Title 17 — Title 17

This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the “Fair Campaign Practices Act.” History: (Acts 1988, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 88-873, p. 397, §1; §17-22A-1; amended and renumbered by Act 2006-570, p. 1331, §23.)

(a) Each report or statement shall be preserved and a copy made available for public inspection by the Secretary of State. (b) The date of filing of a report or statement filed pursuant to this chapter shall be deemed to be the date of receipt by the Secretary of State; provided,…

The Secretary of State shall have the following duties: (1) To accept and file all reports and statements, including amendments, required by this chapter to be filed with the Secretary of State and to accept any information voluntarily supplied that exceeds the requirements of th…

(a) Any paid political advertisement or electioneering communication appearing in any print media or broadcast on any electronic media shall clearly and distinctly identify the entity responsible for paying for the advertisement or electioneering communication. It shall be unlawf…

Committee, Etc. It shall be unlawful for any person, candidate, principal campaign committee, or political action committee to publish or distribute or display, or cause to be published or distributed or displayed, any card, pamphlet, circular, poster, or other printed material r…

Establishment by Corporation; Actions by Utilities. (a) A corporation incorporated or organized under the laws of this state, or doing business in this state, may make a contribution or expenditure to or on behalf of any candidate or political action committee in the same manner …

Contributions; Filing of Disclosure Reports; Violations. (a) Any business or nonprofit corporation, incorporated under the laws of or doing business in this state, or any officer or agent acting on behalf of the corporation may give, pay, expend, or contribute money, services, an…

Between Political Action Committees, Etc. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person, acting for himself or herself or on behalf of any entity, to make a contribution in the name of another person or entity, or knowingly permit his or her name, or the entity’s name, to be used to ef…

Funds by Principal Campaign Committee of a State or Local Candidate. [Effective until October 1, 2026.] AMENDED BY ACT 2026-266, EFFECTIVE OCTOBER 1, 2026. SEE ACT FOR REVISED LANGUAGE. (a) A principal campaign committee of a state or local candidate and any person authorized to …

Automated or Pre-recorded Communications. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person fraudulently to misrepresent himself or herself, or any other person or organization with which he or she is affiliated, as speaking or writing or otherwise acting for or on behalf of any candidate,…

Election. (a) For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. Any artificial system or generative artificial intelligence system that performs tasks under varying and unpredictable circumstances without significant h…

It shall be unlawful for any person, principal campaign committee, or political action committee established pursuant to this chapter or for any person acting on behalf of such person or committee, to solicit or secure any money or anything of value by physical force, job discrim…

Repealed by Act 2013-311, §3, effective August 1, 2013. History: (Acts 1988, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 88-873, p. 397, §21; §17-22A-21; amended and renumbered by Act 2006-570, p. 1331, §24.)

(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a person who intentionally violates any provision of this chapter shall be guilty, upon conviction, of a Class A misdemeanor. (b) A person who intentionally violates any reporting requirement of Sections 17-5- 4, 17-5-5, or 17-5-8…

(a) The Secretary of State shall levy a civil penalty against any person who fails to timely file a report required by this chapter and who does not remedy the filing of the report pursuant to subsection (h). The State Ethics Commission may levy an administrative penalty against …

(a) Any person upon whom a civil penalty has been imposed pursuant to Section 17-5-19.1 may seek a review of the penalty by filing a written notice with the Secretary of State no later than 14 days after the date on which notification of the imposition of the penalty was mailed t…

(a) For purposes of this chapter, the following terms shall have the following meanings: (1) CANDIDATE. An individual who has done any of the following: a. Taken the action necessary under the laws of the state to qualify himself or herself for nomination or for election to any s…

(a) A candidate, or in the case of a political action committee, the chair or treasurer, may appoint a designated filing agent on a form prescribed by the Secretary of State. Upon receiving a notice of appointment of designated filing agent, the Secretary of State, as soon as pra…

The Secretary of State is authorized to promulgate administrative rules pursuant to the Alabama Administrative Procedure Act as necessary to implement and administer the Alabama Fair Campaign Practices Act. History: (Act 2015-495, §2.)

(a) Every political action committee shall have a chair and a treasurer. (b) All funds of a political action committee shall be segregated from, and shall not be commingled with, any personal funds of officers, members, or associates of such committee. (c) It shall be the duty of…

Procedures; Dissolution. (a) Within five days after any person becomes a candidate for office, the person shall file with the Secretary of State a statement showing the name of not less than two nor more than five persons elected to serve as the principal campaign committee for t…

Requirements. A candidate running for a municipal office is exempt from the filing requirements of Sections 17-5-4 and 17-5-8, unless and until the candidate receives contributions or makes expenditures in excess of one thousand dollars ($1,000). History: (Act 2024-104, §1.)

(a) The treasurer or designated filing agent of each political action committee that anticipates either receiving contributions or making expenditures during the calendar year in an aggregate amount exceeding one thousand dollars ($1,000) shall file with the Secretary of State a …

(a) Except as provided in subsection (d), each legislative caucus organization that raises funds for its administration and operation shall register with the Secretary of the Senate, for a Senate caucus, or the Clerk of the House of Representatives, for a House caucus, or both fo…

A political action committee and a principal campaign committee shall maintain a checking account, money market account, or other similar banking account and shall deposit any contributions received by such committee into such account. No expenditure of funds may be made by any s…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (d) and in Section 17-5-7.1, a candidate, public official, or treasurer of a principal campaign committee as defined in this chapter, may only use campaign contributions, and any proceeds from investing the contributions that are in excess of …

(a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a principal campaign committee or political action committee may return or refund, in full or in part, any lawful contribution it receives to the donor, provided that such return or refund may not exceed the amount received. Any law…

(a) Except as provided in subsection (b), property purchased by or contributed to a principal campaign committee with a value of five hundred dollars ($500) or more shall be liquidated at fair market value or donated to a qualified entity pursuant to subsection (a) of Section 17-…

Section 17-5-7, campaign contributions may be used to pay, or reimburse the state or any county or municipality, for security expenses to protect the safety of a candidate, an elected official, or an immediate family or staff member of a candidate or an elected official. For purp…

January 1, 2026, acquired property described in Section 17-5-7.2(a), to furnish his or her office in the Alabama State House located on South Union Street in Montgomery, in preparation for the demolition of the building, may dispose of such property by donation or in any other ma…

Requirements. (a) All filings with the Secretary of State under this section shall be made electronically. Electronic filings shall be available to the public on a searchable database maintained on the Secretary of State’s public website. (b) The treasurer, designated filing agen…

(a) Commencing with the 2014 election cycle, all statements, reports of contributions, and expenditures, and other filings required to be filed pursuant to this chapter, shall be submitted electronically over the Internet by a computer file containing the report information in a …

(a) The Legislature determines that there is a compelling state and public interest in the disclosure of the source of funds used to advertise or otherwise influence public opinion with regard to elections as defined in Section 17-5-2(3). The Legislature further finds that these …

(a) All statements and reports, including amendments, required of principal campaign committees and political action committees under this chapter shall be filed electronically with the Secretary of State. (b) Commencing with the 2024 municipal election cycle, all principal campa…