L.L. 2004/059

Enactment date: 12/15/2004

Int. No. 466-A

By Council Members Perkins and Jackson

A Local Law to amend the charter and the administrative code of the city of New York, in relation to application of the public disclosure requirements of the New York City Campaign Finance Program to all candidates for the offices of mayor, public advocate, comptroller, borough president, and member of the city council.

Be it enacted by the Council as follows:

Section 1. Declaration of Legislative Intent and Findings.

The New York City Campaign Finance Act, adopted by the New York City Council in 1988, has succeeded in enhancing competition for elective municipal offices, limiting campaign contributions and expenditures to reasonable levels, and vastly increasing public information about the sources and uses of campaign funds.

The Council finds that amendments to the New York City Campaign Finance Act and the charter of the City of New York, will further the goals of this landmark legislation. By imposing many of the same disclosure and audit provisions of the Campaign Finance Act to those candidates for municipal office who elect not to participate in the Campaign Finance Program, without extending to such candidates the public financing provisions or the provisions limiting expenditures, the Council seeks to further strengthen the reform program that has been recognized as a national model.

Further, the Council finds that the Campaign Finance Board publishes on the Web a searchable database of campaign finance information reported by candidates participating in the City's campaign finance reform program. This unique and detailed public resource enables the voting public to review and compare contributions and expenditures for opposing candidates, and to draw their own conclusions about the significance of this information in the exercise of the voting franchise.

As presently constituted, the Web database does not include the campaign finance transactions of candidates who choose not to participate in the City's reform program. This absence of comparable public disclosure deprives the voting public of relevant comparative information and creates increased administrative burdens for the Campaign Finance Board in making the administrative determinations required by the Campaign Finance Act. In addition, the Council finds that the Board of Elections does not monitor the completeness and accuracy of the campaign finance disclosure reports submitted on behalf of non-participating candidates in the same detailed manner that the Campaign Finance Board does with public disclosure reports filed on behalf of participating candidates.

The Council finds and declares that:

   1.   Uniform disclosure of comparable information serves the interest of the voting public and promotes fair competition among opposing candidates. This public information function is comparable to the voters guide published pursuant to section 1053 of the New York City Charter, which covers all candidates for City office regardless of their participation in the voluntary system of campaign finance reform.

   2.   Detailed public campaign finance disclosure helps safeguard against the risk that large campaign contributions will gain undue influence over government decision-making and sheds light on campaign spending practices. As is true of the personal financial disclosure required of all candidates for City office pursuant to section 12-110 of the Administrative Code, detailed and comparable public disclosure of campaign finance transactions must be a fundamental obligation of all candidates seeking City office.

   3.   Disclosure to the Campaign Finance Board will enhance the existing Web database and facilitate determinations the board is required to make pursuant to the New York City Campaign Finance Act.

   4.   Equal protection requires an enforcement regime that treats all competing candidates in the same manner. For that reason, this local law extends auditing and penalties under the New York City Campaign Finance Act to ensure that public disclosure on behalf of all candidates seeking public office of the City of New York is complete, timely, and accurate.

By providing detailed financial information about all candidates, these amendments will permit greater public scrutiny of campaign finances for all candidates running for certain offices in New York City.

* * *

[Consolidated provisions are not included in this Appendix A]

* * *

§15. If any provision of this bill or any other provision of this local law, or any amendments thereto, shall be held invalid or ineffective in whole or in part or inapplicable to any person or situation, such holding shall not affect, impair or invalidate any portion of or the remainder of this local law, and all other provisions thereof shall nevertheless be separately and fully effective and the application of any such provision to other persons or situations shall not be affected.

§16. This local law shall become effective immediately and shall be applicable to all receipts and expenditures for elections held after the effective date, regardless whether the receipt or expenditure occurred prior to the effective date.