§ La. R.S. 18:1483(untitled)

Definitions
As used in this Chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings given to each in this Section
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
(1) "Affiliated organization" means any organization which is not a committee but which directly
or indirectly establishes, administers, or financially supports a committee.
(2) "Aggregating period" means:
(a) For a committee, except a committee which supports only one candidate, the period from January
first of the calendar year through December thirty-first of the same calendar year.
(b) For a candidate, the period from the date on which he became a candidate as defined herein
through the closing date for the current report.
House of Representatives Database
Louisiana Election Code – 309
R.S. 18:1483
(c) For a committee which supports only one candidate, the period from the time when the
committee first participates in the election through the closing date for the current report.
(3)(a) "Candidate" means a person who seeks nomination or election to public office, except the
office of president or vice president of the United States, presidential elector, delegate to a political party
convention, United States senator, United States congressman, or political party office. An individual shall
be deemed to seek nomination or election to such office if the individual has:
(i) Since prior participation in an election, if any, received and accepted a contribution or made an
expenditure, or has given his consent for any other person or committee to receive a contribution or make
an expenditure with a view to influencing his nomination or election to office whether or not the specific
public office for which he will be a candidate is known at the time the contribution is received or the
expenditure is made, or
(ii) Taken the action necessary under the laws of the state of Louisiana to qualify himself for
nomination or election to public office.
(iii) Been selected as a party nominee in accordance with R.S. 18:410.6.
(b) Notwithstanding any provision of R.S. 42:1101 et seq. and specifically notwithstanding any
provision of R.S. 42:1115, for purposes of R.S. 42:1123(5) a "candidate" shall mean a "candidate" as defined
in this Paragraph and shall also mean any public servant required to file reports under the provisions of this
Chapter.
(4) "Chairman" means the principal executive officer of a committee regardless of his title.
(5) "Closing date" means the date through which the report is complete.
(6)(a) "Committee" means any legal entity, including an association or political party, or other group
of two or more persons, other than a husband and wife, which receives or anticipates receiving contributions
and makes or anticipates making expenditures, and has the primary purpose of making contributions to or
expenditures to or on behalf of any state or local elected official, candidate, campaign, or other committee.
An entity shall not be a committee if the entity makes expenditures for the purpose of supporting or opposing
candidates or recalls using only the entity's general revenues and does not receive contributions for the
purpose of supporting or opposing candidates or recalls. "Committee" includes any independent
expenditure-only committee, leadership committee, political committee, or principal campaign committee,
or subsidiary committee thereof.
(b) An entity that during a reporting period has supported candidates in states other than Louisiana;
has received less than fifty percent of its total receipts for the applicable reporting period from Louisiana
candidates or committees formed to support Louisiana candidates; and has expended less than fifty percent,
but not more than fifty thousand dollars, of its total disbursements for the applicable reporting period in
support of or in opposition to Louisiana candidates shall not constitute a "committee" for purposes of
requirements of R.S. 18:1491.1 through 1491.9 which would require such an entity to keep records and
submit reports.
(7)(a) "Contribution", except as otherwise provided in this Chapter, means a gift, conveyance,
payment, or deposit of money or anything of value, or the forgiveness of a loan or of a debt made to any of
the following:
(i) A committee.
(ii) A candidate for the purpose of supporting, opposing, or otherwise influencing the nomination
or election of the candidate to public office, whether made before or after the election.
(iii) Any person for the purpose of funding an expenditure to influence the nomination or election
of a person to public office, whether made before or after the election.
310 – House of Representatives Database
R.S. 18:1483
(iv) Any person for the purpose of funding an expenditure to support or oppose a proposition or
question submitted to the voters.
(v) Any person for the purpose of funding an expenditure to influence the recall of a public officer,
whether made before or after the election.
(b) "Contribution" shall also include, without limitation:
(i) Contributions in-kind made for any of the purposes stated in this Paragraph, having an
attributable monetary value in excess of fifty dollars. Contributions in-kind shall include without limitation:
the donation by any person, other than a candidate or a political committee, of the services of paid
employees, the value of which services exceeds fifty dollars, such value to be the amount paid for such
services; the donation of, or the donation of the right to use, any item of tangible property when the same is
used or consumed and not exchanged or converted to cash or the equivalent of cash and when the accepting
candidate, the chairman of the accepting political committee, or accepting person required to file reports
under this Chapter and the treasurer of such recipient, if any, determines that its value or the use value, when
only the right of use is given, exceeds fifty dollars and such determination shall be prima facie evidence of
the correctness of the valuation of the item or of the use value when applicable. In addition, successive
donations made by the same person, which donations individually are valued below fifty dollars but which
together exceed such amount, shall be deemed to be in-kind contributions and shall be aggregated for
purposes of the requirements of this Chapter.
(ii) Coordinated expenditures made for the purpose of supporting, opposing, or otherwise
influencing the nomination or election of the candidate and shall be considered to be a contribution to such
candidate.
(iii) A promissory note or written contract to make a contribution as defined above.
(iv) A payment to purchase campaign paraphernalia other than expenditures made by a candidate
or political committee to purchase its own paraphernalia.
(v) A payment for tickets to a testimonial or similar fundraising event.
(c) "Contribution" shall not include:
(i) Personal services provided voluntarily by any person without compensation or by any person who
is employed for purposes other than solely campaign purposes by the reporting candidate, by a partnership
of which he is a member, or by a corporation of which he owns a majority of the stock.
(ii) Any dues or membership fees of any membership organization or corporation made by its
members or stockholders, if such membership organization or corporation is not organized primarily for the
purpose of supporting, opposing or otherwise influencing the nomination for election, or election, of any
person to public office. However, any funds of such an organization or corporation used for the purpose of
contributions to candidates or committees or to publicly advocate support or defeat of a candidate or for
expenditures as defined in this Chapter shall be reportable and all contributions made by such membership
organization or corporation which are otherwise reportable under the provisions of this Chapter shall be
reported.
(iii) A transfer of funds between political committees.
(iv) A loan.
(d) A contribution of anything of value other than money or an in-kind contribution shall be
considered for all purposes of this Chapter as a contribution of money in the amount of the fair market value
thereof.
(8) "Coordinated expenditure" means an expenditure made by any person in cooperation,
consultation, or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate, his principal campaign
House of Representatives Database
Louisiana Election Code – 311
R.S. 18:1483
committee or a subsidiary committee thereof, or their agents for the purpose of supporting, opposing, or
otherwise influencing the nomination or election of the candidate.
(9) "District office" means the following offices but shall not include any major office:
(a) The office of a member of the Louisiana Legislature.
(b) All public offices elected parishwide.
(c) All public offices elected in more than one parish.
(d) All public offices elected in any election district containing a population in excess of thirty-five
thousand as determined by the most recently published decennial federal census. All public offices elected
in any city or parish election in a parish containing a municipality with a population of three hundred
thousand or more as determined by the most recent decennial federal census. All elected public offices to
a board or governing authority which has, within its jurisdiction, a municipality with a population of two
hundred twenty-five thousand or more as determined by the most recent decennial federal census.
(e) The offices of district court judge, except in a judicial district comprised of a single parish with
a population in excess of four hundred fifty thousand persons as determined by the most recently published
decennial federal census where the election district is parishwide, family court judge, juvenile court judge,
city court judge, city court marshal, and city court constable, as long as these offices are elective offices.
(10) "Election" means any party primary, primary, general, special, or other election held, pursuant
to the laws of this state or a parish or municipal charter or ordinance or a court order, to choose a public
officer or nominee. For purposes of the reporting requirements for the support or opposition of a proposition
or question submitted to the voters, "election" shall also mean any primary, general, or special election,
except local option elections held pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 3 of Title 26 of the Louisiana
Revised Statutes of 1950, at which a proposition or question is submitted to the voters in accordance with
Chapters 6-A, 6-B, and 6-C of this Code.
(11)(a) "Expenditure" means a purchase, payment, advance, deposit, or gift, of money or anything
of value made for a purpose provided for in R.S. 18:1501.1(A) or 1505.2(I).
(b) "Expenditure" shall also include:
(i) A promissory note or written contract to make an expenditure as defined above.
(ii) Expenditures in-kind which have an attributable monetary value in excess of fifty dollars, made
for any of the purposes stated in this Paragraph. Expenditures in-kind shall include without limitation: the
donation by any person, candidate, or committee of the services of paid employees, the value of which
services exceeds fifty dollars, such value to be the amount paid for such services; the donation of, or the
donation of the right to use, any item of tangible property when the same is used or consumed and not
exchanged or converted to cash or the equivalent of cash and when the donating candidate, the chairman of
the donating committee, or the donating person required to file reports under this Chapter, and the campaign
treasurer of such donor, if any, determines that its value or the use value, when only the right to use is given,
exceeds fifty dollars and such determination shall be prima facie evidence of the correctness of the valuation
of the item or the use value when applicable. In addition, successive donations made to the same person,
which donations individually are valued below fifty dollars but which together exceed such amount, shall
be deemed to be in-kind expenditures and shall be aggregated for purposes of the requirements of this
Chapter.
(c) Expenditures made by a public relations firm, an advertising agency, or agent for a candidate,
committee, or other person required to file reports under this Chapter shall be considered expenditures of the
candidate, committee, or such other person, and must be specifically reported as required by this Chapter.
Each such firm, agency, or agent, which makes any expenditure for any candidate, committee, or other person
required to file reports under this Chapter, shall timely furnish to such candidate, committee, or person such
information relative thereto as may be required for compliance with this Chapter.
312 – House of Representatives Database
R.S. 18:1483
(d) "Expenditure" shall not include:
(i) Personal services provided voluntarily by any person without compensation or by any person who
is employed for purposes other than solely campaign purposes by the reporting candidate, by a partnership
of which he is a member, or by a corporation of which he owns a majority of the stock.
(ii) Any communication by any membership organization or business entity to its employees,
members, directors, or stockholders, or their family members, if such membership organization or business
entity is not organized primarily for the purpose of supporting, opposing, or otherwise influencing the
nomination for election, or election, of any person to public office or for the purpose of supporting or
opposing a proposition or question to be submitted to the voters. All other expenditures made by such
membership organization or business entity which are otherwise reportable under the provisions of this
Chapter shall be reported. For purposes of this definition, business entity means any proprietorship,
partnership, corporation, or other legal entity, including their subsidiaries.
(iii) A transfer of funds between comm