Municipal Clerk Support
Municipal Clerk Support
The Steps: In Brief
1. Organize with the local election official, usually the city or town clerk, by filing the M101 form. Even candidates without a committee file the M101.
2. Open a standard checking account to deposit contributions. Most banks require an EIN from the IRS to open an account.
3. In towns, file the M102 campaign finance form eight days before the election and 30 days afterward. The reporting period dates can be calculated here.
4. In cities, local filers file the M102 campaign finance form eight days before the preliminary election, if the filers appear on the preliminary ballot, and eight days before the general election.
5. Year-end reports are filed each Jan. 20 by municipal candidates.
OCPF Guides
- Guide for Local Election Officials.
- Trifold Guide for Local Candidates.
- Guide for Municipal Ballot Question Committees.
- Guide for Municipal Political Action Committees.
- Guide for Municipal Candidates Who File Locally.
- Guide for Municipal Write-in Candidates.
- Guide: How to Complete and File the M102 Campaign Finance Form, for Local Candidates.
Video Tutorials
- New Clerks and Local Election Officials (Overview of Campaign Finance Law)
- Top 10 Tips for Local Election Officials
- Campaign finance reporting for municipal candidates who file locally
- Posting campaign finance reports to a municipal website
- How to report out-of-pocket expenditures: local filers
- Public Employees and the Campaign Finance Law
Checking In - Monthly Informational Mailing
- March 2023- May 2022
- May 2021
- May 2020
- May 2019
File |
Description |
# of Pages |
|---|---|---|
| Campaign Finance Guide: Local Election Officials | This guide provides an overview of the campaign finance responsibilities of city and town clerks and local election officials. | 22 pages |
| Sample Notification | Local election officials notify candidates and committees prior to a campaign finance report due date. This is a sample notification. | 1 page |
| Campaign Finance Tracking Form for Local Election Officials | This form assists local election officials with their campaign finance duties before and after reports are filed by candidates and committees. | 1 page |
| Fact Sheet: Campaign Finance Disclosure in Municipal Elections | An overview of the campaign finance disclosure requirements for municipal elections. | 2 pages |
| OCPF Memorandum: Municipal Non-Filers | This memo describes the procedures a local election official must take to comply with regulations concerning non-filers. | 6 pages |
Election Schedule Calculator
| Reporting Period | Report Due Date | |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Preliminary Election Period | {{schedule.prePrimaryStartDate}} through {{schedule.prePrimaryEndDate}} | {{schedule.prePrimaryDueDate}} ({{schedule.prePrimaryNote}}) |
| Pre-Election (General) Period | {{schedule.preElectionStartDate}} through {{schedule.preElectionEndDate}} | {{schedule.preElectionDueDate}} ({{schedule.preElectionNote}}) |
| Post-Election Period | {{schedule.postElectionStartDate}} through {{schedule.postElectionEndDate}} | {{schedule.postElectionDueDate}} ({{schedule.postElectionNote}}) |
| Year-End Period | {{schedule.yeStartDate}} through {{schedule.yeEndDate}} | {{schedule.yeDueDate}} ({{schedule.yeNote}}) |
Candidates disqualified from appearing on any municipal preliminary, state primary or general or special election ballot
The name of a candidate who is required to file campaign finance reports with the director, and who fails to file any statement or report after the initiation of civil proceedings to compel the filing, shall not be printed on any municipal preliminary, state primary or general or special election ballot unless the statement or report is timely filed pursuant to chapter 53 or any charter or special law establishing the filing deadline. The director shall notify the state secretary or, for municipal candidates, the registrars of the city or town, of the names of those candidates against whom civil proceedings for failure to timely file have been initiated and shall do so within 72 hours of the filing deadline for nomination papers for the candidate. Any candidate who is disqualified from appearing on any municipal preliminary, state primary or general or special election ballot as set forth above shall be ineligible to be nominated or elected as a write-in or sticker candidate unless the candidate shall have filed the statements or reports which are the subject of the civil litigation by the date of the municipal preliminary, state primary or general or special election in which the candidate is seeking nomination or election. If civil proceedings are initiated against a state or county candidate for failure to timely file the campaign finance report or statement and the candidate files the report or statement before the primary, the director shall notify the state secretary not later than 24 hours after the date of the primary. If civil proceedings are initiated against a municipal candidate who is required to file with the director and the candidate files the campaign finance report or statement prior to the preliminary or, if no preliminary is held, prior to the date the preliminary for the office sought would have been held, the director shall notify the registrars not later than 24 hours after the date of the preliminary or the date the preliminary would have been held.
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