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Colorado > Colorado Electoral Code > Fair Campaign Practices Act

1-45-110. Candidate affidavit – disclosure statement

Overview of Statute

Candidates must file an affidavit affirming familiarity with the provisions outlined in this article within ten days of forming a candidate committee. Other requirements, however, will apply for special legislative districts and candidates for municipal districts. Failure to provide the required affidavit may result in disqualification, pursuant to additional procedural regulations.

Statute

(1) When any individual becomes a candidate, such individual shall certify, by affidavit filed with the appropriate officer within ten days, that the candidate is familiar with the provisions of this article; except that an individual who is a candidate in a special legislative election that filed a candidate affidavit for the preceding general election shall not be required to comply with the provisions of this section, and except that a candidate in a special district election shall file the candidate affidavit or, alternatively, a copy of the candidate’s self-nomination and acceptance form or letter submitted in accordance with section 1-13.5-303, if such form or letter contains a statement that the candidate is familiar with the provisions of this article, no later than the date established for certification of the special district’s ballot pursuant to section 1-5-203 (3) (a). A candidate in a municipal election may comply with this section by filing a candidate affidavit pursuant to section 31-10-302 (6), C.R.S., if such affidavit contains a statement that the candidate is familiar with the provisions of this article.

(2) (a) Except as provided in paragraph (b) of this subsection, each candidate for the general assembly, governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state treasurer, secretary of state, state board of education, regent of the University of Colorado, and district attorney shall file a statement disclosing the information required by section 24-6-202 (2) with the appropriate officer, on a form approved by the secretary of state, within ten days of filing the affidavit required by subsection (1) of this section.

(b) No candidate listed in paragraph (a) of this subsection shall be required to file another disclosure statement if the candidate had already filed such a statement less than ninety days prior to filing the affidavit required by subsection (1) of this section.

(3) If any person fails to file the affidavit or the disclosure statement required by section (2) of this section, the designated election official certifying the ballot in accordance with section 1-5-203 (3)(a) shall send a notice to the person by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the person’s mailing address. The notice must state that the person will be disqualified as a candidate if the person fails to file the appropriate document within that time frame, the designated election official shall disqualify the candidate. 

(4) Any disclosure statement required by subsection (2) of this section shall be amended no more than thirty days after any termination or acquisition of interests as to which disclosure is required.

(5) If a person is defeated as a candidate or withdraws from the candidacy, that person shall not be required to comply with the provisions of this section after the withdrawal or defeat.

Source: Initiated 96: Entire article R&RE, effective upon proclamation of the Governor, January 15, 1997.L. 99: (1) amended, p. 1392, § 16, effective June 4.L. 2002: (1) amended, p. 1641, § 35, effective June 7.L. 2010: (3) amended, (SB 10-041), ch. 151, p. 524, § 4, effective July 1.L. 2014: (1) amended, (HB 14-1164), ch. 2, p. 74, § 44, effective February 18; (HB 18-1047).

Editor’s note: This section is similar to former § 1-45-105 as it existed prior to 1996.

Cross references: For the legislative declaration in HB 14-1164, see section 1 of chapter 2, Session Laws of Colorado 2014.

ANNOTATION

Disclosure of federal campaign funds, see 52 U.S.C.A. § 30101 et seq.

Definition [Appropriate officer]

The individual with whom a candidate, candidate committee, political committee, small donor committee, or issue committee must file pursuant to section 1-45-109(1), C.R.S., or any successor section. Section 2(1) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

Definition [Designated election official]

The secretary of state, a county clerk and recorder, or other election official as provided by article XXI of the state constitution. C.R.S. § 1-12-100.5.

Definition [State]

A state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. C.R.S. § 1-8.3-102.

Definition [Ballot]

(a) A federal write-in absentee ballot;

(b) A ballot specifically prepared or distributed for use by a covered voter in accordance with this article; or

(c) A ballot cast by a covered voter in accordance with this article.

(2) “Covered voter” means:

(a) A uniformed-service voter defined in paragraph (a) of subsection (9) of this section who is a resident of this state but who is absent from this state by reason of active duty and who otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements;

(b) An overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, was last eligible to vote in this state and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements;

(c) An overseas voter who, before leaving the United States, would have been last eligible to vote in this state had the voter then been of voting age and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements; or

(d) An overseas voter who was born outside the United States, is not described in paragraph (b) or (c) of this subsection (2), and, except for a state residency requirement, otherwise satisfies this state’s voter eligibility requirements if the last place where a parent, legal guardian, spouse, or civil union partner of the voter was, or under this article would have been, eligible to vote before leaving the United States is within this state.

C.R.S. § 1-8.3-102.

Definition [Person]

Any natural person, partnership, committee, association, corporation, labor organization, political party, or other organization or group of persons. Section 2(11) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

Definition [Section]

A bound compilation of initiative forms approved by the secretary of state, which shall include pages that contain the warning required by section 1-40-110 (1), the ballot title, the abstract required by section 1-40-110 (3), and a copy of the proposed measure; succeeding pages that contain the warning, the ballot title, and ruled lines numbered consecutively for registered electors’ signatures; and a final page that contains the affidavit required by section 1-40-111 (2). Each section shall be consecutively prenumbered by the petitioner prior to circulation.

Definition [Election]

Any election under the “Uniform Election Code of 1992” or the “Colorado Municipal Election Code of 1965”, article 10 of title 31, C.R.S. C.R.S. § 1-7.5-103.

Definition [Secretary]

The Colorado secretary of state. C.R.S. § 1-1.5-102.

Definition [Candidate]

Any person who seeks nomination or election to any state or local public office that is to be voted on in this state at any primary election, general election, school district election, special district election, or municipal election. “Candidate” also includes a judge or justice of any court of record who seeks to be retained in office pursuant to the provisions of section 25 of article VI. A person is a candidate for election if the person has publicly announced an intention to seek election to public office or retention of a judicial office and thereafter has received a contribution or made an expenditure in support of the candidacy. A person remains a candidate for purposes of this article so long as the candidate maintains a registered candidate committee. A person who maintains a candidate committee after an election cycle, but who has not publicly announced an intention to seek election to public office in the next or any subsequent election cycle, is a candidate for purposes of this article. Section 2(2) of article XXVIII of the state constitution.

Cases

Colorado Cases

Case Name: Patterson Recall Comm., Inc. v. Patterson

Citation: 209 P.3d 1210 (Colo. App. 2009)

Year: 2009

Case URL: https://www.ravellaw.com/opinions/6f831f67b9d1e7148a9af85bdb91e29f

Case Summary: Holding that Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) had the authority to sanction an issue committee for violating campaign finance laws; until it was terminated, issue committee was required to continue submitting contribution and expenditure reports after county clerk determined it had not gathered enough signatures to trigger a recall; an ALJ had the discretion to not impose a sanction for a violation of campaign laws; ALJ did not abuse her discretion by not sanctioning the committee for its failure to file reports; and committee's appeal was not frivolous.

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