1076
locals, or other employee organizations; or any other bona fide 1077
organization in which employees participate and that exists for 1078
the purpose, in whole or in part, of dealing with employers 1079
concerning grievances, labor disputes, wages, hours, and other 1080
terms and conditions of employment. 1081

       (19) "Separate segregated fund" means a separate segregated 1082
fund established pursuant to the Federal Election Campaign Act. 1083

       (20) "Federal Election Campaign Act" means the "Federal 1084
Election Campaign Act of 1971," 86 Stat. 11, 2 U.S.C.A. 431, et 1085
seq., as amended. 1086

       (21) ~~"Political contributing entity" means any entity,~~ 1087
~~including a corporation or labor organization, that may lawfully~~ 1088
~~make contributions and expenditures and that is not an individual~~ 1089
~~or a political action committee, continuing association, campaign~~ 1090
~~committee, political party, legislative campaign fund, designated~~ 1091
~~state campaign committee, or state candidate fund. For purposes of~~ 1092
~~division (B)(21) of this section, "lawfully" means not prohibited~~ 1093
~~by any section of the Revised Code, or authorized by a final~~ 1094
~~judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction.~~"Restricted fund" 1095
means the fund a state or county political party must establish 1096
under division (A)(1) of section 3517.1012 of the Revised Code. 1097

       (22) "Electioneering communication" has the same meaning as 1098
in section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 1099

       (23) "Express advocacy" means a communication that contains 1100
express words advocating the nomination, election, or defeat of a 1101
candidate or that contains express words advocating the adoption 1102
or defeat of a question or issue, as determined by a final 1103
judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction. 1104

       (24) "Political committee" has the same meaning as in section 1105
3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 1106

       Sec. 3517.08. (A) The personal expenses of a candidate paid 1107
for by the candidate, from the candidate's personal funds, shall 1108
not be considered as a contribution by or an expenditure by the 1109
candidate and shall not be reported under section 3517.10 of the 1110
Revised Code. 1111

       (B)(1) An expenditure by a political action committee ~~or a~~ 1112
~~political contributing entity~~ shall not be considered a 1113
contribution by the political action committee ~~or the political~~ 1114
~~contributing entity~~ or an expenditure by or on behalf of the 1115
candidate if the purpose of the expenditure is to inform only its 1116
members by means of mailed publications of its activities or 1117
endorsements. 1118

       (2) An expenditure by a political party shall not be 1119
considered a contribution by the political party or an expenditure 1120
by or on behalf of the candidate if the purpose of the expenditure 1121
is to inform predominantly the party's members by means of mailed 1122
publications or other direct communication of its activities or 1123
endorsements, or for voter contact such as sample ballots, absent 1124
voter's ballots application mailings, voter registration, or 1125
get-out-the-vote activities. 1126

       (C) An expenditure by a continuing association~~, political~~ 1127
~~contributing entity,~~ or political party shall not be considered a 1128
contribution to any campaign committee or an expenditure by or on 1129
behalf of any campaign committee if the purpose of the expenditure 1130
is for the staff and maintenance of the continuing association's, 1131
~~political contributing entity's,~~ or political party's 1132
headquarters, or for a political poll, survey, index, or other 1133
type of measurement not on behalf of a specific candidate. 1134

       (D) The expenses of maintaining a constituent office paid 1135
for, from the candidate's personal funds, by a candidate who is a 1136
member of the general assembly at the time of the election shall 1137
not be considered a contribution by or an expenditure by or on 1138
behalf of the candidate, and shall not be reported, if the 1139
constituent office is not used for any candidate's campaign 1140
activities. 1141

       (E) The net contribution of each social or fund-raising 1142
activity shall be calculated by totaling all contributions to the 1143
activity minus the expenditures made for the activity. 1144

       (F) An expenditure that purchases goods or services shall be 1145
attributed to an election when the disbursement of funds is made, 1146
rather than at the time the goods or services are used. The 1147
secretary of state, under the procedures of Chapter 119. of the 1148
Revised Code, shall establish rules for the attribution of 1149
expenditures to a candidate when the candidate is a candidate for 1150
more than one office during a reporting period and for 1151
expenditures made in a year in which no election is held. The 1152
secretary of state shall further define by rule those expenditures 1153
that are or are not by or on behalf of a candidate. 1154

       (G) An expenditure for the purpose of a charitable donation 1155
may be made if it is made to an organization that is exempt from 1156
federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in 1157
subsection 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(8), 501(c)(10), or 1158
501(c)(19) of the Internal Revenue Code or is approved by advisory 1159
opinion of the Ohio elections commission as a legitimate 1160
charitable organization. Each expenditure under this division 1161
shall be separately itemized on statements made pursuant to 1162
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 1163

       Sec. 3517.09. (A) No person or committee shall solicit, ask, 1164
invite, or demand, directly or indirectly, orally or in writing, a 1165
contribution, subscription, or payment from a candidate for 1166
nomination or election or from the campaign committee of that 1167
candidate, and no person shall solicit, ask, invite, or demand 1168
that a candidate for nomination or election or the campaign 1169
committee of that candidate subscribe to the support of a club or 1170
organization, buy tickets to an entertainment, ball, supper, or 1171
other meeting, or pay for space in a book, program, or 1172
publication. This division does not apply to any of the following: 1173

       (1) Regular advertisements in periodicals having an 1174
established circulation; 1175

       (2) Regular payments to civic, political, fraternal, social, 1176
charitable, or religious organizations of which the candidate was 1177
a member or contributor six months before the candidate's 1178
candidacy; 1179

       (3) Regular party assessments made by a party against its own 1180
candidates. 1181

       (B) No person shall coerce, intimidate, or cause harm to 1182
another person by an act or failure to act, or shall threaten to 1183
coerce, intimidate, or cause harm to another person, because that 1184
other person makes or does not make a contribution to a candidate, 1185
campaign committee, political party, legislative campaign fund, 1186
political action committee, or ~~political contributing entity~~ 1187
person making disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing 1188
or airing electioneering communications. 1189

       (C) An employer or labor organization that, directly or 1190
through another person, solicits an employee of the employer or a 1191
member of the labor organization for a contribution to a 1192
candidate, campaign committee, political action committee, 1193
legislative campaign fund, political party, or ~~political~~ 1194
~~contributing entity~~person making disbursements to pay the direct 1195
costs of producing or airing electioneering communications shall 1196
inform the employee or member at the time of the solicitation that 1197
making a contribution is voluntary and that a decision of the 1198
employee or member to make a contribution or not to make a 1199
contribution will not benefit the employee or member or place the 1200
employee or member at a disadvantage with respect to employment by 1201
the employer or membership in the labor organization. 1202

       Sec. 3517.092. (A) As used in this section: 1203

       (1) "Appointing authority" has the same meaning as in section 1204
124.01 of the Revised Code. 1205

       (2) "State elected officer" means any person appointed or 1206
elected to a state elective office. 1207

       (3) "State elective office" means any of the offices of 1208
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of 1209
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state 1210
board of education, member of the general assembly, and justice 1211
and chief justice of the supreme court. 1212

       (4) "County elected officer" means any person appointed or 1213
elected to a county elective office. 1214

       (5) "County elective office" means any of the offices of 1215
county auditor, county treasurer, clerk of the court of common 1216
pleas, sheriff, county recorder, county engineer, county 1217
commissioner, prosecuting attorney, and coroner. 1218

       (6) "Contribution" includes a contribution to any political 1219
party, campaign committee, political action committee, ~~political~~ 1220
~~contributing entity,~~ or legislative campaign fund. 1221

       (B) No state elected officer, no campaign committee of such 1222
an officer, and no other person or entity shall knowingly solicit 1223
or accept a contribution on behalf of that officer or that 1224
officer's campaign committee from any of the following: 1225

       (1) A state employee whose appointing authority is the state 1226
elected officer; 1227

       (2) A state employee whose appointing authority is authorized 1228
or required by law to be appointed by the state elected officer; 1229

       (3) A state employee who functions in or is employed in or by 1230
the same public agency, department, division, or office as the 1231
state elected officer. 1232

       (C) No candidate for a state elective office, no campaign 1233
committee of such a candidate, and no other person or entity shall 1234
knowingly solicit or accept a contribution on behalf of that 1235
candidate or that candidate's campaign committee from any of the 1236
following: 1237

       (1) A state employee at the time of the solicitation, whose 1238
appointing authority will be the candidate, if elected; 1239

       (2) A state employee at the time of the solicitation, whose 1240
appointing authority will be appointed by the candidate, if 1241
elected, as authorized or required by law; 1242

       (3) A state employee at the time of the solicitation, who 1243
will function in or be employed in or by the same public agency, 1244
department, division, or office as the candidate, if elected. 1245

       (D) No county elected officer, no campaign committee of such 1246
an officer, and no other person or entity shall knowingly solicit 1247
a contribution on behalf of that officer or that officer's 1248
campaign committee from any of the following: 1249

       (1) A county employee whose appointing authority is the 1250
county elected officer; 1251

       (2) A county employee whose appointing authority is 1252
authorized or required by law to be appointed by the county 1253
elected officer; 1254

       (3) A county employee who functions in or is employed in or 1255
by the same public agency, department, division, or office as the 1256
county elected officer. 1257

       (E) No candidate for a county elective office, no campaign 1258
committee of such a candidate, and no other person or entity shall 1259
knowingly solicit a contribution on behalf of that candidate or 1260
that candidate's campaign committee from any of the following: 1261

       (1) A county employee at the time of the solicitation, whose 1262
appointing authority will be the candidate, if elected; 1263

       (2) A county employee at the time of the solicitation, whose 1264
appointing authority will be appointed by the candidate, if 1265
elected, as authorized or required by law; 1266

       (3) A county employee at the time of the solicitation, who 1267
will function in or be employed in or by the same public agency, 1268
department, division, or office as the candidate, if elected. 1269

       (F)(1) No public employee shall solicit a contribution from 1270
any person while the public employee is performing the public 1271
employee's official duties or in those areas of a public building 1272
where official business is transacted or conducted. 1273

       (2) No person shall solicit a contribution from any public 1274
employee while the public employee is performing the public 1275
employee's official duties or is in those areas of a public 1276
building where official business is transacted or conducted. 1277

       (3) As used in division (F) of this section, "public 1278
employee" does not include any person holding an elective office. 1279

       (G) The prohibitions in divisions (B), (C), (D), (E), and (F) 1280
of this section are in addition to the prohibitions in sections 1281
124.57, 3304.22, and 4503.032 of the Revised Code. 1282

       Sec. 3517.10. (A) Except as otherwise provided in this 1283
division, every campaign committee, political action committee, 1284
legislative campaign fund, and political party~~, and political~~ 1285
~~contributing entity~~ that made or received a contribution or made 1286
an expenditure in connection with the nomination or election of 1287
any candidate or in connection with any ballot issue or question 1288
at any election held or to be held in this state shall file, on a 1289
form prescribed under this section,or by electronic means of 1290
transmission as provided in this section and section 3517.106 of 1291
the Revised Code, ~~or, until March 1, 2004, on computer disk as~~ 1292
~~provided in section 3517.106 of the Revised Code,~~ a full, true, 1293
and itemized statement, made under penalty of election 1294
falsification, setting forth in detail the contributions and 1295
expenditures, nonot later than four p.m. of the following dates: 1296

       (1) The twelfth day before the election to reflect 1297
contributions received and expenditures made from the close of 1298
business on the last day reflected in the last previously filed 1299
statement, if any, to the close of business on the twentieth day 1300
before the election; 1301

       (2) The thirty-eighth day after the election to reflect the 1302
contributions received and expenditures made from the close of 1303
business on the last day reflected in the last previously filed 1304
statement, if any, to the close of business on the seventh day 1305
before the filing of the statement; 1306

       (3) The last business day of January of every year to reflect 1307
the contributions received and expenditures made from the close of 1308
business on the last day reflected in the last previously filed 1309
statement, if any, to the close of business on the last day of 1310
December of the previous year; 1311

       (4) The last business day of July of every year to reflect 1312
the contributions received and expenditures made from the close of 1313
business on the last day reflected in the last previously filed 1314
statement, if any, to the close of business on the last day of 1315
June of that year. 1316

       A campaign committee shall only be required to file the 1317
statements prescribed under divisions (A)(1) and (2) of this 1318
section in connection with the nomination or election of the 1319
committee's candidate. 1320

       The statement required under division (A)(1) of this section 1321
shall not be required of any campaign committee, political action 1322
committee, legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or~~ 1323
~~political contributing entity~~ that has received contributions of 1324
less than one thousand dollars and has made expenditures of less 1325
than one thousand dollars at the close of business on the 1326
twentieth day before the election. Those contributions and 1327
expenditures shall be reported in the statement required under 1328
division (A)(2) of this section. 1329

       If an election to select candidates to appear on the general 1330
election ballot is held within sixty days before a general 1331
election, the campaign committee of a successful candidate in the 1332
earlier election may file the statement required by division 1333
(A)(1) of this section for the general election instead of the 1334
statement required by division (A)(2) of this section for the 1335
earlier election if the pregeneral election statement reflects the 1336
status of contributions and expenditures for the period twenty 1337
days before the earlier election to twenty days before the general 1338
election. 1339

       If a person becomes a candidate less than twenty days before 1340
an election, the candidate's campaign committee is not required to 1341
file the statement required by division (A)(1) of this section. 1342

       No statement under division (A)(3) or (4) of this section 1343
shall be required for any year in which a campaign committee, 1344
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, or 1345
political party~~, or political contributing entity~~ is required to 1346
file a postgeneral election statement under division (A)(2) of 1347
this section. However, such a statement may be filed, at the 1348
option of the campaign committee, political action committee, 1349
legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or political~~ 1350
~~contributing entity~~. 1351

       No statement under division (A)(3) or (4) of this section 1352
shall be required if the campaign committee, political action 1353
committee, legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or~~ 1354
~~political contributing entity~~ has no contributions that it has 1355
received and no expenditures that it has made since the last date 1356
reflected in its last previously filed statement. However, the 1357
campaign committee, political action committee, legislative 1358
campaign fund, or political party~~, or political contributing~~ 1359
~~entity~~ shall file a statement to that effect, on a form prescribed 1360
under this section and made under penalty of election 1361
falsification, on the date required in division (A)(3) or (4) of 1362
this section, as applicable. 1363

       The campaign committee of a statewide candidate shall file a 1364
monthly statement of contributions received during each of the 1365
months of July, August, and September in the year of the general 1366
election in which the candidate seeks office. The campaign 1367
committee of a statewide candidate shall file the monthly 1368
statement not later than three business days after the last day of 1369
the month covered by the statement. During the period beginning on 1370
the nineteenth day before the general election in which a 1371
statewide candidate seeks election to office and extending through 1372
the day of that general election, each time the campaign committee 1373
of the joint candidates for the offices of governor and lieutenant 1374
governor or of a candidate for the office of secretary of state, 1375
auditor of state, treasurer of state, or attorney general receives 1376
a contribution from a contributor that causes the aggregate amount 1377
of contributions received from that contributor during that period 1378
to equal or exceed ~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars and each 1379
time the campaign committee of a candidate for the office of chief 1380
justice or justice of the supreme court receives a contribution 1381
from a contributor that causes the aggregate amount of 1382
contributions received from that contributor during that period to 1383
exceed ~~five hundred~~ten thousand dollars, the campaign committee 1384
shall file a two-business-day statement reflecting that 1385
contribution. During the period beginning on the nineteenth day 1386
before a primary election in which a candidate for statewide 1387
office seeks nomination to office and extending through the day of 1388
that primary election, each time either the campaign committee of 1389
a statewide candidate in that primary election that files a notice 1390
under division (C)(1) of section 3517.103 of the Revised Code or 1391
the campaign committee of a statewide candidate in that primary 1392
election to which, in accordance with division (D) of section 1393
3517.103 of the Revised Code, the contribution limitations 1394
prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code no longer apply 1395
receives a contribution from a contributor that causes the 1396
aggregate amount of contributions received from that contributor 1397
during that period to exceed ~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ 1398
dollars, the campaign committee shall file a two-business-day 1399
statement reflecting that contribution. Contributions reported on 1400
a two-business-day statement required to be filed by a campaign 1401
committee of a statewide candidate in a primary election shall 1402
also be included in the postprimary election statement required to 1403
be filed by that campaign committee under division (A)(2) of this 1404
section. A two-business-day statement required by this paragraph 1405
shall be filed not later than two business days after receipt of 1406
the contribution. The statements required by this paragraph shall 1407
be filed in addition to any other statements required by this 1408
section. 1409

       Subject to the secretary of state having implemented, tested, 1410
and verified the successful operation of any system the secretary 1411
of state prescribes pursuant to divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of 1412
this section and division (H)(1) of section 3517.106 of the 1413
Revised Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by 1414
electronic means of transmission, a campaign committee of a 1415
statewide candidate shall file a two-business-day statement under 1416
the preceding paragraph by electronic means of transmission if the 1417
campaign committee is required to file a ~~preelection~~pre-election, 1418
postelection, or monthly statement of contributions and 1419
expenditures by electronic means of transmission under this 1420
section or section 3517.106 of the Revised Code. 1421

       If a campaign committee or political action committee has no 1422
balance on hand and no outstanding obligations and desires to 1423
terminate itself, it shall file a statement to that effect, on a 1424
form prescribed under this section and made under penalty of 1425
election falsification, with the official with whom it files a 1426
statement under division (A) of this section after filing a final 1427
statement of contributions and a final statement of expenditures, 1428
if contributions have been received or expenditures made since the 1429
period reflected in its last previously filed statement. 1430

       (B) Except as otherwise provided in division (C)(7) of this 1431
section, each statement required by division (A) of this section 1432
shall contain the following information: 1433

       (1) The full name and address of each campaign committee, 1434
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, or 1435
political party, ~~or political contributing entity,~~ including any 1436
treasurer of the committee, fund, or party, ~~or entity,~~ filing a 1437
contribution and expenditure statement; 1438

       (2)(a) In the case of a campaign committee, the candidate's 1439
full name and address; 1440

       (b) In the case of a political action committee, the 1441
registration number assigned to the committee under division 1442
(D)(1) of this section. 1443

       (3) The date of the election and whether it was or will be a 1444
general, primary, or special election; 1445

       (4) A statement of contributions received, which shall 1446
include the following information: 1447

       (a) The month, day, and year of the contribution; 1448

       (b)(i) The full name and address of each person, political 1449
party, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, or political 1450
action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ from whom 1451
contributions are received and the registration number assigned to 1452
the political action committee under division (D)(1) of this 1453
section. The requirement of filing the full address does not apply 1454
to any statement filed by a state or local committee of a 1455
political party, to a finance committee of such committee, or to a 1456
committee recognized by a state or local committee as its 1457
fund-raising auxiliary. Notwithstanding division (F)~~(1)~~ of this 1458
section, the requirement of filing the full address shall be 1459
considered as being met if the address filed is the same address 1460
the contributor provided under division (E)(1) of this section. 1461

       (ii) If a political action committee, legislative campaign 1462
fund, or political party that is required to file campaign finance 1463
statements by electronic means of transmission under section 1464
3517.106 of the Revised Code or a campaign committee of a 1465
statewide candidate or candidate for the office of member of the 1466
general assembly receives a contribution from an individual that 1467
exceeds one hundred dollars, the name of the individual's current 1468
employer, if any, or, if the individual is self-employed, the 1469
individual's occupation and the name of the individual's business, 1470
if any; 1471

       (iii) If a campaign committee of a statewide candidate or 1472
candidate for the office of member of the general assembly 1473
receives a contribution transmitted pursuant to section 3599.031 1474
of the Revised Code from amounts deducted from the wages and 1475
salaries of two or more employees that exceeds in the aggregate 1476
one hundred dollars during any one filing period under division 1477
(A)(1), (2), or (3), or (4) of this section, the full name of the 1478
employees' employer and the full name of the labor organization of 1479
which the employees are members, if any. 1480

       (c) A description of the contribution received, if other than 1481
money; 1482

       (d) The value in dollars and cents of the contribution; 1483

       (e) A separately itemized account of all contributions and 1484
expenditures regardless of the amount, except a receipt of a 1485
contribution from a person in the sum of twenty-five dollars or 1486
less at one social or fund-raising activity and a receipt of a 1487
contribution transmitted pursuant to section 3599.031 of the 1488
Revised Code from amounts deducted from the wages and salaries of 1489
employees if the contribution from the amount deducted from the 1490
wages and salary of any one employee is twenty-five dollars or 1491
less aggregated in a calendar year. An account of the total 1492
contributions from each social or fund-raising activity shall 1493
include a description of and the value of each in-kind 1494
contribution received at that activity from any person who made 1495
one or more such contributions whose aggregate value exceeded two 1496
hundred fifty dollars and shall be listed separately, together 1497
with the expenses incurred and paid in connection with that 1498
activity. A campaign committee, political action committee, 1499
legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or political~~ 1500
~~contributing entity~~ shall keep records of contributions from each 1501
person in the amount of twenty-five dollars or less at one social 1502
or fund-raising activity and contributions from amounts deducted 1503
under section 3599.031 of the Revised Code from the wages and 1504
salary of each employee in the amount of twenty-five dollars or 1505
less aggregated in a calendar year. No continuing association that 1506
is recognized by a state or local committee of a political party 1507
as an auxiliary of the party and that makes a contribution from 1508
funds derived solely from regular dues paid by members of the 1509
auxiliary shall be required to list the name or address of any 1510
members who paid those dues. 1511

       Contributions that are other income shall be itemized 1512
separately from all other contributions. The information required 1513
under division (B)(4) of this section shall be provided for all 1514
other income itemized. As used in this paragraph, "other income" 1515
means a loan, investment income, or interest income. 1516

       (f) In the case of a campaign committee of a state elected 1517
officer, if a person doing business with the state elected officer 1518
in the officer's official capacity makes a contribution to the 1519
campaign committee of that officer, the information required under 1520
division (B)(4) of this section in regard to that contribution, 1521
which shall be filed together with and considered a part of the 1522
committee's statement of contributions as required under division 1523
(A) of this section but shall be filed on a separate form provided 1524
by the secretary of state. As used in this division ~~(B)(4)(f) of~~ 1525
~~this section~~: 1526

       (g) In the case of a contributor who is an individual, the 1527
age of the contributor. 1528

       (i) "State elected officer" has the same meaning as in 1529
section 3517.092 of the Revised Code. 1530

       (ii) "Person doing business" means a person or an officer of 1531
an entity who enters into one or more contracts with a state 1532
elected officer or anyone authorized to enter into contracts on 1533
behalf of that officer to receive payments for goods or services, 1534
if the payments total, in the aggregate, more than five thousand 1535
dollars during a calendar year. 1536

       (5) A statement of expenditures which shall include the 1537
following information: 1538

       (a) The month, day, and year of the expenditure; 1539

       (b) The full name and address of each person, political 1540
party, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, or political 1541
action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ to whom the 1542
expenditure was made and the registration number assigned to the 1543
political action committee under division (D)(1) of this section; 1544

       (c) The object or purpose for which the expenditure was made; 1545

       (d) The amount of each expenditure. 1546

       (C)(1) The statement of contributions and expenditures shall 1547
be signed by the person completing the form. If a statement of 1548
contributions and expenditures is filed by electronic means of 1549
transmission pursuant to this section or section 3517.106 of the 1550
Revised Code, the electronic signature of the person who executes 1551
the statement and transmits the statement by electronic means of 1552
transmission, as provided in division (H) of section 3517.106 of 1553
the Revised Code, shall be attached to or associated with the 1554
statement and shall be binding on all persons and for all purposes 1555
under the campaign finance reporting law as if the signature had 1556
been handwritten in ink on a printed form. 1557

       (2) The person filing the statement, under penalty of 1558
election falsification, shall include with it a list of each 1559
anonymous contribution, the circumstances under which it was 1560
received, and the reason it cannot be attributed to a specific 1561
donor. 1562

       (3) Each statement of a campaign committee of a candidate who 1563
holds public office shall contain a designation of each 1564
contributor who is an employee in any unit or department under the 1565
candidate's direct supervision and control. In a space provided in 1566
the statement, the person filing the statement shall affirm that 1567
each such contribution was voluntarily made. 1568

       (4) A campaign committee that did not receive contributions 1569
or make expenditures in connection with the nomination or election 1570
of its candidate shall file a statement to that effect, on a form 1571
prescribed under this section and made under penalty of election 1572
falsification, on the date required in division (A)(2) of this 1573
section. 1574

       (5) The campaign committee of any person who attempts to 1575
become a candidate and who, for any reason, does not become 1576
certified in accordance with Title XXXV of the Revised Code for 1577
placement on the official ballot of a primary, general, or special 1578
election to be held in this state, and who, at any time prior to 1579
or after an election, receives contributions or makes 1580
expenditures, or has given consent for another to receive 1581
contributions or make expenditures, for the purpose of bringing 1582
about the person's nomination or election to public office, shall 1583
file the statement or statements prescribed by this section and a 1584
termination statement, if applicable. ~~This paragraph~~Division 1585
(C)(5) of this section does not apply to any person with respect 1586
to an election to the offices of member of a county or state 1587
central committee, presidential elector, or delegate to a national 1588
convention or conference of a political party. 1589

       (6)(a) The statements required to be filed under this section 1590
shall specify the balance in the hands of the campaign committee, 1591
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, or 1592
political party~~, or political contributing entity~~ and the 1593
disposition intended to be made of that balance. 1594

       (b) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form for all 1595
statements required to be filed under this section and shall 1596
furnish the forms to the boards of elections in the several 1597
counties. The boards of elections shall supply printed copies of 1598
those forms without charge. The secretary of state shall prescribe 1599
the appropriate methodology, protocol, and data file structure for 1600
statements required or permitted to be filed by electronic means 1601
of transmission under division (A) of this section ~~and~~, divisions 1602
(E), (F), and (G) of section 3517.106, division (D) of section 1603
3517.1011, division (B) of section 3517.1012, and division (C) of 1604
section 3517.1013 of the Revised Code ~~and for statements permitted~~ 1605
~~to be filed on computer disk under division (F) of section~~ 1606
~~3517.106 of the Revised Code~~. Subject to division (A) of this 1607
section ~~and~~, divisions (E), (F), and (G) of section 3517.106, 1608
division (D) of section 3517.1011, division (B) of section 1609
3517.1012, and division (C) of section 3517.1013 of the Revised 1610
Code, the statements required to be stored on computer by the 1611
secretary of state under division (B) of section 3517.106 of the 1612
Revised Code shall be filed in whatever format the secretary of 1613
state considers necessary to enable the secretary of state to 1614
store the information contained in the statements on computer. Any 1615
such format shall be of a type and nature that is readily 1616
available to whoever is required to file the statements in that 1617
format. 1618

       (c) The secretary of state shall assess the need for training 1619
regarding the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic 1620
means of transmission and regarding associated technologies for 1621
candidates, campaign committees, political action committees, 1622
legislative campaign funds, or political parties, ~~political~~ 1623
~~contributing entities, or~~for individuals, partnerships, or other 1624
entities, or for persons making disbursements to pay the direct 1625
costs of producing or airing electioneering communications, 1626
required or permitted to file statements by electronic means of 1627
transmission under this section or section 3517.105 or, 3517.106, 1628
3517.1011, 3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised Code. If, in the 1629
opinion of the secretary of state, training in these areas is 1630
necessary, the secretary of state shall arrange for the provision 1631
of voluntary training programs for candidates, campaign 1632
committees, political action committees, legislative campaign 1633
funds, or political parties, ~~political contributing entities, and~~ 1634
for individuals, partnerships, and other entities, or for persons 1635
making disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing or 1636
airing electioneering communications, as appropriate. 1637

       (7) Each monthly statement and each two-business-day 1638
statement required by division (A) of this section shall contain 1639
the information required by divisions (B)(1) to (4), (C)(2), and, 1640
if appropriate, (C)(3) of this section. Each statement shall be 1641
signed as required by division (C)(1) of this section. 1642

       (D)(1) Prior to receiving a contribution or making an 1643
expenditure, every campaign committee, political action committee, 1644
legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or political~~ 1645
~~contributing entity~~ shall appoint a treasurer and shall file, on a 1646
form prescribed by the secretary of state, a designation of that 1647
appointment, including the full name and address of the treasurer 1648
and of the campaign committee, political action committee, 1649
legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or political~~ 1650
~~contributing entity~~. That designation shall be filed with the 1651
official with whom the campaign committee, political action 1652
committee, legislative campaign fund, or political party~~, or~~ 1653
~~political contributing entity~~ is required to file statements under 1654
section 3517.11 of the Revised Code. The name of a campaign 1655
committee shall include at least the last name of the campaign 1656
committee's candidate. The secretary of state shall assign a 1657
registration number to each political action committee that files 1658
a designation of the appointment of a treasurer under this 1659
division ~~(D)(1) of this section~~ if the political action committee 1660
is required by division (A)(1) of section 3517.11 of the Revised 1661
Code to file the statements prescribed by this section with the 1662
secretary of state. 1663

       (2) The treasurer appointed under division (D)(1) of this 1664
section shall keep a strict account of all contributions, from 1665
whom received and the purpose for which they were disbursed. 1666

       (3)(a) Except as otherwise provided in section 3517.108 of 1667
the Revised Code, a campaign committee shall deposit all monetary 1668
contributions received by the committee into an account separate 1669
from a personal or business account of the candidate or campaign 1670
committee. 1671

       (b) A political action committee shall deposit all monetary 1672
contributions received by the committee into an account separate 1673
from all other funds. 1674

       (c) A state or county political party may establish a state 1675
candidate fund that is separate from an account that contains the 1676
public moneys received from the Ohio political party fund under 1677
section 3517.17 of the Revised Code and from all other funds. A 1678
state or county political party may deposit into its state 1679
candidate fund any amounts of monetary contributions that are made 1680
to or accepted by the political party subject to the applicable 1681
limitations, if any, prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised 1682
Code. A state or county political party shall deposit all other 1683
monetary contributions received by the party into one or more 1684
accounts that are separate from its state candidate fund and from 1685
its account that contains the public moneys received from the Ohio 1686
political party fund under section 3517.17 of the Revised Code. 1687

       (d) Each state political party shall have only one 1688
legislative campaign fund for each house of the general assembly. 1689
Each such fund shall be separate from any other funds or accounts 1690
of that state party. A legislative campaign fund is authorized to 1691
receive contributions and make expenditures for the primary 1692
purpose of furthering the election of candidates who are members 1693
of that political party to the house of the general assembly with 1694
which that legislative campaign fund is associated. Each 1695
legislative campaign fund shall be administered and controlled in 1696
a manner designated by the caucus. As used in this division 1697
~~(D)(3)(d) of this section~~, "caucus" has the same meaning as in 1698
section 3517.01 of the Revised Code and includes, as an ex officio 1699
member, the chairperson of the state political party with which 1700
the caucus is associated or that chairperson's designee. 1701

       (4) Every expenditure in excess of twenty-five dollars shall 1702
be vouched for by a receipted bill, stating the purpose of the 1703
~~expenditures~~expenditure, that shall be filed with the statement 1704
of expenditures. A canceled check with a notation of the purpose 1705
of the expenditure is a receipted bill for purposes of division 1706
(D)(4) of this section. 1707

       (5) The secretary of state or the board of elections, as the 1708
case may be, shall issue a receipt for each statement filed under 1709
this section and shall preserve a copy of the receipt for a period 1710
of at least six years. All statements filed under this section 1711
shall be open to public inspection in the office where they are 1712
filed and shall be carefully preserved for a period of at least 1713
six years after the year in which they are filed. 1714

       (6) The secretary of state, by rule adopted pursuant to 1715
section 3517.23 of the Revised Code, shall prescribe ~~the~~both of 1716
the following: 1717

       (a) The manner of immediately acknowledging, with date and 1718
time received, and preserving the receipt of statements that are 1719
transmitted by electronic means of transmission to the secretary 1720
of state pursuant to this section or section 3517.106, 3517.1011, 1721
3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised Code ~~and the~~; 1722

       (b) The manner of preserving the contribution and 1723
expenditure, contribution and disbursement, deposit and 1724
disbursement, or gift and disbursement information in ~~those~~the 1725
statements described in division (D)(6)(a) of this section. The 1726
secretary of state shall preserve the contribution and 1727
expenditure, contribution and disbursement, deposit and 1728
disbursement, or gift and disbursement information in those 1729
statements for at least ten years after the year in which they are 1730
filed by electronic means of transmission. 1731

       (7) The secretary of state, pursuant to division (I) of 1732
section 3517.106 of the Revised Code, shall make available online 1733
to the public through the internet the contribution and 1734
expenditure, contribution and disbursement, deposit and 1735
disbursement, or gift and disbursement information in all 1736
statements, all addenda, amendments, or other corrections to 1737
statements, and all amended statements filed with the secretary of 1738
state by electronic or other means of transmission under this 1739
section, division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section 3517.105, or 1740
section 3517.106, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, 3517.1013, or 3517.11 of 1741
the Revised Code. The secretary of state may remove the 1742
information from the internet after a reasonable period of time. 1743

       (E)(1) Any person, political party, campaign committee, 1744
legislative campaign fund, or political action committee~~, or~~ 1745
~~political contributing entity~~ that makes a contribution in 1746
connection with the nomination or election of any candidate or in 1747
connection with any ballot issue or question at any election held 1748
or to be held in this state shall provide its full name and 1749
address to the recipient of the contribution, and to the political 1750
fundraiser through which the contribution was raised, if any, at 1751
the time the contribution is made. The political action committee 1752
also shall provide the registration number assigned to the 1753
committee under division (D)(1) of this section to the recipient 1754
of the contribution at the time the contribution is made. 1755

       (2) Any individual who makes a contribution that exceeds one 1756
hundred dollars to a political action committee, legislative 1757
campaign fund, or political party or to a campaign committee of a 1758
statewide candidate or candidate for the office of member of the 1759
general assembly shall provide the name of the individual's 1760
current employer, if any, or, if the individual is self-employed, 1761
the individual's occupation and the name of the individual's 1762
business, if any, to the recipient of the contribution at the time 1763
the contribution is made. Sections 3599.39 and 3599.40 of the 1764
Revised Code do not apply to division (E)(2) of this section. 1765

       (3) If a campaign committee shows that it has exercised its 1766
best efforts to obtain, maintain, and submit the information 1767
required under divisions (B)(4)(b)(ii) and (iii) of this section, 1768
that committee is considered to have met the requirements of those 1769
divisions. A campaign committee shall not be considered to have 1770
exercised its best efforts unless, in connection with written 1771
solicitations, it regularly includes a written request for the 1772
information required under division (B)(4)(b)(ii) of this section 1773
from the contributor or the information required under division 1774
(B)(4)(b)(iii) of this section from whoever transmits the 1775
contribution. 1776

       (4) Any check that a political action committee uses to make 1777
a contribution or an expenditure shall contain the full name and 1778
address of the committee and the registration number assigned to 1779
the committee under division (D)(1) of this section. 1780

       (F) As used in this section: 1781

       (1) ~~"Address"~~(a) Except as otherwise provided in division 1782
(F)(1) of this section, "address" means all of the following if 1783
they exist: apartment number, street, road, or highway name and 1784
number, rural delivery route number, city or village, state, and 1785
zip code as used in a person's post-office address, but not 1786
post-office box. 1787

       If(b) Except as otherwise provided in division (F)(1) of 1788
this section, if an address is required in this section, a 1789
post-office box and office, room, or suite number may be included 1790
in addition to, but not in lieu of, an apartment, street, road, or 1791
highway name and number. 1792

       If(c) If an address is required in this section, a campaign 1793
committee, political action committee, legislative campaign fund, 1794
or political party~~, or political contributing entity~~ may use the 1795
business or residence address of its treasurer or deputy 1796
treasurer. The post-office box number of the campaign committee, 1797
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, or 1798
political party~~, or political contributing entity~~ may be used in 1799
addition to that address. 1800

       (d) For the sole purpose of a campaign committee's reporting 1801
of contributions on a statement of contributions received under 1802
division (B)(4) of this section, "address" has one of the 1803
following meanings at the option of the campaign committee: 1804

       (i) The same meaning as in division (F)(1)(a) of this 1805
section; 1806

       (ii) All of the following, if they exist: the contributor's 1807
post-office box number and city or village, state, and zip code as 1808
used in the contributor's post-office address. 1809

       (e) As used with regard to the reporting under this section 1810
of any expenditure, "address" means all of the following if they 1811
exist: apartment number, street, road, or highway name and number, 1812
rural delivery route number, city or village, state, and zip code 1813
as used in a person's post-office address, or post-office box. If 1814
an address concerning any expenditure is required in this section, 1815
a campaign committee, political action committee, legislative 1816
campaign fund, or political party may use the business or 1817
residence address of its treasurer or deputy treasurer or its 1818
post-office box number. 1819

       (2) "Statewide candidate" means the joint candidates for the 1820
offices of governor and lieutenant governor or a candidate for the 1821
office of secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of 1822
state, attorney general, member of the state board of education, 1823
chief justice of the supreme court, or justice of the supreme 1824
court. 1825

       (G) An independent expenditure shall be reported whenever and 1826
in the same manner that an expenditure is required to be reported 1827
under this section and shall be reported pursuant to division 1828
(B)(2)(a) or (C)(2)(a) of section 3517.105 of the Revised Code. 1829

       (H)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (H)(2) of 1830
this section, if, during the combined ~~preelection~~pre-election and 1831
postelection reporting periods for an election, a campaign 1832
committee has received contributions of five hundred dollars or 1833
less and has made expenditures in the total amount of five hundred 1834
dollars or less, it may file a statement to that effect, under 1835
penalty of election falsification, in lieu of the statement 1836
required by division (A)(2) of this section. The statement shall 1837
indicate the total amount of contributions received and the total 1838
amount of expenditures made during those combined reporting 1839
periods. 1840

       (2) In the case of a successful candidate at a primary 1841
election, if either the total contributions received by or the 1842
total expenditures made by the candidate's campaign committee 1843
during the preprimary, postprimary, pregeneral, and postgeneral 1844
election periods combined equal more than five hundred dollars, 1845
the campaign committee may file the statement under division 1846
(H)(1) of this section only for the primary election. The first 1847
statement that the campaign committee files in regard to the 1848
general election shall reflect all contributions received and all 1849
expenditures made during the preprimary and postprimary election 1850
periods. 1851

       (3) Divisions (H)(1) and (2) of this section do not apply if 1852
a campaign committee receives contributions or makes expenditures 1853
prior to the first day of January of the year of the election at 1854
which the candidate seeks nomination or election to office or if 1855
the campaign committee does not file a termination statement with 1856
its postprimary election statement in the case of an unsuccessful 1857
primary election candidate or with its postgeneral election 1858
statement in the case of other candidates. 1859

       (I) In the case of a contribution made by a partner of a 1860
partnership or an owner or a member of another unincorporated 1861
business from any funds of the partnership or other unincorporated 1862
business, all of the following apply: 1863

       (1) The recipient of the contribution shall report the 1864
contribution by listing both the partnership or other 1865
unincorporated business and the name of the partner or, owner, or 1866
member making the contribution. 1867

       (2) For purposes of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, the 1868
contribution shall be considered to have been made by the partner 1869
or, owner, or member reported under division (I)(1) of this 1870
section. 1871

       (3) No contribution from a partner of a partnership or an 1872
owner or a member of another unincorporated business shall be 1873
accepted from any funds of the partnership or other unincorporated 1874
business unless the recipient reports the contribution under 1875
division (I)(1) of this section. 1876

       (4) No partnership or other unincorporated business shall 1877
make a contribution or contributions solely in the name of the 1878
partnership or other unincorporated business. 1879

       (5) As used in division (I) of this section, "partnership or 1880
other unincorporated business" includes, but is not limited to, a 1881
cooperative, a sole proprietorship, a general partnership, a 1882
limited partnership, a limited partnership association, a limited 1883
liability partnership, and a limited liability company. 1884

       (J) A candidate shall have only one campaign committee at any 1885
given time for all of the offices for which the person is a 1886
candidate or holds office. 1887

       (K)(1) In addition to filing a designation of appointment of 1888
a treasurer under division (D)(1) of this section, the campaign 1889
committee of any candidate for an elected municipal office that 1890
pays an annual amount of compensation of five thousand dollars or 1891
less, the campaign committee of any candidate for member of a 1892
board of education except member of the state board of education, 1893
or the campaign committee of any candidate for township trustee or 1894
township clerk may sign, under penalty of election falsification, 1895
a certificate attesting that the committee will not accept 1896
contributions during an election period that exceed in the 1897
aggregate two thousand dollars from all contributors and one 1898
hundred dollars from any one individual, and that the campaign 1899
committee will not make expenditures during an election period 1900
that exceed in the aggregate two thousand dollars. 1901

       The certificate shall be on a form prescribed by the 1902
secretary of state and shall be filed not later than ten days 1903
after the candidate files a declaration of candidacy and petition, 1904
a nominating petition, or a declaration of intent to be a write-in 1905
candidate. 1906

       (2) Except as otherwise provided in division (K)(3) of this 1907
section, a campaign committee that files a certificate under 1908
division (K)(1) of this section is not required to file the 1909
statements required by division (A) of this section. 1910

       (3) If, after filing a certificate under division (K)(1) of 1911
this section, a campaign committee exceeds any of the limitations 1912
described in that division during an election period, the 1913
certificate is void and thereafter the campaign committee shall 1914
file the statements required by division (A) of this section. If 1915
the campaign committee has not previously filed a statement, then 1916
on the first statement the campaign committee is required to file 1917
under division (A) of this section after the committee's 1918
certificate is void, the committee shall report all contributions 1919
received and expenditures made from the time the candidate filed 1920
the candidate's declaration of candidacy and petition, nominating 1921
petition, or declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate. 1922

       (4) As used in division (K) of this section, "election 1923
period" means the period of time beginning on the day a person 1924
files a declaration of candidacy and petition, nominating 1925
petition, or declaration of intent to be a write-in candidate 1926
through the day of the election at which the person seeks 1927
nomination to office if the person is not elected to office, or, 1928
if the candidate was nominated in a primary election, the day of 1929
the election at which the candidate seeks office. 1930

       ~~(L) Notwithstanding division (B)(4) of this section, a~~ 1931
~~political contributing entity that receives contributions from the~~ 1932
~~dues, membership fees, or other assessments of its members or from~~ 1933
~~its officers, shareholders, and employees may report the aggregate~~ 1934
~~amount of contributions received from those contributors and the~~ 1935
~~number of individuals making those contributions, for each filing~~ 1936
~~period identified under divisions (A)(1), (2), and (3) of this~~ 1937
~~section. Division (B)(4) of this section applies to a political~~ 1938
~~contributing entity with regard to contributions it receives from~~ 1939
~~all other contributors.~~ 1940

       Sec. 3517.102. (A) Except as otherwise provided in section 1941
3517.103 of the Revised Code, as used in this section and sections 1942
3517.103 and 3517.104 of the Revised Code: 1943

       (1) "Candidate" has the same meaning as in section 3517.01 of 1944
the Revised Code but includes only candidates for the offices of 1945
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of 1946
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state 1947
board of education, member of the general assembly, chief justice 1948
of the supreme court, and justice of the supreme court. 1949

       (2) "Statewide candidate" or "any one statewide candidate" 1950
means the joint candidates for the offices of governor and 1951
lieutenant governor or a candidate for the office of secretary of 1952
state, auditor of state, treasurer of state, attorney general, 1953
member of the state board of education, chief justice of the 1954
supreme court, or justice of the supreme court. 1955

       (3) "Senate candidate" means a candidate for the office of 1956
state senator. 1957

       (4) "House candidate" means a candidate for the office of 1958
state representative. 1959

       (5)(a) "Primary election period" for a candidate begins on 1960
the beginning date of the candidate's pre-filing period specified 1961
in division (A)(9) of section 3517.109 of the Revised Code and 1962
ends on the day of the primary election. 1963

       (b) In regard to any candidate, the "general election period" 1964
begins on the day after the primary election immediately preceding 1965
the general election at which the candidate seeks an office 1966
specified in division (A)(1) of this section and ends on the 1967
thirty-first day of December following that general election. 1968

       (6) "State candidate fund" means the state candidate fund 1969
established by a state or county political party under division 1970
(D)(3)(c) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 1971

       (7) "Postgeneral election statement" means the statement 1972
filed under division (A)(2) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code 1973
by the campaign committee of a candidate after the general 1974
election in which the candidate ran for office or filed by 1975
legislative campaign fund after the general election in an 1976
even-numbered year. 1977

       (8) "Contribution" means any contribution that is required to 1978
be reported in the statement of contributions under section 1979
3517.10 of the Revised Code. 1980

       (9)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (A)(9)(b) of 1981
this section and in division (F) of section 3517.103 and division 1982
(B)(3)(b) of section 3517.1010 of the Revised Code, "designated 1983
state campaign committee" means: 1984

       ~~(a)~~(i) In the case of contributions to or from a state 1985
political party, a campaign committee of a statewide candidate, 1986
statewide officeholder, senate candidate, house candidate, or 1987
member of the general assembly. 1988

       ~~(b)~~(ii) In the case of contributions to or from a county 1989
political party, a campaign committee of a ~~statewide candidate,~~ 1990
~~statewide officeholder,~~ senate candidate or house candidate whose 1991
candidacy is to be submitted to some or all of the electors in 1992
that county, or member of the general assembly whose district 1993
contains all or part of that county. 1994

       ~~(c)~~(iii) In the case of contributions to or from a 1995
legislative campaign fund, a campaign committee of any of the 1996
following: 1997

       ~~(i)~~(I) A senate or house candidate who, if elected, will be a 1998
member of the same party that established the legislative campaign 1999
fund and the same house with which the legislative campaign fund 2000
is associated; 2001

       ~~(ii)~~(II) A state senator or state representative who is a 2002
member of the same party that established the legislative campaign 2003
fund and the same house with which the legislative campaign fund 2004
is associated. 2005

       (b) A campaign committee is no longer a "designated state 2006
campaign committee" after the campaign committee's candidate 2007
changes the designation of treasurer required to be filed under 2008
division (D)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code to indicate 2009
that the person intends to be a candidate for, or becomes a 2010
candidate for nomination or election to, any office that, if 2011
elected, would not qualify that candidate's campaign committee as 2012
a "designated state campaign committee" under division (A)(9)(a) 2013
of this section. 2014

       (B)(1)(a) No individual who is seven years of age or older 2015
shall make a contribution or contributions aggregating more than: 2016

       ~~(a) Two~~(i) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2017
committee of any one statewide candidate in a primary election 2018
period or in a general election period; 2019

       ~~(b) Two~~(ii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the 2020
campaign committee of any one senate candidate in a primary 2021
election period or in a general election period; 2022

       ~~(c) Two~~(iii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the 2023
campaign committee of any one house candidate in a primary 2024
election period or in a general election period; 2025

       ~~(d) Five~~(iv) Ten thousand dollars to ~~any one~~a county 2026
political party of the county in which the individual's designated 2027
Ohio residence is located for the ~~1party's~~party's state candidate 2028
fund orin a calendar year; 2029

       (v) Fifteen thousand dollars to any one legislative campaign 2030
fund in a calendar year; 2031

       ~~(e) Fifteen~~(vi) Thirty thousand dollars to any one state 2032
political party for the party's state candidate fund in a calendar 2033
year; 2034

       ~~(f) Five~~(vii) Ten thousand dollars to any one political 2035
action committee in a calendar year; 2036

       ~~(g) Five thousand dollars to any one political contributing~~ 2037
~~entity in a calendar year~~. 2038

       (b) No individual shall make a contribution or contributions 2039
to the state candidate fund of a county political party of any 2040
county other than the county in which the individual's designated 2041
Ohio residence is located. 2042

       (c) No individual who is under seven years of age shall make 2043
any contribution. 2044

       (2)(a) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no 2045
political action committee shall make a contribution or 2046
contributions aggregating more than: 2047

       ~~(a) Two~~(i) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2048
committee of any one statewide candidate in a primary election 2049
period or in a general election period; 2050

       ~~(b) Two~~(ii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the 2051
campaign committee of any one senate candidate in a primary 2052
election period or in a general election period; 2053

       ~~(c) Two~~(iii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the 2054
campaign committee of any one house candidate in a primary 2055
election period or in a general election period; 2056

       ~~(d) Five~~(iv) Fifteen thousand dollars ~~to any one county~~ 2057
~~political party for the party's state candidate fund or~~ to any one 2058
legislative campaign fund in a calendar year; 2059

       ~~(e) Fifteen~~(v) Thirty thousand dollars to any one state 2060
political party for the party's state candidate fund in a calendar 2061
year; 2062

       ~~(f) Two~~(vi) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to another 2063
political action committee ~~or to a political contributing entity~~ 2064
in a calendar year. This division does not apply to a political 2065
action committee that makes a contribution to a political action 2066
committee ~~or to a political contributing entity~~ affiliated with 2067
it. For purposes of this division, a political action committee is 2068
affiliated with another political action committee ~~or with a~~ 2069
~~political contributing entity~~ if they are both established, 2070
financed, maintained, or controlled by, or if they are, the same 2071
corporation, organization, labor organization, continuing 2072
association, or other person, including any parent, subsidiary, 2073
division, or department of that corporation, organization, labor 2074
organization, continuing association, or other person. 2075

       (b) No political action committee shall make a contribution 2076
or contributions to a county political party for the party's state 2077
candidate fund. 2078

       (3) No campaign committee shall make a contribution or 2079
contributions aggregating more than: 2080

       (a) ~~Two~~Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2081
committee of any one statewide candidate in a primary election 2082
period or in a general election period; 2083

       (b) ~~Two~~Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2084
committee of any one senate candidate in a primary election period 2085
or in a general election period; 2086

       (c) ~~Two~~Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2087
committee of any one house candidate in a primary election period 2088
or in a general election period; 2089

       (d) ~~Two~~Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to any one 2090
political action committee in a calendar year; 2091

       ~~(e) Two thousand five hundred dollars to any one political~~ 2092
~~contributing entity in a calendar year~~. 2093

       (4)(a) Subject to division (D)(3) of this section, no 2094
political party shall make a contribution or contributions 2095
aggregating more than ~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to any 2096
one political action committee ~~or to any one political~~ 2097
~~contributing entity~~ in a calendar year. 2098

       (b) No county political party shall make a contribution or 2099
contributions to another county political party. 2100

       (5) No(a) Subject to division (B)(5)(b) of this section, no 2101
campaign committee, other than a designated state campaign 2102
committee, shall make a contribution or contributions aggregating 2103
in a calendar year more than: 2104

       ~~(a) Fifteen~~(i) Thirty thousand dollars to any one state 2105
political party for the party's state candidate fund; 2106

       ~~(b) Five~~(ii) Fifteen thousand dollars to any one legislative 2107
campaign fund; 2108

       ~~(c) Five~~(iii) Ten thousand dollars to any one county 2109
political party for the party's state candidate fund. 2110

       (b) No campaign committee shall make a contribution or 2111
contributions to a county political party for the party's state 2112
candidate fund unless one of the following applies: 2113

       (i) The campaign committee's candidate will appear on a 2114
ballot in that county. 2115

       (ii) The campaign committee's candidate is the holder of an 2116
elected public office that represents all or part of the 2117
population of that county at the time the contribution is made. 2118

       (6)(a) No state candidate fund of a county political party 2119
shall make a contribution or contributions, except a contribution 2120
or contributions to a designated state campaign committee, in a 2121
primary election period or a general election period, aggregating 2122
more than: 2123

       (i) ~~Two~~Two hundred fifty thousand dollars to the campaign 2124
committee of any one statewide candidate; 2125

       (ii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the campaign 2126
committee of any one senate candidate; 2127

       ~~(ii) Two~~(iii) Ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars to the 2128
campaign committee of any one house candidate. 2129

       (b)(i) No state candidate fund of a state or county political 2130
party shall make a transfer or a contribution or transfers or 2131
contributions of cash or cash equivalents to a designated state 2132
campaign committee in a primary election period or in a general 2133
election period aggregating more than: 2134

       (I) Five hundred thousand dollars to the campaign committee 2135
of any one statewide candidate; 2136

       (II) One hundred thousand dollars to the campaign committee 2137
of any one senate candidate; 2138

       (III) Fifty thousand dollars to the campaign committee of any 2139
one house candidate. 2140

       (ii) No legislative campaign fund shall make a transfer or a 2141
contribution or transfers or contributions of cash or cash 2142
equivalents to a designated state campaign committee aggregating 2143
more than: 2144

       (I) Fifty thousand dollars in a primary election period or 2145
one hundred thousand dollars in a general election period to the 2146
campaign committee orof any one senate candidate; 2147

       (II) Twenty-five thousand dollars in a primary election 2148
period or fifty thousand dollars in a general election period to 2149
the campaign committee of any one house candidate. 2150

       (iii) As used in divisions (B)(6)(b) and (C)(6)~~(a) and (b)~~ of 2151
this section, "transfer or contribution of cash or cash 2152
equivalents" does not include any in-kind contributions. 2153

       (c) A county political party that has no state candidate fund 2154
and that is located in a county having a population of less than 2155
one hundred fifty thousand may make one or more contributions from 2156
other accounts to any one statewide candidate or to any one 2157
designated state campaign committee that do not exceed, in the 2158
aggregate, two thousand five hundred dollars in any primary 2159
election period or general election period. As used in this 2160
division, "other accounts" does not include ~~either~~ an account that 2161
contains the public moneys received from the Ohio political party 2162
fund under section 3517.17 of the Revised Code ~~or the county~~ 2163
~~political party's operating account~~. 2164

       (d) No legislative campaign fund shall make a contribution, 2165
other than to a designated state campaign committee or to the 2166
state candidate fund of a political party. 2167

       ~~(7) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no political~~ 2168
~~contributing entity shall make a contribution or contributions~~ 2169
~~aggregating more than:~~ 2170

       ~~(a) Two thousand five hundred dollars to the campaign~~ 2171
~~committee of any one statewide candidate in a primary election~~ 2172
~~period or in a general election period;~~ 2173

       ~~(b) Two thousand five hundred dollars to the campaign~~ 2174
~~committee of any one senate candidate in a primary election period~~ 2175
~~or in a general election period;~~ 2176

       ~~(c) Two thousand five hundred dollars to the campaign~~ 2177
~~committee of any one house candidate in a primary election period~~ 2178
~~or in a general election period;~~ 2179

       ~~(d) Five thousand dollars to any one county political party~~ 2180
~~for the party's state candidate fund or to any one legislative~~ 2181
~~campaign fund in a calendar year;~~ 2182

       ~~(e) Fifteen thousand dollars to any one state political party~~ 2183
~~for the party's state candidate fund in a calendar year;~~ 2184

       ~~(f) Two thousand five hundred dollars to another political~~ 2185
~~contributing entity or to a political action committee in a~~ 2186
~~calendar year. This division does not apply to a political~~ 2187
~~contributing entity that makes a contribution to a political~~ 2188
~~contributing entity or to a political action committee affiliated~~ 2189
~~with it. For purposes of this division, a political contributing~~ 2190
~~entity is affiliated with another political contributing entity or~~ 2191
~~with a political action committee if they are both established,~~ 2192
~~financed, maintained, or controlled by, or if they are, the same~~ 2193
~~corporation, organization, labor organization, continuing~~ 2194
~~association, or other person, including any parent, subsidiary,~~ 2195
~~division, or department of that corporation, organization, labor~~ 2196
~~organization, continuing association, or other person.~~ 2197

       (C)(1)(a) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no 2198
campaign committee of a statewide candidate shall accept aany of 2199
the following: 2200

       (i) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2201
is under seven years of age; 2202

       (ii) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2203
~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars from any one individual who 2204
is seven years of age or older, from any one political action 2205
committee, ~~from any onepoliticalcontributing entity~~, or from 2206
any one other campaign committee in a primary election period or 2207
in a general election period; 2208

       (iii) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2209
two hundred fifty thousand dollars from any one or combination of 2210
state candidate funds of county political parties in a primary 2211
election period or in a general election period. 2212

       (b) No campaign committee of a statewide candidate shall 2213
accept a contribution or contributions aggregating more than two 2214
thousand five hundred dollars in a primary election period or in a 2215
general election period from a county political party that has no 2216
state candidate fund and that is located in a county having a 2217
population of less than one hundred fifty thousand. 2218

       (2)(a) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section and except 2219
for a designated state campaign committee, no campaign committee 2220
of a senate candidate shall accept aeither of the following: 2221

       (i) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2222
is under seven years of age; 2223

       (ii) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2224
~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars from any one individual who 2225
is seven years of age or older, from any one political action 2226
committee, ~~from any one political contributing entity,~~ from any 2227
one state candidate fund of a county political party, or from any 2228
one other campaign committee in a primary election period or in a 2229
general election period. 2230

       (b) No campaign committee of a senate candidate shall accept 2231
a contribution or contributions aggregating more than two thousand 2232
five hundred dollars in a primary election period or in a general 2233
election period from a county political party that has no state 2234
candidate fund and that is located in a county having a population 2235
of less than one hundred fifty thousand. 2236

       (3)(a) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section and except 2237
for a designated state campaign committee, no campaign committee 2238
of a house candidate shall accept aeither of the following: 2239

       (i) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2240
is under seven years of age; 2241

       (ii) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2242
~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars from any one individual who 2243
is seven years of age or older, from any one political action 2244
committee, ~~from any one political contributing entity,~~ from any 2245
one state candidate fund of a county political party, or from any 2246
one other campaign committee in a primary election period or in a 2247
general election period. 2248

       (b) No campaign committee of a house candidate shall accept a 2249
contribution or contributions aggregating more than two thousand 2250
five hundred dollars in a primary election period or in a general 2251
election period from a county political party that has no state 2252
candidate fund and that is located in a county having a population 2253
of less than one hundred fifty thousand. 2254

       (4)(a)(i) Subject to division ~~(D)(1)~~(C)(4)(a)(ii) of this 2255
section and except for a designated state campaign committee, no 2256
county political party shall accept a contribution or 2257
contributions from any individual who is under seven years of age, 2258
or a contribution or contributions for the party's state candidate 2259
fund aggregating more than ~~five~~ten thousand dollars from any one 2260
individual,whose designated Ohio residence is located within that 2261
county and who is seven years of age or older or from any one 2262
~~political action committee, from any one political contributing~~ 2263
~~entity, or from any one campaign committee, other than a~~ 2264
~~designated state~~ campaign committee, in a calendar year. 2265

       (ii) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no county 2266
political party shall accept a contribution or contributions for 2267
the party's state candidate fund from any individual whose 2268
designated Ohio residence is located outside of that county and 2269
who is seven years of age or older, from any campaign committee 2270
unless the campaign committee's candidate will appear on a ballot 2271
in that county or unless the campaign committee's candidate is the 2272
holder of an elected public office that represents all or part of 2273
the population of that county at the time the contribution is 2274
accepted, or from any political action committee. 2275

       (iii) No county political party shall accept a contribution 2276
or contributions from any other county political party. 2277

       (b) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no state 2278
political party shall accept aeither of the following: 2279

       (i) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2280
is under seven years of age; 2281

       (ii) A contribution or contributions for the party's state 2282
candidate fund aggregating more than ~~fifteen~~thirty thousand 2283
dollars from any one individual who is seven years of age or 2284
older, from any one political action committee, ~~from any one~~ 2285
~~political contributing entity,~~ or from any one campaign committee, 2286
other than a designated state campaign committee, in a calendar 2287
year. 2288

       (5) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no 2289
legislative campaign fund shall accept aeither of the following: 2290

       (a) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2291
is under seven years of age; 2292

       (b) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2293
~~five~~fifteen thousand dollars from any one individual who is seven 2294
years of age or older, from any one political action committee, 2295
~~from any one political contributing entity,~~ or from any one 2296
campaign committee, other than a designated state campaign 2297
committee, in a calendar year. 2298

       (6)(a) No designated state campaign committee shall accept a 2299
transfer or contribution of cash or cash equivalents from a state 2300
candidate fund of a state ~~or county~~ political party aggregating in 2301
a primary election period or a general election period more than: 2302

       (i) Five hundred thousand dollars, in the case of a campaign 2303
committee of a statewide candidate; 2304

       (ii) One hundred thousand dollars, in the case of a campaign 2305
committee of a senate candidate; 2306

       (iii) Fifty thousand dollars, in the case of a campaign 2307
committee of a house candidate. 2308

       (b) No designated state campaign committee shall accept a 2309
transfer or contribution of cash or cash equivalents from a 2310
legislative ~~candidate~~campaign fund aggregating more than: 2311

       (i) Fifty thousand dollars in a primary election period or 2312
one hundred thousand dollars in a general election period, in the 2313
case of a campaign committee of a senate candidate; 2314

       (ii) Twenty-five thousand dollars in a primary election 2315
period or fifty thousand dollars in a general election period, in 2316
the case of a campaign committee of a house candidate. 2317

       (c) No campaign committee of a candidate for the office of 2318
member of the general assembly, including a designated state 2319
campaign committee, shall accept a transfer or contribution of 2320
cash or cash equivalents from any one or combination of state 2321
candidate funds of county political parties aggregating in a 2322
primary election period or a general election period more than: 2323

       (i) One hundred thousand dollars, in the case of a campaign 2324
committee of a senate candidate; 2325

       (ii) Fifty thousand dollars, in the case of a campaign 2326
committee of a house candidate. 2327

       (7)(a) Subject to division (D)(3) of this section, no 2328
political action committee ~~and no political contributing entity~~ 2329
shall accept aeither of the following: 2330

       (i) A contribution or contributions from any individual who 2331
is under seven years of age; 2332

       (ii) A contribution or contributions aggregating more than 2333
~~five~~ten thousand dollars from any one individual who is seven 2334
years of age or older, ~~or more than two thousand five hundred~~ 2335
~~dollars~~ from any one campaign committee, or from any one political 2336
party in a calendar year. 2337

       (b) Subject to division (D)(1) of this section, no political 2338
action committee shall accept a contribution or contributions 2339
aggregating more than ~~two~~ten thousand ~~five hundred~~ dollars from 2340
another political action committee ~~or from a political~~ 2341
~~contributing entity~~ in a calendar year. ~~Subject to division (D)(1)~~ 2342
~~of this section, no political contributing entity shall accept a~~ 2343
~~contribution or contributions aggregating more than two thousand~~ 2344
~~five hundred dollars from another political contributing entity or~~ 2345
~~from a political action committee in a calendar year.~~ This 2346
division does not apply to a political action committee or 2347
~~political contributing entity~~ that accepts a contribution from a 2348
political action committee ~~or political contributing entity~~ 2349
affiliated with it. For purposes of this division, a political 2350
action committee is affiliated with another political action 2351
committee ~~or political contributing entity~~ if they are 2352
established, financed, maintained, or controlled by the same 2353
corporation, organization, labor organization, continuing 2354
association, or other person, including any parent, subsidiary, 2355
division, or department of that corporation, organization, labor 2356
organization, continuing association, or other person. 2357

       (D)(1)~~(a)~~ For purposes of the limitations prescribed in 2358
division (B)(2) of this section and the limitations prescribed in 2359
divisions (C)(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), and (7)(b) of this section, 2360
whichever is applicable, all contributions made by and all 2361
contributions accepted from political action committees that are 2362
established, financed, maintained, or controlled by the same 2363
corporation, organization, labor organization, continuing 2364
association, or other person, including any parent, subsidiary, 2365
division, or department of that corporation, organization, labor 2366
organization, continuing association, or other person, are 2367
considered to have been made by or accepted from a single 2368
political action committee. 2369

       ~~(b) For purposes of the limitations prescribed in division~~ 2370
~~(B)(7) of this section and the limitations prescribed in divisions~~ 2371
~~(C)(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), and (7)(b) of this section, whichever~~ 2372
~~is applicable, all contributions made by and all contributions~~ 2373
~~accepted from political contributing entities that are~~ 2374
~~established, financed, maintained, or controlled by, or that are,~~ 2375
~~the same corporation, organization, labor organization, continuing~~ 2376
~~association, or other person, including any parent, subsidiary,~~ 2377
~~division, or department of that corporation, organization, labor~~ 2378
~~organization, continuing association, or other person, are~~ 2379
~~considered to have been made by or accepted from a single~~ 2380
~~political contributing entity.~~ 2381

       (2) As used in divisions (B)(1)~~(f)~~(a)(vii), (B)(3)(d), 2382
(B)(4), and (C)(7) of this section, "political action committee" 2383
does not include a political action committee that is organized to 2384
support or oppose a ballot issue or question and that makes no 2385
contributions to or expenditures on behalf of a political party, 2386
campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, or political action 2387
committee~~, or political contributing entity. As used in divisions~~ 2388
~~(B)(1)(g), (B)(3)(e), (B)(4), and (C)(7) of this section,~~ 2389
~~"political contributing entity" does not include a political~~ 2390
~~contributing entity that is organized to support or oppose a~~ 2391
~~ballot issue or question and that makes no contributions to or~~ 2392
~~expenditures on behalf of a political party, campaign committee,~~ 2393
~~legislative campaign fund, political action committee, or~~ 2394
~~political contributing entity~~. 2395

       (3) For purposes of the limitations prescribed in divisions 2396
(B)(4) and (C)(7)(a) of this section, all contributions made by 2397
and all contributions accepted from a national political party, a 2398
state political party, and a county political party are considered 2399
to have been made by or accepted from a single political party and 2400
shall be combined with each other to determine whether the 2401
limitations have been exceeded. 2402

       (E)(1) If a legislative campaign fund has kept a total amount 2403
of contributions exceeding one hundred fifty thousand dollars at 2404
the close of business on the seventh day before the postgeneral 2405
election statement is required to be filed under section 3517.10 2406
of the Revised Code, the legislative campaign fund shall comply 2407
with division (E)(2) of this section. 2408

       (2)(a) Any legislative campaign fund that has kept a total 2409
amount of contributions in excess of the amount specified in 2410
division (E)(1) of this section at the close of business on the 2411
seventh day before the postgeneral election statement is required 2412
to be filed under section 3517.10 of the Revised Code shall 2413
dispose of the excess amount in the manner prescribed in division 2414
(E)(2)~~(c)~~(b)(i), (ii), or (iii) of this section not later than 2415
ninety days after the day the postgeneral election statement is 2416
required to be filed under section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 2417
Any legislative campaign fund that is required to dispose of an 2418
excess amount of contributions under this division shall file a 2419
statement on the ninetieth day after the postgeneral election 2420
statement is required to be filed under section 3517.10 of the 2421
Revised Code indicating the total amount of contributions the fund 2422
has at the close of business on the seventh day before the 2423
postgeneral election statement is required to be filed under 2424
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code and that the excess 2425
contributions were disposed of pursuant to this division and 2426
~~divisions~~division (E)(2)(b) ~~and (c)~~ of this section. The 2427
statement shall be on a form prescribed by the secretary of state 2428
and shall contain any additional information the secretary of 2429
state considers necessary. 2430

       (b) ~~There is hereby created in the state treasury the Ohio~~ 2431
~~elections commission fund. All moneys credited to the fund shall~~ 2432
~~be used solely for the purpose of paying expenses related to the~~ 2433
~~operation of the Ohio elections commission.~~ 2434

       ~~(c)~~ Any legislative campaign fund that is required to dispose 2435
of an excess amount of contributions under division (E)(2) of this 2436
section shall dispose of that excess amount by doing any of the 2437
following: 2438

       (i) Giving the amount to the treasurer of state for deposit 2439
into the state treasury to the credit of the Ohio elections 2440
commission fund created by division (I) of section 3517.152 of the 2441
Revised Code; 2442

       (ii) Giving the amount to individuals who made contributions 2443
to that legislative campaign fund as a refund of all or part of 2444
their contributions; 2445

       (iii) Giving the amount to a corporation that is exempt from 2446
federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in 2447
subsection 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code. 2448

       (F)(1) No legislative campaign fund shall fail to file a 2449
statement required by division (E) of this section. 2450

       (2) No legislative campaign fund shall fail to dispose of 2451
excess contributions as required by division (E) of this section. 2452

       (G) Nothing in this section shall affect, be used in 2453
determining, or supersede a limitation on campaign contributions 2454
as provided for in the Federal Election Campaign Act. 2455

       Sec. 3517.103. (A)(1) For purposes of this section: 2456

       ~~(1)~~(a) "Statewide candidate" means the joint candidates for 2457
the offices of governor and lieutenant governor or a candidate for 2458
the office of secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of 2459
state, attorney general, or member of the state board of 2460
education. 2461

       ~~(2)~~(b)(i) "Personal funds" means contributions to the 2462
campaign committee of a candidate by the candidate or by the 2463
candidate's spouse, parents, children, sons-in-law, 2464
daughters-in-law, brothers, sisters, grandparents, mother-in-law, 2465
father-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, or grandparents by 2466
marriage. 2467

       ~~(3)~~(ii) A loan obtained by, guaranteed by, or for the benefit 2468
of a statewide candidate, senate candidate, or house candidate 2469
shall be considered "personal funds" subject to the provisions of 2470
this section and section 3517.1010 of the Revised Code to the 2471
extent that the loan is obtained or guaranteed by the candidate or 2472
is for the benefit of the candidate and is obtained or guaranteed 2473
by the candidate's spouse, parents, children, sons-in-law, 2474
daughters-in-law, brothers, sisters, grandparents, mother-in-law, 2475
father-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, or grandparents by 2476
marriage. A loan that is obtained or guaranteed and that is for 2477
the benefit of a statewide candidate, senate candidate, or house 2478
candidate shall not be considered "personal funds" for the 2479
purposes of this section and section 3517.1010 of the Revised Code 2480
but shall be considered to be a "contribution" for the purposes of 2481
this chapter if the loan is obtained or guaranteed by anyone other 2482
than the candidate or the candidate's spouse, parents, children, 2483
sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, brothers, sisters, grandparents, 2484
mother-in-law, father-in-law, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, or 2485
grandparents by marriage. 2486

       (iii) When a debt or other obligation incurred by a committee 2487
or by a candidate on behalf of the candidate's committee described 2488
in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section is to be paid from 2489
"personal funds," those funds are considered to be expended when 2490
the debt or other obligation is incurred, regardless of when it is 2491
paid. 2492

       ~~(4)~~(2) For purposes of ~~Chapter 3517. of the Revised Code~~this 2493
chapter, a candidate is an "opponent" when the candidate has 2494
indicated on the candidate's most recently filed designation of 2495
treasurer that the candidate seeks the same office at the same 2496
primary or general election as another candidate whose campaign 2497
committee has filed a personal funds notice required by division 2498
(C)(1) or (2) of this section. 2499

       (B)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(2) of 2500
this section, no statewide candidate or candidate for the office 2501
of member of the general assembly shall make an expenditure of 2502
personal funds to influence the results of an election for that 2503
candidate's nomination or election to office unless the personal 2504
funds are first deposited into the campaign fund of that 2505
candidate's campaign committee. 2506

       (2) A statewide candidate or candidate for the office of 2507
member of the general assembly may make an expenditure of personal 2508
funds without first depositing those funds into the campaign 2509
committee's funds as long as the aggregate total of those 2510
expenditures does not exceed five hundred dollars at any time 2511
during an election period. After the candidate's campaign 2512
committee reimburses the candidate for any direct expenditure of 2513
personal funds, the amount that was reimbursed is no longer 2514
included in the aggregate total of expenditures of personal funds 2515
subject to the five-hundred-dollar limit. 2516

       (C)(1) If the campaign committee of any statewide candidate 2517
has received or expended or expects to expend more than one 2518
hundred thousand dollars of personal funds during a primary 2519
election period or one hundred fifty thousand dollars of personal 2520
funds during a general election period, the campaign committee 2521
shall file a personal funds notice in the manner provided in 2522
division (C)(3) of this section indicating that the committee has 2523
received or expended or expects to expend more than that amount. 2524
For the purpose of this division, a joint team of candidates for 2525
governor and lieutenant governor shall be considered a single 2526
candidate and their personal funds shall be combined. 2527

       (2) If the campaign committee of any senate candidate or 2528
house candidate has received or expended or expects to expend more 2529
than twenty-five thousand dollars of personal funds during a 2530
primary election period or twenty-five thousand dollars of 2531
personal funds during a general election period, the campaign 2532
committee shall file a personal funds notice in the manner 2533
provided in division (C)(3) of this section indicating that the 2534
committee has received or expended or expects to expend more than 2535
that amount. 2536

       (3) The personal funds notice required in divisions (C)(1) 2537
and (2) of this section and the declaration of no limits required 2538
under division (D)(2) of this section shall be on a form 2539
prescribed by the secretary of state. The personal funds notice 2540
required in divisions (C)(1) and (2) of this section shall be 2541
filed not later than the earlier of the following times: 2542

       (a) One hundred twenty days before a primary election, in the 2543
case of personal funds received, expended, or expected to be 2544
expended during a primary election period, or not later than one 2545
hundred twenty days before a general election, in the case of 2546
personal funds received, expended, or expected to be expended 2547
during a general election period; 2548

       (b) Two business days after the candidate's campaign 2549
committee receives or makes an expenditure of personal funds or 2550
the candidate makes an expenditure of personal funds on behalf of 2551
the candidate's campaign committee during that election period 2552
that exceed, in the aggregate, the amount specified in division 2553
(C)(1) or (2) of this section. 2554

       The personal funds notice required under divisions (C)(1) and 2555
(2) of this section and the declaration of no limits required 2556
under division (D)(2) of this section shall be filed wherever the 2557
campaign committee files statements of contributions and 2558
expenditures under section 3517.11 of the Revised Code. The board 2559
of elections shall send to the secretary of state a copy of any 2560
personal funds notice or declaration of no limits filed by the 2561
campaign committee of a senate candidate or house candidate under 2562
division (C)(3) or (D)(2) of this section. 2563

       (D)(1) Whenever a campaign committee files a notice under 2564
division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, and the campaign committee 2565
of an opponent files a declaration of no limits pursuant to 2566
division (D)(2) of this section within thirty days of the filing 2567
of the personal funds notice under division (C)(1) or (2) of this 2568
section, the contribution limitations prescribed in section 2569
3517.102 of the Revised Code no longer apply to the campaign 2570
committee of the candidate's opponent. 2571

       (2) No campaign committee of a candidate described in 2572
division (D)(1) of this section shall accept any contribution or 2573
contributions from a contributor that exceed the limitations 2574
prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code until the 2575
committee files a declaration that the committee will accept 2576
contributions that exceed those limitations. This declaration 2577
shall be filed not later than thirty days after a candidate's 2578
opponent has filed a personal funds notice pursuant to division 2579
(C)(1) or (2) of section 3517.103 of the Revised Code, shall be 2580
referred to as the "declaration of no limits," and shall list all 2581
of the following: 2582

       (a) The amount of cash on hand in the candidate's campaign 2583
fund at the end of the day immediately preceding the day on which 2584
the candidate's campaign committee files the declaration of no 2585
limits; 2586

       (b) The value and description of all campaign assets worth 2587
five hundred dollars or more available to the candidate at the end 2588
of the day immediately preceding the day on which the candidate's 2589
campaign committee files the declaration of no limits. 2590

       (3) A candidate who was not an opponent of a candidate who 2591
filed the personal funds notice required under division (C)(3) of 2592
this section on the date the personal funds notice was filed may 2593
file the declaration of no limits pursuant to division (D)(2) of 2594
this section within thirty days after becoming an opponent of the 2595
candidate who filed the personal funds notice. 2596

       (4) If the candidate whose campaign committee filed a 2597
personal funds notice under division (C)(1) or (2) of this section 2598
fails to file a declaration of candidacy for the office listed on 2599
the designation of treasurer filed under division (D) of section 2600
3517.10 of the Revised Code or files a declaration of candidacy or 2601
nominating petition for that office and dies or withdraws, both of 2602
the following apply to the campaign committee of that candidate's 2603
opponent if the opponent has filed a declaration of no limits 2604
pursuant to division (D) of this section: 2605

       (a) No contribution from a contributor may thereafter be 2606
accepted that, when added to the aggregate total of all 2607
contributions received by that committee from that contributor 2608
during the primary election period or general election period, 2609
whichever is applicable, would cause that committee to exceed the 2610
contribution limitations prescribed in section 3517.102 of the 2611
Revised Code for the applicable election period. 2612

       (b) The statement of primary-day finances or the year-end 2613
statement required to be filed under division (E) of section 2614
3517.1010 of the Revised Code shall be filed not later than 2615
fourteen days after the date the candidate's opponent fails to 2616
file a declaration of candidacy or nominating petition by the 2617
appropriate filing deadline, or dies or withdraws. For purposes of 2618
calculating permitted funds under division (A)~~(7)~~(4) of section 2619
3517.1010 of the Revised Code, the primary or general election 2620
period, whichever is applicable, shall be considered to have ended 2621
on the filing deadline, in the case of an opponent who fails to 2622
file a declaration of candidacy or nominating petition, or on the 2623
date of the opponent's death or withdrawal. In such an event, the 2624
filing of a statement of primary-day finances or year-end finances 2625
and the disposing of any excess funds as required under division 2626
(B) of section 3517.1010 of the Revised Code satisfies the 2627
candidate's obligation to file such a statement for that election 2628
period. 2629

       (E)(1) No campaign committee shall fail to file a personal 2630
funds notice as required under division (C)(1) or (2) of this 2631
section. 2632

       (2) No campaign committee shall accept any contribution in 2633
excess of the contribution limitations prescribed in section 2634
3517.102 of the Revised Code: 2635

       (a) Unless a declaration of no limits has been filed under 2636
division (D)(2) of this section; 2637

       (b) In violation of division (D)(4) of this section once the 2638
candidate who filed a personal funds notice under division (C)(3) 2639
of this section fails to file a declaration of candidacy or 2640
nominating petition or that candidate dies or withdraws. 2641

       (3) No campaign committee that violates division (E)(1) of 2642
this section shall expend any personal funds in excess of the 2643
amount specified in division (C)(1) or (2) of this section, 2644
whichever is appropriate to the committee. 2645

       (4) The candidate of any campaign committee that violates 2646
division (E) of this section shall forfeit the candidate's 2647
nomination, if the candidate was nominated, or the office to which 2648
the candidate was elected, if the candidate was elected to office. 2649

       (F)(1) Whenever a campaign committee files a notice under 2650
division (C)(1) or (2) of this section or whenever the 2651
contribution limitations prescribed in section 3517.102 of the 2652
Revised Code do not apply to a campaign committee under division 2653
(D)(1) of this section, that committee is not a designated state 2654
campaign committee for the purpose of the limitations prescribed 2655
in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code with regard to 2656
contributions made by that campaign committee to a legislative 2657
campaign fund or to a state candidate fund of a state or county 2658
political party. 2659

       (2) Division (F)(1) of this section no longer applies to a 2660
campaign committee after both of the following occur: 2661

       (a) The primary or general election period during which the 2662
contribution limitations prescribed in section 3517.102 of the 2663
Revised Code did not apply after being removed pursuant to 2664
division (D) of this section has expired; 2665

       (b) When the campaign committee has disposed of all excess 2666
funds and excess aggregate contributions as required under section 2667
3517.1010 of the Revised Code. 2668

       Sec. 3517.104. (A) In January of each odd-numbered year, the 2669
secretary of state, in accordance with this division and division 2670
(B) of this section, shall adjust each amount specified in section 2671
3517.102 and in division (B)(4)(e) of section 3517.10 of the 2672
Revised Code. The adjustment shall be based on the yearly average 2673
of the previous two years of the Consumer Price Index for All 2674
Urban Consumers or its successive equivalent, as determined by the 2675
United States department of labor, bureau of labor statistics, or 2676
its successor in responsibility, for all items, Series A. Using 2677
the 1996 yearly average as the base year, the secretary of state 2678
shall compare the most current average consumer price index with 2679
that determined in the preceding odd-numbered year, and shall 2680
determine the percentage increase or decrease. The percentage 2681
increase or decrease shall be multiplied by the actual dollar 2682
figure for each office or entity specified in section 3517.102 of 2683
the Revised Code and by each actual dollar figure specified in 2684
division (B)(4)(e) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code as 2685
determined in the previous odd-numbered year, and the product 2686
shall be added to or subtracted from its corresponding actual 2687
dollar figure, as necessary, for that previous odd-numbered year. 2688
~~The~~ 2689

       The resulting amount shall be rounded ~~to the nearest five~~ 2690
~~hundred dollars if the calculations are made regarding the amounts~~ 2691
~~specified in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code or~~ to the 2692
nearest twenty-five dollars if the calculations are made regarding 2693
the amounts specified in division (B)(4)(e) of section 3517.10 of 2694
the Revised Code. 2695

       If the calculations are made regarding the amounts specified 2696
in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, the resulting amount 2697
shall not be rounded. If that resulting amount is less than one 2698
hundred dollars, the secretary of state shall retain a record of 2699
the resulting amount and the manner in which it was calculated, 2700
but shall not make an adjustment unless the resulting amount, when 2701
added to the resulting amount calculated in each prior 2702
odd-numbered year since the last adjustment was made, equals or 2703
exceeds one hundred dollars. 2704

       (B)(1) The secretary of state shall calculate the adjustment 2705
under division (A) of this section and shall report the 2706
calculations and necessary materials to the auditor of state, on 2707
or before the thirty-first day of January of each odd-numbered 2708
year. The secretary of state shall base the adjustment on the most 2709
current consumer price index that is described in division (A) of 2710
this section and that is in effect as of the first day of January 2711
of each odd-numbered year. 2712

       (2) The calculations made by the secretary of state under 2713
divisions (A) and (B)(1) of this section shall be certified by the 2714
auditor of state on or before the fifteenth day of February of 2715
each odd-numbered year. 2716

       (3) On or before the twenty-fifth day of February of each 2717
odd-numbered year, the secretary of state shall prepare a report 2718
setting forth the maximum contribution limitations under section 2719
3517.102 of the Revised Code, the maximum amounts, if any, of 2720
contributions permitted to be kept under that section, and the 2721
amounts required under division (B)(4)(e) of section 3517.10 of 2722
the Revised Code for reporting contributions and in-kind 2723
contributions at social or fund-raising activities and 2724
contributions from amounts deducted from an employee's wages and 2725
salary, as calculated and certified pursuant to divisions (A) and 2726
(B)(1) and (2) of this section. The report and all documents 2727
relating to the calculations contained in the report are public 2728
records. The report shall contain an indication of the period in 2729
which the limitations, the maximum contribution amounts, and the 2730
reporting amounts apply, a summary of how the limitations, the 2731
maximum contribution amounts, and the reporting amounts were 2732
calculated, and a statement that the report and all related 2733
documents are available for inspection and copying at the office 2734
of the secretary of state. 2735

       (4) On or before the twenty-fifth day of February of each 2736
odd-numbered year, the secretary of state shall transmit the 2737
report to the general assembly, and shall send the report by mail 2738
to the board of elections of each county. 2739

       (5) The secretary of state shall send the report by mail to 2740
each person who files a declaration of candidacy or nominating 2741
petition with the secretary of state for the office of governor, 2742
lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of state, 2743
treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state board of 2744
education, chief justice of the supreme court, or justice of the 2745
supreme court. The report shall be mailed on or before the tenth 2746
day after the filing. 2747

       (6) A board of elections shall send the report by mail to 2748
each person who files a declaration of candidacy or nominating 2749
petition with the board for the office of state representative or 2750
state senator. The report shall be mailed on or before the tenth 2751
day after the filing. 2752

       Sec. 3517.105. (A)(1) As used in this section, "public 2753
political advertising" means advertising to the general public 2754
through a broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine, poster, yard 2755
sign, or outdoor advertising facility, by direct mail, or by any 2756
other means of advertising to the general public. 2757

       (2) For purposes of this section and section 3517.20 of the 2758
Revised Code, a person is a member of a political action committee 2759
if the person makes one or more contributions to that political 2760
action committee~~, and a person is a member of a political~~ 2761
~~contributing entity if the person makes one or more contributions~~ 2762
~~to, or pays dues, membership fees, or other assessments to, that~~ 2763
~~political contributing entity~~. 2764

       (B)(1) Whenever a candidate, a campaign committee, a 2765
political action committee ~~or political contributing entity~~ with 2766
ten or more members, or a legislative campaign fund makes an 2767
independent expenditure, or whenever a political action committee 2768
~~or political contributing entity~~ with fewer than ten members makes 2769
an independent expenditure in excess of one hundred dollars for a 2770
local candidate, in excess of two hundred fifty dollars for a 2771
candidate for the office of member of the general assembly, or in 2772
excess of five hundred dollars for a statewide candidate, for the 2773
purpose of financing communications advocating the election or 2774
defeat of an identified candidate or solicits without the 2775
candidate's express consent a contribution for or against an 2776
identified candidate through public political advertising, a 2777
statement shall appear or be presented in a clear and conspicuous 2778
manner in the advertising that does both of the following: 2779

       (a) Clearly indicates that the communication or public 2780
political advertising is not authorized by the candidate or the 2781
candidate's campaign committee; 2782

       (b) Clearly identifies the candidate, campaign committee, 2783
political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ or 2784
legislative campaign fund that has paid for the communication or 2785
public political advertising in accordance with section 3517.20 of 2786
the Revised Code. 2787

       (2)(a) Whenever any campaign committee, legislative campaign 2788
fund, political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 2789
or political party makes an independent expenditure in support of 2790
or opposition to any candidate, the committee, ~~entity,~~ fund, or 2791
party shall report the independent expenditure and identify the 2792
candidate on a statement prescribed by the secretary of state and 2793
filed by the committee, ~~entity,~~ fund, or ~~political~~ party as part 2794
of its statement of contributions and expenditures pursuant to 2795
division (A) of section 3517.10 and division (A) of section 2796
3517.11 of the Revised Code. 2797

       (b) Whenever any individual, partnership, or other entity, 2798
except a corporation, labor organization, campaign committee, 2799
legislative campaign fund, political action committee, ~~political~~ 2800
~~contributing entity,~~ or political party, makes one or more 2801
independent expenditures in support of or opposition to any 2802
candidate, the individual, partnership, or other entity shall file 2803
with the secretary of state in the case of a statewide candidate, 2804
or with the board of elections in the county in which the 2805
candidate files the candidate's petitions for nomination or 2806
election for district or local office, not later than the dates 2807
specified in divisions (A)(1), (2), ~~and~~ (3), and (4) of section 2808
3517.10 of the Revised Code, and, except as otherwise provided in 2809
that section, a statement itemizing all independent expenditures 2810
made during the period since the close of business on the last day 2811
reflected in the last previously filed such statement, if any. The 2812
statement shall be made on a form prescribed by the secretary of 2813
state or shall be filed by electronic means of transmission 2814
pursuant to division (G) of section 3517.106 of the Revised Code 2815
as authorized or required by that division. The statement shall 2816
indicate the date and the amount of each independent expenditure 2817
and the candidate on whose behalf it was made and shall be made 2818
under penalty of election falsification. 2819

       (C)(1) Whenever a corporation, labor organization, campaign 2820
committee, political action committee with ten or more members, or 2821
legislative campaign fund makes an independent expenditure, or 2822
whenever a political action committee with fewer than ten members 2823
makes an independent expenditure in excess of one hundred dollars 2824
for a local ballot issue or question, or in excess of five hundred 2825
dollars for a statewide ballot issue or question, for the purpose 2826
of financing communications advocating support of or opposition to 2827
an identified ballot issue or question or solicits without the 2828
express consent of the ballot issue committee a contribution for 2829
or against an identified ballot issue or question through public 2830
political advertising, a statement shall appear or be presented in 2831
a clear and conspicuous manner in the advertising that does both 2832
of the following: 2833

       (a) Clearly indicates that the communication or public 2834
political advertising is not authorized by the identified ballot 2835
issue committee; 2836

       (b) Clearly identifies the corporation, labor organization, 2837
campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, or political action 2838
committee that has paid for the communication or public political 2839
advertising in accordance with section 3517.20 of the Revised 2840
Code. 2841

       (2)(a) Whenever any corporation, labor organization, campaign 2842
committee, legislative campaign fund, political party, or 2843
political action committee makes an independent expenditure in 2844
support of or opposition to any ballot issue or question, the 2845
corporation or labor organization shall report the independent 2846
expenditure in accordance with division (C) of section 3599.03 of 2847
the Revised Code, and the campaign committee, fund, party, or 2848
political action committee shall report the independent 2849
expenditure and identify the ballot issue or question on a 2850
statement prescribed by the secretary of state and filed by the 2851
campaign committee, fund, ~~political~~ party, or political action 2852
committee as part of its statement of contributions and 2853
expenditures pursuant to division (A) of section 3517.10 and 2854
division (A) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code. 2855

       (b) Whenever any individual, partnership, or other entity, 2856
except a corporation, labor organization, campaign committee, 2857
legislative campaign fund, political action committee, or 2858
political party, makes one or more independent expenditures in 2859
excess of one hundred dollars in support of or opposition to any 2860
ballot issue or question, the individual, partnership, or other 2861
entity shall file with the secretary of state in the case of a 2862
statewide ballot issue or question, or with the board of elections 2863
in the county that certifies the issue or question for placement 2864
on the ballot in the case of a district or local issue or 2865
question, not later than the dates specified in ~~division~~divisions 2866
(A)(1), (2), ~~and~~ (3), and (4) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 2867
Code, and, except as otherwise provided in that section, a 2868
statement itemizing all independent expenditures made during the 2869
period since the close of business on the last day reflected in 2870
the last previously filed such statement, if any. The statement 2871
shall be made on a form prescribed by the secretary of state or 2872
shall be filed by electronic means of transmission pursuant to 2873
division (G) of section 3517.106 of the Revised Code as authorized 2874
or required by that division. The statement shall indicate the 2875
date and the amount of each independent expenditure and the ballot 2876
issue or question in support of or opposition to which it was made 2877
and shall be made under penalty of election falsification. 2878

       (3) No person, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, 2879
political action committee, corporation, labor organization, or 2880
other organization or association shall use or cause to be used a 2881
false or fictitious name in making an independent expenditure in 2882
support of or opposition to any candidate or any ballot issue or 2883
question. A name is false or fictitious if the person, campaign 2884
committee, legislative campaign fund, political action committee, 2885
corporation, labor organization, or other organization or 2886
association does not actually exist or operate, if the 2887
corporation, labor organization, or other organization or 2888
association has failed to file a fictitious name or other 2889
registration with the secretary of state, if it is required to do 2890
so, or if the person, campaign committee, legislative campaign 2891
fund, or political action committee has failed to file a 2892
designation of the appointment of a treasurer, if it is required 2893
to do so by division (D)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 2894
Code. 2895

       (D) Any expenditure by a political party for the purpose of 2896
financing communications advocating the election or defeat of a 2897
candidate for judicial office shall be deemed to be an independent 2898
expenditure subject to the provisions of this section. 2899

       Sec. 3517.106. (A) As used in this section: 2900

       (1) "Statewide office" means any of the offices of governor, 2901
lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of state, 2902
treasurer of state, attorney general, chief justice of the supreme 2903
court, and justice of the supreme court. 2904

       (2) "Addendum to a statement" includes an amendment or other 2905
correction to that statement. 2906

       (B)(1) The secretary of state shall store on computer the 2907
information contained in statements of contributions and 2908
expenditures and monthly statements required to be filed under 2909
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code and in statements of 2910
independent expenditures required to be filed under section 2911
3517.105 of the Revised Code by any of the following: 2912

       ~~(1)~~(a) The campaign committees of candidates for statewide 2913
office; 2914

       ~~(2)~~(b) The political action committees ~~and political~~ 2915
~~contributing entities~~ described in division (A)(1) of section 2916
3517.11 of the Revised Code; 2917

       ~~(3)~~(c) Legislative campaign funds; 2918

       ~~(4)~~(d) State political parties; 2919

       ~~(5)~~(e) Individuals, partnerships, corporations, labor 2920
organizations, or other entities that make independent 2921
expenditures in support of or opposition to a statewide candidate 2922
or a statewide ballot issue or question; 2923

       ~~(6)~~(f) The campaign committees of candidates for the office 2924
of member of the general assembly; 2925

       (g) County political parties, with respect to their state 2926
candidate funds. 2927

       (2) The secretary of state shall store on computer the 2928
information contained in disclosure of electioneering 2929
communications statements required to be filed under section 2930
3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 2931

       (3) The secretary of state shall store on computer the 2932
information contained in deposit and disbursement statements 2933
required to be filed with the office of the secretary of state 2934
under section 3517.1012 of the Revised Code. 2935

       (4) The secretary of state shall store on computer the gift 2936
and disbursement information contained in statements required to 2937
be filed with the office of the secretary of state under section 2938
3517.1013 of the Revised Code. 2939

       (C)(1) The secretary of state shall make available to the 2940
campaign committees, political action committees, ~~political~~ 2941
~~contributing entities,~~ legislative campaign funds, political 2942
parties, individuals, partnerships, corporations, labor 2943
organizations, and other entities described in division (B) of 2944
this section, and to members of the news media and other 2945
interested persons, for a reasonable fee, computer programs that 2946
are compatible with the secretary of state's method of storing the 2947
information contained in the statements. 2948

       (2) The secretary of state shall make the information 2949
required to be stored under division (B) of this section available 2950
on computer at the secretary of state's office so that, to the 2951
maximum extent feasible, individuals may obtain at the secretary 2952
of state's office any part or all of that information for any 2953
given year, subject to the limitation expressed in division (D) of 2954
this section. 2955

       (D) The secretary of state shall keep the information stored 2956
on computer under division (B) of this section for at least six 2957
years. 2958

       (E)(1) Subject to division (L) of this section and subject to 2959
the secretary of state having implemented, tested, and verified 2960
the successful operation of any system the secretary of state 2961
prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and 2962
divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 2963
Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic 2964
means of transmission, the campaign committee of each candidate 2965
for statewide office may file the statements prescribed by section 2966
3517.10 of the Revised Code by electronic means of transmission 2967
or, if the total amount of the contributions received or the total 2968
amount of the expenditures made by the campaign committee for the 2969
applicable reporting period as specified in division (A) of 2970
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code exceeds ten thousand dollars, 2971
shall file those statements by electronic means of transmission. 2972

       Except as otherwise provided in this division, within five 2973
business days after a statement filed by a campaign committee of a 2974
candidate for statewide office is received by the secretary of 2975
state by electronic or other means of transmission, the secretary 2976
of state shall make available online to the public through the 2977
internet, as provided in division (I) of this section, the 2978
contribution and expenditure information in that statement. The 2979
secretary of state shall not make available online to the public 2980
through the internet any contribution or expenditure information 2981
contained in a statement for any candidate until the secretary of 2982
state is able to make available online to the public through the 2983
internet the contribution and expenditure information for all 2984
candidates for a particular office, or until the applicable filing 2985
deadline for that statement has passed, whichever is sooner. As 2986
soon as the secretary of state has available all of ~~that~~the 2987
contribution and expenditure information for all candidates for a 2988
particular office, or as soon as the applicable filing deadline 2989
for a statement has passed, whichever is sooner, the secretary of 2990
state shall simultaneously make available online to the public 2991
through the internet the information for all candidates for a 2992
~~particular~~that office. 2993

       If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission is 2994
found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the 2995
statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division 2996
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the campaign 2997
committee shall file by electronic means of transmission any 2998
addendum to the statement that provides the information necessary 2999
to complete or correct the statement or, if required by the 3000
secretary of state under that division, an amended statement. 3001

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 3002
receives from a campaign committee of a candidate for statewide 3003
office an addendum to the statement or an amended statement by 3004
electronic or other means of transmission under this division or 3005
division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the 3006
secretary of state shall make the contribution and expenditure 3007
information in the addendum or amended statement available online 3008
to the public through the internet as provided in division (I) of 3009
this section. 3010

       (2) Subject ~~to division (E)(3) of this section and subject~~ to 3011
the secretary of state having implemented, tested, and verified 3012
the successful operation of any system the secretary of state 3013
prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and 3014
divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 3015
Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic 3016
means of transmission, a political action committee ~~and a~~ 3017
~~political contributing entity~~ described in division (B)~~(2)~~(1)(b) 3018
of this section, a legislative campaign fund, and a state 3019
political party may file the statements prescribed by section 3020
3517.10 of the Revised Code by electronic means of transmission 3021
or, if the total amount of the contributions received or the total 3022
amount of the expenditures made by the political action committee, 3023
legislative campaign fund, or state political party for the 3024
applicable reporting period as specified in division (A) of 3025
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code exceeds ten thousand dollars, 3026
shall file those statements by electronic means of transmission. 3027

       Within five business days after a statement filed by a 3028
political action committee ~~or a political contributing entity~~ 3029
described in division (B)~~(2)~~(1)(b) of this section, a legislative 3030
campaign fund, or a state political party is received by the 3031
secretary of state by electronic or other means of transmission, 3032
the secretary of state shall make available online to the public 3033
through the internet, as provided in division (I) of this section, 3034
the contribution and expenditure information in that statement. 3035

       If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission is 3036
found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the 3037
statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division 3038
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the political 3039
action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ legislative 3040
campaign fund, or state political party shall file by electronic 3041
means of transmission any addendum to the statement that provides 3042
the information necessary to complete or correct the statement or, 3043
if required by the secretary of state under that division, an 3044
amended statement. 3045

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 3046
receives from a political action committee ~~or a political~~ 3047
~~contributing entity~~ described in division (B)~~(2)~~(1)(b) of this 3048
section, a legislative campaign fund, or a state political party 3049
an addendum to the statement or an amended statement by electronic 3050
or other means of transmission under this division or division 3051
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the secretary of 3052
state shall make the contribution and expenditure information in 3053
the addendum or amended statement available online to the public 3054
through the internet as provided in division (I) of this section. 3055

       (3) Subject to the secretary of state having implemented, 3056
tested, and verified the successful operation of any system the 3057
secretary of state prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this 3058
section and divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of 3059
the Revised Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by 3060
electronic means of transmission, ~~a political action committee and~~ 3061
~~a political contributing entity described in division (B)(2) of~~ 3062
~~this section, a legislative campaign fund, and~~ a ~~state~~county 3063
political party shall file the statements prescribed by section 3064
3517.10 of the Revised Code with respect to its state candidate 3065
fund by electronic means of transmission ~~if the total amount of~~ 3066
~~the contributions received or the total amount of the expenditures~~ 3067
~~made by the political action committee, political contributing~~ 3068
~~entity, legislative campaign fund, or political party for the~~ 3069
~~applicable reporting period as specified in division (A) of~~ 3070
~~section 3517.10 of the Revised Code exceeds ten thousand dollars~~ 3071
to the office of the secretary of state. 3072

       Within five business days after a statement filed by a 3073
~~political action committee or a political contributing entity~~ 3074
~~described in division (B)(2) of this section, a legislative~~ 3075
~~campaign fund, or a state~~county political party with respect to 3076
its state candidate fund is received by the secretary of state by 3077
electronic ~~or other~~ means of transmission, the secretary of state 3078
shall make available online to the public through the internet, as 3079
provided in division (I) of this section, the contribution and 3080
expenditure information in that statement. 3081

       If a statement ~~filed by electronic means of transmission~~ is 3082
found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the 3083
statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division 3084
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, ~~the political~~ 3085
~~action committee, political contributing entity, legislative~~ 3086
~~campaign fund, or state~~a county political party shall file by 3087
electronic means of transmission any addendum to the statement 3088
that provides the information necessary to complete or correct the 3089
statement or, if required by the secretary of state under that 3090
division, an amended statement. 3091

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 3092
receives from a ~~political action committee or a political~~ 3093
~~contributing entity described in division (B)(2) of this section,~~ 3094
~~a legislative campaign fund, or a state~~county political party an 3095
addendum to the statement or an amended statement by electronic or 3096
~~other~~ means of transmission under this division or division 3097
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the secretary of 3098
state shall make the contribution and expenditure information in 3099
the addendum or amended statement available online to the public 3100
through the internet as provided in division (I) of this section. 3101

       (F)(1) Subject to division ~~(F)(4)~~(L) of this section and 3102
subject to the secretary of state having implemented, tested, and 3103
verified the successful operation of any system the secretary of 3104
state prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and 3105
divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 3106
Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic 3107
means of transmission ~~or on computer disk~~, a campaign committee of 3108
a candidate for the office of member of the general assembly or a 3109
campaign committee of a candidate for the office of judge of a 3110
court of appeals may file the statements prescribed by section 3111
3517.10 of the Revised Code in accordance with division (A)(2) of 3112
section 3517.11 of the Revised Code or by electronic means of 3113
transmission to the office of the secretary of state or, ~~until~~ 3114
~~March 1, 2004, on computer disk with the appropriate board of~~ 3115
~~elections specified in division (A)(2) of section 3517.11 of the~~ 3116
~~Revised Code~~if the total amount of the contributions received by 3117
the campaign committee for the applicable reporting period as 3118
specified in division (A) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code 3119
exceeds ten thousand dollars, shall file those statements by 3120
electronic means of transmission to the office of the secretary of 3121
state. 3122

       Except as otherwise provided in this division, within five 3123
business days after a statement filed by a campaign committee of a 3124
candidate for the office of member of the general assembly or a 3125
campaign committee of a candidate for the office of judge of a 3126
court of appeals is received by the secretary of state by 3127
electronic or other means of transmission, the secretary of state 3128
shall make available online to the public through the internet, as 3129
provided in division (I) of this section, the contribution and 3130
expenditure information in that statement. The secretary of state 3131
shall not make available online to the public through the internet 3132
any contribution or expenditure information contained in a 3133
statement for any candidate until the secretary of state is able 3134
to make available online to the public through the internet the 3135
contribution and expenditure information for all candidates for a 3136
particular office, or until the applicable filing deadline for 3137
that statement has passed, whichever is sooner. As soon as the 3138
secretary of state has available all of ~~that~~the contribution and 3139
expenditure information for all candidates for a particular 3140
office, or as soon as the applicable filing deadline for a 3141
statement has passed, whichever is sooner, the secretary of state 3142
shall simultaneously make available online to the public through 3143
the internet the information for all candidates for ~~a particular~~ 3144
that office. 3145

       If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission or 3146
~~on computer disk~~ is found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the 3147
examination of the statement for completeness and accuracy 3148
pursuant to division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised 3149
Code, the campaign committee shall file by electronic means of 3150
transmission to the office of the secretary of state~~, or, until~~ 3151
~~March 1, 2004, on computer disk with the appropriate board of~~ 3152
~~elections if the original statement was filed on computer disk,~~ 3153
any addendum to the statement that provides the information 3154
necessary to complete or correct the statement or, if required by 3155
the secretary of state under that division, an amended statement. 3156

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 3157
receives from a campaign committee of a candidate for the office 3158
of member of the general assembly or a campaign committee of a 3159
candidate for the office of judge of a court of appeals an 3160
addendum to the statement or an amended statement by electronic or 3161
other means of transmission under this division or division 3162
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the secretary of 3163
state shall make the contribution and expenditure information in 3164
the addendum or amended statement available online to the public 3165
through the internet as provided in division (I) of this section. 3166

       (2) ~~Until March 1, 2004, if a campaign committee of a~~ 3167
~~candidate for the office of member of the general assembly files a~~ 3168
~~statement of contributions and expenditures, an addendum to the~~ 3169
~~statement, or an amended statement by electronic means of~~ 3170
~~transmission or on computer disk pursuant to division (F)(1) of~~ 3171
~~this section, the campaign committee shall file as prescribed by~~ 3172
~~section 3517.10 of the Revised Code with the appropriate board of~~ 3173
~~elections specified in division (A)(2) of section 3517.11 of the~~ 3174
~~Revised Code a printed version of the statement, addendum, or~~ 3175
~~amended statement filed by electronic means of transmission or on~~ 3176
~~computer disk, in the format that the secretary of state shall~~ 3177
~~prescribe.~~ 3178

        If a statement, addendum, or amended statement is not filed 3179
by electronic means of transmission ~~or on computer disk~~to the 3180
office of the secretary of state but is filed by printed version 3181
only under division (A)(2) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code 3182
with the appropriate board of elections, the campaign committee of 3183
a candidate for the office of member of the general assembly or a 3184
campaign committee of a candidate for the office of judge of a 3185
court of appeals shall file two copies of the printed version of 3186
the statement, addendum, or amended statement with the ~~appropriate~~ 3187
board of elections. The board of elections shall send one of those 3188
copies by overnight delivery service to the secretary of state 3189
before the close of business on the day the board of elections 3190
receives the statement, addendum, or amended statement. 3191

       ~~(3)(a) Subject to division (F)(4) of this section and subject~~ 3192
~~to the secretary of state having implemented, tested, and verified~~ 3193
~~the successful operation of any system the secretary of state~~ 3194
~~prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and~~ 3195
~~divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised~~ 3196
~~Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic~~ 3197
~~means of transmission or on computer disk, the secretary of state~~ 3198
~~shall assess, and a campaign committee of a candidate for the~~ 3199
~~office of member of the general assembly shall pay, a fee as~~ 3200
~~provided in this division if the campaign committee has not filed~~ 3201
~~the campaign finance statements prescribed by section 3517.10 of~~ 3202
~~the Revised Code by electronic means of transmission or on~~ 3203
~~computer disk pursuant to division (F)(1) of this section. The fee~~ 3204
~~shall be calculated on the total contributions received for the~~ 3205
~~applicable reporting period specified in division (A) of section~~ 3206
~~3517.10 of the Revised Code as follows:~~ 3207

       ~~(i) No fee for total contributions up to and including ten~~ 3208
~~thousand dollars;~~ 3209

       ~~(ii) A fee of fifty dollars for total contributions of over~~ 3210
~~ten thousand dollars up to and including twenty-five thousand~~ 3211
~~dollars;~~ 3212

       ~~(iii) A fee of one hundred fifty dollars for total~~ 3213
~~contributions over twenty-five thousand dollars up to and~~ 3214
~~including fifty thousand dollars;~~ 3215

       ~~(iv) A fee of two hundred dollars for total contributions~~ 3216
~~over fifty thousand dollars.~~ 3217

       ~~(b) No campaign committee of a candidate for the office of~~ 3218
~~member of the general assembly shall be required to pay the fee~~ 3219
~~prescribed by division (F)(3)(a) of this section in connection~~ 3220
~~with the filing of an addendum to a statement of contributions and~~ 3221
~~expenditures or in connection with the filing of an amended~~ 3222
~~statement.~~ 3223

       ~~(c) The fee prescribed by division (F)(3)(a) of this section~~ 3224
~~shall be made payable to the secretary of state and shall be~~ 3225
~~collected by the appropriate board of elections at the time the~~ 3226
~~campaign committee of a candidate for the office of member of the~~ 3227
~~general assembly files the statement of contributions and~~ 3228
~~expenditures. The fee shall be sent along with the statement,~~ 3229
~~before the close of business on the day it is received, to the~~ 3230
~~secretary of state by overnight delivery service.~~ 3231

       ~~(4) Subject to the secretary of state having implemented,~~ 3232
~~tested, and verified the successful operation of any system the~~ 3233
~~secretary of state prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this~~ 3234
~~section and divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of~~ 3235
~~the Revised Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by~~ 3236
~~electronic means of transmission, on and after March 1, 2004, a~~ 3237
~~campaign committee of a candidate for the office of member of the~~ 3238
~~general assembly shall file the statements prescribed by section~~ 3239
~~3517.10 of the Revised Code by electronic means of transmission to~~ 3240
~~the secretary of state if the total amount of the contributions~~ 3241
~~received by the campaign committee for the applicable reporting~~ 3242
~~period as specified in division (A) of section 3517.10 of the~~ 3243
~~Revised Code exceeds ten thousand dollars.~~ 3244

       ~~Except as otherwise provided in this division, within five~~ 3245
~~business days after a statement filed by a campaign committee of a~~ 3246
~~candidate for the office of member of the general assembly is~~ 3247
~~received by the secretary of state by electronic or other means of~~ 3248
~~transmission, the secretary of state shall make available online~~ 3249
~~to the public through the internet, as provided in division (I) of~~ 3250
~~this section, the contribution and expenditure information in that~~ 3251
~~statement. The secretary of state shall not make available online~~ 3252
~~to the public through the internet any contribution or expenditure~~ 3253
~~information contained in a statement for any candidate until the~~ 3254
~~secretary of state is able to make available online to the public~~ 3255
~~through the internet the contribution and expenditure information~~ 3256
~~for all candidates for a particular office. As soon as the~~ 3257
~~secretary of state has available all of that information, the~~ 3258
~~secretary of state shall simultaneously make available online to~~ 3259
~~the public through the internet the information for all candidates~~ 3260
~~for a particular office.~~ 3261

       ~~If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission is~~ 3262
~~found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the~~ 3263
~~statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division~~ 3264
~~(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the campaign~~ 3265
~~committee of a candidate for the office of member of the general~~ 3266
~~assembly shall file by electronic means of transmission any~~ 3267
~~addendum to the statement that provides the information necessary~~ 3268
~~to complete or correct the statement or, if required by the~~ 3269
~~secretary of state under that division, an amended statement.~~ 3270

       ~~Within five business days after the secretary of state~~ 3271
~~receives from a campaign committee of a candidate for the office~~ 3272
~~of member of the general assembly an addendum to the statement or~~ 3273
~~an amended statement by electronic or other means of transmission~~ 3274
~~under this division or division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of~~ 3275
~~the Revised Code, the secretary of state shall make the~~ 3276
~~contribution and expenditure information in the addendum or~~ 3277
~~amended statement available online to the public through the~~ 3278
~~internet as provided in division (I) of this section.~~ 3279

       (G)~~(1)~~ Subject ~~to division (G)(2) of this section and subject~~ 3280
to the secretary of state having implemented, tested, and verified 3281
the successful operation of any system the secretary of state 3282
prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and 3283
divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 3284
Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by electronic 3285
means of transmission, any individual, partnership, or other 3286
entity that makes independent expenditures in support of or 3287
opposition to a statewide candidate or a statewide ballot issue or 3288
question as provided in division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section 3289
3517.105 of the Revised Code may file the statement specified in 3290
that division by electronic means of transmission or, if the total 3291
amount of independent expenditures made during the reporting 3292
period under that division exceeds ten thousand dollars, shall 3293
file the statement specified in that division by electronic means 3294
of transmission. 3295

       Within five business days after a statement filed by an 3296
individual, partnership, or other entity is received by the 3297
secretary of state by electronic or other means of transmission, 3298
the secretary of state shall make available online to the public 3299
through the internet, as provided in division (I) of this section, 3300
the expenditure information in that statement. 3301

       If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission is 3302
found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the 3303
statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division 3304
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the individual, 3305
partnership, or other entity shall file by electronic means of 3306
transmission any addendum to the statement that provides the 3307
information necessary to complete or correct the statement or, if 3308
required by the secretary of state under that division, an amended 3309
statement. 3310

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 3311
receives from an individual, partnership, or other entity 3312
described in division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section 3517.105 3313
of the Revised Code an addendum to the statement or an amended 3314
statement by electronic or other means of transmission under this 3315
division or division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised 3316
Code, the secretary of state shall make the expenditure 3317
information in the addendum or amended statement available online 3318
to the public through the internet as provided in division (I) of 3319
this section. 3320

       ~~(2) Subject to the secretary of state having implemented,~~ 3321
~~tested, and verified the successful operation of any system the~~ 3322
~~secretary of state prescribes pursuant to division (H)(1) of this~~ 3323
~~section and divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of~~ 3324
~~the Revised Code for the filing of campaign finance statements by~~ 3325
~~electronic means of transmission, any individual, partnership, or~~ 3326
~~other entity that makes independent expenditures in support of or~~ 3327
~~opposition to a statewide candidate or a statewide ballot issue or~~ 3328
~~question as provided in division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section~~ 3329
~~3517.105 of the Revised Code shall file the statement specified in~~ 3330
~~that division by electronic means of transmission if the total~~ 3331
~~amount of the independent expenditures made during the reporting~~ 3332
~~period under that division exceeds ten thousand dollars.~~ 3333

       ~~Within five business days after a statement filed by an~~ 3334
~~individual, partnership, or other entity is received by the~~ 3335
~~secretary of state by electronic or other means of transmission,~~ 3336
~~the secretary of state shall make available online to the public~~ 3337
~~through the internet, as provided in division (I) of this section,~~ 3338
~~the expenditure information in that statement.~~ 3339

       ~~If a statement filed by electronic means of transmission is~~ 3340
~~found to be incomplete or inaccurate after the examination of the~~ 3341
~~statement for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division~~ 3342
~~(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the individual,~~ 3343
~~partnership, or other entity shall file by electronic means of~~ 3344
~~transmission any addendum to the statement that provides the~~ 3345
~~information necessary to complete or correct the statement or, if~~ 3346
~~required by the secretary of state under that division, an amended~~ 3347
~~statement.~~ 3348

       ~~Within five business days after the secretary of state~~ 3349
~~receives from an individual, partnership, or other entity~~ 3350
~~described in division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section 3517.105~~ 3351
~~of the Revised Code an addendum to the statement or an amended~~ 3352
~~statement by electronic or other means of transmission under this~~ 3353
~~division or division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised~~ 3354
~~Code, the secretary of state shall make the expenditure~~ 3355
~~information in the addendum or amended statement available online~~ 3356
~~to the public through the internet as provided in division (I) of~~ 3357
~~this section.~~ 3358

       (H)(1) The secretary of state, by rule adopted pursuant to 3359
section 3517.23 of the Revised Code, shall prescribe one or more 3360
techniques by which a person who executes and transmits by 3361
electronic means a statement of contributions and expenditures, a 3362
statement of independent expenditures, a disclosure of 3363
electioneering communications statement, a deposit and 3364
disbursement statement, or a gift and disbursement statement, an 3365
addendum to ~~either statement~~any of those statements, an amended 3366
statement of contributions and expenditures, or an amended 3367
statement of independent expenditures, an amended disclosure of 3368
electioneering communications statement, an amended deposit and 3369
disbursement statement, or an amended gift and disbursement 3370
statement, under this section or section 3517.10 or, 3517.105, 3371
3517.1011, 3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised Code shall 3372
electronically sign the statement, addendum, or amended statement. 3373
Any technique prescribed by the secretary of state pursuant to 3374
this division shall create an electronic signature that satisfies 3375
all of the following: 3376

       (a) It is unique to the signer. 3377

       (b) It objectively identifies the signer. 3378

       (c) It involves the use of a signature device or other means 3379
or method that is under the sole control of the signer and that 3380
cannot be readily duplicated or compromised. 3381

       (d) It is created and linked to the electronic record to 3382
which it relates in a manner that, if the record or signature is 3383
intentionally or unintentionally changed after signing, the 3384
electronic signature is invalidated. 3385

       (2) An electronic signature prescribed by the secretary of 3386
state under division (H)(1) of this section shall be attached to 3387
or associated with the statement of contributions and 3388
expenditures, the statement of independent expenditures, the 3389
disclosure of electioneering communications statement, the deposit 3390
and disbursement statement, or the gift and disbursement 3391
statement, the addendum to ~~either statement~~any of those 3392
statements, the amended statement of contributions and 3393
expenditures, or the amended statement of independent 3394
expenditures, the amended disclosure of electioneering 3395
communications statement, the amended deposit and disbursement 3396
statement, or the amended gift and disbursement statement that is 3397
executed and transmitted by electronic means by the person to whom 3398
the electronic signature is attributed. The electronic signature 3399
that is attached to or associated with the statement, addendum, or 3400
amended statement under this division shall be binding on all 3401
persons and for all purposes under the campaign finance reporting 3402
law as if the signature had been handwritten in ink on a printed 3403
form ~~of the statement, addendum, or amended statement~~. 3404

       (I) The secretary of state shall make the contribution and 3405
expenditure, the contribution and disbursement, the deposit and 3406
disbursement, or the gift and disbursement information in all 3407
statements, all addenda to the statements, and all amended 3408
statements that are filed with the secretary of state by 3409
electronic or other means of transmission under this section or 3410
section 3517.10, 3517.105, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, 3517.1013, or 3411
3517.11 of the Revised Code available online to the public by any 3412
means that are searchable, viewable, and accessible through the 3413
internet. 3414

       (J)(1) As used in this division, "library" means a library 3415
that is open to the public and that is one of the following: 3416

       (a) A library that is maintained and regulated under section 3417
715.13 of the Revised Code; 3418

       (b) A library that is created, maintained, and regulated 3419
under Chapter 3375. of the Revised Code. 3420

       (2) The secretary of state shall notify all libraries of the 3421
location on the internet at which the contribution and 3422
expenditure, contribution and disbursement, deposit and 3423
disbursement, or gift and disbursement information in campaign 3424
finance statements required to be made available online to the 3425
public through the internet pursuant to division (I) of this 3426
section may be accessed. 3427

       If that location is part of ~~the graphical subnetwork called~~ 3428
the world wide web and if the secretary of state has notified a 3429
library of that world wide web location as required by this 3430
division, the library shall include a link to that world wide web 3431
location on each internet-connected computer it maintains that is 3432
accessible to the public. 3433

       (3) If the system the secretary of state prescribes for the 3434
filing of campaign finance statements by electronic means of 3435
transmission pursuant to division (H)(1) of this section and 3436
divisions (C)(6)(b) and (D)(6) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 3437
Code includes filing those statements through the internet via an 3438
~~interactive location on the graphical subnetwork called~~ the world 3439
wide web, the secretary of state shall notify all libraries of the 3440
world wide web location at which those statements may be filed. 3441

       If those statements may be filed through the internet via an 3442
~~interactive location on the graphical subnetwork called~~ the world 3443
wide web and if the secretary of state has notified a library of 3444
that world wide web location as required by this division, the 3445
library shall include a link to that world wide web location on 3446
each internet-connected computer it maintains that is accessible 3447
to the public. 3448

       (K) It is an affirmative defense to a complaint or charge 3449
brought against any campaign committee, political action 3450
committee, legislative campaign fund, or political party, 3451
~~political contributing entity, or~~any individual, partnership, or 3452
other entity, or any person making disbursements to pay the direct 3453
costs of producing or airing electioneering communications, for 3454
the failure to file by electronic means of transmission a campaign 3455
finance statement as required by this section or section 3517.10 3456
or, 3517.105, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised 3457
Code that all of the following apply to the campaign committee, 3458
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, or 3459
political party, ~~political contributing entity, or~~the individual, 3460
partnership, or other entity, or the person making disbursements 3461
to pay the direct costs of producing or airing electioneering 3462
communications, that failed to so file ~~the required statement~~: 3463

       (1) The campaign committee, political action committee, 3464
legislative campaign fund, or political party, ~~political~~ 3465
~~contributing entity, or~~the individual, partnership, or other 3466
entity, or the person making disbursements to pay the direct costs 3467
of producing or airing electioneering communications attempted to 3468
file by electronic means of transmission the required statement 3469
prior to the deadline set forth in the applicable section. 3470

       (2) The campaign committee, political action committee, 3471
legislative campaign fund, or political party, ~~political~~ 3472
~~contributing entity, or~~the individual, partnership, or other 3473
entity, or the person making disbursements to pay the direct costs 3474
of producing or airing electioneering communications was unable to 3475
file by electronic means of transmission due to an expected or 3476
unexpected shutdown of the whole or part of the electronic 3477
campaign finance statement-filing system, such as for maintenance 3478
or because of hardware, software, or network connection failure. 3479

       (3) The campaign committee, political action committee, 3480
legislative campaign fund, or political party, ~~political~~ 3481
~~contributing entity, or~~the individual, partnership, or other 3482
entity, or the person making disbursements to pay the direct costs 3483
of producing or airing electioneering communications filed by 3484
electronic means of transmission the required statement within a 3485
reasonable period of time after being unable to so file it under 3486
the circumstance described in division (K)(2) of this section. 3487

       (L)(1) The secretary of state shall adopt rules pursuant to 3488
Chapter 119. of the Revised Code to permit a campaign committee of 3489
a candidate for statewide office that makes expenditures of less 3490
than twenty-five thousand dollars during the filing period or a 3491
campaign committee for the office of member of the general 3492
assembly or the office of judge of a court of appeals that would 3493
otherwise be required to file campaign finance statements by 3494
electronic means of transmission under division (E) or (F) of this 3495
section to file those statements by paper with the office of the 3496
secretary of state. Those rules shall provide for all of the 3497
following: 3498

       (a) An eligible campaign committee that wishes to file a 3499
campaign finance statement by paper instead of by electronic means 3500
of transmission shall file the statement on paper with the office 3501
of the secretary of state not sooner than twenty-four hours after 3502
the end of the filing period set forth in section 3517.10 of the 3503
Revised Code that is covered by the applicable statement. 3504

       (b) The statement shall be accompanied by a fee, the amount 3505
of which the secretary of state shall determine by rule. The 3506
amount of the fee established under this division shall not exceed 3507
the data entry and data verification costs the secretary of state 3508
will incur to convert the information on the statement to an 3509
electronic format as required under division (I) of this section. 3510

       (c) The secretary of state shall arrange for the information 3511
in campaign finance statements filed pursuant to division (L) of 3512
this section to be made available online to the public through the 3513
internet in the same manner, and at the same times, as information 3514
is made available under divisions (E), (F), and (I) of this 3515
section for candidates whose campaign committees file those 3516
statements by electronic means of transmission. 3517

       (d) The candidate of an eligible campaign committee that 3518
intends to file a campaign finance statement pursuant to division 3519
(L) of this section shall file an affidavit indicating that the 3520
candidate's campaign committee intends to so file and stating that 3521
filing the statement by electronic means of transmission would 3522
constitute a hardship for the candidate or for the eligible 3523
campaign committee. 3524

       (e) An eligible campaign committee that files a campaign 3525
finance statement on paper pursuant to division (L) of this 3526
section shall review the contribution and information made 3527
available online by the secretary of state with respect to that 3528
paper filing and shall notify the secretary of state of any errors 3529
with respect to that filing that appear in the data made available 3530
on that web site. 3531

       (f) If an eligible campaign committee whose candidate has 3532
filed an affidavit in accordance with rules adopted under division 3533
(L)(1)(d) of this section subsequently fails to file that 3534
statement on paper by the applicable deadline established in rules 3535
adopted under division (L)(1)(a) of this section, penalties for 3536
the late filing of the campaign finance statement shall apply to 3537
that campaign committee for each day after that paper filing 3538
deadline, as if the campaign committee had filed the statement 3539
after the applicable deadline set forth in division (A) of section 3540
3517.10 of the Revised Code. 3541

       (2) The process for permitting campaign committees that would 3542
otherwise be required to file campaign finance statements by 3543
electronic means of transmission to file those statements on paper 3544
with the office of the secretary of state that is required to be 3545
developed under division (L)(1) of this section shall be in effect 3546
and available for use by eligible campaign committees for all 3547
campaign finance statements that are required to be filed on or 3548
after June 30, 2005. Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised 3549
Code to the contrary, if the process the secretary of state is 3550
required to develop under division (L)(1) of this section is not 3551
in effect and available for use on and after June 30, 2005, all 3552
penalties for the failure of campaign committees to file campaign 3553
finance statements by electronic means of transmission shall be 3554
suspended until such time as that process is in effect and 3555
available for use. 3556

       (3) Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the 3557
contrary, any eligible campaign committee that files campaign 3558
finance statements on paper with the office of the secretary of 3559
state pursuant to division (L)(1) of this section shall be deemed 3560
to have filed those campaign finance statements by electronic 3561
means of transmission to the office of the secretary of state. 3562

       Sec. 3517.108. (A) As used in divisions (A) and (B) of this 3563
section: 3564

       (1) "Candidate" has the same meaning as in section 3517.01 of 3565
the Revised Code but includes only candidates for the offices of 3566
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of 3567
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state 3568
board of education, member of the general assembly, chief justice 3569
of the supreme court, and justice of the supreme court. 3570

       (2) A "general election period" begins on the day after the 3571
primary election immediately preceding the general election at 3572
which a candidate seeks an office specified in division (A)(1) of 3573
this section and ends on the thirty-first day of December 3574
following that general election. 3575

       (3) A "primary election period" begins on the first day of 3576
January of the year following the year in which the general 3577
election was held for the office that the candidate seeks, 3578
including any mid-term election, and ends on the day of the 3579
primary election. 3580

       (B) Whenever the campaign committee of a candidate has unpaid 3581
debt at the end of a primary election period or at the end of a 3582
general election period, the committee may accept additional 3583
contributions during the immediately following election period up 3584
to the applicable limitation prescribed under section 3517.102 of 3585
the Revised Code from any individual, political action committee, 3586
~~political contributing entity,~~ or other campaign committee who, 3587
during the primary or general election period for which debt 3588
remains unpaid, has contributed less than the contribution 3589
limitations prescribed under section 3517.102 of the Revised Code 3590
applicable to that individual, political action committee, 3591
~~political contributing entity,~~ or other campaign committee. Any 3592
additional contribution that a campaign committee accepts under 3593
this division shall count toward the applicable limitations 3594
prescribed under section 3517.102 of the Revised Code for that 3595
primary or general election period at the end of which the debt 3596
remains unpaid, and shall not count toward the applicable 3597
limitations for any other primary or general election period if 3598
all of the following conditions apply: 3599

       (1) The campaign committee reports, on the statement required 3600
to be filed under division (A)(2) of section 3517.10 of the 3601
Revised Code, all debt remaining unpaid at the end of the election 3602
period. The committee shall also file a separate statement, on a 3603
form prescribed by the secretary of state, at the same time that 3604
the committee is required to file a statement of contributions and 3605
expenditures under section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. The 3606
separate statement shall include the name and address of each 3607
contributor who makes an additional contribution under division 3608
(B) of this section, how the contribution was applied to pay the 3609
unpaid debt as required by division (B)(3) of this section, and 3610
the balance of the unpaid debt after each contribution was applied 3611
to it. 3612

       (2) The additional contributions are accepted only during the 3613
primary or general election period, whichever is applicable, 3614
immediately following the election period covered in the statement 3615
filed under division (B)(1) of this section. 3616

       (3) All additional contributions made under division (B) of 3617
this section are used by the campaign committee that receives them 3618
only to pay the debt of the committee reported under division 3619
(B)(1) of this section. 3620

       (4) The campaign committee maintains a separate account for 3621
all additional contributions made under division (B) of this 3622
section, and uses moneys in that account only to pay the unpaid 3623
debt reported under division (B)(1) of this section and to 3624
administer the account. 3625

       (5) The campaign committee stops accepting additional 3626
contributions after funds sufficient to repay the unpaid debt 3627
reported under division (B)(1) of this section have been raised 3628
and promptly disposes of any contributions received that exceed 3629
the amount of the unpaid debt by returning the excess 3630
contributions to the contributors or by giving the excess 3631
contributions to an organization that is exempt from federal 3632
income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in 3633
subsection 501(c)(3), (4), (8), (10), or (19) of the Internal 3634
Revenue Code. 3635

       Sec. 3517.109. (A) As used in this section: 3636

       (1) "Candidate" has the same meaning as in section 3517.01 of 3637
the Revised Code but includes only candidates for the offices of 3638
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of 3639
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state 3640
board of education, and member of the general assembly. 3641

       (2) "Statewide candidate" means the joint candidates for the 3642
offices of governor and lieutenant governor or a candidate for the 3643
office of secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of 3644
state, attorney general, and member of the state board of 3645
education. 3646

       (3) "Senate candidate" means a candidate for the office of 3647
state senator. 3648

       (4) "House candidate" means a candidate for the office of 3649
state representative. 3650

       (5) "State office" means the offices of governor, lieutenant 3651
governor, secretary of state, auditor of state, treasurer of 3652
state, attorney general, member of the state board of education, 3653
and member of the general assembly. 3654

       (6) "Aggregate contribution" means the total of all 3655
contributions from a contributor during the pre-filing period. 3656

       (7) "Allowable aggregate contribution" means all of the 3657
following: 3658

       (a) In the case of a contribution from a contributor whose 3659
contributions are subject to the contribution limits described in 3660
division (B)(1), (2), (3), or (6)(a)~~, or (7)~~ of section 3517.102 3661
of the Revised Code, that portion of the amount of the 3662
contributor's aggregate contribution that does not exceed the 3663
preprimary contribution limit applicable to that contributor. 3664

       (b) In the case of a contribution or contributions from a 3665
contributor whose contributions are not subject to the 3666
contribution limits described in divisions (B)(1), (2), (3), or 3667
(6)(a)~~, or (7)~~ of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, the total 3668
of the following: 3669

       (i) That portion of the aggregate contribution that was 3670
received as in-kind services; 3671

       (ii) That portion of the aggregate contribution that was 3672
received as cash and does not exceed the applicable preprimary 3673
cash transfer or contribution limits described in division 3674
(B)(6)(b) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code. 3675

       (8) "Excess aggregate contribution" means, for each 3676
contributor, the amount by which that contributor's aggregate 3677
contribution exceeds that contributor's allowable aggregate 3678
contribution. 3679

       (9) "Pre-filing period" means the period of time ending on 3680
the day that the candidacy petitions are due for the state office 3681
for which the candidate has filed and beginning on the latest date 3682
of the following: 3683

       (a) The first day of January of the year following the 3684
general election in which that state office was last on the 3685
ballot; 3686

       (b) The first day of January of the year following the 3687
general election in which the candidate was last a candidate for 3688
any office; 3689

       (c) The first day of the month following the primary election 3690
in which the candidate was last a candidate for any office. 3691

       (10) "Filing date" means the last date on which a candidacy 3692
petition may be filed for an office. 3693

       (11) "Applicable carry-in limit" means thirty-five thousand 3694
dollars if the candidate is a house candidate or a candidate for 3695
the state board of education, one hundred thousand dollars if the 3696
candidate is a senate candidate, and two hundred thousand dollars 3697
if the candidate is a statewide candidate other than a candidate 3698
for the state board of education. 3699

       (12) "Campaign asset" means prepaid, purchased, or donated 3700
assets available to the candidate on the date of the filing 3701
deadline for the office the candidate is seeking that will be 3702
consumed or depleted in the course of the candidate's election 3703
campaign, including, but not limited to, postage, prepaid rent for 3704
campaign headquarters, prepaid radio, television, and newspaper 3705
advertising, and other prepaid consulting and personal services. 3706

       (13) "Permitted funds" means the sum of the following: 3707

       (a) The total of the allowable aggregate contribution of each 3708
contributor; 3709

       (b) The applicable carry-in limit. 3710

       (14) "Excess funds" means the amount by which the sum of the 3711
total cash on hand and total reported campaign assets exceeds 3712
permitted funds. 3713

       (15) "Covered candidate" means both of the following: 3714

       (a) A candidate who, during the pre-filing period, accepts or 3715
has a campaign committee that accepts contributions on the 3716
candidate's behalf for the purpose of nominating or electing the 3717
candidate to any office not subject to the contribution limits 3718
prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code; 3719

       (b) A person who, during the pre-filing period, accepts or 3720
has a campaign committee that accepts contributions on the 3721
person's behalf prior to the person deciding upon or announcing 3722
the office for which the person will become a candidate for 3723
nomination or election. 3724

       (B) Each candidate who files for state office, not later than 3725
the filing date for that office, shall dispose of any excess 3726
funds. Each covered candidate who files for state office, not 3727
later than the filing date for that office, shall dispose of any 3728
excess aggregate contributions. 3729

       (C) Any campaign committee that is required to dispose of 3730
excess funds or excess aggregate contributions under division (B) 3731
of this section shall dispose of that excess amount or amounts by 3732
doing any of the following: 3733

       (1) Giving the amount to the treasurer of state for deposit 3734
into the state treasury to the credit of the Ohio elections 3735
commission fund created by division (I) of section 3517.152 of the 3736
Revised Code; 3737

       (2) Giving the amount to individuals who made contributions 3738
to that campaign committee as a refund of all or part of their 3739
contributions; 3740

       (3) Giving the amount to a corporation that is exempt from 3741
federal income taxation under subsection 501(a) and described in 3742
subsection 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code. 3743

       (D)(1) Subject to division (D)(2) of this section, no 3744
candidate or covered candidate shall appear on the ballot, even if 3745
certified to appear on the ballot, unless the candidate's or 3746
covered candidate's campaign committee has disposed of excess 3747
funds, excess aggregate contributions, or both as required by 3748
divisions (B) and (C) of this section. 3749

       (2) If the excess aggregate contributions accepted by a 3750
covered candidate or a covered candidate's campaign committee 3751
aggregate a total of less than five thousand dollars from all 3752
contributors, that candidate shall not be prohibited from 3753
appearing on the ballot under division (D)(1) of this section. 3754

       (E)(1) The campaign committee of each candidate required to 3755
dispose of excess funds under this section shall file a report, on 3756
a form prescribed by the secretary of state, with the official or 3757
board with which the candidate is required to file statements 3758
under section 3517.11 of the Revised Code. The report shall be 3759
filed by the seventh day following the filing deadline for the 3760
office the candidate is seeking, shall indicate the amount of 3761
excess funds disposed of, and shall describe the manner in which 3762
the campaign committee disposed of the excess amount. 3763

       (2) In addition to the information required to be included in 3764
a report filed under division (E)(1) of this section, the campaign 3765
committee of each covered candidate required to dispose of excess 3766
aggregate contributions under this section shall include in that 3767
report the source and amount of each excess aggregate contribution 3768
disposed of and shall describe the manner in which the campaign 3769
committee disposed of the excess amount. 3770

       (F)(1) Each campaign committee of a candidate who has filed a 3771
declaration of candidacy or a nominating petition for a state 3772
office, not later than seven days after the ~~date of the~~ filing 3773
~~deadline~~date for the office the candidate is seeking, shall file 3774
a declaration of filing-day finances, on a form prescribed by the 3775
secretary of state, with the official or board with which the 3776
candidate is required to file statements under section 3517.11 of 3777
the Revised Code. 3778

       (2) A declaration of filing-day finances shall list all of 3779
the following: 3780

       (a) The amount of cash on hand in the candidate's campaign 3781
fund on the ~~date of the~~ filing ~~deadline~~date for the office the 3782
candidate is seeking. 3783

       (b) The value and description of all campaign assets worth 3784
five hundred dollars or more available to the candidate on the 3785
~~date of the~~ filing date. Assets purchased by the campaign shall be 3786
valued at actual cost, and in-kind contributions shall be valued 3787
at market value. 3788

       (c) The total of all aggregate contributions; 3789

       (d) The total of all allowable aggregate contributions; 3790

       (e) The applicable carry-in limit, if any. 3791

       (3) In addition to the information required to be included in 3792
a report of filing-day finances filed under division (F)(1) of 3793
this section, the campaign committee of each covered candidate 3794
shall include both of the following in that report: 3795

       (a) The total of all excess aggregate contributions; 3796

       (b) For each contributor, if any, for whom there is an excess 3797
aggregate contribution, the name, address, aggregate contribution, 3798
and excess aggregate contribution. 3799

       (G) A campaign committee of a candidate is not required to 3800
file a declaration of filing-day finances under division (F) of 3801
this section if all of the following apply: 3802

       (1) The campaign committee has not accepted, during the 3803
pre-filing period, any aggregate contribution greater than the 3804
applicable amount. 3805

       (2) The campaign committee had less than the carry-in amount 3806
in cash on hand at the beginning of the pre-filing period. 3807

       (3) The candidate files a declaration, on a form prescribed 3808
by the secretary of state, with the official or board with which 3809
the candidate is required to file statements under section 3517.11 3810
of the Revised Code not later than seven days after the ~~date of~~ 3811
~~the~~ filing ~~deadline~~date for the office that candidate is seeking, 3812
stating that the candidate's campaign committee has not accepted 3813
aggregate contributions as described in division (G)(1) of this 3814
section and has less than the carry-in amount in cash on hand as 3815
described in division (G)(2) of this section. 3816

       Sec. 3517.1011. (A) As used in this section: 3817

       (1) "Address" has the same meaning as in section 3517.10 of 3818
the Revised Code. 3819

       (2) "Broadcast, cable, or satellite communication" means a 3820
communication that is publicly distributed by a television 3821
station, radio station, cable television system, or satellite 3822
system. 3823

       (3) "Contribution" means any loan, gift, deposit, forgiveness 3824
of indebtedness, donation, advance, payment, or transfer of funds 3825
or of anything of value, including a transfer of funds from an 3826
inter vivos or testamentary trust or decedent's estate, and the 3827
payment by any person other than the person to whom the services 3828
are rendered for the personal services of another person, that is 3829
made, received, or used to pay the direct costs of producing or 3830
airing electioneering communications. 3831

       (4)(a) "Coordinated electioneering communication" means any 3832
electioneering communication that is made pursuant to any 3833
arrangement, coordination, or direction by a candidate or a 3834
candidate's campaign committee, by an officer, agent, employee, or 3835
consultant of a candidate or a candidate's campaign committee, or 3836
by a former officer, former agent, former employee, or former 3837
consultant of a candidate or a candidate's campaign committee 3838
prior to the airing, broadcasting, or cablecasting of the 3839
communication. An electioneering communication is presumed to be a 3840
"coordinated electioneering communication" when it is either of 3841
the following: 3842

       (i) Based on information about a candidate's plans, projects, 3843
or needs provided to the person making the disbursement by the 3844
candidate or the candidate's campaign committee, by an officer, 3845
agent, employee, or consultant of the candidate or the candidate's 3846
campaign committee, or by a former officer, former agent, former 3847
employee, or former consultant of the candidate or the candidate's 3848
campaign committee, with a view toward having the communication 3849
made; 3850

       (ii) Made by or through any person who is, or has been, 3851
authorized to raise or expend funds on behalf of a candidate or 3852
the candidate's campaign committee, who is, or has been, an 3853
officer, agent, employee, or consultant of the candidate or of the 3854
candidate's campaign committee, or who is, or has been, receiving 3855
any form of compensation or reimbursement from the candidate or 3856
the candidate's campaign committee or from an officer, agent, 3857
employee, or consultant of the candidate or of the candidate's 3858
campaign committee. 3859

       (b) An electioneering communication shall not be presumed to 3860
be a "coordinated electioneering communication" under division 3861
(A)(4)(a)(ii) of this section if the communication is made through 3862
any person who provides a service that does not affect the content 3863
of the communication, such as communications placed through the 3864
efforts of a media buyer, unless that person also affects the 3865
content of the communication. 3866

       (5) "Disclosure date" means both of the following: 3867

       (a) The first date during any calendar year by which a person 3868
makes disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing 3869
electioneering communications aggregating in excess of ten 3870
thousand dollars; 3871

       (b) The same day of the week of each remaining week in the 3872
same calendar year as the day of the week of the initial 3873
disclosure date established under division (A)(5)(a) of this 3874
section, if, during that remaining week, the person makes 3875
disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing 3876
electioneering communications aggregating in excess of one dollar. 3877

       (6)(a) "Electioneering communication" means any broadcast, 3878
cable, or satellite communication that refers to a clearly 3879
identified candidate and that is made during either of the 3880
following periods of time: 3881

       (i) If the person becomes a candidate before the day of the 3882
primary election at which candidates will be nominated for 3883
election to that office, between the date that the person becomes 3884
a candidate and the thirtieth day prior to that primary election, 3885
and between the date of the primary election and the thirtieth day 3886
prior to the general election at which a candidate will be elected 3887
to that office; 3888

       (ii) If the person becomes a candidate after the day of the 3889
primary election at which candidates were nominated for election 3890
to that office, between the date of the primary election and the 3891
thirtieth day prior to the general election at which a candidate 3892
will be elected to that office. 3893

       (b) "Electioneering communication" does not include any of 3894
the following: 3895

       (i) A communication that is publicly disseminated through a 3896
means of communication other than a broadcast, cable, or satellite 3897
television or radio station. For example, "electioneering 3898
communication" does not include communications appearing in print 3899
media, including a newspaper or magazine, handbill, brochure, 3900
bumper sticker, yard sign, poster, billboard, and other written 3901
materials, including mailings; communications over the internet, 3902
including electronic mail; or telephone communications. 3903

       (ii) A communication that appears in a news story, 3904
commentary, public service announcement, bona fide news 3905
programming, or editorial distributed through the facilities of 3906
any broadcast, cable, or satellite television or radio station, 3907
unless those facilities are owned or controlled by any political 3908
party, political committee, or candidate; 3909

        (iii) A communication that constitutes an expenditure or an 3910
independent expenditure under section 3517.01 of the Revised Code; 3911

       (iv) A communication that constitutes a candidate debate or 3912
forum or that solely promotes a candidate debate or forum and is 3913
made by or on behalf of the person sponsoring the debate or forum. 3914

       (7) "Filing date" has the same meaning as in section 3517.109 3915
of the Revised Code. 3916

       (8) "Immigration and Nationality Act" means the Immigration 3917
and Nationality Act, 110 Stat. 309 (1996), 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq., 3918
as amended. 3919

       (9) "Person" has the same meaning as in section 1.59 of the 3920
Revised Code and includes any political organization considered 3921
exempt from income taxation under section 527 of the Internal 3922
Revenue Code. 3923

       (10) "Political committee" means any of the following: 3924

       (a) Any committee, club, association, or other group of 3925
persons that receives contributions aggregating in excess of one 3926
thousand dollars during a calendar year or that makes expenditures 3927
aggregating in excess of one thousand dollars during a calendar 3928
year; 3929

       (b) Any separate segregated fund; 3930

       (c) Any state, county, or local committee of a political 3931
party that does any of the following: 3932

       (i) Receives contributions aggregating in excess of five 3933
thousand dollars during a calendar year; 3934

       (ii) Makes payments that do not constitute contributions or 3935
expenditures aggregating in excess of five thousand dollars during 3936
a calendar year; 3937

       (iii) Makes contributions or expenditures aggregating in 3938
excess of one thousand dollars during a calendar year. 3939

       (11) "Publicly distributed" means aired, broadcast, 3940
cablecast, or otherwise disseminated for a fee. 3941

       (12) "Refers to a clearly identified candidate" means that 3942
the candidate's name, nickname, photograph, or drawing appears, or 3943
the identity of the candidate is otherwise apparent through an 3944
unambiguous reference to the person such as "the chief justice," 3945
"the governor," "member of the Ohio senate," "member of the Ohio 3946
house of representatives," "county auditor," "mayor," or "township 3947
trustee" or through an unambiguous reference to the person's 3948
status as a candidate. 3949

       (B) For the purposes of this section, a person shall be 3950
considered to have made a disbursement if the person has entered 3951
into a contract to make the disbursement. 3952

       (C) Any person intending to make a disbursement or 3953
disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing 3954
electioneering communications, prior to making the first 3955
disbursement for the direct costs of producing or airing an 3956
electioneering communication, shall file a notice with the office 3957
of the secretary of state that the person is intending to make 3958
such disbursements. 3959

       (D)(1) Every person that makes a disbursement or 3960
disbursements for the direct costs of producing and airing 3961
electioneering communications aggregating in excess of ten 3962
thousand dollars during any calendar year shall file, within 3963
twenty-four hours of each disclosure date, a disclosure of 3964
electioneering communications statement containing the following 3965
information: 3966

       (a) The full name and address of the person making the 3967
disbursement, of any person sharing or exercising direction or 3968
control over the activities of the person making the disbursement, 3969
and of the custodian of the books and accounts of the person 3970
making the disbursement; 3971

       (b) The principal place of business of the person making the 3972
disbursement, if not an individual; 3973

       (c) The amount of each disbursement of more than one dollar 3974
during the period covered by the statement and the identity of the 3975
person to whom the disbursement was made; 3976

       (d) The nominations or elections to which the electioneering 3977
communications pertain and the names, if known, of the candidates 3978
identified or to be identified; 3979

       (e) If the disbursements were paid out of a segregated bank 3980
account that consists of funds contributed solely by individuals 3981
who are United States citizens or nationals or lawfully admitted 3982
for permanent residence as defined in section 101(a)(20) of the 3983
Immigration and Nationality Act directly to the account for 3984
electioneering communications, the information specified in 3985
division (D)(2) of this section for all contributors who 3986
contributed an aggregate amount of two hundred dollars or more to 3987
the segregated bank account and whose contributions were used for 3988
making the disbursement or disbursements required to be reported 3989
under division (D) of this section during the period covered by 3990
the statement. Nothing in this division prohibits or shall be 3991
construed to prohibit the use of funds in such a segregated bank 3992
account for a purpose other than electioneering communications. 3993

       (f) If the disbursements were paid out of funds not described 3994
in division (D)(1)(e) of this section, the information specified 3995
in division (D)(2) of this section for all contributors who 3996
contributed an aggregate amount of two hundred dollars or more to 3997
the person making the disbursement and whose contributions were 3998
used for making the disbursement or disbursements required to be 3999
reported under division (D) of this section during the period 4000
covered by the statement. 4001

       (2) For each contributor for which information is required to 4002
be reported under division (D)(1)(e) or (f) of this section, all 4003
of the following shall be reported: 4004

       (a) The month, day, and year that the contributor made the 4005
contribution or contributions aggregating two hundred dollars or 4006
more; 4007

       (b)(i) The full name and address of the contributor, and, if 4008
the contributor is a political action committee, the registration 4009
number assigned to the political action committee under division 4010
(D)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code; 4011

       (ii) If the contributor is an individual, the name of the 4012
individual's current employer, if any, or, if the individual is 4013
self-employed, the individual's occupation and the name of the 4014
individual's business, if any; 4015

       (iii) If the contribution is transmitted pursuant to section 4016
3599.031 of the Revised Code from amounts deducted from the wages 4017
and salaries of two or more employees that exceed in the aggregate 4018
one hundred dollars during the period specified in division 4019
(D)(1)(e) or (f) of this section, as applicable, the full name of 4020
the employees' employer and the full name of the labor 4021
organization of which the employees are members, if any. 4022

       (c) A description of the contribution, if other than money; 4023

       (d) The value in dollars and cents of the contribution. 4024

       (3) Subject to the secretary of state having implemented, 4025
tested, and verified the successful operation of any system the 4026
secretary of state prescribes pursuant to divisions (C)(6)(b) and 4027
(D)(6) of section 3517.10 and division (H)(1) of section 3517.106 4028
of the Revised Code for the filing of campaign finance statements 4029
by electronic means of transmission, a person shall file the 4030
disclosure of electioneering communications statement prescribed 4031
under divisions (D)(1) and (2) of this section by electronic means 4032
of transmission to the office of the secretary of state. 4033

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 4034
receives a disclosure of electioneering communications statement 4035
under this division, the secretary of state shall make available 4036
online to the public through the internet, as provided in division 4037
(I) of section 3517.106 of the Revised Code, the contribution and 4038
disbursement information in that statement. 4039

       If a filed disclosure of electioneering communications 4040
statement is found to be incomplete or inaccurate after its 4041
examination for completeness and accuracy pursuant to division 4042
(B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised Code, the person shall 4043
file by electronic means of transmission to the office of the 4044
secretary of state any addendum, amendment, or other correction to 4045
the statement that provides the information necessary to complete 4046
or correct the statement or, if required by the secretary of state 4047
under that division, an amended statement. 4048

       Within five business days after the secretary of state 4049
receives an addendum, amendment, or other correction to a 4050
disclosure of electioneering communications statement or an 4051
amended statement by electronic means of transmission under this 4052
division or division (B)(3)(a) of section 3517.11 of the Revised 4053
Code, the secretary of state shall make the contribution and 4054
disbursement information in the addendum, amendment, or other 4055
correction to the statement or amended statement available online 4056
to the public through the internet as provided in division (I) of 4057
section 3517.106 of the Revised Code. 4058

       (E)(1) Any person who makes a contribution for the purpose of 4059
funding the direct costs of producing or airing an electioneering 4060
communication under this section shall provide the person's full 4061
name and address to the recipient of the contribution at the time 4062
the contribution is made. 4063

       (2) Any individual who makes a contribution or contributions 4064
aggregating two hundred dollars or more for the purpose of funding 4065
the direct costs of producing or airing an electioneering 4066
communication under this section shall provide the name of the 4067
individual's current employer, if any, or, if the individual is 4068
self-employed, the individual's occupation and the name of the 4069
individual's business, if any, to the recipient of the 4070
contribution at the time the contribution is made. 4071

       (F) In each electioneering communication, a statement shall 4072
appear or be presented in a clear and conspicuous manner that does 4073
both of the following: 4074

       (1) Clearly indicates that the electioneering communication 4075
is not authorized by the candidate or the candidate's campaign 4076
committee; 4077

       (2) Clearly identifies the person making the disbursement for 4078
the electioneering communication in accordance with section 4079
3517.20 of the Revised Code. 4080

       (G) Any coordinated electioneering communication is an 4081
in-kind contribution, subject to the applicable contribution 4082
limits prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, to the 4083
candidate by the person making disbursements to pay the direct 4084
costs of producing or airing the communication. 4085

       (H) No person shall make, during the thirty days preceding a 4086
primary election or during the thirty days preceding a general 4087
election, any broadcast, cable, or satellite communication that 4088
refers to a clearly identified candidate using any contributions 4089
received from a corporation or labor organization. 4090

       Sec. 3517.1012. (A)(1) Each state and county political party 4091
shall establish a restricted fund that is separate from all other 4092
accounts of the political party. 4093

       (2) A state or county political party shall deposit into its 4094
restricted fund all public moneys received from the Ohio political 4095
party fund under section 3517.17 of the Revised Code and all gifts 4096
that are made to or accepted by the political party from a 4097
corporation or labor organization subject to the applicable 4098
limitations prescribed in division (X) of section 3517.13 of the 4099
Revised Code. A state or county political party may deposit into 4100
its restricted fund any gifts that are made to or accepted by the 4101
political party from a source other than a corporation or labor 4102
organization. 4103

       (3) Moneys in a state or county political party's restricted 4104
fund may be disbursed to pay costs incurred for any of the 4105
purposes specified in division (A) of section 3517.18 of the 4106
Revised Code. 4107

       (B) Except as otherwise provided in this division, a state or 4108
county political party shall file deposit and disbursement 4109
statements, in the same manner as the party is required to file 4110
statements of contributions and expenditures under section 3517.10 4111
of the Revised Code, regarding all deposits made into, and all 4112
disbursements made from, the party's restricted fund. Deposit and 4113
disbursement statements filed in accordance with this division by 4114
a county political party shall be filed by electronic means of 4115
transmission to the office of the secretary of state at the times 4116
specified in division (A) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code 4117
for the filing of statements of contributions and expenditures if 4118
the county political party accepts gifts from a corporation or 4119
labor organization under division (A)(2) of this section. 4120

       Sec. 3517.1013. (A) As used in this section: 4121

        (1) "Gift" means a gift, subscription, loan, advance, or 4122
deposit of money, or anything of value given to a state political 4123
party that is specifically designated and used to defray any cost 4124
incurred on or after the effective date of this section for voter 4125
registration, voter identification, get-out-the-vote, or generic 4126
campaign activities, and that is not used for the purpose of 4127
directly influencing the election of any individual candidate in 4128
any particular election for any office. 4129

        (2) "Address" has the same meaning as in section 3517.10 of 4130
the Revised Code. 4131

        (3) "Political party" means a major political party as 4132
defined in section 3501.01 of the Revised Code. 4133

        (B)(1) Notwithstanding section 3599.03 of the Revised Code, 4134
any person, including a for-profit or nonprofit corporation, but 4135
not including a public utility, may make a gift to a Levin account 4136
as described in division (D) of this section, if the gift is 4137
specifically designated and used to defray any cost incurred on or 4138
after the effective date of this section for voter registration, 4139
voter identification, get-out-the-vote, or generic campaign 4140
activities that would not otherwise be considered a contribution 4141
or expenditure. 4142

        (2)(a) All gifts made by a corporation, nonprofit 4143
corporation, or labor organization under division (B)(1) of this 4144
section shall be limited to an aggregate amount of ten thousand 4145
dollars in a calendar year in which a candidate for federal office 4146
will appear on a ballot at an election to be held in this state. 4147

       (b) No corporation, nonprofit corporation, or labor 4148
organization shall make a gift under division (B)(1) of this 4149
section in any year in which no candidate for federal office will 4150
appear on the ballot at an election to be held in this state. 4151

        (3) The limitation described in division (B)(2)(a) of this 4152
section is in addition to any limitation described in section 4153
3517.1012 or any other section of the Revised Code. 4154

        (C)(1) Each state political party that receives a gift under 4155
this section shall file, by electronic means of transmission to 4156
the office of the secretary of state, a full, true, and itemized 4157
statement describing the gift received and the manner in which 4158
disbursements were made from the account. The statement shall be 4159
filed at the same time as and in conjunction with each filing of a 4160
deposit and disbursement statement by the state political party in 4161
accordance with division (B) of section 3517.1012 of the Revised 4162
Code. 4163

        (2) Each statement required under division (C)(1) of this 4164
section shall contain all of the following information: 4165

        (a) The full name and address of the state political party 4166
filing the statement and the full name and address of the party's 4167
treasurer; 4168

        (b) A description of each gift received, which shall include 4169
all of the following: 4170

        (i) The month, day, and year on which the gift was received; 4171

        (ii) The full name and address of each donor of the gift; 4172

        (iii) The nature of the gift, if other than money; 4173

        (iv) The value of the gift in dollars and cents. Each gift 4174
received shall be itemized separately, regardless of its amount or 4175
value. 4176

        (c) An itemization of the manner in which each disbursement 4177
was made, which shall include all of the following: 4178

        (i) The name and address of the recipient of the 4179
disbursement; 4180

        (ii) The date of the disbursement; 4181

        (iii) The amount of the disbursement; 4182

        (iv) The method by which the disbursement was made, such as 4183
by cash or check. 4184

        (d) The total value of gifts received and gifts disbursed 4185
during the reporting period. 4186

        (D) All monetary gifts given pursuant to this section shall 4187
be deposited in an account separate from other funds and shall be 4188
maintained in that separate account, which account shall be 4189
designated a "Levin account." Moneys in a Levin account shall be 4190
used only for voter registration, voter identification, 4191
get-out-the-vote, or generic campaign activities that would not 4192
otherwise be considered a contribution or expenditure. 4193

        (E)(1) No state political party shall fail to file a 4194
statement required to be filed under this section. 4195

        (2) No state political party shall knowingly fail to report, 4196
or shall knowingly misrepresent, a gift required to be reported on 4197
a statement required to be filed under this section. 4198

        (F) No state political party shall expend or use a gift 4199
received under this section for a purpose other than to defray a 4200
cost incurred on or after the effective date of this section for 4201
voter registration, voter identification, get-out-the-vote, or 4202
generic campaign activities that would not otherwise be considered 4203
a contribution or expenditure. 4204

        (G)(1) Before receiving a gift under this section, each state 4205
political party shall appoint a treasurer and file, on a form 4206
prescribed by the secretary of state, a designation of that 4207
appointment. The designation shall include the full name and 4208
address of the political party for which the person has been 4209
appointed treasurer. The designation shall be filed with the 4210
secretary of state. 4211

        (2) The treasurer shall keep a strict account of all gifts 4212
required to be reported under this section. 4213

       (3) A state political party that has already filed the form 4214
required under division (G)(1) of this section prior to receiving 4215
a contribution or making an expenditure is considered to have met 4216
the requirements of that division. 4217

        (H) Upon request, the secretary of state shall issue a 4218
receipt for each statement filed under this section. The secretary 4219
of state shall maintain a record of the filing for at least six 4220
years. All statements filed under this section shall be open to 4221
public inspection in the office in which they are filed. 4222

       Sec. 3517.11. (A)(1) Campaign committees of candidates for 4223
statewide ~~offices~~office or the state board of education, 4224
political action committees ~~or political contributing entities~~ 4225
that make contributions to campaign committees of candidates that 4226
are required to file the statements prescribed by section 3517.10 4227
of the Revised Code with the secretary of state, political action 4228
committees ~~or political contributing entities~~ that make 4229
contributions to campaign committees of candidates for member of 4230
the general assembly, political action committees ~~or political~~ 4231
~~contributing entities~~ that make contributions to state and 4232
national political parties and to legislative campaign funds, 4233
political action committees ~~or political contributing entities~~ 4234
that receive contributions or make expenditures in connection with 4235
a statewide ballot issue, political action committees ~~or political~~ 4236
~~contributing entities~~ that make contributions to other political 4237
action committees ~~or political contributing entities~~, political 4238
parties, and campaign committees, except as set forth in division 4239
(A)(3) of this section, legislative campaign funds, and state and 4240
national political parties shall file the statements prescribed by 4241
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code with the secretary of state. 4242

       (2)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (F) of 4243
section 3517.106 of the Revised Code, campaign committees of 4244
candidates for all other offices shall file the statements 4245
prescribed by section 3517.10 of the Revised Code with the board 4246
of elections where their candidates are required to file their 4247
petitions or other papers for nomination or election. 4248

       (b) A campaign committee of a candidate for office of member 4249
of the general assembly or a campaign committee of a candidate for 4250
the office of judge of a court of appeals shall file two copies of 4251
the printed version of any statement, addendum, or amended 4252
statement if the committee does not file ~~by electronic means of~~ 4253
~~transmission or on computer disk~~ pursuant to division (F)(1) or 4254
(L) of section 3517.106 of the Revised Code but files by printed 4255
version only with the appropriate board of elections. The board of 4256
elections shall send one of those copies by overnight delivery 4257
service to the secretary of state before the close of business on 4258
the day the board of elections receives the statement, addendum, 4259
or amended statement. 4260

       (3) Political action committees ~~or political contributing~~ 4261
~~entities~~ that only contribute to a county political party, 4262
contribute to campaign committees of candidates whose nomination 4263
or election is to be submitted only to electors within a county, 4264
subdivision, or district, excluding candidates for member of the 4265
general assembly, and receive contributions or make expenditures 4266
in connection with ballot questions or issues to be submitted only 4267
to electors within a county, subdivision, or district shall file 4268
the statements prescribed by section 3517.10 of the Revised Code 4269
with the board of elections in that county or in the county 4270
contained in whole or part within the subdivision or district 4271
having a population greater than that of any other county 4272
contained in whole or part within that subdivision or district, as 4273
the case may be. 4274

       (4) ~~County~~Except as otherwise provided in division (E)(3) of 4275
section 3517.106 of the Revised Code with respect to state 4276
candidate funds, county political parties shall file the 4277
statements prescribed by section 3517.10 of the Revised Code with 4278
the board of elections of their respective counties. 4279

       (B)(1) The official with whom petitions and other papers for 4280
nomination or election to public office are filed shall furnish 4281
each candidate at the time of that filing a copy of sections 4282
3517.01, 3517.08 to 3517.11, 3517.13 to 3517.993, 3599.03, and 4283
3599.031 of the Revised Code and any other materials that the 4284
secretary of state may require. Each candidate receiving the 4285
materials shall acknowledge their receipt in writing. 4286

       (2) On or before the tenth day before the dates on which 4287
statements are required to be filed by section 3517.10 of the 4288
Revised Code, every candidate subject to the provisions of this 4289
section and sections 3517.10 and 3517.106 of the Revised Code 4290
shall be notified of the requirements and applicable penalties of 4291
those sections. The secretary of state, by certified mail, return 4292
receipt requested, shall notify all candidates required to file 4293
those statements with the secretary of state's office. The board 4294
of elections of every county shall notify by first class mail any 4295
candidate who has personally appeared at the office of the board 4296
on or before the tenth day before the statements are required to 4297
be filed and signed a form, to be provided by the secretary of 4298
state, attesting that the candidate has been notified of the 4299
candidate's obligations under the campaign finance law. The board 4300
shall forward the completed form to the secretary of state. The 4301
board shall use certified mail, return receipt requested, to 4302
notify all other candidates required to file those statements with 4303
it. 4304

       (3)(a) Any statement required to be filed under sections 4305
3517.081 to 3517.17 of the Revised Code that is found to be 4306
incomplete or inaccurate by the officer to whom it is submitted 4307
shall be accepted on a conditional basis, and the person who filed 4308
it shall be notified by certified mail as to the incomplete or 4309
inaccurate nature of the statement. The secretary of state may 4310
examine statements filed for candidates for the office of member 4311
of the general assembly and candidates for the office of judge of 4312
a court of appeals for completeness and accuracy. The secretary of 4313
state shall examine for completeness and accuracy statements that 4314
campaign committees of candidates for the office of member of the 4315
general assembly and campaign committees of candidates for the 4316
office of judge of a court of appeals file ~~by electronic means of~~ 4317
~~transmission~~ pursuant to division (F) or (L) of section 3517.106 4318
of the Revised Code. If an officer at the board of elections where 4319
a statement filed for a candidate for the office of member of the 4320
general assembly or for a candidate for the office of judge of a 4321
court of appeals was submitted finds the statement to be 4322
incomplete or inaccurate, the officer shall immediately notify the 4323
secretary of state of its incomplete or inaccurate nature. If 4324
either an officer at the board of elections or the secretary of 4325
state finds a statement filed for a candidate for the office of 4326
member of the general assembly or for a candidate for the office 4327
of judge of a court of appeals to be incomplete or inaccurate, 4328
only the secretary of state shall send the notification as to the 4329
incomplete or inaccurate nature of the statement. 4330

       Within twenty-one days after receipt of the notice, in the 4331
case of a pre-election statement, a postelection statement, a 4332
monthly statement, or an annual statement, or a semiannual 4333
statement prescribed by section 3517.10, an annual statement 4334
prescribed by section 3517.101, or a statement prescribed by 4335
division (B)(2)(b) or (C)(2)(b) of section 3517.105 or section 4336
3517.107 of the Revised Code, the recipient shall file an 4337
addendum, amendment, or other correction to the statement 4338
providing the information necessary to complete or correct the 4339
statement. The secretary of state may require that, in lieu of 4340
filing an addendum, amendment, or other correction to a statement 4341
that is filed by electronic means of transmission to the office of 4342
the secretary of state ~~or on computer disk with the appropriate~~ 4343
~~board of elections~~ pursuant to section 3517.106 of the Revised 4344
Code, the recipient of the notice described in this division file 4345
by electronic means of transmission~~, or, until March 1, 2004, on~~ 4346
~~computer disk with the appropriate board of elections if the~~ 4347
~~original statement was filed on computer disk,~~ an amended 4348
statement that incorporates the information necessary to complete 4349
or correct the statement. ~~The~~ 4350

       The secretary of state shall determine by rule when an 4351
addendum, amendment, or other correction to aany of the following 4352
or when an amended statement of any of the following shall be 4353
filed: 4354

       (i) A two-business-day statement prescribed by section 4355
3517.10 of the Revised Code ~~or an amended two-business-day~~ 4356
~~statement shall be filed~~; 4357

       (ii) A disclosure of electioneering communications statement 4358
prescribed by division (D) of section 3517.1011 of the Revised 4359
Code; 4360

       (iii) A deposit and disbursement statement prescribed under 4361
division (B) of section 3517.1012 of the Revised Code; 4362

       (iv) A gift and disbursement statement prescribed under 4363
section 3517.1013 of the Revised Code. An 4364

       An addendum, amendment, or other correction to a statement 4365
that is filed by electronic means of transmission ~~or on computer~~ 4366
~~disk~~ pursuant to section 3517.106 of the Revised Code shall be 4367
filed in the same manner as the statement. ~~The~~ 4368

       The provisions of sections 3517.10 ~~and~~, 3517.106, 3517.1011, 4369
3517.1012, and 3517.1013 of the Revised Code pertaining to the 4370
filing of statements of contributions and expenditures ~~and~~, 4371
statements of independent expenditures, disclosure of 4372
electioneering communications statements, deposit and disbursement 4373
statements, and gift and disbursement statements by electronic 4374
means of transmission ~~or on computer disk~~ apply to the filing of 4375
addenda, amendments, or other corrections to those statements by 4376
electronic means of transmission ~~or, until March 1, 2004, on~~ 4377
~~computer disk~~ and the filing of amended statements by electronic 4378
means of transmission ~~or, until March 1, 2004, on computer disk~~. 4379

       (b) Within five business days after the secretary of state 4380
receives, by electronic or other means of transmission, an 4381
addendum, amendment, or other correction to a statement or an 4382
amended statement under division (B)(3)(a) of this section, the 4383
secretary of state, pursuant to divisions (E), (F), (G), and (I) 4384
of section 3517.106 or division (D) of section 3517.1011 of the 4385
Revised Code, shall make the contribution and expenditure, 4386
contribution and disbursement, deposit and disbursement, or gift 4387
and disbursement information in that addendum, amendment, 4388
correction, or amended statement available online to the public 4389
through the internet. 4390

       (4)(a) The secretary of state or the board of elections shall 4391
examine all statements for compliance with sections 3517.08 to 4392
3517.17 of the Revised Code. 4393

       (b) The secretary of state may contract with an individual or 4394
entity not associated with the secretary of state and experienced 4395
in interpreting the campaign finance law of this state to conduct 4396
examinations of statements filed by any statewide candidate, as 4397
defined in section 3517.103 of the Revised Code. 4398

       (c) The examination shall be conducted by a person or entity 4399
qualified to conduct it. The results of the examination shall be 4400
available to the public, and, when the examination is conducted by 4401
an individual or entity not associated with the secretary of 4402
state, the results of the examination shall be reported to the 4403
secretary of state. 4404

       (C)(1) In the event of a failure to file or a late filing of 4405
a statement required to be filed under sections 3517.081 to 4406
3517.17 of the Revised Code, or if a filed statement or any 4407
addendum, amendment, or other correction to ~~the~~a statement or any 4408
amended statement, if an addendum, amendment, or other correction 4409
or an amended statement is required to be filed, is incomplete or 4410
inaccurate or appears to disclose a failure to comply with or a 4411
violation of law, the official whose duty it is to examine the 4412
statement shall promptly file a complaint with the Ohio elections 4413
commission under section 3517.153 of the Revised Code if the law 4414
is one over which the commission has jurisdiction to hear 4415
complaints, or the official shall promptly report the failure or 4416
violation to the board of elections and the board shall promptly 4417
report it to the prosecuting attorney in accordance with division 4418
(J) of section 3501.11 of the Revised Code. If the official files 4419
a complaint with the commission, the commission shall proceed in 4420
accordance with sections 3517.154 to 3517.157 of the Revised Code. 4421

       (2) For purposes of division (C)(1) of this section, a 4422
statement or an addendum, amendment, or other correction to a 4423
statement or an amended statement required to be filed under 4424
sections 3517.081 to 3517.17 of the Revised Code is incomplete or 4425
inaccurate under this section if the statement or, addendum, 4426
amendment, other correction, or amended statement fails to 4427
disclose substantially all contributions or gifts that are 4428
received ~~from a source and that~~or deposits that are made that are 4429
required to be reported under sections 3517.10, 3517.107, ~~and~~ 4430
3517.108, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, and 3517.1013 of the Revised Code 4431
or if the statement or, addendum, amendment, other correction, or 4432
amended statement fails to disclose at least ninety per cent of 4433
the total contributions or gifts received or deposits made or of 4434
the total expenditures or disbursements made during the reporting 4435
period. 4436

       (D) No certificate of nomination or election shall be issued 4437
to a person, and no person elected to an office shall enter upon 4438
the performance of the duties of that office, until that person or 4439
that person's campaign committee, as appropriate, has fully 4440
complied with this section and sections 3517.08, 3517.081, 4441
3517.10, and 3517.13 of the Revised Code. 4442

       Sec. 3517.13. (A)(1) No campaign committee ~~for~~of a 4443
statewide candidate ~~whose candidacy for nomination or election was~~ 4444
~~submitted to electors throughout the entire state~~ shall fail to 4445
file a complete and accurate statement required under division 4446
(A)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 4447

       (2) No campaign committee of a statewide candidate shall fail 4448
to file a complete and accurate monthly statement, and no campaign 4449
committee of a statewide candidate or a candidate for the office 4450
of chief justice or justice of the supreme court shall fail to 4451
file a complete and accurate two-business-day statement, as 4452
required under section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 4453

        As used in this division, "statewide candidate" has the same 4454
meaning as in division (F)(2) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 4455
Code. 4456

       (B) No campaign committee ~~for a candidate whose candidacy for~~ 4457
~~nomination or election was submitted to electors within a county~~ 4458
~~or district~~ shall fail to file a complete and accurate statement 4459
required under division (A)(1) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 4460
Code. 4461

       (C) No campaign committee shall fail to file a complete and 4462
accurate statement required under division (A)(2) of section 4463
3517.10 of the Revised Code. 4464

       (D) No campaign committee shall fail to file a complete and 4465
accurate statement required under division (A)(3) or (4) of 4466
section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 4467

       (E) No person other than a campaign committee shall knowingly 4468
fail to file a statement required under section 3517.10 or 4469
3517.107 of the Revised Code. 4470

       (F) No person shall make cash contributions to any person 4471
totaling more than one hundred dollars in each primary, special, 4472
or general election. 4473

       (G)(1) No person shall knowingly conceal or misrepresent 4474
contributions given or received, expenditures made, or any other 4475
information required to be reported by a provision in sections 4476
3517.08 to 3517.13 and 3517.17 of the Revised Code. 4477

       (2)(a) No person shall make a contribution to a campaign 4478
committee, political action committee, legislative campaign fund, 4479
political party, or ~~political contributing entity~~person making 4480
disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing or airing 4481
electioneering communications in the name of another person. 4482

       (b) A person does not make a contribution in the name of 4483
another when either of the following applies: 4484

       (i) An individual makes a contribution from a partnership or 4485
other unincorporated business account, if the contribution is 4486
reported by listing both the name of the partnership or other 4487
unincorporated business and the name of the partner or owner 4488
making the contribution as required under division (I) of section 4489
3517.10 of the Revised Code. 4490

       (ii) A person makes a contribution in that person's spouse's 4491
name or in both of their names. 4492

       (H) No person within this state, publishing a newspaper or 4493
other periodical, shall charge a campaign committee for political 4494
advertising a rate in excess of the rate such person would charge 4495
if the campaign committee were a general rate advertiser whose 4496
advertising was directed to promoting its business within the same 4497
area as that encompassed by the particular office that the 4498
candidate of the campaign committee is seeking. The rate shall 4499
take into account the amount of space used, as well as the type of 4500
advertising copy submitted by or on behalf of the campaign 4501
committee. All discount privileges otherwise offered by a 4502
newspaper or periodical to general rate advertisers shall be 4503
available upon equal terms to all campaign committees. 4504

       No person within this state, operating a radio or television 4505
station or network of stations in this state, shall charge a 4506
campaign committee for political broadcasts a rate that exceeds: 4507

       (1) During the forty-five days preceding the date of a 4508
primary election and during the sixty days preceding the date of a 4509
general or special election in which the candidate of the campaign 4510
committee is seeking office, the lowest unit charge of the station 4511
for the same class and amount of time for the same period; 4512

       (2) At any other time, the charges made for comparable use of 4513
~~such~~that station by its other users. 4514

       (I) Subject to divisions (K), (L), (M), and (N) of this 4515
section, no agency or department of this state or any political 4516
subdivision shall award any contract, other than one let by 4517
competitive bidding or a contract incidental to such contract or 4518
which is by force account, for the purchase of goods costing more 4519
than five hundred dollars or services costing more than five 4520
hundred dollars to any individual, partnership, association, 4521
including, without limitation, a professional association 4522
organized under Chapter 1785. of the Revised Code, estate, or 4523
trust if the individual has made or the individual's spouse has 4524
made, or any partner, shareholder, administrator, executor, or 4525
trustee, or the ~~spouses~~spouse of any of them has made, as an 4526
individual, within the two previous calendar years, one or more 4527
contributions totaling in excess of one thousand dollars to the 4528
holder of the public office having ultimate responsibility for the 4529
award of the contract or to the public officer's campaign 4530
committee. 4531

       (J) Subject to divisions (K), (L), (M), and (N) of this 4532
section, no agency or department of this state or any political 4533
subdivision shall award any contract, other than one let by 4534
competitive bidding or a contract incidental to such contract or 4535
which is by force account, for the purchase of goods costing more 4536
than five hundred dollars or services costing more than five 4537
hundred dollars to a corporation or business trust, except a 4538
professional association organized under Chapter 1785. of the 4539
Revised Code, if an owner of more than twenty per cent of the 4540
corporation or business trust or the spouse of ~~such~~that person, 4541
has made, as an individual, within the two previous calendar 4542
years, taking into consideration only owners for all of ~~such~~that 4543
period, one or more contributions totaling in excess of one 4544
thousand dollars to the holder of a public office having ultimate 4545
responsibility for the award of the contract or to the public 4546
officer's campaign committee. 4547

       (K) For purposes of divisions (I) and (J) of this section, if 4548
a public officer who is responsible for the award of a contract is 4549
appointed by the governor, whether or not the appointment is 4550
subject to the advice and consent of the senate, excluding members 4551
of boards, commissions, committees, authorities, councils, boards 4552
of trustees, task forces, and other such entities appointed by the 4553
governor, the office of the governor is considered to have 4554
ultimate responsibility for the award of the contract. 4555

       (L) For purposes of divisions (I) and (J) of this section, if 4556
a public officer who is responsible for the award of a contract is 4557
appointed by the elected chief executive officer of a municipal 4558
corporation, or appointed by the elected chief executive officer 4559
of a county operating under an alternative form of county 4560
government or county charter, excluding members of boards, 4561
commissions, committees, authorities, councils, boards of 4562
trustees, task forces, and other such entities appointed by the 4563
chief executive officer, the office of the chief executive officer 4564
is considered to have ultimate responsibility for the award of the 4565
contract. 4566

       (M)(1) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply to 4567
contracts awarded by the board of commissioners of the sinking 4568
fund, municipal legislative authorities, boards of education, 4569
boards of county commissioners, boards of township trustees, or 4570
other boards, commissions, committees, authorities, councils, 4571
boards of trustees, task forces, and other such entities created 4572
by law, by the supreme court or courts of appeals, by county 4573
courts consisting of more than one judge, courts of common pleas 4574
consisting of more than one judge, or municipal courts consisting 4575
of more than one judge, or by a division of any court if the 4576
division consists of more than one judge. ~~Division (M)(1) of this~~ 4577
~~section~~This division shall apply to the specified entity only if 4578
the members of the entity act collectively in the award of a 4579
contract for goods or services. 4580

       (2) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply to 4581
actions of the controlling board. 4582

       (N)(1) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section apply to 4583
contributions made to the holder of a public office having 4584
ultimate responsibility for the award of a contract, or to the 4585
public officer's campaign committee, during the time the person 4586
holds the office and during any time such person was a candidate 4587
for the office. ~~These~~Those divisions do not apply to 4588
contributions made to, or to the campaign committee of, a 4589
candidate for or holder of the office other than the holder of the 4590
office at the time of the award of the contract. 4591

       (2) Divisions (I) and (J) of this section do not apply to 4592
contributions of a partner, shareholder, administrator, executor, 4593
trustee, or owner of more than twenty per cent of a corporation or 4594
business trust made before the person held any of those positions 4595
or after the person ceased to hold any of those positions in the 4596
partnership, association, estate, trust, corporation, or business 4597
trust whose eligibility to be awarded a contract is being 4598
determined, nor to contributions of the person's spouse made 4599
before the person held any of those positions, after the person 4600
ceased to hold any of those positions, before the two were 4601
married, or after the granting of a decree of divorce, dissolution 4602
of marriage, or ~~nullity~~annulment, or after the granting of an 4603
order in an action brought solely for legal separation. ~~These~~ 4604
Those divisions do not apply to contributions of the spouse of an 4605
individual whose eligibility to be awarded a contract is being 4606
determined made before the two were married, or after the granting 4607
of a decree of divorce, dissolution of marriage, or ~~nullity~~ 4608
annulment, or after the granting of an order in an action brought 4609
solely for legal separation. 4610

       (O) No beneficiary of a campaign fund or other person shall 4611
convert for personal use, and no person shall knowingly give to a 4612
beneficiary of a campaign fund or any other person, for the 4613
beneficiary's or any other person's personal use, anything of 4614
value from the beneficiary's campaign fund, including, without 4615
limitation, payments to a beneficiary for services the beneficiary 4616
personally performs, except as reimbursement for any of the 4617
following: 4618

       (1) Legitimate and verifiable prior campaign expenses 4619
incurred by the beneficiary; 4620

       (2) Legitimate and verifiable, ordinary, and necessary prior 4621
expenses incurred by the beneficiary in connection with duties as 4622
the holder of a public office, including, without limitation, 4623
expenses incurred through participation in nonpartisan or 4624
bipartisan events if the participation of the holder of a public 4625
office would normally be expected; 4626

       (3) Legitimate and verifiable ordinary and necessary prior 4627
expenses incurred by the beneficiary while doing any of the 4628
following: 4629

       (a) ~~Engaged~~Engaging in activities in support of or 4630
opposition to a candidate other than the beneficiary, political 4631
party, or ballot issue; 4632

       (b) Raising funds for a political party, political action 4633
committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ legislative campaign 4634
fund, campaign committee, or other candidate; 4635

       (c) Participating in the activities of a political party, 4636
political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 4637
legislative campaign fund, or campaign committee; or 4638

       (d) Attending a political party convention or other political 4639
meeting. 4640

       For purposes of this division, an expense is incurred 4641
whenever a beneficiary has either made payment or is obligated to 4642
make payment, as by the use of a credit card or other credit 4643
procedure or by the use of goods or services received on account. 4644

       (P) No beneficiary of a campaign fund shall knowingly accept, 4645
and no person shall knowingly give to the beneficiary of a 4646
campaign fund, reimbursement for an expense under division (O) of 4647
this section to the extent that the expense previously was 4648
reimbursed or paid from another source of funds. If an expense is 4649
reimbursed under division (O) of this section and is later paid or 4650
reimbursed, wholly or in part, from another source of funds, the 4651
beneficiary shall repay the reimbursement received under division 4652
(O) of this section to the extent of the payment made or 4653
reimbursement received from the other source. 4654

       (Q) No candidate or public official or employee shall accept 4655
for personal or business use anything of value from a political 4656
party, political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 4657
legislative campaign fund, or campaign committee other than the 4658
candidate's or public official's or employee's own campaign 4659
committee, and no person shall knowingly give to a candidate or 4660
public official or employee anything of value from a political 4661
party, political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 4662
legislative campaign fund, or such a campaign committee, except 4663
for the following: 4664

       (1) Reimbursement for legitimate and verifiable, ordinary, 4665
and necessary prior expenses not otherwise prohibited by law 4666
incurred by the candidate or public official or employee while 4667
engaged in any legitimate activity of the political party, 4668
political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 4669
legislative campaign fund, or such campaign committee. Without 4670
limitation, reimbursable expenses under this division include 4671
those incurred while doing any of the following: 4672

       (a) ~~Engaged~~Engaging in activities in support of or 4673
opposition to another candidate, political party, or ballot issue; 4674

       (b) Raising funds for a political party, legislative campaign 4675
fund, campaign committee, or another candidate; or 4676

       (c) Attending a political party convention or other political 4677
meeting. 4678

       (2) Compensation not otherwise prohibited by law for actual 4679
and valuable personal services rendered under a written contract 4680
to the political party, political action committee, ~~political~~ 4681
~~contributing entity,~~ legislative campaign fund, or such campaign 4682
committee for any legitimate activity of the political party, 4683
political action committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ 4684
legislative campaign fund, or such campaign committee. 4685

       Reimbursable expenses under this division do not include, and 4686
it is a violation of this division for a candidate or public 4687
official or employee to accept, or for any person to knowingly 4688
give to a candidate or public official or employee from a 4689
political party, political action committee, ~~political~~ 4690
~~contributing entity,~~ legislative campaign fund, or campaign 4691
committee other than the candidate's or public official's or 4692
employee's own campaign committee, anything of value for 4693
activities primarily related to the candidate's or public 4694
official's or employee's own campaign for election, except for 4695
contributions to the candidate's or public official's or 4696
employee's campaign committee. 4697

       For purposes of this division, an expense is incurred 4698
whenever a candidate or public official or employee has either 4699
made payment or is obligated to make payment, as by the use of a 4700
credit card or other credit procedure, or by the use of goods or 4701
services on account. 4702

       (R)(1) Division (O) or (P) of this section does not prohibit 4703
a campaign committee from making direct advance or post payment 4704
from contributions to vendors for goods and services for which 4705
reimbursement is permitted under division (O) of this section, 4706
except that no campaign committee shall pay its candidate or other 4707
beneficiary for services personally performed by the candidate or 4708
other beneficiary. 4709

       (2) If any expense that may be reimbursed under division (O), 4710
(P), or (Q) of this section is part of other expenses that may not 4711
be paid or reimbursed, the separation of the two types of expenses 4712
for the purpose of allocating for payment or reimbursement those 4713
expenses that may be paid or reimbursed may be by any reasonable 4714
accounting method, considering all of the surrounding 4715
circumstances. 4716

       (3) For purposes of divisions (O), (P), and (Q) of this 4717
section, mileage allowance at a rate not greater than that allowed 4718
by the internal revenue service at the time the travel occurs may 4719
be paid instead of reimbursement for actual travel expenses 4720
allowable. 4721

       (S)(1) As used in division (S) of this section: 4722

       (a) "State elective office" has the same meaning as in 4723
section 3517.092 of the Revised Code. 4724

       (b) "Federal office" means a federal office as defined in the 4725
Federal Election Campaign Act. 4726

       (c) "Federal campaign committee" means a principal campaign 4727
committee or authorized committee as defined in the Federal 4728
Election Campaign Act. 4729

       (2) No person who is a candidate for state elective office 4730
and who previously sought nomination or election to a federal 4731
office shall transfer any funds or assets from that person's 4732
federal campaign committee for nomination or election to the 4733
federal office to that person's campaign committee as a candidate 4734
for state elective office. 4735

       (3) No campaign committee of a person who is a candidate for 4736
state elective office and who previously sought nomination or 4737
election to a federal office shall accept any funds or assets from 4738
that person's federal campaign committee for that person's 4739
nomination or election to the federal office. 4740

       (T)(1) Except as otherwise provided in division (B)(6)(c) of 4741
section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, a state or county political 4742
party shall not disburse moneys from any account other than a 4743
state candidate fund to make contributions to any of the 4744
following: 4745

       (a) A state candidate fund; 4746

       (b) A legislative campaign fund; 4747

       (c) A campaign committee of a candidate for the office of 4748
governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state, auditor of 4749
state, treasurer of state, attorney general, member of the state 4750
board of education, or member of the general assembly. 4751

       (2) No state candidate fund, legislative campaign fund, or 4752
campaign committee of a candidate for any office described in 4753
division (T)(1)(c) of this section shall knowingly accept a 4754
contribution in violation of division (T)(1) of this section. 4755

       (U) No person shall fail to file the statement required under 4756
section 3517.12 of the Revised Code. 4757

       (V) No campaign committee shall fail to file a statement 4758
required under division (K)(3) of section 3517.10 of the Revised 4759
Code. 4760

       (W)(1) No foreign national shall, directly or indirectly 4761
through any other person or entity, make a contribution, 4762
expenditure, or independent expenditure or promise, either 4763
expressly or implicitly, to make a contribution, expenditure, or 4764
independent expenditure in support of or opposition to a candidate 4765
for any elective office in this state, including an office of a 4766
political party. 4767

       (2) No candidate, campaign committee, political action 4768
committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ legislative campaign 4769
fund, state candidate fund, political party, or separate 4770
segregated fund shall solicit or accept a contribution, 4771
expenditure, or independent expenditure from a foreign national. 4772
The secretary of state may direct any candidate, committee, fund, 4773
~~entity,~~ or party that accepts a contribution, expenditure, or 4774
independent expenditure in violation of this division to return 4775
the contribution, expenditure, or independent expenditure or, if 4776
it is not possible to return the contribution, expenditure, or 4777
independent expenditure, then to return instead the value of it, 4778
to the contributor. 4779

       (3) As used in division (W) of this section, "foreign 4780
national" has the same meaning as in section 441e(b) of the 4781
Federal Election Campaign Act. 4782

       (X)(1) No state or county political party shall transfer any 4783
moneys from its restricted fund to any account of the political 4784
party into which contributions may be made or from which 4785
contributions or expenditures may be made. 4786

       (2)(a) No state or county political party shall deposit a 4787
contribution or contributions that it receives into its restricted 4788
fund. 4789

       (b) No state or county political party shall make a 4790
contribution or an expenditure from its restricted fund. 4791

       (3)(a) No corporation or labor organization shall make a gift 4792
or gifts from the corporation's or labor organization's money or 4793
property aggregating more than ten thousand dollars to any one 4794
state or county political party for the party's restricted fund in 4795
a calendar year. 4796

       (b) No state or county political party shall accept a gift or 4797
gifts for the party's restricted fund aggregating more than ten 4798
thousand dollars from any one corporation or labor organization in 4799
a calendar year. 4800

       (4) No state or county political party shall transfer any 4801
moneys in the party's restricted fund to any other state or county 4802
political party. 4803

       (5) No state or county political party shall knowingly fail 4804
to file a statement required under section 3517.1012 of the 4805
Revised Code. 4806

       Sec. 3517.151. (A) On and after January 1, 1996, complaints 4807
with respect to acts or failures to act under the sections listed 4808
in division (A) of section 3517.153 of the Revised Code shall be 4809
filed with the Ohio elections commission created under section 4810
3517.152 of the Revised Code. 4811

       (B)(1) If a complaint filed with the Ohio elections 4812
commission created under section 3517.152 of the Revised Code 4813
alleges an act or failure to act that occurred before August 24, 4814
1995, and the commission imposes a fine, sections 3517.99 and 4815
3517.991 of the Revised Code, and not sections 3517.992 and 4816
3517.993 of the Revised Code, shall apply. 4817

       (2) If a complaint filed with the Ohio elections commission 4818
created under section 3517.152 of the Revised Code alleges an act 4819
or failure to act that is a violation of section 3517.13 of the 4820
Revised Code, former divisions (A) to (R) of that section apply to 4821
the act or failure to act if it occurred before August 24, 1995, 4822
former divisions (A) to (U) of that section apply to the act or 4823
failure to act if it occurs on or after August 24, 1995, but 4824
before July 13, 1998, former divisions (A) to (V) of that section 4825
apply to the act or failure to act if it occurs on or after July 4826
13, 1998, but before ~~the effective date of this amendment~~December 4827
22, 1999, ~~and~~former divisions (A) to (W) of that section apply to 4828
the act or failure to act if it occurs on or after ~~the effective~~ 4829
~~date of this amendment~~December 22, 1999, but before the effective 4830
date of this amendment, and divisions (A) to (X) of that section 4831
apply to the act or failure to act if it occurs on or after the 4832
effective date of this amendment. 4833

       (C) The Ohio elections commission created under section 4834
3517.14 of the Revised Code is abolished at the close of business 4835
on December 31, 1995. 4836

       Sec. 3517.152. (A)(1) There is hereby created the Ohio 4837
elections commission consisting of seven members. 4838

       Not later than forty-five days after August 24, 1995, the 4839
speaker of the house of representatives and the leader in the 4840
senate of the political party of which the speaker is a member 4841
shall jointly submit to the governor a list of five persons who 4842
are affiliated with that political party. Not later than 4843
forty-five days after August 24, 1995, the two legislative leaders 4844
in the two houses of the general assembly of the major political 4845
party of which the speaker is not a member shall jointly submit to 4846
the governor a list of five persons who are affiliated with the 4847
major political party of which the speaker is not a member. Not 4848
later than fifteen days after receiving each list, the governor 4849
shall appoint three persons from each list to the commission. The 4850
governor shall appoint one person from each list to a term that 4851
ends on December 31, 1996, one person from each list to a term 4852
that ends on December 31, 1997, and one person from each list to a 4853
term that ends on December 31, 1998. 4854

       Not later than thirty days after the governor appoints these 4855
six members, they shall, by a majority vote, appoint to the 4856
commission a seventh member, who shall not be affiliated with a 4857
political party. If the six members fail to appoint the seventh 4858
member within this thirty-day period, the chief justice of the 4859
supreme court, not later than thirty days after the end of the 4860
period during which the six members were required to appoint a 4861
member, shall appoint the seventh member, who shall not be 4862
affiliated with a political party. The seventh member shall be 4863
appointed to a term that ends on December 31, 2001. Terms of the 4864
initial members appointed under this division begin on January 1, 4865
1996. 4866

       (2) If a vacancy occurs in the position of the seventh 4867
member, who is not affiliated with a political party, the six 4868
remaining members by a majority vote shall appoint, not later than 4869
forty-five days after the date of the vacancy, the seventh member 4870
of the commission, who shall not be affiliated with a political 4871
party. If these members fail to appoint the seventh member within 4872
this forty-five-day period, the chief justice of the supreme 4873
court, within fifteen days after the end of this period, shall 4874
appoint the seventh member, who shall not be affiliated with a 4875
political party. If a vacancy occurs in any of the other six 4876
positions on the commission, the legislative leaders of the 4877
political party from whose list of persons the member being 4878
replaced was appointed shall submit to the governor, not later 4879
than thirty days after the date of the vacancy, a list of three 4880
persons who are affiliated with that political party. Not later 4881
than fifteen days after receiving the list, the governor, with the 4882
advice and consent of the senate, shall appoint one person from 4883
the list to the commission. 4884

       (3) At no time shall more than six members of the commission 4885
be affiliated with a political party, and, of these six members, 4886
not more than three shall be affiliated with the same political 4887
party. 4888

       (4) In making appointments to the commission, the governor 4889
shall take into consideration the various geographic areas of this 4890
state and shall appoint members so that those areas are 4891
represented on the commission in a balanced manner, to the extent 4892
feasible. 4893

       (5) Members of the commission shall be registered electors 4894
and shall be of good moral character. 4895

       (B) Each member of the Ohio elections commission shall hold 4896
office from the date of the member's appointment until the end of 4897
the term for which the member was appointed. A member appointed to 4898
fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term for 4899
which the member's predecessor was appointed shall hold office for 4900
the remainder of that term. A member shall continue in office 4901
subsequent to the expiration date of the member's term until the 4902
member's successor takes office or until a period of sixty days 4903
has elapsed, whichever occurs first. After the initial terms of 4904
office provided for in division (A)(1) of this section, terms of 4905
office shall be for five years. 4906

       (C) A vacancy in the Ohio elections commission may be caused 4907
by death, resignation, or three absences from commission meetings 4908
in a calendar year if those absences are caused by reasons 4909
declared invalid by a vote of five members of the remaining 4910
members of the commission. 4911

       (D) Each member of the Ohio elections commission while in the 4912
performance of the business of the commission shall be entitled to 4913
receive compensation at the rate of twenty-five thousand dollars 4914
per year. Members shall be reimbursed for expenses actually and 4915
necessarily incurred in the performance of their duties. 4916

       (E) No member of the Ohio elections commission shall serve 4917
more than one full term unless the terms served are served 4918
nonconsecutively. 4919

       (F)(1) No member of the Ohio elections commission shall do or 4920
be any of the following: 4921

       (a) Hold, or be a candidate for, a public office; 4922

       (b) Serve on a committee supporting or opposing a candidate 4923
or ballot question or issue; 4924

       (c) Be an officer of the state central committee, a county 4925
central committee, or a district, city, township, or other 4926
committee of a political party or an officer of the executive 4927
committee of the state central committee, a county central 4928
committee, or a district, city, township, or other committee of a 4929
political party; 4930

       (d) Be a legislative agent as defined in section 101.70 of 4931
the Revised Code or an executive agency lobbyist as defined in 4932
section 121.60 of the Revised Code; 4933

       (e) Solicit or be involved in soliciting contributions on 4934
behalf of a candidate, campaign committee, political party, or 4935
political action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~; 4936

       (f) Be in the unclassified service under section 124.11 of 4937
the Revised Code; 4938

       (g) Be a person or employee described in divisions (C)(1) to 4939
(15) of section 4117.01 of the Revised Code. 4940

       (2) No member or employee of the commission shall make a 4941
contribution to, or for the benefit of, a campaign committee or 4942
committee in support of or opposition to a ballot question or 4943
issue, a political party, a legislative campaign fund, or a 4944
political action committee~~, or a political contributing entity~~. 4945

       (G)(1) The members of the Ohio elections commission shall 4946
elect a chairperson and a vice-chairperson. At no time shall the 4947
chairperson and vice-chairperson be affiliated with the same 4948
political party. The chairperson shall serve in that capacity for 4949
one year and shall not serve as chairperson more than twice during 4950
a term as a member of the commission. No two successive 4951
chairpersons shall be affiliated with the same political party. 4952

       (2) The commission shall meet at the call of the chairperson 4953
or upon the written request of a majority of the members. The 4954
meetings and hearings of the commission or a panel of the 4955
commission under sections 3517.153 to 3517.157 of the Revised Code 4956
are subject to section 121.22 of the Revised Code. 4957

       (3) The commission shall adopt rules for its procedures in 4958
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code. Five of the 4959
seven members constitute a quorum. Except as otherwise provided in 4960
this section and in sections 3517.154 to 3517.157 of the Revised 4961
Code, no action shall be taken without the concurrence of a 4962
majority of the members. 4963

       (H)(1) The Ohio elections commission shall employ the 4964
technical, professional, and clerical employees that are necessary 4965
for it to carry out its duties. 4966

       (2)(a) Notwithstanding section 109.02 of the Revised Code, 4967
the commission shall employ a full-time attorney, and, as needed, 4968
one or more investigatory attorneys to conduct investigations for 4969
the commission or a panel of the commission. The commission may 4970
employ or contract for the services of additional attorneys, as 4971
needed. The full-time attorney shall do all of the following: 4972

       (i) Serve as the commission's attorney in regard to all legal 4973
matters, including representing the commission at appeals from a 4974
final determination of the commission, except that the full-time 4975
attorney shall not perform the duties that an investigatory 4976
attorney is required or requested to perform or that another 4977
attorney the commission employs or contracts with for services is 4978
required or requested to perform, and shall not represent the 4979
commission in any legal proceeding in which the commission is a 4980
named party; 4981

       (ii) At the request of the commission or a panel of the 4982
commission, be present at a hearing held under sections 3517.154 4983
to 3517.156 of the Revised Code to rule on the admissibility of 4984
evidence and to advise on the conduct of procedure; 4985

       (iii) Perform other duties as required by rule of the 4986
commission. 4987

       (b) An attorney employed by or under contract with the 4988
commission shall be licensed to practice law in this state. 4989

       (3)(a) Except as otherwise provided in division (H)(3)(b) of 4990
this section, at least five members of the commission shall agree 4991
on the employment of a person, a majority of the members shall 4992
agree on the discharge of an employee, and a person employed by 4993
the commission shall serve at the pleasure of the commission. 4994

       (b) At least five of the seven members shall agree on the 4995
discharge of an investigatory attorney. 4996

       (I) There is hereby created in the state treasury the Ohio 4997
elections commission fund. All moneys credited to the fund shall 4998
be used solely for the purpose of paying expenses related to the 4999
operation of the Ohio elections commission. 5000

       Sec. 3517.154. (A)(1) The full-time attorney for the Ohio 5001
elections commission shall review each complaint filed with the 5002
commission under section 3517.153 of the Revised Code, shall 5003
determine the nature of the complaint, and, unless division 5004
(A)(2)(a) of this section requires that the complaint receive an 5005
automatic expedited hearing, shall make a recommendation to the 5006
commission for its disposition, in accordance with this section. 5007
The attorney shall make the determination and the recommendation, 5008
if required, not later than one business day after the complaint 5009
is filed. 5010

       (2)(a) If the attorney determines that the complaint sets 5011
forth a violation of division (B) of section 3517.21 or division 5012
(B) of section 3517.22 of the Revised Code and that the complaint 5013
is filed during one of the periods of time specified in division 5014
(B)(1) of section 3517.156 of the Revised Code, or that the 5015
complaint sets forth a violation of section 3517.103 of the 5016
Revised Code or a violation described in division (D) of section 5017
3517.1010 of the Revised Code, the complaint shall receive an 5018
automatic expedited hearing under section 3517.156 of the Revised 5019
Code. 5020

       (b) If the attorney determines that the complaint sets forth 5021
a failure to comply with or a violation of division (G), (I), (J), 5022
(O), (P), or (Q) of section 3517.13, division (A) of section 5023
3517.21, or division (A) of section 3517.22 of the Revised Code 5024
and that the complaint is filed during one of the periods of time 5025
specified in division (B)(1) of section 3517.156 of the Revised 5026
Code, the attorney shall recommend to the commission that the 5027
complaint receive an expedited hearing under section 3517.156 of 5028
the Revised Code, and the complaint shall receive such a hearing. 5029

       (c) If the attorney determines that the complaint sets forth 5030
a failure to comply with or a violation of a section of the 5031
Revised Code over which the commission has jurisdiction to hear 5032
complaints other than the sections described in divisions 5033
(A)(2)(a) and (b) of this section, and unless the attorney makes a 5034
determination as provided for in division (A)(3) of this section, 5035
the attorney shall recommend to the commission that the complaint 5036
be submitted to the commission under section 3517.155 of the 5037
Revised Code. After the attorney makes that recommendation, the 5038
attorney shall notify all parties to the complaint of the 5039
attorney's recommendation. 5040

       (3)(a) If a complaint sets forth a failure to comply with or 5041
a violation of a section of the Revised Code over which the 5042
commission has jurisdiction to hear complaints other than the 5043
sections described in divisions (A)(2)(a) and (b) of this section 5044
and if the complaint is filed during one of the periods of time 5045
specified in division (B)(1) of section 3517.156 of the Revised 5046
Code, the attorney may determine that the complaint should receive 5047
an expedited hearing under that section. The attorney shall make 5048
that determination by considering one or more of the following: 5049

       (i) The number of prior failures to comply with or violations 5050
of Title XXXV of the Revised Code that the person or entity 5051
against whom the complaint has been brought has committed and any 5052
prior penalties the commission has imposed on the person or 5053
entity; 5054

       (ii) If the complaint involves a statement required to be 5055
filed under section 3517.10, division (E) of section 3517.102, or 5056
section 3517.103, 3517.105, 3517.107, 3517.108, or 3517.109, 5057
3517.1011, or 3517.1012 of the Revised Code or an addendum 5058
required to be filed under section 3517.11 of the Revised Code 5059
that is filed late, how late the filing is and how much time has 5060
elapsed between the deadline for filing the statement or addendum 5061
and the filing of the complaint; 5062

       (iii) If the complaint involves contributions orand 5063
expenditures, contributions and disbursements, deposits and 5064
disbursements, or gifts and disbursements required to be reported 5065
under section 3517.10, division (E) of section 3517.102, or 5066
section 3517.105, 3517.107, 3517.108, or 3517.109, 3517.1011, 5067
3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised Code that are either not 5068
reported or reported late, the number of contributions orand 5069
expenditures, contributions and disbursements, deposits and 5070
disbursements, or gifts and disbursements not reported or how late 5071
they were reported; 5072

       (iv) If the complaint involves contributions required to be 5073
reported by a campaign committee under section 3517.10, division 5074
(E) of section 3517.102, or section 3517.105, 3517.107, 3517.108, 5075
or 3517.109 of the Revised Code that are not reported, whether any 5076
of the contributors of the contributions not reported have a 5077
personal or professional relationship with the campaign 5078
committee's candidate; 5079

       (v) If the complaint involves a statement required to be 5080
filed under section 3517.10, division (E) of section 3517.102, or 5081
section 3517.103, 3517.105, 3517.107, 3517.108, or 3517.109, 5082
3517.1011, 3517.1012, or 3517.1013 of the Revised Code that is 5083
incomplete, the degree to which it is incomplete; 5084

       (vi) If the complaint involves the receipt of contributions 5085
in violation of section 3599.03 of the Revised Code, the dollar 5086
amount and number of contributions received in violation of that 5087
section; 5088

       (vii) If the complaint involves a failure to make the 5089
identification or a misstatement of the identification required 5090
under section 3517.105 or 3517.20 of the Revised Code, whether the 5091
failure or misstatement was purposely made; 5092

       (viii) If the complaint sets forth a failure to comply with 5093
or a violation of a section of the Revised Code described in 5094
division (A)(2)(c) of this section, whether the person or entity 5095
against whom the complaint has been made has committed more than 5096
one such failure or violation within a reasonable amount of time, 5097
or whether the cumulative nature of the failures or violations 5098
indicates a systematic disregard for the law. 5099

       (b) Prior to making a determination under division (A)(3)(a) 5100
of this section that the complaint should receive an expedited 5101
hearing under section 3517.156 of the Revised Code, the attorney 5102
shall take into consideration the number of panels of the 5103
commission that have cases pending before them and the number of 5104
cases pending before the panels and shall not make a determination 5105
that will place an undue burden on a panel of the commission. 5106

       (c) If the attorney determines that the complaint should 5107
receive an expedited hearing under section 3517.156 of the Revised 5108
Code, the attorney shall recommend to the commission that the 5109
complaint receive an expedited hearing, and, if a majority of the 5110
members of the commission agrees with the recommendation, the 5111
complaint shall receive an expedited hearing under that section. 5112

       (4) The attorney may join two or more complaints if the 5113
attorney determines that the allegations in each complaint are of 5114
the same or similar character, are based on the same act or 5115
failure to act, or are based on two or more acts or failures to 5116
act constituting parts of a common scheme or plan. If one 5117
complaint contains two or more allegations, the attorney may 5118
separate the allegations if they are not of the same or similar 5119
character, if they are not based on the same act or failure to 5120
act, or if they are not based on two or more acts or failures to 5121
act constituting parts of a common scheme or plan. If the attorney 5122
separates the allegations in a complaint, the attorney may make 5123
separate recommendations under division (A)(2) or (3) of this 5124
section for each allegation. 5125

       (B) Whenever a person or other entity files a complaint with 5126
the commission setting forth a failure to comply with or a 5127
violation of a section of the Revised Code as described in 5128
division (A)(2)(c) of this section and the complaint is filed 5129
during one of the periods of time specified in division (B)(1) of 5130
section 3517.156 of the Revised Code, the person or entity may 5131
request an expedited hearing under that section at the time the 5132
complaint is filed. The attorney for the commission shall inform 5133
the members of the commission of that request at the time the 5134
attorney makes a recommendation under division (A) of this 5135
section. The commission may grant the request for an expedited 5136
hearing under this division if it determines that an expedited 5137
hearing is practicable. 5138

       Sec. 3517.155. (A)(1) Except as otherwise provided in 5139
division (B) of this section, the Ohio elections commission shall 5140
hold its first hearing on a complaint filed with it, other than a 5141
complaint that receives an expedited hearing under section 5142
3517.156 of the Revised Code, not later than ninety business days 5143
after the complaint is filed unless the commission has good cause 5144
to hold the hearing after that time, in which case it shall hold 5145
the hearing not later than one hundred eighty business days after 5146
the complaint is filed. At the hearing, the commission shall 5147
determine whether or not the failure to act or the violation 5148
alleged in the complaint has occurred and shall do only one of the 5149
following, except as otherwise provided in division (B) of this 5150
section or in division (B) of section 3517.151 of the Revised 5151
Code: 5152

       (a) Enter a finding that good cause has been shown not to 5153
impose a fine or not to refer the matter to the appropriate 5154
prosecutor; 5155

       (b) Impose a fine under section 3517.993 of the Revised Code; 5156

       (c) Refer the matter to the appropriate prosecutor; 5157

       (d) Direct the secretary of state or appropriate board of 5158
elections with the authority to certify a candidate to the ballot 5159
to remove a candidate's name from the ballot if the candidate is 5160
barred from the ballot under division (D) of section 3517.1010 of 5161
the Revised Code. 5162

       (2) As used in division (A) of this section, "appropriate 5163
prosecutor" means a prosecutor as defined in section 2935.01 of 5164
the Revised Code and either of the following: 5165

       (a) In the case of a failure to comply with or a violation of 5166
law involving a campaign committee or the committee's candidate, a 5167
political party, a legislative campaign fund, or a political 5168
action committee, ~~or a political contributing entity,~~ that is 5169
required to file a statement of contributions and expenditures 5170
with the secretary of state under division (A) of section 3517.11 5171
of the Revised Code, the prosecutor of Franklin county; 5172

       (b) In the case of a failure to comply with or a violation of 5173
law involving any other campaign committee or committee's 5174
candidate, or any other political party or political action 5175
committee, either of the following as determined by the 5176
commission: 5177

       (i) The prosecutor of Franklin county; 5178

       (ii) The prosecutor of the county in which the candidacy or 5179
ballot question or issue is submitted to the electors or, if it is 5180
submitted in more than one county, the most populous of those 5181
counties. 5182

       (B) If the commission decides that the evidence is 5183
insufficient for it to determine whether or not the failure to act 5184
or the violation alleged in the complaint has occurred, the 5185
commission, by the affirmative vote of five members, may request 5186
that an investigatory attorney investigate the complaint. Upon 5187
that request, an investigatory attorney shall make an 5188
investigation in order to produce sufficient evidence for the 5189
commission to decide the matter. If the commission requests an 5190
investigation under this division, for good cause shown by the 5191
investigatory attorney, the commission may extend by sixty days 5192
the deadline for holding its first hearing on the complaint as 5193
required in division (A) of this section. 5194

       (C) The commission shall take one of the actions required 5195
under division (A) of this section not later than thirty days 5196
after the close of all the evidence presented. 5197

       (D)(1) The commission shall make any finding of a failure to 5198
comply with or a violation of law in regard to a complaint that 5199
alleges a violation of division (D) of section 3517.1010, division 5200
(A) or (B) of section 3517.21, or division (A) or (B) of section 5201
3517.22 of the Revised Code by clear and convincing evidence. The 5202
commission shall make any finding of a failure to comply with or a 5203
violation of law in regard to any other complaint by a 5204
preponderance of the evidence. 5205

       (2) If the commission finds a violation of division (B) of 5206
section 3517.21 or division (B) of section 3517.22 of the Revised 5207
Code, it shall refer the matter to the appropriate prosecutor 5208
under division (A)(1)(c) of this section and shall not impose a 5209
fine under division (A)(1)(b) of this section or section 3517.993 5210
of the Revised Code. 5211

       (E) In an action before the commission or a panel of the 5212
commission, if the allegations of the complainant are not proved, 5213
and the commission takes the action described in division 5214
(A)(1)(a) of this section or a panel of the commission takes the 5215
action described in division (C)(1) of section 3517.156 of the 5216
Revised Code, the commission or a panel of the commission may find 5217
that the complaint is frivolous, and, if the commission or panel 5218
so finds, the commission shall order the complainant to pay 5219
reasonable attorney's fees and to pay the costs of the commission 5220
or panel as determined by a majority of the members of the 5221
commission. The costs paid to the commission or panel under this 5222
division shall be deposited into the Ohio elections commission 5223
fund. 5224

       Sec. 3517.16. (A) There is hereby created in the state 5225
treasury the Ohio political party fund. All moneys received as a 5226
result of individuals exercising the checkoff option on their 5227
state income tax returns provided for in section 5747.081 of the 5228
Revised Code shall be deposited in ~~this~~the fund. The tax 5229
commissioner shall pay money from the fund ~~only~~ to the auditor of 5230
state and to political parties in the manner described in division 5231
(B) of this section. 5232

       (B)(1) The auditor of state annually shall submit a report to 5233
the tax commissioner estimating the costs that the auditor of 5234
state will incur during that year in conducting audits under 5235
section 3517.17 of the Revised Code. The tax commissioner shall 5236
pay to the auditor of state, from the Ohio political party fund, 5237
moneys sufficient to pay the auditor of state's estimated costs of 5238
the audits referred to in this division. 5239

       (2) After the costs of audits are deducted under division 5240
(B)(1) of this section, the tax commissioner shall pay any moneys 5241
remaining in the fund only to political parties qualifying for it 5242
them under division (B) of section 3517.17 of the Revised Code. 5243

       Sec. 3517.17. (A) At the beginning of each calendar quarter, 5244
after the costs of audits are deducted under division (B)(1) of 5245
section 3517.16 of the Revised Code, the tax commissioner shall 5246
divide any remaining moneys that have accrued in the Ohio 5247
political party fund during the previous quarter ~~shall be divided~~ 5248
equally among all qualified political parties in the following 5249
manner. Of the public moneys to which a party is entitled: 5250

       (1) One-half shall be paid to the treasurer of the state 5251
executive committee of the party; 5252

       (2) One-half shall be distributed to the treasurer of each 5253
county executive committee of the various counties in accordance 5254
with the ratio that the number of checkoffs in each county bears 5255
to the total number of checkoffs, as determined by the tax 5256
commissioner. 5257

       Each party treasurer receiving public moneys from the Ohio 5258
political party fund shall deposit those moneys into the party's 5259
restricted fund created under section 3517.1012 of the Revised 5260
Code, shall expend and maintain ~~such~~those moneys ~~in an account~~ 5261
~~separate from all other assets of the political party~~subject to 5262
the requirements of that section and section 3517.18 of the 5263
Revised Code, and shall file deposit and disbursement statements 5264
~~of contributions and expenditures~~ as required by ~~sections 3517.10~~ 5265
~~and 3517.11~~division (B) of section 3517.1012 of the Revised Code. 5266
~~Each treasurer of a state executive committee who files such a~~ 5267
~~statement shall file it with the secretary of state and each~~ 5268
~~treasurer of a county executive committee who files such a~~ 5269
~~statement shall file it with the appropriate board of elections.~~ 5270
~~All such statements filed shall clearly indicate the amounts of~~ 5271
~~public moneys received and the manner of their expenditure.~~ The 5272
auditor of state shall annually audit the deposit and disbursement 5273
statements of the state committee of a political party that ~~has~~ 5274
~~received~~is eligible to receive public moneys collected during the 5275
previous year, to ascertain that ~~such~~all moneys in the party's 5276
restricted fund are expended in accordance with law. The auditor 5277
of state shall audit the deposit and disbursement statements of 5278
each county committee of such a political party to ascertain that 5279
all moneys in the party's restricted fund are expended in 5280
accordance with law at the time of the public office audit of that 5281
county under Chapter 117. of the Revised Code. 5282

       (B) Only major political parties, as defined in section 5283
3501.01 of the Revised Code, may apply for public moneys from the 5284
Ohio political party fund. At the end of each even-numbered 5285
calendar year, the secretary of state shall announce the names of 5286
all such political parties, indicating that they may apply to 5287
receive such moneys during the ensuing two years. Any political 5288
party named at this time may, not later than the last day of 5289
January of the ensuing odd-numbered year, make application with 5290
the tax commissioner to receive public moneys. NoA political 5291
party that fails to make a timely application shall not receive 5292
public moneys during that two-year period. The tax commissioner 5293
shall prescribe an appropriate application form. Moneys from the 5294
fund shall be provided during the appropriate two-year period to 5295
each political party that makes a timely application in accordance 5296
with this division. 5297

       Sec. 3517.20. (A)(1) As used in ~~division (A) of~~ this 5298
section: 5299

       (a) "Political publication for or against a candidate" means 5300
a notice, placard, advertisement, sample ballot, brochure, flyer, 5301
direct mailer, or ~~any~~ other form of general publication that is 5302
designed to promote the nomination, election, or defeat of a 5303
candidate. 5304

       (b) "Political publication for or against an issue" means a 5305
notice, placard, advertisement, sample ballot, brochure, flyer, 5306
direct mailer, or ~~any~~ other form of general publication that is 5307
designed to promote the adoption or defeat of a ballot issue or 5308
question or to influence the voters in an election. 5309

       (c) "Public political advertising" means newspapers, 5310
magazines, outdoor advertising facilities, direct mailings, or 5311
other similar types of general public political advertising, or 5312
flyers, handbills, or other nonperiodical printed matter. 5313

       (d) "Statewide candidate" has the same meaning as in section 5314
3517.102 of the Revised Code. 5315

       (e) "Legislative candidate" means a candidate for the office 5316
of member of the general assembly. 5317

       (f) "Local candidate" means a candidate for an elective 5318
office of a political subdivision of this state. 5319

       (g) "Legislative campaign fund" has the same meaning as in 5320
section 3517.01 of the Revised Code. 5321

       (h) "Limited political action committee" means a political 5322
action committee of fewer than ten members. 5323

       (i) ~~"Limited political contributing entity" means a political~~ 5324
~~contributing entity of fewer than ten members.~~ 5325

       ~~(j)~~ "Designated amount" means one hundred dollars in the case 5326
of a local candidate or a local ballot issue, two hundred fifty 5327
dollars in the case of a legislative candidate, or five hundred 5328
dollars in the case of a statewide candidate or a statewide ballot 5329
issue. 5330

       ~~(k)~~(j) "To issue" includes to print, post, distribute, 5331
reproduce for distribution, or cause to be issued, printed, 5332
posted, distributed, or reproduced for distribution. 5333

       (k) "Telephone bank" means more than five hundred telephone 5334
calls of an identical or substantially similar nature within any 5335
thirty-day period, whether those telephone calls are made by 5336
individual callers or by recording. 5337

       (2) No candidate, campaign committee, legislative campaign 5338
fund, political party, or other entity, except a political action 5339
committee ~~or political contributing entity~~, shall issue a form of 5340
political publication for or against a candidate, or shall make an 5341
expenditure for the purpose of financing political communications 5342
in support of or opposition to a candidate through public 5343
political advertising, unless the name and residence or business 5344
address of the candidate or the chairperson, treasurer, or 5345
secretary of the campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, 5346
political party, or other entity that issues or otherwise is 5347
responsible for that political publication or that makes an 5348
expenditure for that political communication appears in a 5349
conspicuous place on that political publication or is contained 5350
within that political communication. 5351

       (3) No limited political action committee ~~or limited~~ 5352
~~political contributing entity~~ shall do either of the following 5353
unless the name and residence or business address of the 5354
chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of the limited political 5355
action committee ~~or limited political contributing entity~~ involved 5356
appears in a conspicuous place in the political publication for or 5357
against a candidate described in division (A)(3)(a) of this 5358
section or is contained within the political communication 5359
described in division (A)(3)(b) of this section: 5360

       (a) Issue a form of political publication for or against a 5361
candidate that costs in excess of the designated amount or that is 5362
issued in cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or at the 5363
request or suggestion of, a candidate, a campaign committee, a 5364
legislative campaign fund, a political party, a political action 5365
committee with ten or more members, ~~a political contributing~~ 5366
~~entity with ten or more members,~~ or a limited political action 5367
committee ~~or limited political contributing entity~~ that spends in 5368
excess of the designated amount on a related or the same or 5369
similar political publication for or against a candidate; 5370

       (b) Make an expenditure in excess of the designated amount in 5371
support of or opposition to a candidate or make an expenditure in 5372
cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or at the request or 5373
suggestion of, a candidate, a campaign committee, a legislative 5374
campaign fund, a political party, a political action committee 5375
with ten or more members, ~~a political contributing entity with ten~~ 5376
~~or more members,~~ or a limited political action committee or 5377
~~limited political contributing entity~~ that spends in excess of the 5378
designated amount in support of or opposition to the same 5379
candidate, for the purpose of financing political communications 5380
in support of or opposition to that candidate through public 5381
political advertising. 5382

       (4) No political action committee with ten or more members 5383
~~and no political contributing entity with ten or more members~~ 5384
shall issue a form of political publication for or against a 5385
candidate, or shall make an expenditure for the purpose of 5386
financing political communications in support of or opposition to 5387
a candidate through public political advertising, unless the name 5388
and residence or business address of the chairperson, treasurer, 5389
or secretary of the political action committee ~~or political~~ 5390
~~contributing entity~~ that issues or otherwise is responsible for 5391
that political publication or that makes an expenditure for that 5392
political communication through public political advertising 5393
appears in a conspicuous place in that political publication or is 5394
contained within that political communication. 5395

       (5) No corporation, labor organization, campaign committee, 5396
legislative campaign fund, political party, or other entity, 5397
except a political action committee, shall issue a form of 5398
political publication for or against an issue, or shall make an 5399
expenditure for the purpose of financing political communications 5400
in support of or opposition to a ballot issue or question through 5401
public political advertising, unless the name and residence or 5402
business address of the chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of 5403
the corporation, labor organization, campaign committee, 5404
legislative campaign fund, political party, or other entity that 5405
issues or otherwise is responsible for that political publication 5406
or that makes an expenditure for that political communication 5407
through public political advertising appears in a conspicuous 5408
place in that political publication or is contained within that 5409
political communication. 5410

       (6) No limited political action committee shall do either of 5411
the following unless the name and residence or business address of 5412
the chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of the limited political 5413
action committee involved appears in a conspicuous place in the 5414
political publication for or against a ballot issue described in 5415
division (A)(6)(a) of this section or is contained within the 5416
political communication described in division (A)(6)(b) of this 5417
section: 5418

       (a) Issue a form of political publication for or against a 5419
ballot issue that costs in excess of the designated amount or that 5420
is issued in cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or at the 5421
request or suggestion of, a candidate, a campaign committee, a 5422
legislative campaign fund, a political party, a political action 5423
committee with ten or more members, or a limited political action 5424
committee that spends in excess of the designated amount for a 5425
related or the same or similar political publication for or 5426
against an issue; 5427

       (b) Make an expenditure in excess of the designated amount in 5428
support of or opposition to a ballot issue or make an expenditure 5429
in cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or at the request 5430
or suggestion of, a candidate, a campaign committee, a legislative 5431
campaign fund, a political party, a political action committee 5432
with ten or more members, or a limited political action committee 5433
that spends in excess of the designated amount in support of or 5434
opposition to the same ballot issue, for the purpose of financing 5435
political communications in support of or opposition to that 5436
ballot issue through public political advertising. 5437

       (7) No political action committee with ten or more members 5438
shall issue a form of political publication for or against an 5439
issue, or shall make an expenditure for the purpose of financing 5440
political communications in support of or opposition to a ballot 5441
issue or question through public political advertising, unless the 5442
name and residence or business address of the chairperson, 5443
treasurer, or secretary of the political action committee that 5444
issues or otherwise is responsible for that political publication 5445
or that makes an expenditure for that political communication 5446
appears in a conspicuous place in that political publication or is 5447
contained within that political communication. 5448

       (8) The disclaimer "paid political advertisement" is not 5449
sufficient to meet the requirements of this section. 5450

       (9) If the political publication described in division (A) of 5451
this section is issued by the regularly constituted central or 5452
executive committee of a political party that is organized as 5453
provided in ~~Chapter 3517. of the Revised Code~~this chapter, it 5454
shall be sufficiently identified if it bears the name of the 5455
committee and its chairperson or treasurer. 5456

       (10) If more than one piece of printed matter or printed 5457
political communications are mailed as a single packet, the 5458
requirements of division (A) of this section are met if one of the 5459
pieces of printed matter or printed political communications in 5460
the packet contains the name and residence or business address of 5461
the chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of the organization or 5462
entity that issues or is responsible for the printed matter or 5463
other printed political communications. 5464

       (11) This section does not apply to the transmittal of 5465
personal correspondence that is not reproduced by machine for 5466
general distribution. 5467

       (12) The secretary of state, by rule, may exempt from the 5468
requirements of this section, printed matter and certain other 5469
kinds of printed communications such as campaign buttons, 5470
balloons, pencils, or similar items, the size or nature of which 5471
makes it unreasonable to add an identification or disclaimer. 5472

       (13) The disclaimer or identification described in division 5473
(A) of this section, when paid for by a campaign committee, shall 5474
be identified by the words "paid for by" followed by the name and 5475
address of the campaign committee and the appropriate officer of 5476
the committee, identified by name and title. The identification or 5477
disclaimer may use reasonable abbreviations for common terms such 5478
as "treasurer" or "committee". 5479

       (B)(1) No candidate, campaign committee, legislative campaign 5480
fund, political contributing entity, political party, political 5481
action committee, limited political action committee, ~~political~~ 5482
~~contributing entity, limited political contributing entity,~~ or 5483
other entity shall utter or cause to be uttered, over the 5484
broadcasting facilities of any radio or television station within 5485
this state, any communication that is designed to promote the 5486
nomination, election, or defeat of a candidate, or the adoption or 5487
defeat of an issue or to influence the voters in an election, 5488
unless the speaker identifies the speaker with the speaker's name 5489
and residence address or unless the communication identifies the 5490
chairperson, treasurer, or secretary of the organization 5491
responsible for the communication with the name and residence or 5492
business address of that officer, except that communications by 5493
radio need not broadcast the residence or business address of the 5494
officer. However, a radio station, for a period of at least six 5495
months, shall keep the residence or business address on file and 5496
divulge it to any person upon request. 5497

       No person operating a broadcast station or an organ of 5498
printed media shall broadcast or print a paid political 5499
communication that does not contain the identification required by 5500
this section. 5501

       (2) Division (B) of this section does not apply to any 5502
communications made on behalf of a radio or television station or 5503
network by any employee of such radio or television station or 5504
network while acting in the course of the employee's employment. 5505

       (3) No candidate or entity described in division (B)(1) of 5506
this section shall use or cause to be used a false, fictitious, or 5507
fraudulent name or address in the making or issuing of a 5508
publication or communication included within the provisions of 5509
this section. 5510

       (C) No candidate, campaign committee, legislative campaign 5511
fund, political party, political action committee, limited 5512
political action committee, or other person or entity shall 5513
conduct a telephone bank for the purpose of promoting the 5514
nomination, election, or defeat of a candidate or the adoption or 5515
defeat of an issue or to influence the voters in an election, 5516
unless the call includes a disclaimer that identifies the name of 5517
the candidate, campaign committee, legislative campaign fund, 5518
political party, political action committee, limited political 5519
action committee, or other person or entity paying for the 5520
telephone bank. 5521

       (D) Before a prosecution may commence under this section, a 5522
complaint shall be filed with the Ohio elections commission under 5523
section 3517.153 of the Revised Code. After the complaint is 5524
filed, the commission shall proceed in accordance with sections 5525
3517.154 to 3517.157 of the Revised Code. 5526

       Sec. 3517.23. The secretary of state shall adopt rules in 5527
accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that are 5528
necessary for the administration and enforcement of sections 5529
3517.08 to 3517.13, 3517.18, 3517.20 to 3517.22, 3599.03, and 5530
3599.031 of the Revised Code and shall provide each candidate, 5531
political action committee, legislative campaign fund, political 5532
party, and ~~political contributing entity~~person making 5533
disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing or airing 5534
electioneering communications with written instructions and 5535
explanations in order to ensure compliance with sections 3517.08 5536
to 3517.13, 3517.17, 3517.18, 3517.20 to 3517.22, 3599.03, and 5537
3599.031 of the Revised Code. 5538

       Sec. 3517.992. This section establishes penalties only with 5539
respect to acts or failures to act that occur on and after August 5540
24, 1995. 5541

       (A)(1) A candidate whose campaign committee violates division 5542
(A), (B), (C), (D), or (V) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code, 5543
or a treasurer of a campaign committee who violates any of those 5544
divisions, shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars for 5545
each day of violation. 5546

       (2) Whoever violates division (E) or (X)(5) of section 5547
3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than one 5548
hundred dollars for each day of violation. 5549

       (B) A political party that violates division (F)(1) of 5550
section 3517.101 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than 5551
one hundred dollars for each day of violation. 5552

       (C) Whoever violates division (F)(2) of section 3517.101 or 5553
division (G) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined 5554
not more than ten thousand dollars or, if the offender is a person 5555
who was nominated or elected to public office, shall forfeit the 5556
nomination or the office to which the offender was elected, or 5557
both. 5558

       (D) Whoever violates division (F) of section 3517.13 of the 5559
Revised Code shall be fined not more than three times the amount 5560
contributed. 5561

       (E) Whoever violates division (H) of section 3517.13 of the 5562
Revised Code shall be fined not more than one hundred dollars. 5563

       (F) Whoever violates division (O), (P), or (Q) of section 5564
3517.13 of the Revised Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the 5565
first degree. 5566

       (G) A state or county committee of a political party that 5567
violates division (B)(1) of section 3517.18 of the Revised Code 5568
shall be fined not more than twice the amount of the improper 5569
expenditure. 5570

       (H) A state or county political party that violates division 5571
(G) of section 3517.101 of the Revised Code shall be fined not 5572
more than twice the amount of the improper expenditure or use. 5573

       (I)(1) Any individual who violates division (B)(1) of section 5574
3517.102 of the Revised Code and knows that the contribution the 5575
individual makes violates that division shall be fined an amount 5576
equal to three times the amount contributed in excess of the 5577
amount permitted by that division. 5578

       (2) Any political action committee that violates division 5579
(B)(2) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an 5580
amount equal to three times the amount contributed in excess of 5581
the amount permitted by that division. 5582

       (3) Any campaign committee that violates division (B)(3) or 5583
(5) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an 5584
amount equal to three times the amount contributed in excess of 5585
the amount permitted by that division. 5586

       (4)(a) Any legislative campaign fund that violates division 5587
(B)(6) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an 5588
amount equal to three times the amount transferred or contributed 5589
in excess of the amount permitted by that division, as applicable. 5590

       (b) Any state political party, county political party, or 5591
state candidate fund of a state political party or county 5592
political party that violates division (B)(6) of section 3517.102 5593
of the Revised Code shall be fined an amount equal to three times 5594
the amount transferred or contributed in excess of the amount 5595
permitted by that division, as applicable. 5596

       ~~(c) Any political contributing entity that violates division~~ 5597
~~(B)(7) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an~~ 5598
~~amount equal to three times the amount contributed in excess of~~ 5599
~~the amount permitted by that division.~~ 5600

       (5) Any political party that violates division (B)(4) of 5601
section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an amount 5602
equal to three times the amount contributed in excess of the 5603
amount permitted by that division. 5604

       (6) Notwithstanding divisions (I)(1), (2), (3), (4), and (5) 5605
of this section, no violation of division (B) of section 3517.102 5606
of the Revised Code occurs, and the secretary of state shall not 5607
refer parties to the Ohio elections commission, if the amount 5608
transferred or contributed in excess of the amount permitted by 5609
that division meets either of the following conditions: 5610

       (a) It is completely refunded within five business days after 5611
it is accepted. 5612

       (b) It is completely refunded on or before the tenth business 5613
day after notification to the recipient of the excess transfer or 5614
contribution by the board of elections or the secretary of state 5615
that a transfer or contribution in excess of the permitted amount 5616
has been received. 5617

       (J)(1) Any campaign committee that violates division (C)(1), 5618
(2), (3), or (6) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be 5619
fined an amount equal to three times the amount accepted in excess 5620
of the amount permitted by that division. 5621

       (2)(a) Any ~~state or~~ county political party that violates 5622
division (C)(4)(a)(ii) or (iii) of section 3517.102 of the Revised 5623
Code shall be fined an amount ~~from its state candidate fund~~ equal 5624
to three times the amount accepted. 5625

       (b) Any county political party that violates division 5626
(C)(4)(a)(i) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be 5627
fined an amount from its state candidate fund equal to three times 5628
the amount accepted in excess of the amount permitted by that 5629
division. 5630

       (c) Any state political party that violates division 5631
(C)(4)(b) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined 5632
an amount from its state candidate fund equal to three times the 5633
amount accepted in excess of the amount permitted by that 5634
division. 5635

       (3) Any legislative campaign fund that violates division 5636
(C)(5) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined an 5637
amount equal to three times the amount accepted in excess of the 5638
amount permitted by that division. 5639

       (4) Any political action committee ~~or political contributing~~ 5640
~~entity~~ that violates division (C)(7) of section 3517.102 of the 5641
Revised Code shall be fined an amount equal to three times the 5642
amount accepted in excess of the amount permitted by that 5643
division. 5644

       (5) Notwithstanding divisions (J)(1), (2), (3), and (4) of 5645
this section, no violation of division (C) of section 3517.102 of 5646
the Revised Code occurs, and the secretary of state shall not 5647
refer parties to the Ohio elections commission, if the amount 5648
transferred or contributed in excess of the amount permitted to be 5649
accepted by that division meets either of the following 5650
conditions: 5651

       (a) It is completely refunded within five business days after 5652
its acceptance. 5653

       (b) It is completely refunded on or before the tenth business 5654
day after notification to the recipient of the excess transfer or 5655
contribution by the board of elections or the secretary of state 5656
that a transfer or contribution in excess of the permitted amount 5657
has been received. 5658

       (K)(1) Any legislative campaign fund that violates division 5659
(F)(1) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall be fined 5660
twenty-five dollars for each day of violation. 5661

       (2) Any legislative campaign fund that violates division 5662
(F)(2) of section 3517.102 of the Revised Code shall give to the 5663
treasurer of state for deposit into the state treasury to the 5664
credit of the Ohio elections commission fund all excess 5665
contributions not disposed of as required by division (E) of 5666
section 3517.102 of the Revised Code. 5667

       (L) Whoever violates section 3517.105 of the Revised Code 5668
shall be fined one thousand dollars. 5669

       (M)(1) Whoever solicits a contribution in violation of 5670
section 3517.092 or violates division (B) of section 3517.09 of 5671
the Revised Code is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree. 5672

       (2) Whoever knowingly accepts a contribution in violation of 5673
division (B) or (C) of section 3517.092 of the Revised Code shall 5674
be fined an amount equal to three times the amount accepted in 5675
violation of either of those divisions and shall return to the 5676
contributor any amount so accepted. Whoever unknowingly accepts a 5677
contribution in violation of division (B) or (C) of section 5678
3517.092 of the Revised Code shall return to the contributor any 5679
amount so accepted. 5680

       (N) Whoever violates division (S) of section 3517.13 of the 5681
Revised Code shall be fined an amount equal to three times the 5682
amount of funds transferred or three times the value of the assets 5683
transferred in violation of that division. 5684

       (O) Any campaign committee that accepts a contribution or 5685
contributions in violation of section 3517.108 of the Revised 5686
Code, uses a contribution in violation of that section, or fails 5687
to dispose of excess contributions in violation of that section 5688
shall be fined an amount equal to three times the amount accepted, 5689
used, or kept in violation of that section. 5690

       (P) Any political party, state candidate fund, legislative 5691
candidate fund, or campaign committee that violates division (T) 5692
of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined an amount 5693
equal to three times the amount contributed or accepted in 5694
violation of that section. 5695

       (Q) A treasurer of a committee or another person who violates 5696
division (U) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined 5697
not more than two hundred fifty dollars. 5698

       (R) Whoever violates division (I) or (J) of section 3517.13 5699
of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than one thousand 5700
dollars. Whenever a person is found guilty of violating division 5701
(I) or (J) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code, the contract 5702
awarded in violation of either of those divisions shall be 5703
rescinded if its terms have not yet been performed. 5704

       (S) A candidate whose campaign committee violates or a 5705
treasurer of a campaign committee who violates section 3517.081 of 5706
the Revised Code, and a candidate whose campaign committee 5707
violates, or a treasurer of a campaign committee, or another 5708
person who violates, division (C) of section 3517.10 of the 5709
Revised Code, shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars. 5710

       (T) A candidate whose campaign committee violates or a 5711
treasurer of a committee who violates division (B) of section 5712
3517.09 of the Revised Code, or a candidate whose campaign 5713
committee violates,or a treasurer of a campaign committee, or 5714
another person who violates division (C), of section 3517.09 of 5715
the Revised Code shall be fined not more than one thousand 5716
dollars. 5717

       (U) Whoever violates section 3517.20 of the Revised Code 5718
shall be fined not more than five hundred dollars. 5719

       (V) Whoever violates section 3517.21 or 3517.22 of the 5720
Revised Code shall be imprisoned for not more than six months or 5721
fined not more than five thousand dollars, or both. 5722

       (W) A campaign committee that is required to file a 5723
declaration of no limits under division (D)(2) of section 3517.103 5724
of the Revised Code that, before filing that declaration, accepts 5725
a contribution or contributions that exceed the limitations 5726
prescribed in section 3517.102 of the Revised Code, shall return 5727
that contribution or those contributions to the contributor. 5728

       (X) Any campaign committee that fails to file the declaration 5729
of filing-day finances required by division (F) of section 5730
3517.109 or the declaration of primary-day finances or declaration 5731
of year-end finances required by division (E) of section 3517.1010 5732
of the Revised Code shall be fined twenty-five dollars for each 5733
day of violation. 5734

       (Y) Any campaign committee that fails to dispose of excess 5735
funds or excess aggregate contributions under division (B) of 5736
section 3517.109 of the Revised Code in the manner required by 5737
division (C) of that section or under division (B) of section 5738
3517.1010 of the Revised Code in the manner required by division 5739
(C) of that section shall give to the treasurer of state for 5740
deposit into the Ohio elections commission fund created under 5741
division ~~(E)(2)(b)~~(I) of section ~~3517.102~~3517.152 of the Revised 5742
Code all funds not disposed of pursuant to those divisions. 5743

       (Z) Any individual, campaign committee, political action 5744
committee, ~~political contributing entity,~~ legislative campaign 5745
fund, political party, or other entity that violates any provision 5746
of sections 3517.09 to 3517.12 of the Revised Code for which no 5747
penalty is provided for under any other division of this section 5748
shall be fined not more than one thousand dollars. 5749

       (AA)(1) Whoever knowingly violates division (W)(1) of section 5750
3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined an amount equal to 5751
three times the amount contributed, expended, or promised in 5752
violation of that division or ten thousand dollars, whichever 5753
amount is greater. 5754

       (2) Whoever knowingly violates division (W)(2) of section 5755
3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be fined an amount equal to 5756
three times the amount solicited or accepted in violation of that 5757
division or ten thousand dollars, whichever amount is greater. 5758

       (BB) Whoever knowingly violates division (C) or (D) of 5759
section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code shall be fined not more than 5760
ten thousand dollars plus not more than one thousand dollars for 5761
each day of violation. 5762

       (CC)(1) Subject to division (CC)(2) of this section, whoever 5763
violates division (H) of section 3517.1011 of the Revised Code 5764
shall be fined an amount up to three times the amount disbursed 5765
for the direct costs of airing the communication made in violation 5766
of that division. 5767

       (2) Whoever has been ordered by the Ohio elections commission 5768
or by a court of competent jurisdiction to cease making 5769
communications in violation of division (H) of section 3517.1011 5770
of the Revised Code who again violates that division shall be 5771
fined an amount equal to three times the amount disbursed for the 5772
direct costs of airing the communication made in violation of that 5773
division. 5774

       (DD)(1) Any corporation or labor organization that violates 5775
division (X)(3)(a) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be 5776
fined an amount equal to three times the amount given in excess of 5777
the amount permitted by that division. 5778

       (2) Any state or county political party that violates 5779
division (X)(3)(b) of section 3517.13 of the Revised Code shall be 5780
fined an amount equal to three times the amount accepted in excess 5781
of the amount permitted by that division. 5782

       Sec. 3599.03. (A)(1) Except to carry on activities specified 5783
in sections 3517.082 and 3517.1011, division (A)(2) of section 5784
3517.1012, division (B) of section 3517.1013, and section 3599.031 5785
of the Revised Code and except as provided in divisions (D), (E), 5786
and (F) of this section, no corporation, no nonprofit corporation, 5787
and no labor organization, directly or indirectly, shall pay or 5788
use, or offer, advise, consent, or agree to pay or use, the 5789
corporation's money or property, or the labor organization's 5790
money, including dues, initiation fees, or other assessments paid 5791
by members, or property, for or in aid of or opposition to a 5792
political party, a candidate for election or nomination to public 5793
office, a political action committee including a political action 5794
committee of the corporation or labor organization, a legislative 5795
campaign fund, or any organization that supports or opposes any 5796
such candidate, or for any partisan political purpose, shall 5797
violate any law requiring the filing of an affidavit or statement 5798
respecting such use of those funds, or shall pay or use the 5799
corporation's or labor organization's money for the expenses of a 5800
social fund-raising event for its political action committee if an 5801
employee's or labor organization member's right to attend such an 5802
event is predicated on the employee's or member's contribution to 5803
the corporation's or labor organization's political action 5804
committee. 5805

       (2) Whoever violates division (A)(1) of this section shall be 5806
fined not less than five hundred nor more than five thousand 5807
dollars. 5808

       (B)(1) No officer, stockholder, attorney, or agent of a 5809
corporation or nonprofit corporation, no member, including an 5810
officer, attorney, or agent, of a labor organization, and no 5811
candidate, political party official, or other individual shall 5812
knowingly aid, advise, solicit, or receive money or other property 5813
in violation of division (A)(1) of this section. 5814

       (2) Whoever violates division (B)(1) of this section shall be 5815
fined not more than one thousand dollars, or imprisoned not more 5816
than one year, or both. 5817

       (C) A corporation, a nonprofit corporation, or a labor 5818
organization may use its funds or property for or in aid of or 5819
opposition to a proposed or certified ballot issue. Such use of 5820
funds or property shall be reported on a form prescribed by the 5821
secretary of state. Reports of contributions in connection with 5822
statewide ballot issues shall be filed with the secretary of 5823
state. Reports of contributions in connection with local issues 5824
shall be filed with the board of elections of the most populous 5825
county of the district in which the issue is submitted or to be 5826
submitted to the electors. Reports made pursuant to this division 5827
shall be filed by the times specified in divisions (A)(1) and (2) 5828
of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code. 5829

       (D)(1) Any gift made pursuant to section 3517.101 of the 5830
Revised Code does not constitute a violation of this section or of 5831
any other section of the Revised Code. 5832

       (2) Any gift made pursuant to division (A)(2) of section 5833
3517.1012 of the Revised Code does not constitute a violation of 5834
this section. 5835

       (3) Any gift made pursuant to division (B) of section 5836
3517.1013 of the Revised Code does not constitute a violation of 5837
this section. 5838

       (E) Any compensation or fees paid by a financial institution 5839
to a state political party for services rendered pursuant to 5840
division (B) of section 3517.19 of the Revised Code do not 5841
constitute a violation of this section or of any other section of 5842
the Revised Code. 5843

       (F)(1) The use by a nonprofit corporation of its money or 5844
property for communicating information for a purpose specified in 5845
division (A) of this section is not a violation of that division 5846
if the stockholders, members, donors, trustees, or officers of the 5847
nonprofit corporation are the predominant recipients of the 5848
communication. 5849

       (2) The placement of a campaign sign on the property of a 5850
corporation, nonprofit corporation, or labor organization is not a 5851
use of property in violation of division (A) of this section by 5852
that corporation, nonprofit corporation, or labor organization. 5853

       (3) The use by a corporation or labor organization of its 5854
money or property for communicating information for a purpose 5855
specified in division (A) of this section is not a violation of 5856
that division if it is not a communication made by mass broadcast 5857
such as radio or television or made by advertising in a newspaper 5858
of general circulation but is a communication sent exclusively to 5859
members, employees, officers, or trustees of that labor 5860
organization or shareholders, employees, officers, or directors of 5861
that corporation or to members of the immediate families of any 5862
such individuals or if the communication intended to be so sent 5863
exclusively is unintentionally sent as well to a de minimis number 5864
of other individuals. 5865

       (G) In addition to the laws listed in division (A) of section 5866
4117.10 of the Revised Code that prevail over conflicting 5867
agreements between employee organizations and public employers, 5868
this section prevails over any conflicting provisions of 5869
agreements between labor organizations and public employers that 5870
are entered into on or after the effective date of this section 5871
pursuant to Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code. 5872

       (H) As used in this section, "labor organization" has the 5873
same meaning as in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code. 5874

       Sec. 3599.031. (A) Notwithstanding any ~~section~~provision of 5875
the Revised Code to the contrary and subject to ~~divisions (C) and~~ 5876
~~(H)~~division (B) of this section, any employer may deduct from the 5877
wages and salaries of its employees amounts for an account 5878
described in division ~~(C)~~(B) of this section, a separate 5879
segregated fund, a political action committee of the employer, a 5880
political action committee of a labor organization of the 5881
employer's employees, a political action committee of an 5882
association of which the employer is a member, a political party, 5883
a person making disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing 5884
or airing electioneering communications, or a ballot issue that 5885
the employee by written authorization may designate and shall 5886
transmit any amounts so deducted as a separate written 5887
authorization described in division ~~(C)~~(B) of this section shall 5888
direct. Any authorization authorizing a deduction from an 5889
employee's wages or salary may be on a form that is used to apply 5890
for or authorize membership in or authorize payment of dues or 5891
fees to any organization, but the authorization for a deduction 5892
shall be stated and signed separately from the application for 5893
membership or the authorization for the payment of dues or fees. 5894
The employer either may deduct from the amount to be so 5895
transmitted a uniform amount determined by the employer to be 5896
necessary to defray the actual cost of making such deduction and 5897
transmittal, or may utilize its own funds in an amount it 5898
determines is necessary to defray the actual administrative cost, 5899
including making the deduction and transmittal. 5900

       (B) ~~Any person who solicits an employee to authorize a~~ 5901
~~deduction from his wages or salary pursuant to division (A) of~~ 5902
~~this section shall inform the employee at the time of the~~ 5903
~~solicitation that he may refuse to authorize a deduction, and that~~ 5904
~~he may at any time revoke his authorization, without suffering any~~ 5905
~~reprisal.~~ 5906

       ~~(C)~~ If an employer establishes a separate account in the name 5907
of an employee for the purpose of depositing into the account 5908
amounts deducted from the wages and salary of the employee 5909
pursuant to division (A) of this section or amounts directly given 5910
by the employee to the employer for the support of a candidate, a 5911
separate segregated fund, a political action committee of the 5912
employer, a political action committee of a labor organization of 5913
the employer's employees, a political action committee of an 5914
association of which the employer is a member, a political party, 5915
a legislative campaign fund, a person making disbursements to pay 5916
the direct costs of producing or airing electioneering 5917
communications, or a ballot issue, the employee shall sign a 5918
written authorization designating the recipient of a disbursement 5919
from that account. The written authorization required under this 5920
division is separate and distinct from a written authorization 5921
required under division (A) of this section. The authorization 5922
required under this division shall clearly identify and designate 5923
the candidate, separate segregated fund, political action 5924
committee of the employer, political action committee of a labor 5925
organization of the employer's employees, political action 5926
committee of an association of which the employer is a member, 5927
political party, a legislative campaign fund, person making 5928
disbursements to pay the direct costs of producing or airing 5929
electioneering communications, or ballot issue that is to receive 5930
any disbursement from the account established pursuant to this 5931
division. No person shall designate the recipient of a 5932
disbursement from the account except the employee from whose 5933
account the disbursement is made. No employer shall make a 5934
disbursement from the account of an employee established under 5935
this division unless the employer has received the written 5936
authorization required under this division. 5937

       ~~(D)~~(C) An employer shall furnish the recipient of any amount 5938
transmitted pursuant to this section with the employer's full name 5939
and the full name of the labor organization of which the employee 5940
whose amount is being transmitted is a member, if any. An employer 5941
shall keep and maintain the authorization forms of all its 5942
employees from whose wages and salaries any amounts were deducted 5943
pursuant to division (A) of this section and the authorizations of 5944
disbursements from accounts established under division ~~(C)~~(B) of 5945
this section for a period of at least six years after the year in 5946
which the deductions and disbursements were made. 5947

       ~~(E)~~(D) An employee who has made an authorization pursuant to 5948
division (A) or ~~(C)~~(B) of this section may revoke that 5949
authorization at any time. A revocation of the authorization does 5950
not affect any deduction already made from an employee's wages and 5951
salary or any amounts already transmitted or disbursed under this 5952
section. 5953

       ~~(F)~~(E) For purposes of this section and for the purpose of 5954
the information required to be filed under division (B)(4)(b)(iii) 5955
of section 3517.10 of the Revised Code: 5956

       (1) If an employer is a corporation, each subsidiary of a 5957
parent corporation shall be considered an entity separate and 5958
distinct from any other subsidiary and separate and distinct from 5959
the parent corporation. 5960

       (2) Each national, regional, state, and local affiliate of a 5961
labor organization shall be considered a distinct entity. 5962

       ~~(G)~~(F) Whoever violates division ~~(C)~~(B) of this section shall 5963
be fined not less than fifty nor more than five hundred dollars 5964
for each disbursement made in violation of that division. 5965

       ~~(H) No public employer shall deduct from the wages and~~ 5966
~~salaries of its employees any amounts for the support of any~~ 5967
~~candidate, separate segregated fund, political action committee,~~ 5968
~~legislative campaign fund, political party, or ballot issue.~~ 5969

       ~~(I) In addition to the laws listed in division (A) of section~~ 5970
~~4117.10 of the Revised Code that prevail over conflicting~~ 5971
~~agreements between employee organizations and public employers,~~ 5972
~~this section prevails over any conflicting provisions of~~ 5973
~~agreements between labor organizations and public employers~~ 5974
~~entered into pursuant to Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code.~~ 5975

       ~~(J)~~(G) In addition to the laws listed in division (A) of 5976
section 4117.10 of the Revised Code that prevail over conflicting 5977
agreements between employee organizations and public employers, 5978
this section prevails over any conflicting provisions of 5979
agreements between labor organizations and public employers that 5980
are entered into on or after the effective date of this amendment 5981
pursuant to Chapter 4117. of the Revised Code. 5982

       (H) As used in this section: 5983

       (1) "~~Labor~~Electioneering communication ," "legislative 5984
campaign fund," "labor organization," "political action 5985
committee," and "separate segregated fund" have the same meanings 5986
as in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code. 5987

       (2) "Public employer" means an employer that is the state or 5988
a state agency, authority, commission, or board, a political 5989
subdivision of the state, a school district or state institution 5990
of higher learning, a public or special district, or any other 5991
public employer. 5992

       (3) "Employee" includes only an employee who is a resident of 5993
or is employed in this state. 5994

       Sec. 3599.111. (A) As used in this section, "registering a 5995
voter" or "registering voters" includes any effort, for 5996
compensation, to provide voter registration forms or to assist 5997
persons in completing those forms or returning them to the board 5998
of elections, the office of the secretary of state, or other 5999
appropriate public office. 6000

       (B) No person shall receive compensation on a fee per 6001
signature or fee per volume basis for circulating any declaration 6002
of candidacy, nominating petition, declaration of intent to be a 6003
write-in candidate, initiative petition, referendum petition, 6004
recall petition, or any other election-related petition that is 6005
filed with or transmitted to a board of elections, the office of 6006
the secretary of state, or other appropriate public office. 6007

       (C) No person shall receive compensation on a fee per 6008
registration or fee per volume basis for registering a voter. 6009

       (D) Compensation for collecting signatures on 6010
election-related petitions and for registering voters shall be 6011
paid solely on the basis of time worked. 6012

       (E)(1) Whoever violates division (B) or (C) of this section 6013
is guilty of election falsification under section 3599.36 of the 6014
Revised Code. 6015

       (2) Whoever violates division (D) of this section is guilty 6016
of a felony of the fifth degree. 6017

       Section 2. That existing sections 102.03, 2921.01, 2921.43, 6018
3501.38, 3503.14, 3513.07, 3513.10, 3513.261, 3517.01, 3517.08, 6019
3517.09, 3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.102, 3517.103, 3517.104, 6020
3517.105, 3517.106, 3517.108, 3517.109, 3517.11, 3517.13, 6021
3517.151, 3517.152, 3517.154, 3517.155, 3517.16, 3517.17, 3517.20, 6022
3517.23, 3517.992, and 3599.031 and section        Sec. 3599.03. of the Revised 6023
Code are hereby repealed. 6024

       Section 3. (A) Except as otherwise provided in division (B) 6025
of this section, no person intending to make a disbursement or 6026
disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing 6027
electioneering communications under this act shall make those 6028
disbursements using any contributions that the person received 6029
before the effective date of this act. 6030

       (B) Any person intending to make a disbursement or 6031
disbursements for the direct costs of producing or airing 6032
electioneering communications under this act who wishes to make 6033
those disbursements using contributions that the person received 6034
before the effective date of this act shall, in the first 6035
disclosure of electioneering communications statement that the 6036
person is required to file, report the contributor information 6037
specified in division (D)(1)(e) or (f) of section 3517.1011 of the 6038
Revised Code for each contribution that was received before the 6039
effective date of this act and that the person uses to make a 6040
disbursement that is included in that statement. 6041

       (C) As used in this section, "contribution," "electioneering 6042
communication," and "person" have the same meanings as in section 6043
3517.1011 of the Revised Code. 6044

       Section 4. (A) A county political party that has a state 6045
candidate fund, established under division (D)(3)(c) of section 6046
3517.10 of the Revised Code as it existed prior to the effective 6047
date of this act, in existence on that effective date shall, not 6048
later than 4 p.m. on that effective date, disburse any moneys in 6049
the fund in accordance with the versions of sections 3517.08 to 6050
3517.13 of the Revised Code that were in effect prior to that 6051
effective date. Any state candidate fund of a county political 6052
party in existence on the effective date of this act shall be 6053
abolished not later than 4 p.m. on that effective date. 6054

       (B) No county political party that establishes a state 6055
candidate fund under division (D)(3)(c) of section 3517.10 of the 6056
Revised Code as amended by this act shall transfer into that fund 6057
any moneys that were in a state candidate fund of a county 6058
political party established under that section as it existed prior 6059
to the effective date of this act. 6060

       Section 5. No moneys in any fund or account of a political 6061
party that was not subject to disclosure under the version of 6062
Chapter 3517. of the Revised Code that was in effect prior to the 6063
effective date of this act shall be disbursed, transferred into 6064
another fund or account of the political party, or otherwise used 6065
by that political party on or after the effective date of this act 6066
unless the contributors of those moneys are disclosed prior to 6067
that effective date in accordance with section 3517.10 of the 6068
Revised Code. 6069

       Section 6. Section 3513.10 of the Revised Code is presented 6070
in this act as a composite of the section as amended by both Am. 6071
Sub. H.B. 117 and Am. Sub. S.B. 9 of the 121st General Assembly. 6072
The General Assembly, applying the principle stated in division 6073
(B) of section 1.52 of the Revised Code that amendments are to be 6074
harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation, finds 6075
that the composite is the resulting version of the section in 6076
effect prior to the effective date of the section as presented in 6077
this act. 6078

       Section 7. Notwithstanding section 1.50 of the Revised Code, 6079
every provision of this act is so interconnected with every other 6080
provision and the general scope of the entire act that if any 6081
provision of this act or the application thereof to any person or 6082
circumstance is held invalid, the entire act shall be invalid. 6083

Section 1. That sections 102.03, 2921.01, 2921.43, 3501.38,	12
3503.14, 3513.07, 3513.10, 3513.261, 3517.01, 3517.08, 3517.09,	13
3517.092, 3517.10, 3517.102, 3517.103, 3517.104, 3517.105,	14
3517.106, 3517.108, 3517.109, 3517.11, 3517.13, 3517.151,	15
3517.152, 3517.154, 3517.155, 3517.16, 3517.17, 3517.20, 3517.23,	16
3517.992, and 3599.031 be amended and new section 3599.03 and	17
sections 3501.381, 3517.1011, 3517.1012, 3517.1013, and 3599.111	18
of the Revised Code be enacted to read as follows:	19

Sec. 102.03. (A)(1) No present or former public official or	20
employee shall, during public employment or service or for twelve	21
months thereafter, represent a client or act in a representative	22
capacity for any person on any matter in which the public official	23
or employee personally participated as a public official or	24
employee through decision, approval, disapproval, recommendation,	25
the rendering of advice, investigation, or other substantial	26
exercise of administrative discretion.	27

(2) For twenty-four months after the conclusion of service,	28
no former commissioner or attorney examiner of the public	29
utilities commission shall represent a public utility, as defined	30
in section 4905.02 of the Revised Code, or act in a representative	31
capacity on behalf of such a utility before any state board,	32
commission, or agency.	33

(3) For twenty-four months after the conclusion of employment	34
or service, no former public official or employee who personally	35
participated as a public official or employee through decision,	36
approval, disapproval, recommendation, the rendering of advice,	37
the development or adoption of solid waste management plans,	38
investigation, inspection, or other substantial exercise of	39
administrative discretion under Chapter 343. or 3734. of the	40
Revised Code shall represent a person who is the owner or operator	41
of a facility, as defined in section 3734.01 of the Revised Code,	42
or who is an applicant for a permit or license for a facility	43
under that chapter, on any matter in which the public official or	44
employee personally participated as a public official or employee.	45

(4) For a period of one year after the conclusion of	46
employment or service as a member or employee of the general	47
assembly, no former member or employee of the general assembly	48
shall represent, or act in a representative capacity for, any	49
person on any matter before the general assembly, any committee of	50
the general assembly, or the controlling board. Division (A)(4) of	51
this section does not apply to or affect a person who separates	52
from service with the general assembly on or before December 31,	53
1995. As used in division (A)(4) of this section "person" does not	54
include any state agency or political subdivision of the state.	55

(5) As used in divisions (A)(1), (2), and (3) of this	56
section, "matter" includes any case, proceeding, application,	57
determination, issue, or question, but does not include the	58
proposal, consideration, or enactment of statutes, rules,	59
ordinances, resolutions, or charter or constitutional amendments.	60
As used in division (A)(4) of this section, "matter" includes the	61
proposal, consideration, or enactment of statutes, resolutions, or	62
constitutional amendments. As used in division (A) of this	63
section, "represent" includes any formal or informal appearance	64
before, or any written or oral communication with, any public	65
agency on behalf of any person.	66

(6) Nothing contained in division (A) of this section shall	67
prohibit, during such period, a former public official or employee	68
from being retained or employed to represent, assist, or act in a	69
representative capacity for the public agency by which the public	70
official or employee was employed or on which the public official	71
or employee served.	72

(7) Division (A) of this section shall not be construed to	73
prohibit the performance of ministerial functions, including, but	74
not limited to, the filing or amendment of tax returns,	75
applications for permits and licenses, incorporation papers, and	76
other similar documents.	77

(B) No present or former public official or employee shall	78
disclose or use, without appropriate authorization, any	79
information acquired by the public official or employee in the	80
course of the public official's or employee's official duties that	81
is confidential because of statutory provisions, or that has been	82
clearly designated to the public official or employee as	83
confidential when that confidential designation is warranted	84
because of the status of the proceedings or the circumstances	85
under which the information was received and preserving its	86
confidentiality is necessary to the proper conduct of government	87
business.	88

(C) No public official or employee shall participate within	89
the scope of duties as a public official or employee, except	90
through ministerial functions as defined in division (A) of this	91
section, in any license or rate-making proceeding that directly	92
affects the license or rates of any person, partnership, trust,	93
business trust, corporation, or association in which the public	94
official or employee or immediate family owns or controls more	95
than five per cent. No public official or employee shall	96
participate within the scope of duties as a public official or	97
employee, except through ministerial functions as defined in	98
division (A) of this section, in any license or rate-making	99
proceeding that directly affects the license or rates of any	100
person to whom the public official or employee or immediate	101
family, or a partnership, trust, business trust, corporation, or	102
association of which the public official or employee or the public	103
official's or employee's immediate family owns or controls more	104
than five per cent, has sold goods or services totaling more than	105
one thousand dollars during the preceding year, unless the public	106
official or employee has filed a written statement acknowledging	107
that sale with the clerk or secretary of the public agency and the	108
statement is entered in any public record of the agency's	109
proceedings. This division shall not be construed to require the	110
disclosure of clients of attorneys or persons licensed under	111
section 4732.12 or 4732.15 of the Revised Code, or patients of	112
persons certified under section 4731.14 of the Revised Code.	113

(D) No public official or employee shall use or authorize the	114
use of the authority or influence of office or employment to	115
secure anything of value or the promise or offer of anything of	116
value that is of such a character as to manifest a substantial and	117
improper influence upon the public official or employee with	118
respect to that person's duties.	119

(E) No public official or employee shall solicit or accept	120
anything of value that is of such a character as to manifest a	121
substantial and improper influence upon the public official or	122
employee with respect to that person's duties.	123

(F) No person shall promise or give to a public official or	124
employee anything of value that is of such a character as to	125
manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the public	126
official or employee with respect to that person's duties.	127

(G) In the absence of bribery or another offense under the	128
Revised Code or a purpose to defraud, contributions made to a	129
campaign committee, political party, legislative campaign fund, or	130
political action committee~~, or political contributing entity~~ on	131
behalf of an elected public officer or other public official or	132
employee who seeks elective office shall be considered to accrue	133
ordinarily to the public official or employee for the purposes of	134
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section.	135

As used in this division, "contributions," "campaign	136
committee," "political party," "legislative campaign fund," and	137
"political action committee," ~~and "political contributing entity"~~	138
have the same meanings as in section 3517.01 of the Revised Code.	139

(H)(1) No public official or employee, except for the	140
president or other chief administrative officer of or a member of	141
a board of trustees of a state institution of higher education as	142
defined in section 3345.011 of the Revised Code, who is required	143
to file a financial disclosure statement under section 102.02 of	144
the Revised Code shall solicit or accept, and no person shall give	145
to that public official or employee, an honorarium. Except as	146
provided in division (H)(2) of this section, this division and	147
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section do not prohibit a	148
public official or employee who is required to file a financial	149
disclosure statement under section 102.02 of the Revised Code from	150
accepting and do not prohibit a person from giving to that public	151
official or employee the payment of actual travel expenses,	152
including any expenses incurred in connection with the travel for	153
lodging, and meals, food, and beverages provided to the public	154
official or employee at a meeting at which the public official or	155
employee participates in a panel, seminar, or speaking engagement	156
or provided to the public official or employee at a meeting or	157
convention of a national organization to which any state agency,	158
including, but not limited to, any state legislative agency or	159
state institution of higher education as defined in section	160
3345.011 of the Revised Code, pays membership dues. Except as	161
provided in division (H)(2) of this section, this division and	162
divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this section do not prohibit a	163
public official or employee who is not required to file a	164
financial disclosure statement under section 102.02 of the Revised	165
Code from accepting and do not prohibit a person from promising or	166
giving to that public official or employee an honorarium or the	167
payment of travel, meal, and lodging expenses if the honorarium,	168
expenses, or both were paid in recognition of demonstrable	169
business, professional, or esthetic interests of the public	170
official or employee that exist apart from public office or	171
employment, including, but not limited to, such a demonstrable	172
interest in public speaking and were not paid by any person or	173
other entity, or by any representative or association of those	174
persons or entities, that is regulated by, doing business with, or	175
seeking to do business with the department, division, institution,	176
board, commission, authority, bureau, or other instrumentality of	177
the governmental entity with which the public official or employee	178
serves.	179

(2) No person who is a member of the board of a state	180
retirement system, a state retirement system investment officer,	181
or an employee of a state retirement system whose position	182
involves substantial and material exercise of discretion in the	183
investment of retirement system funds shall solicit or accept, and	184
no person shall give to that board member, officer, or employee,	185
payment of actual travel expenses, including expenses incurred	186
with the travel for lodging, meals, food, and beverages.	187

(I) A public official or employee may accept travel, meals,	188
and lodging or expenses or reimbursement of expenses for travel,	189
meals, and lodging in connection with conferences, seminars, and	190
similar events related to official duties if the travel, meals,	191
and lodging, expenses, or reimbursement is not of such a character	192
as to manifest a substantial and improper influence upon the	193
public official or employee with respect to that person's duties.	194
The house of representatives and senate, in their code of ethics,	195
and the Ohio ethics commission, under section 111.15 of the	196
Revised Code, may adopt rules setting standards and conditions for	197
the furnishing and acceptance of such travel, meals, and lodging,	198
expenses, or reimbursement.	199

A person who acts in compliance with this division and any	200
applicable rules adopted under it, or any applicable, similar	201
rules adopted by the supreme court governing judicial officers and	202
employees, does not violate division (D), (E), or (F) of this	203
section. This division does not preclude any person from seeking	204
an advisory opinion from the appropriate ethics commission under	205
section 102.08 of the Revised Code.	206

(J) For purposes of divisions (D), (E), and (F) of this	207
section, the membership of a public official or employee in an	208
organization shall not be considered, in and of itself, to be of	209
such a character as to manifest a substantial and improper	210
influence on the public official or employee with respect to that	211
person's duties. As used in this division, "organization" means a	212
church or a religious, benevolent, fraternal, or professional	213
organization that is tax exempt under subsection 501(a) and	214
described in subsection 501(c)(3), (4), (8), (10), or (19) of the	215
"Internal Revenue Code of 1986." This division does not apply to a	216
public official or employee who is an employee of an organization,	217
serves as a trustee, director, or officer of an organization, or	218
otherwise holds a fiduciary relationship with an organization.	219
This division does not allow a public official or employee who is	220
a member of an organization to participate, formally or	221
informally, in deliberations, discussions, or voting on a matter	222
or to use his official position with regard to the interests of	223
the organization on the matter if the public official or employee	224
has assumed a particular responsibility in the organization with	225
respect to the matter or if the matter would affect that person's	226
personal, pecuniary interests.	227

(K) It is not a violation of this section for a prosecuting	228
attorney to appoint assistants and employees in accordance with	229
division (B) of section 309.06 and section 2921.421 of the Revised	230
Code, for a chief legal officer of a municipal corporation or an	231
official designated as prosecutor in a municipal corporation to	232
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with sections	233
733.621 and 2921.421 of the Revised Code, for a township law	234
director appointed under section 504.15 of the Revised Code to	235
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with sections	236
504.151 and 2921.421 of the Revised Code, or for a coroner to	237
appoint assistants and employees in accordance with division (B)	238
of section 313.05 of the Revised Code.	239

As used in this division, "chief legal officer" has the same	240
meaning as in section 733.621 of the Revised Code.	241

Sec. 2921.01. As used in sections 2921.01 to 2921.45 of the	242
Revised Code:	243

(A) "Public official" means any elected or appointed officer,	244
or employee, or agent of the state or any political subdivision,	245
whether in a temporary or permanent capacity, and includes, but is	246
not limited to, legislators, judges, and law enforcement officers.	247

(2) Any person performing ad hoc a governmental function,	250
including, but not limited to, a juror, member of a temporary	251
commission, master, arbitrator, advisor, or consultant;	252

(3) A person who is a candidate for public office, whether or	253
not the person is elected or appointed to the office for which the	254
person is a candidate. A person is a candidate for purposes of	255
this division if the person has been nominated according to law	256
for election or appointment to public office, or if the person has	257
filed a petition or petitions as required by law to have the	258
person's name placed on the ballot in a primary, general, or	259
special election, or if the person campaigns as a write-in	260
candidate in any primary, general, or special election.	261

(C) "Party official" means any person who holds an elective	262
or appointive post in a political party in the United States or	263
this state, by virtue of which the person directs, conducts, or	264
participates in directing or conducting party affairs at any level	265
of responsibility.	266

(D) "Official proceeding" means any proceeding before a	267
legislative, judicial, administrative, or other governmental	268
agency or official authorized to take evidence under oath, and	269
includes any proceeding before a referee, hearing examiner,	270
commissioner, notary, or other person taking testimony or a	271
deposition in connection with an official proceeding.	272

(E) "Detention" means arrest; confinement in any vehicle	273
subsequent to an arrest; confinement in any public or private	274
facility for custody of persons charged with or convicted of crime	275
in this state or another state or under the laws of the United	276
States or alleged or found to be a delinquent child or unruly	277
child in this state or another state or under the laws of the	278
United States; hospitalization, institutionalization, or	279
confinement in any public or private facility that is ordered	280
pursuant to or under the authority of section 2945.37, 2945.371,	281
2945.38, 2945.39, 2945.40, 2945.401, or 2945.402 of the Revised	282
Code; confinement in any vehicle for transportation to or from any	283
facility of any of those natures; detention for extradition or	284
deportation; except as provided in this division, supervision by	285
any employee of any facility of any of those natures that is	286
incidental to hospitalization, institutionalization, or	287
confinement in the facility but that occurs outside the facility;	288
supervision by an employee of the department of rehabilitation and	289
correction of a person on any type of release from a state	290
correctional institution; or confinement in any vehicle, airplane,	291
or place while being returned from outside of this state into this	292
state by a private person or entity pursuant to a contract entered	293
into under division (E) of section 311.29 of the Revised Code or	294
division (B) of section 5149.03 of the Revised Code. For a person	295
confined in a county jail who participates in a county jail	296
industry program pursuant to section 5147.30 of the Revised Code,	297
"detention" includes time spent at an assigned work site and going	298
to and from the work site.	299

(F) "Detention facility" means any public or private place	300
used for the confinement of a person charged with or convicted of	301
any crime in this state or another state or under the laws of the	302
United States or alleged or found to be a delinquent child or	303
unruly child in this state or another state or under the laws of	304
the United States.	305