N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. tit. 19 § 938.3

Current through Register Vol. 46, No. 51, December 18, 2024

Section 938.3 - Contribution Reporting Requirements

(a) Commencing with the Client Semi-Annual Report due on January 15, 2013, and for each Client Semi-Annual Report thereafter, a Client Filer is required to disclose Contributions received in accordance with the provisions of subdivisions (b), (c) (d), and (e) of this section.

(b) For the purpose of satisfying Legislative Law § 1-h(c)(4), a Client Filer whose lobbying activity is performed on its own behalf and not pursuant to retention by a client need only report Contribution(s) received from each Source in a Client Semi-Annual Report and is not additionally required to report such Contribution(s) on a Lobbyist Bi-Monthly Report.

(c) When a Client Filer has met the Expenditure Threshold during the first client semi-annual reporting period of the calendar year (January 1st - June 30th), the Client Filer shall aggregate all such Contributions, regardless of the amount, received from each Source. If the sum of such Contributions is more than $2,500, then a Client Filer is required to disclose the information in subdivision (e) of this section for each Contribution. If the sum of the Contributions received from each Source is $2,500 or less, then a Client Filer is not required to disclose any Contribution(s) from the Source in the Client Semi-Annual Report that covers the first reporting period of the calendar year.

(d) When a Client Filer has met the Expenditure Threshold during the second client semi-annual reporting period of a calendar year (July 1st - December 31st), the Client Filer uses the following to determine whether any Contribution(s) received from a Source shall be disclosed in the Client Semi-Annual Report covering the second reporting period of the calendar year:

(1) if during the previous reporting period (January 1st - June 30th), the Client Filer did not meet the Expenditure Threshold, then no Contribution(s) received from any Source during that first reporting period are to be added to Contribution(s) received from any Source during the second reporting period.

(2) if during the previous reporting period (January 1st - June 30th), the Client Filer did not receive any Contribution(s) from the Source, a Client Filer shall add all Contributions, regardless of the amount, received from the Source during the second reporting period of the calendar year. If the sum of such Contributions is more than $2,500, then a Client Filer is required to disclose the information in subdivision (e) of this section for each Contribution.

If the sum of the Contributions received from a Source is $2,500 or less, then a Client Filer is not required to disclose any Contribution(s) from the Source in the Client Semi-Annual Report that covers the second reporting period of the calendar year;

(3) if during the previous reporting period (January 1st - June 30th), the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold and received Contributions(s) from a Source in excess of $2,500, then the Client Filer shall disclose all Contributions, regardless of the amount, received from the Source during the second client semi-annual reporting period of the calendar year;

(4) if during the previous reporting period (January 1st - June 30th), the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold and received Contributions(s) from a Source in an amount totaling $2,500 or less, then the Client Filer shall add all Contributions, regardless of the amount, received from a Source over the calendar year. If the sum of such Contributions is more than $2,500, then a Client Filer is required to disclose the information in subdivision (e) of this section for each Contribution received during the calendar year. If the sum of the Contributions received from each Source is $2,500 or less, then a Client Filer is not required to disclose any Contribution(s) from the Source.

Example 1: Jane Doe contributes $1,000 on May 4, 2017 to Client Filer. Source Jim Smith, contributes $2,000 on October 30, 2017. Client Filer knows that Jane and Jim live in the same household.

For the purpose of filing the Client Semi-Annual Report due on July 16, 2017 (covering the period January 1, 2017 through June 30, 2017), Client Filer is not required to report the Contribution from Jane Doe.

For the purpose of filing the Client Semi-Annual Report due on January 15, 2018 (covering the period July 1, 2017 through December 31, 2017), if the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold during both reporting periods, the Client Filer must aggregate the Contributions from Jane Doe and Jim Smith as one Source because they have an Affiliate Relationship. The two Contributions exceed $2,500 when aggregated, therefore the Client Filer must disclose each Contribution in the Client Semi-Annual Report due on January 15, 2018.

Example 2: XYZ Corp. contributes $1,500 on March 3, 2017. ABC Corp is XYZ Corp's parent and contributes $1,500 on May 6, 2017. On November 12, 2017, ABC Corp contributes an additional $500. On December 2, 2017, XYZ Corp. contributes an additional $1,500. The Client Filer is aware of the corporate relationship between ABC Corp and XYZ Corp.

For the purpose of filing the Client Semi-Annual Report due on July 15, 2017 (covering the period January 1, 2017 through June 30, 2017), XYZ Corp and ABC Corp have an Affiliate Relationship and therefore are deemed a Source. The Contributions from XYZ Corp and ABC Corp must be aggregated. The sum of the Contributions received from the one Source consisting of ABC Corp and XYZ Corp between January 1, 2017 and June 30, 2017 exceeds $2,500. Therefore, if the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold for this period, it must disclose both the Contributions received on March 3 and May 6 in Client Semi-Annual Report due on July 15, 2017.

For the purpose of filing the Client Semi-Annual Report due on January 15, 2018 (covering the period July 1, 2017 through December 31, 2017), if the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold for this second period, the Client Filer must disclose the November 12 and December 2 Contributions even though these two Contributions are less than $2,500 individually and in total.

The requirement to disclose the November 12 and December 2 Contributions arises from the facts that (i) the Source (comprised of XYZ Corp and ABC Corp, because they have an Affiliate Relationship) made aggregate Contributions in excess of $2,500 during the prior reporting period in the same calendar year and (ii) the Client Filer met the Expenditure Threshold during both reporting periods in the calendar year. Therefore, the Client Filer must list as one Source each of those two Contributions made by XYZ Corp and ABC Corp in the second reporting period of the calendar year on the Client SemiAnnual Report, together with the information required in 938.3(e).

If the Client Filer did not meet the Expenditure Threshold during the second reporting period of the calendar year, then the Client Filer is not required to disclose the November 12 and December 2 Contributions.

(e) Each Contribution required to be disclosed in any Client Semi-Annual Report on the form provided by the Commission shall contain the information identified below:

(1) Information Required to be Disclosed:

(i) The name of the Source;

(a) A disclosure that identifies an intermediary or any other entity that obscures the name of the person, corporation, partnership, organization, or entity actually making the Contribution, does not qualify as the Source; and

(b) The name of a Source cannot be reported as "anonymous" unless the Client Filer affirms to the Commission that the Client Filer is not able to determine the identity of the Source.

(ii) Name and address of principal place of business, if any;

(iii) Date the Client Filer received the Contribution(s); and

(iv) Reportable Amount of the Contribution(s).

Note: If a contribution includes only membership dues, fees, or assessments, the Client Filer should disclose the contribution as $0. If membership dues, fees, or assessments make up a portion of a contribution, the Reportable Amount of the Contribution is calculated as described in section 938.2 of this Part.

(2) When a Source is comprised of more than one person, corporation, partnership, organization, or entity with an Affiliate Relationship, the required information must be supplied for each such person, corporation, partnership, organization, or entity.

(3) When a corporation, partnership, organization, or entity is a Source whose Contribution is required to be disclosed, and meets any one of the requirements in paragraph (4) of this subdivision, the Client Filer must disclose, in addition to the information in paragraph (1) of this subdivision, the following:

(i) name, address and principal place of business of at least one natural person (such as an officer, director, partner or proprietors) who shares or exercises discretion or control over the activities of the corporation, partnership, organization, or entity; or

(ii) the sources of the funds contributed by the corporation, partnership, organization, or entity to the Client Filer.

(4) Conditions for Additional Required Disclosure

(i) The Client Filer makes decisions or establishes policy for the corporation, partnership, organization, or entity;

(ii) The corporation, partnership, organization, or entity makes decisions or establishes policy for the Client Filer;

(iii) The Client Filer has the authority to hire, appoint, discipline, discharge, demote, remove, or otherwise influence other persons who make decisions or establish policies for the corporation, partnership, organization, or entity;

(iv) The corporation, partnership, organization, or entity has the authority to hire, appoint, discipline, discharge, demote, remove, or otherwise influence other persons who make decisions or establish policies for the Client Filer; or

(v) The Client Filer and the corporation, partnership, organization, or entity, share a majority of directors on their governing boards, or share a majority of executive management, or maintain bank accounts with shared signatories.

(f) Notwithstanding subsections 938.2(b)(1) and 943.9(h)(1) and (3) of this Title, a Coalition that files its own Client Semi-Annual Report pursuant to subsection 943.9(h)(3)(ii) shall nevertheless be required to disclose its own Sources pursuant to this section if the Coalition reaches the Expenditure Threshold.

(g) Pursuant to sections 1-h(c)(4) and 1-j(c)(4) of the Lobbying Act, source of funding disclosure shall not apply to any corporation registered pursuant to article seven-A of the executive law that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. § 501(c)(3) (a "501(c)(3)"); provided, however, that this disclosure shall apply to any in-kind donations of staff, staff time, personnel, offices, office supplies, financial support of any kind or any other resources to any corporation or entity that is qualified as an exempt organization by the United States Department of the Treasury under I.R.C. 501(c)(4) when such in-kind donations are over two thousand five hundred dollars and from any corporation or entity that is qualified as a 501(c)(3). In such case the entity receiving such in-kind donations shall disclose the fair market value and identify the 501(c)(3) entity providing such in-kind donations as a Source. Nothing contained herein shall require ,501 (c)(3) entitities to disclose their Sources to the Commission.

N.Y. Comp. Codes R. & Regs. Tit. 19 § 938.3

Amended, New York State Register May 21, 2014/Volume XXXVI, Issue 20, eff. 5/21/2014

Amended New York State Register February 15, 2017/Volume XXXIX, Issue 07, eff. 2/15/2017

Amended New York State Register May 9, 2018/Volume XL, Issue 19, eff. 1/1/2019

Amended New York State Register February 10, 2021/Volume XLIII, Issue 06, eff. 2/10/2021