Campaign Spending Commission

2009 TRAINING CLASSES 

The times, locations, and dates for Kauai, Maui and Oahu classes are as follows:

8:30 a.m.-11:00 a.m. – Candidate and Candidate Committees
11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. – Partial Public Financing for Candidates
1:30 p.m.-3:00 p.m. – Noncandidate Committees

KAUAI – Tuesday, November 3, 2009

State Office Bldg.
Conference Rooms A/B/C, 2nd Floor
3060 Eiwa Street                                         
 Lihue, Hawaii

MAUI – Tuesday, November 17, 2009

 State Office Bldg.
Conference Rooms A-B, 3rd Floor
54 High Street
Wailuku, Hawaii

OAHU – Monday, November 30, 2009

Leiopapa A Kamehameha Bldg.
Conference Room 204
235 South Beretania Street
 Honolulu, Hawaii

For Hilo, the schedule is:

8:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. – Candidate and Candidate Committees
10:00 a.m.-11:00 a.m. – Partial Public Financing for Candidates
12:30 p.m.-1:30 p.m. – Noncandidate Committees
1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. – Hawaii County Council Comprehensive Public Funding
4:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m. – Hawaii County Council Comprehensive Public Funding

HILO – Thursday, November 5, 2009

State Office Bldg.
 Conference Rooms A/B/C
75 Aupuni Street
Hilo, Hawaii

Certified Public Accountants may earn up to five (5) Professional Continuing Education credits on Kauai, Maui and Oahu, and up to seven (7) credits in Hilo.

ADDITIONAL REPORTS TO BE REQUIRED

REMINDER: Candidate Committees and Noncandidate Committees may have additional reports to file whether they are participating or not in the new Hawaii County Council Comprehensive Public Funding Project in the 2010 election.  You must be familiar with all aspects of this new law so that you do not miss any reporting requirements and become subject to fines/penalties.

INDIVIDUAL AND LLC CONTRIBUTIONS

The Commission is noticing more individuals making contributions, and then making contributions through two to three limited liability companies that the individuals are members of.  Make sure your contributors are aware that if the individual finances, maintains, or controls the L.L.C., contributions will be aggregated and considered to be made from a single person.

CSC Reports
Next report due for:
Candidates
Supplemental-July 31, 2009

Noncandidate Committee
Supplemental-July 31, 2009

CSC Meetings
August 11-13, 2009
September 9, 2009
October 14, 2009
November 12, 2009
December 16, 2009

FINES AND PENALTIES IMPOSED IN FY 2009

Excess Contributions – 3 totaling $560
Excess Community Donations – 2 totaling $460
Prohibited Use of Campaign Funds – $100
Advertising Violations – 16 totaling $1,200
Collected Fines Imposed Prior to 2009 – $15,000
Late Reports – $38,086.53
Total Fines- $55,406.53

FISCAL YEAR 2008-2009 ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Recodification.  As you know, the Commission staff, spearheaded by General Counsel Grant Tanimoto, and 17 volunteer attorneys worked for nine months to recodify the campaign finance law. The staff spent hundreds of hours at the legislature in meetings and testifying.  The 2009 Legislature passed the recodification, and it was vetoed by the Governor.  We will try again next year.

Hawaii County Council Comprehensive Public Funding Project.  The Commission was given an unfunded mandate by the 2008 Legislature to initiate and build a new Hawaii County Council Comprehensive Public Funding Project. In the 2009 Legislature, various groups attempted to delay the start of the project by introducing House Bill 345, but the measure was not heard by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The Commission staff first reviewed the legislation to learn the law and how sections interplay.  Timelines were created.  Business requirements were developed for modifications to the Candidate Filing System and the Noncandidate Committee Filing System.  Meetings were held with the State of Hawaii Information and Communications Division (”ICSD”) to develop a timeline for ICSD to complete modifications to the electronic filing systems and to assist them in understanding what the project is about.  Also, reservations for class sites on the neighbor islands were made and class dates were set for Participant and Non-Participant classes, as well as classes for Noncandidate Committees.  The first draft of a guidebook and forms were developed.  A determination will be made later as to whether contracts must be drafted and executed for extra assistance for the Commission staff to carry out this program, which will include additional report reviews, potential investigations, conciliations and other Commission actions.

Web Training 24/7. Thirteen new training modules for candidates, candidate committees, and noncandidate committees were produced, filmed, and uploaded to the Commission website in FY 09. Training became available 24/7 from any computer with internet access.

Two Special Elections.  In addition to a new public financing program on the Big Island, the staff was also tasked with two Special elections.  Reporting schedules were formulated, the electronic filing systems modified, training classes planned and provided, and review of additional reports done.  All of these were unfunded with no extra staffing.

Commission Staff.  Commission Staff was invited to present and facilitate a table topic on strategic planning at the annual international conference of the Council on Governmental Ethics Laws in Chicago, Illinois.

Next Reporting Deadline: July 31, 2009.  For candidate and Noncandidate Committees, the Supplemental Report covers the period January 1, 2009 through June 30, 2009.  Remember, even if you received no contributions and made no expenditures, you are still required to file a report by the deadline. 

ADDING NEW REPORTING PERIOD

Candidate and Noncandidate Committees, you must add the Supplemental Report due on July 31, 2009, to your reporting schedule as follows or you will not be able to file this report:

1. Log-on to the CFS or NCFS with your Administrator username and password;
2. Click “Administration”, then click “Reporting Schedules”;
3. Click the “Add New” link;
4. Select “2008-2010” from the “Election Period” drop-down, then the applicable reporting schedule from the “Reporting Schedule” drop-down, and then click the Search button;
5. Click on the “Add” link next to “Supplemental” with your applicable reporting period. 

DISTRICT 5 SPECIAL ELECTION INFORMATION

Please visit the Commission’s website at www.hawaii.gov/campaign for information on what is required for candidate and noncandidate committees that are participating in the Honolulu City Council District 5 Special Election.  The Commission website also provides a wealth of information and is constantly updated.  Please check it regularly.