§ 300.31 - Receipt of Levin funds.

§ 300.31 Receipt of Levin funds.

(a) General rule. Levin funds expended or disbursed by any State, district, or local committee must be raised solely by the committee that expends or disburses them.

(b) Compliance with State law. Each donation of Levin funds solicited or accepted by a State, district, or local committee of a political party must be lawful under the laws of the State in which the committee is organized.

(c) Donations from sources permitted by State law but prohibited by the Act. If the laws of the State in which a State, district, or local committee of a political party is organized permit donations to the committee from a source prohibited by the Act and this chapter, other than 52 U.S.C. 30121, the committee may solicit and accept donations of Levin funds from that source, subject to paragraph (d) of this section.

(d) Donation amount limitation -

(1) General rule. A State, district, or local committee of a political party must not solicit or accept from any person (including any entity established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such person) one or more donations of Levin funds aggregating more than $10,000 in a calendar year.

(2) Effect of different State limitations. If the laws of the State in which a State, district, or local committee of a political party is organized limit donations to that committee to less than the amount specified in paragraph (d)(1) of this section, then the State law amount limitations shall control. If the laws of the State in which a State, district, or local committee of a political party is organized permit donations to that committee in amounts greater than the amount specified in paragraph (d)(1) of this section, then the amount limitations in paragraph (d)(1) of this section shall control.

(3) No affiliation of committees for purposes of this paragraph. For purposes of determining compliance with paragraph (d) of this section only, State, district, and local committees of the same political party shall not be considered affiliated. Subject to the amount limitations specified in paragraphs (d)(1) and (d)(2) of this section, a person (including any entity directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such person) may donate without additional limitation to each and every State, district, and local committee of a political party.

(e) No Levin funds from a national party committee or a Federal candidate or officeholder. A State, district, or local committee of a political party disbursing Levin funds pursuant to 11 CFR 300.32 must not accept or use for such purposes any donations or other funds that are solicited, received, directed, transferred, or spent by or in the name of any of the following persons:

(1) A national committee of a political party (including a national congressional campaign committee of a political party), any officer or agent acting on behalf of such a national party committee, or any entity that is directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such a national party committee. Notwithstanding 11 CFR 102.17, a State, district, or local committee of a political party must not raise Levin funds by means of joint fundraising with a national committee of a political party, any officer or agent acting on behalf of such a national party committee, or any entity that is directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such a national party committee. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit a State, district, or local committee of a political party from jointly raising, under 11 CFR 102.17, Federal funds not to be used for Federal election activity with a national committee of a political party, or its agent, or any entity directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such a national party committee.

(2) A Federal candidate, or an individual holding Federal office, or an agent of a Federal candidate or officeholder, or an entity directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by, or acting on behalf of, one or more Federal candidates or individuals holding Federal office. Notwithstanding 11 CFR 102.17, a State, district, or local committee of a political party must not raise Levin funds by means of joint fundraising with a Federal candidate, an individual holding Federal office, or an entity directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by, or acting on behalf of, one or more candidates or individuals holding Federal office. A Federal candidate or individual holding Federal office may attend, speak, or be a featured guest at a fundraising event for a State, district, or local committee of a political party at which Levin funds are raised. See 11 CFR 300.64.

(f) Certain joint fundraising prohibited. Notwithstanding 11 CFR 102.17, a State, district, or local committee of a political party must not raise Levin funds by means of any joint fundraising activity with any other State, district, or local committee of any political party, the agent of such a committee, or an entity directly or indirectly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by such a committee. This prohibition includes State, district, and local committees of a political party organized in another State. Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit two or more State, district, or local committees of a political party from jointly raising, under 11 CFR 102.17, Federal funds not to be used for Federal election activity.

(g) Safe Harbor. The use of a common vendor for fundraising by more than one State, district, or local committee of a political party, or the agent of such a committee, does not constitute joint fundraising within the meaning of this section.

[67 FR 49120, July 29, 2002, as amended at 75 FR 32, Jan. 4, 2010; 79 FR 77850, Dec. 29, 2014]