Contributions

• A gift, subscription, donation, loan, advance, or deposit of money or anything of value, including non-monetary contributions such as in-kind contributions and contributions of tangible things.
• Shall not include personal services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering their time.

Contributions Prohibited

It shall be unlawful for any person:

1. Who enters into any contract or seeks to enter into any contract with the city either for the rendition of personal services or furnishing any material, supplies, or equipment to the city or for selling any land or building to the city, if payment for the performance of the contract is to be made in whole or in part from city funds, at any time between the commencement of negotiations for the contract and the later of:
   • a) The completion of performance under the contract, or
   • b) The termination of negotiations for the contract, directly or indirectly to make any contribution to a candidate or personal campaign committee; or
2. Knowingly to solicit a contribution from any such person during any such period.

In-Kind Contributions

An in-kind contribution means anything of value other than money that is accepted
by or coordinated with a candidate.

Example: Someone makes a website for your campaign, but they don’t charge you, this
would count as an in-kind contribution

Contribution Limits

• City Council – $790/ per contributor / per election cycle
• Mayor – $3,720.00 / per contributor / per election cycle

Expenditures

• Any disbursement from contributions, receipts, or any campaign finance account.
• A purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of value made for political purposes.
• An express, legally enforceable contract, promise, or agreement to make any purchase, payment, donation, distribution, loan, advance, deposit, gift of money, or anything of value for a political purpose;
• Compensation paid by a candidate for personal services rendered by a person without charge to a reporting entity;
• A transfer of funds between the candidate and a candidate’s personal campaign committee as defined in Utah Code Section §20A-11-101; or
• Goods or services provided by a reporting entity to or for the benefit of the candidate for political purposes at less than fair market value.
• Shall not include personal services provided without compensation by individuals volunteering their time, or money lent to a candidate by a financial institution in the ordinary course of business.

Voluntary Limitation on Contribution and Expenditures

• Declaration to Limit
  • Contributions to personal campaign from personal funds
    • City Council – $3,000 limit
    • Mayor – $75,000 limit
  • Expenditures
    • City Council – $15,000 limit
    • Mayor – $375,000 limit

Coordinated Expenditure

• An expenditure made by any person in cooperation, consultation, or concert with, or at the request or suggestion of a candidate.
• Includes coordinated advertising on billboards and taxicabs or other ground transportation as described in Salt Lake City Code §5.7.010.
• Does not include lawn signs, a sign on a residential property, a bumper sticker, a handheld sign, a sign on the body of a person, a sign on a motor vehicle other than a taxicab or other ground transportation vehicle, or a sign in a part of a building that is not normally used for commercial advertising by a third party.
• In-kind coordinated:
  • Shall be valued at the usual and normal value of such expenditure, i.e., use of advertising space on billboards or taxicabs.
  • Taxicabs – treated as rooftop advertising if the sign is located in a space not usually or normally for advertising. Value determined as value of rooftop advertising.

Q: Does section 2.46.050H apply only to business entities?

A: No. The prohibition applies to “persons,” which the city code defines to include “individuals,” “business organizations,” and other kinds of groups. Therefore, if a contract is between the City and an individual, then that individual would not be allowed to contribute under the provision.

Q: Can an individual contribute to a campaign if a business entity they are affiliated with, or that employs them has a contract with the City?
A: Yes, a person may contribute in their individual capacity even if their business entity, or an entity that employs them, has a contract with the city.

Q: During what period of time does the prohibition apply?
A: The prohibition applies between the beginnings of negotiations for the
contract and ends when the performance of the contract is complete or the
negotiations terminate, whichever happens first.

Q: What kinds of contracts does the prohibition not apply to?
A: The prohibition applies only to contracts for the rendition of personal services to the City, the furnishing of materials, supplies, or equipment to the City, of the selling land or a building to the City. It doesn’t apply to other kinds of contracts such as donation agreements, a lease with the City, or a service
(such as utility service) provided by the City. 2.46.010 DEFINITIONS: PERSON: Both natural and legal persons including, but not limited to, individuals, business organizations, personal campaign committees, political committees, party committees, labor unions, labor organizations and any other organized group of individuals.

Q: If someone submits a proposal in response to an RFP, can a candidate or campaign accept a contribution from them?
A: Yes, up to the point that the City identifies the contributor as the apparent winner and negotiations begin.

Q: Candidates and campaigns can’t knowingly solicit contributions prohibited by 2.46.050(H)(1). Will a candidate or campaign violate 2.46.050(H)(2) if they unknowingly solicit a contribution that is prohibited by 2.46.050(H)(1)?
A: Contributors who are contractors with the City violate 2.46.050(H)(1), even if they are unaware of that section. Therefore, candidates and campaigns would do those potential contributors a favor if they refused those contributions and educated the contractor about the restriction in 2.46.050(H)(1). Also, a candidate or campaign who receives (but didn’t solicit) such a contribution might have a defense that they did so unknowingly, but candidates and campaigns should not put on blinders and accept contributions that they could, with reasonable diligence, have determined were from City contractors.

Q: What is the legal consequence of violating the ordinance?
A: A City contractor who makes a contribution prohibited by 2.46.050(H)(1) breaks the law, and the City Attorney would decide how to deal with that violation depending on the facts. If a candidate or campaign violated 2.46.050(H)(1), the City Recorder must report the violation to the Mayor, the City Council and the City Attorney. The violation is a criminal offense, and the City Attorney would decide how to deal with that violation depending on the facts. The candidate or campaign probably would be wise to return the
prohibited contribution to the contributor. However, it can’t be predicted how the City Attorney would deal with any particular violation, especially if the City Attorney perceived that the candidate or committee took the prohibition and knowingly solicited unlawful contributions, figuring that, if
caught, they could solve the problem by simply repaying the money.

Q: How can someone know who has an applicable contract with the City?
A: The candidate or campaign can ask the contributor if they are in contract negotiations with the City or are in contract with the City. Also, a summary of executed City contracts can be found online at www.slcinfobase.com; click the first information bar, “Ordinances, Policies & Procedures, General City”; on
the right, under “General City,” click “Executive Action Report 2011 to Current”; at the top left of the next screen, click the search tab and enter the search criteria. Tip: when searching more than one word, use quotations around the words, for example, “ACME Company,” the search result will be the
words in consecutive order. To obtain a copy of an executed contract, please contact the Recorder’s Office at 801-535-7671 or by email at elections@slcgov.com.