The simple version: Whenever an IEPAC spends money
to support or oppose a candidate — usually through ads or mailings — it
must file a report. Normally that’s due within 7 business days of when the ad or mailing was actually used. But if the spending happens close to an election, the deadline tightens to 24 hours.
Here’s how it breaks down:
Seven-Day Reports
- Required whenever an independent expenditure exceeds $250.
- Due within 7 business days after the goods or services are used (e.g., the date a TV ad actually airs — not the date it was purchased).
- First report: covers everything from the day the
IEPAC organized through the date of its first expenditure — all
contributions received and all independent expenditures made during that
window. - Each report after that: picks up where the last
one left off (starting the day after) and runs through the date of the
next expenditure. Same disclosure — contributions and independent
expenditures.
24-Hour Reports
- Kick in during the final stretch before an election: this tighter deadline applies to expenditures over $250 made after the 10th day but more than 24 hours before the election.
- These aren’t a separate filing track — they’re just a faster version of the same reports described above, triggered by timing.
