§ Ark. Code § 7-6-215Registration and reporting by approved political action committees

(a)(1)(A) To qualify as an approved political action committee, the political action committee
shall register with the Secretary of State within fifteen (15) days after accepting contributions
during a calendar year that exceed five hundred dollars ($500) in the aggregate.
(B) Registration for a political action committee shall be active unless the political action
committee has requested a termination of its registration.
(C) Except as provided in subdivision (a)(1)(D) of this section, registration shall be on forms
provided by the Secretary of State, and the contents therein shall be verified by an affidavit of
an officer of the political action committee.
(D)(i) Registration with the Secretary of State under this section may be filed in electronic
form through the official website of the Secretary of State if electronic filing is offered by the
Secretary of State.
(ii) An electronic registration shall be verified by an officer of the political action committee.
(iii)(a) The Arkansas Ethics Commission shall approve a format used by the Secretary of
State for registering as a political action committee in electronic form under subdivision
(a)(1)(D)(i) of this section to ensure that all required information is requested.
(b) A format used by the Secretary of State for registering as a political action committee in
electronic form shall provide that a registration filed in electronic form be rejected if it omits
the name, street address, or telephone number of an individual designated as the resident
agent for the political action committee.
(iv) The official website of the Secretary of State shall allow for searches of political action
committee registration information filed in electronic form under subdivision (a)(1)(D)(i) of this
section.
(E) Registration with the Secretary of State under this section may be filed in paper form if:
(i) The political action committee does not have access to the technology necessary to submit
registration in electronic form;
(ii) Submitting registration in electronic form would constitute a substantial hardship for
the political action committee; and
(iii) The political action committee submits a notarized affidavit that complies with
§ 7-6-231.
(2)(A) The political action committee shall maintain for a period of four (4) years records
evidencing the name, address, and place of employment of each person that contributed to the
political action committee, along with the amount contributed.
(B) Furthermore, the political action committee shall maintain for a period of four (4) years
records evidencing the name and address of each candidate, ballot question committee,
legislative question committee, political party, county political party committee, or other
political action committee that received a contribution from the political action committee,
along with the amount contributed.
(3)(A) The political action committee shall designate a resident agent who shall be an
individual who resides in this state.
(B) No contribution shall be accepted from a political action committee and no expenditure
shall be made by a political action committee that has not registered and does not have a
resident agent.
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7-6-215
ELECTIONS
(C) It shall be unlawful for a prohibited political action committee as defined in § 7-6-201 to
make a contribution to a:
(i) Ballot question committee;
(ii) Legislative question committee;
(iii) Political party;
(iv) Political party committee; or
(v) Political action committee.
(4)(A) An out-of-state political action committee, including a federal political action committee,
shall be required to comply with the registration and reporting provisions of this section if the
committee contributes more than five hundred dollars ($500) in a calendar year to candidates,
ballot question committees, legislative question committees, political parties, county political
party committees, or other political action committees within this state.
(B) Subdivision (a)(4)(A) of this section shall not apply to:
(i) The national committee of any political party that is registered with the Federal Election
Commission;
(ii) Any federal candidate committee that is registered with the Federal Election Commission;
(iii) Funds which a subordinate committee of the national committee of any political party
that is registered with the Federal Election Commission transfers to the federal account of an
organized political party as defined under § 7-1-101; or
(iv) Funds which a political action committee that is registered with the Federal Election
Commission transfers to the federal account of an organized political party as defined under
§ 7-1-101.
(b) The registration form of an approved political action committee shall contain the following
information:
(1) The name, address, and, where available, phone number of the political action committee
and the name, address, phone number, and place of employment of each of its officers, provided
if the political action committee’s name is an acronym, then both it and the words forming the
acronym shall be disclosed;
(2) The professional, business, trade, labor, or other interests represented by the political
action committee, including any individual business, organization, association, corporation, labor
organization, or other group or firm whose interests will be represented by the political action
committee;
(3) The full name and street address, city, state, and zip code of each financial institution the
political action committee uses for purposes of receiving contributions or making expenditures
within this state;
(4) The name, street address, and telephone number of the individual designated as the
resident agent for the political action committee;
(5) If the registration form is filed in paper form, a written acceptance of designation as a
resident agent;
(6) A certification by a political action committee officer, under penalty of false swearing, that
the information provided on the registration is true and correct; and
(7) A clause submitting the political action committee to the jurisdiction of the State of
Arkansas for all purposes related to compliance with the provisions of this subchapter.
(c)(1) When a committee makes a change to any information required in subsection (b) of this
section, an amendment shall be filed within ten (10) days to reflect the change.
(2) A committee failing to file an amendment shall be subject to a late filing fee of ten dollars
($10.00) for each day the change is not filed.
(d)(1) Within fifteen (15) calendar days after the end of each calendar quarter, a political action
committee shall file a quarterly report with the Secretary of State, including the following
information:
(A) The total amount of contributions received and the total amount of contributions made
during the filing period and the cumulative amount of those totals;
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7-6-215
(B) The current balance of political action committee funds;
(C) The name and address of each person that made a contribution or contributions to the
political action committee that exceeded two hundred dollars ($200) in the aggregate during
the calendar year, the contributor’s place of business, employer, occupation, the date of the
contribution, the amount contributed, and the total contributed for the year;
(D) The name and address of each candidate, ballot question committee, legislative question
committee, political party, county political party committee, or other political action committee,
if any, to whom or which the political action committee made a contribution or contributions
that exceeded two hundred dollars ($200) in the aggregate during the filing period, with the
amount contributed and the election for which the contribution was made;
(E) The name and address of each candidate, ballot question committee, legislative question
committee, political party, county political party committee, or other political action committee,
if any, to whom or which the political action committee contributed a nonmonetary item,
together with a description of the item, the date the item was contributed, and the value of the
item; and
(F) The total amount of expenditures made for administrative expenses and for each single
expenditure that exceeded one hundred dollars ($100), an itemization, including the amount of
the expenditure, the name and address of the person to whom the expenditure was made, and
the date the expenditure was made.
(2) Political action committee quarterly reports may be filed in electronic form through the
official website of the Secretary of State if electronic filing is offered by the Secretary of State.
(3) The information required in subdivisions (d)(1)(C)-(F) of this section may be provided in the
form of schedules attached to a report filed in paper form.
(4) The reports shall be verified by an affidavit of an officer of the political action committee
stating that to the best of his or her knowledge and belief the information so disclosed is a
complete, true, and accurate financial statement of the political action committee’s contributions
received and made.
(5)(A) A report is timely filed if it is filed in electronic form through the official website of the
Secretary of State on or before the date that the report is due if the Secretary of State offers
electronic filing of political action committee reports.
(B)(i) The Secretary of State shall receive reports in a readable electronic format that is
acceptable to the Secretary of State and approved by the Arkansas Ethics Commission.
(ii) The Arkansas Ethics Commission shall approve the format used by the Secretary of
State for the filing of political action committee reports in electronic form to ensure that all
required information is requested.
(iii) The official website of the Secretary of State shall allow for searches of political action
committee report information filed in electronic form.
(iv) A political action committee under this section may file reports in paper form under this
section if:
(a) The political action committee does not have access to the technology necessary to submit
reports in electronic form;
(b) Submitting reports in electronic form would constitute a substantial hardship for the
political action committee; and
(c) The political action committee submits a notarized affidavit that complies with § 7-6231.
(6)(A) If the Secretary of State offers electronic filing of political action committee reports, the
format used by the Secretary of State for the filing of political action committee reports in
electronic form shall require a political action committee indicating that it intends to terminate
its registration for the next calendar year to terminate its registration for the next calendar
year before submitting its quarterly report for the fourth quarter.
(B) If a political action committee does not file any quarterly reports for a period of two (2)
years, the Secretary of State shall terminate the political action committee’s registration due
to inactivity.
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7-6-216
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