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Source: Federal Election Commission; Texas Ethics Commission; Armstrong and Strama. (full source, footnotes *, 1-9) |
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Full Source: Federal Election Commission. Record. 29(1). Jan. 2003. Accessed
at http://www.fec.gov/pdf/record/2003/jan03.pdf, 19 July 2004; Texas
Ethics Commission at http://www.tec.state.tx.us and its Acting Executive Director, Sarah Woelk (telephone call, 19 July 2004); Armstrong, G., and
K. Strama. "Texas." In Lobbying, PACs, and Campaign Finance: 50 State
Handbook. P. Christianson, et al., eds. Eagan, MN: Thomson West, 2002.
Full Footnotes: *These limits are indexed for inflation. "Per election" means each (in Texas, each contested) election in which the candidate appears on the ballot, hence limits apply separately to primary, general, and any runoff elections.
1.) These limits apply to both separate segregated funds (SSFs) and political action committees (PACs). Affiliated committees share the same set of limits on contributions made and received.
2.) A state party committee shares its limits with local and district party committees in that state unless a local or district committee's independence can be demonstrated. These limits apply to multi-candidate committees only.
3.) A party's national committee, Senate campaign committee and House campaign committee are each considered national party committees, and each have separate limits, except with respect to Senate candidates--see Special Limits column.
4.) Each of the following is considered a separate election with a separate limit: primary election, caucus or convention with the authority to nominate, general election, runoff election and special election.
5.) No more than $37,500 of this amount may be contributed to state and local parties and PACs.
6.) This limit is shared by the national committee and the Senate campaign committee.
7.) A multi-candidate committee is a political committee that has been registered for at least six months, has received contributions from more than 50 contributors and--with the exception of a state party committee--has made contributions to at least five federal candidates.
8.) Total contributions from an individual may not exceed $5,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office and for judicial candidates in judicial districts with a population of more than one million; $2,500 for candidates in districts where the population is between 250,000 and one million; and $1,000 for candidates in smaller judicial districts. Current judicial district population figures are available from the Texas Secretary of State at http://www.sos.state.txt.us/elections/laws/populations.html.
9.) The Judicial Campaign Fairness Act (Texas Election Code 253.151-176) third party contribution limits restrict PAC contributions to a statewide judicial candidate to $25,000 and contributions to any other judicial candidate to $5,000 unless the contributor (individual or PAC) files a written declaration of intent to exceed these limits. These limits do not apply to the principal political committee of a state party or county party organization. However, all judicial candidates also are subject to aggregate limits on the total cash and in-kind contributions received from all PACs, including party committees. The aggregate limits are $300,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office; $75,000 for candidates in appeals court districts with more than one million population or $52,500 for candidates in smaller appeals court districts; $52,500 for candidates for district courts or statutory county or probate courts where the population of the judicial district exceeds one million, $30,000 in districts with 250,000 to one million, and $15,000 in smaller districts. Law firms and affiliated PACs and individuals face more stringent limits. Candidates may not accept a contribution of more than $50 from a law firm or its affiliates if the total a candidate has already accepted exceeds $30,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office or candidates for office where the population of the judicial district exceeds one million; $15,000 for candidates in districts with a population between 250,000 and one million; and $6,000 for candidates in smaller districts.
Full Footnotes: *These limits are indexed for inflation. "Per election" means each (in Texas, each contested) election in which the candidate appears on the ballot, hence limits apply separately to primary, general, and any runoff elections.
1.) These limits apply to both separate segregated funds (SSFs) and political action committees (PACs). Affiliated committees share the same set of limits on contributions made and received.
2.) A state party committee shares its limits with local and district party committees in that state unless a local or district committee's independence can be demonstrated. These limits apply to multi-candidate committees only.
3.) A party's national committee, Senate campaign committee and House campaign committee are each considered national party committees, and each have separate limits, except with respect to Senate candidates--see Special Limits column.
4.) Each of the following is considered a separate election with a separate limit: primary election, caucus or convention with the authority to nominate, general election, runoff election and special election.
5.) No more than $37,500 of this amount may be contributed to state and local parties and PACs.
6.) This limit is shared by the national committee and the Senate campaign committee.
7.) A multi-candidate committee is a political committee that has been registered for at least six months, has received contributions from more than 50 contributors and--with the exception of a state party committee--has made contributions to at least five federal candidates.
8.) Total contributions from an individual may not exceed $5,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office and for judicial candidates in judicial districts with a population of more than one million; $2,500 for candidates in districts where the population is between 250,000 and one million; and $1,000 for candidates in smaller judicial districts. Current judicial district population figures are available from the Texas Secretary of State at http://www.sos.state.txt.us/elections/laws/populations.html.
9.) The Judicial Campaign Fairness Act (Texas Election Code 253.151-176) third party contribution limits restrict PAC contributions to a statewide judicial candidate to $25,000 and contributions to any other judicial candidate to $5,000 unless the contributor (individual or PAC) files a written declaration of intent to exceed these limits. These limits do not apply to the principal political committee of a state party or county party organization. However, all judicial candidates also are subject to aggregate limits on the total cash and in-kind contributions received from all PACs, including party committees. The aggregate limits are $300,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office; $75,000 for candidates in appeals court districts with more than one million population or $52,500 for candidates in smaller appeals court districts; $52,500 for candidates for district courts or statutory county or probate courts where the population of the judicial district exceeds one million, $30,000 in districts with 250,000 to one million, and $15,000 in smaller districts. Law firms and affiliated PACs and individuals face more stringent limits. Candidates may not accept a contribution of more than $50 from a law firm or its affiliates if the total a candidate has already accepted exceeds $30,000 for candidates for statewide judicial office or candidates for office where the population of the judicial district exceeds one million; $15,000 for candidates in districts with a population between 250,000 and one million; and $6,000 for candidates in smaller districts.