FEC Releases New Campaign Guide for Congressional Candidates
WASHINGTON — The Federal Elections Commission released the latest edition of its campaign guide for congressional candidates and committees Monday, posting a PDF version to its website ahead of publication of a print edition.
The new, 212-page guide replaces the most recent edition, which was published in July 2014. It summarizes the federal campaign finance laws applicable to candidate committees as of September 2021.
As noted in the introduction, the guide’s purpose is to help House and Senate candidates comply with the Federal Election Campaign Act and FEC regulations.
It can also be used by committees supporting presidential candidates who are not seeking public funding. However, the authors note that special reporting rules apply to presidential candidates, many of them discussed as footnotes in the reporting chapters of the guide.
Despite the update of the guide, the agency recommends that individuals interested in seeking office consult the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 as a starting point of their self-education process, and then review commission regulations, advisory opinions and applicable court decisions to get as thorough a grounding as possible in federal campaign law.
Those who still have questions, can reach trained FEC staff members at (800) 424-9530 or (202) 694-1100.
Individuals or committees requiring a clarification of the election law with regard to an activity they plan to undertake or are presently undertaking can also request an advisory
opinion from the agency.
Advisory opinion requests may be addressed to the FEC’s Office of General Counsel at Federal Election Commission, 1050 First Street, NE, Washington, DC 20463.
