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Federal Election Commission | United States of America

Affiliation between party committees

State and local committees

A state party committee and local party committees within that state are presumed to be affiliated. That is, all contributions received and made by local party committees count against the state committee’s limits.

This means that the state committee and local committees together may receive a maximum of $10,000 per calendar year from any one individual or non-multicandidate committee contributor. Similarly, the state committee and local committees together may not contribute more than $5,000 to a candidate per election, assuming the state party committee has qualified as a multicandidate committee.

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How to report Multicandidate status

To avoid exceeding the contribution limits, a state party committee should set up a centralized monitoring system to ensure that all contributions made and received by local party committees are within the limits.

Independent local committees

A local party committee may operate under its own separate set of contribution limits if the committee’s independence can be demonstrated. An independent party committee has the same set of contribution limits as a PAC.

National party committees

A national party committee operates under its own set of contribution limits. Only federally permissible funds may be raised and spent by the national parties. The Democratic and Republican parties each have three national party committees: a national committee, a House campaign committee and a Senate campaign committee. Each of these committees has a separate set of contribution limits, except for a special limit on contributions to Senate campaigns.

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Legal citations

Regulations

11 CFR 110.1(c)(5)
Contributions to state party committees

11 CFR 110.2(b)(1)
Contributions to candidates from state parties and their affiliates

11 CFR 110.2(e)
Contributions by political party committees to Senatorial candidates

11 CFR 110.3(b)
Contribution limitations for political party committees

11 CFR 110.9
Violation of limitations

11 CFR 103.3(b)
Treasurer must examine all contributions

11 CFR 300.10
General prohibitions on national party committees raising or spending nonfederal funds

Advisory opinions

AO 2005-02
Fundraising by federal officeholder for nonfederal campaigns (NOTE: Opinion superseded in part by Explanation and Justification for Final Rules on Participation by Federal Candidates and Officeholders at Non-Federal Fundraising Events, 75 FR 24375 (May 5, 2010).)

AO 1999-04
Applicability of contribution limits to local party organization conducting federal activity and affiliated with state party committee

AO 1978-09
Activities of a party committee

This information is not intended to replace the law or to change its meaning, nor does this information create or confer any rights for or on any person or bind the Federal Election Commission or the public.

The reader is encouraged also to consult the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), Commission regulations (Title 11 of the Code of Federal Regulations), Commission advisory opinions and applicable court decisions.