HF 2597 (LSB 6653HV (2) 91)

HOUSE FILE 2597

BY  COMMITTEE ON STATE GOVERNMENT

(SUCCESSOR TO HSB 644)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to the payment of home security expenses from campaign funds, and making penalties applicable.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  68A.303A  Home security expenses.
   1.  a.  In addition to the uses permitted under sections 68A.302 and 68A.303, a candidate or candidate’s committee may use campaign funds to pay for installation and operation of a home security system if the payment to the home security provider is reasonable for the services rendered.
   b.  (1)  A candidate or candidate’s committee shall not expend more than three thousand dollars for the installation of a home security system and shall not make more than one such expenditure.
   (2)  A candidate or candidate’s committee shall not expend more than one thousand two hundred dollars per year for the operation of a home security system.
   2.  A candidate using campaign funds for home security expenses shall keep a log detailing the date, name of the home security provider, and cost for each home security expense paid or owed by the campaign or candidate. Total home security expenses shall be included as a line-item expense in a report submitted pursuant to section 68A.402. A candidate’s log of home security expenses shall be provided to the board if requested during the course of an audit. The candidate’s committee shall preserve a home security log for five years following the submission of a report relating to the log, or for three years following the dissolution of the candidate’s committee.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to the payment of home security expenses from campaign funds. The bill permits a candidate or candidate’s committee to pay for home security expenses using campaign funds if the payment to the home security provider is reasonable. The bill allows a candidate or candidate’s committee to expend up to $3,000 once for the installation of a home security system and up to $1,200 annually for the operation of a home security system. The bill requires the candidate to keep logs relating to payment for any such services, which shall be provided to the Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board upon request during the course of an audit. The bill requires the candidate’s committee to preserve a home security log for five years following the submission of a report relating to the log, or for three years following the dissolution of the committee.
   A person who violates a provision of Code chapter 68A is subject to civil penalties imposed by the Iowa ethics and campaign disclosure board, including remedial action, a reprimand, and a civil penalty up to $2,000 (Code section 68B.32D). In addition, a person who willfully violates a provision of Code chapter 68A is guilty of a serious misdemeanor. A serious misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than one year and a fine of at least $430 but not more than $2,560.