Candidate guide - Contributions, Expenditures, & Filing 11/03/26

You will be required to file campaign finance statements, regardless of the level of activity and the amount of funds raised and spent on your campaign. If you choose to raise and spend funds on the campaign, you must become familiar with the various disclosure forms and applicable rules.

Marin County Ordinance 3805 requires all local campaign finance committees to file finance disclosure reports through the County e-filing program maintained by the Elections Department. The reports are posted online.

Exceptions:

• candidates without a committee;
• candidates and measures for municipal and State contests;
• the Form 410 is filed with the Secretary of State, not with the County program.

The e-file program is at no cost to the candidate, it is simple to use, and it allows an unlimited number of draft documents to review before submitting your report. When you   submit your report, the data is permanently saved. If afterwards you realize an error was made, the program allows the user to amend any report at any time.

If you open a campaign finance committee, you are required to e-file disclosure reports periodically until the committee is closed. The Form 460 is the main report, and it is used to report contributions, expenditures, loans, and all other types of activity. It is a good idea to become familiar with the report which can be found at fppc.ca.gov.

Another common report submitted thru the program is the Form 497. This is a 24-Hour contribution report that must be filed within 24 hours if a committee receives a $1,000 contribution (including aggregated amounts) from a single source during the 90 days prior to the election.

The following forms are not available to e-file through our program. You must file by paper, and you may submit the forms by email:

Form 501: You must file this form before solicitation or receipt of any contribution, or expenditure of personal funds other than the filing fee and your candidate statement.

Form 470: Candidates are required to file no less than one campaign finance report no later than the first pre-election deadline. The Form 470 is filed if the candidate does not have a controlled committee and has not raised or spent $2,000 or more on their campaign. If the $2,000 threshold is reached, a campaign finance committee must be opened within 10 days.

Form 410: File the Form 410 to open a campaign finance committee, no later than 10 days after spending or receiving at least $2,000. Afterwards your committee will be required to file periodic campaign statements until the committee is closed. This form is also used to amend and close your committee.

• Deposit all campaign funds in a separate bank account that is only for the campaign. You cannot add contributed funds to personal accounts.
• Do not use the same bank account, committee, or committee name that you used in a previous election if you are running for a different office.
• Expenditures from personal funds may be used without having to open a committee if used to pay the filing fee and candidate statement printed in the voter information guide.
• Record all contributions and expenses of $25 or more, but you should never accept cash. (FPPC manuals will provide details and additional information.)
• Document any donation worth $100 or more, including loans and in-kind contributions. You must provide the contributor’s name, address, occupation, and employer.
• Do not use your campaign funds for most non-campaign expenses or to make independent expenditures to support or oppose other candidates.
• If you receive $1,000 or more from a single source in the last 90 days before the election, you must disclose it within 24 hours, even if the contributions are from your personal funds. This includes separate contributions from the same source that add up to $1,000 or more.

Important! Your campaign finance reporting requirements do not end with the election. You must file reports continuously until you close your committee.

Candidates running for Local offices

Candidates for county office must adhere to the State campaign contribution limit, currently set at $5,900 from each individual, committee, and political party per election. Contribution limits do not apply to Special District and School District candidates in Marin County.

Candidates running for State offices

If running for a state office, you are required tofile campaign finance reports with the California Secretary of State. Candidate committees raising or spending more than $25,000 must file their reports through the State’s e-file program; those who spend or raise less than $25,000 will file paper reports with the State and the County.

The Marin County Elections Department and the Fair Political Practices Commission have the authority to assess fines due to late and/or non-filing, but only the FPPC has the authority to assess fines and investigate or prosecute other campaign finance violations. (Gov’t. Code § 91013)

Any time before 3/4/26 and after 6/2/26, State candidate committees must e-file a Form 497 within 10 business days to report any contribution of $5,000 or more received from a single source.

Campaign finance rules and regulations may be overwhelming and difficult to understand. The Elections Department is greatly limited in providing advice to candidates.
It is recommended that candidates employ the services of an experienced person and/or team to help you in this process.

If you are a local candidate, refer to FPPC Campaign Disclosure Manual 2.

If you are a State candidate, refer to FPPC Campaign Disclosure Manual 1

• Fair Political Practices Commission:
  428 J Street, Suite 620, Sacramento, CA 95814
  Tel. 866-275-3772, or Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC)

Additional contacts

• Secretary of State, Political Reform Division:
  1500 11TH Street, Room 495, Sacramento, CA 95814
  Tel. 916-653-6224, or Secretary of State, Political Reform Division
• Federal Election Commission:
  (candidates for federal offices only)
  Tel. 800-424-9530, or Federal Election Commission
• Local candidates, please contact:
  Email: Dan Miller
  Tel. 415-473-6437