Title 52 — Voting and ElectionsRelease 119-73not60
§30145 Period of Limitations
Title 52 › Subtitle Subtitle III— Federal Campaign Finance › Chapter 301— FEDERAL ELECTION CAMPAIGNS › Subchapter II— GENERAL PROVISIONS › § 30145
Summary
No one can be charged, tried, or punished for a subchapter I violation unless the government files charges within 5 years of the act. That 5-year limit applies to acts before, on, or after the law’s effective date and prevents charging acts that were violations on December 31, 1974 if the 1974 amendments made them no longer violations.
Full Legal Text
Title 52, §30145
Voting and Elections — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)No person shall be prosecuted, tried, or punished for any violation of subchapter I of this chapter, unless the indictment is found or the information is instituted within 5 years after the date of the violation.
(b)Notwithstanding any other provision of law—
(1)the period of limitations referred to in subsection (a) shall apply with respect to violations referred to in such subsection committed before, on, or after the effective date of this section; and
(2)no criminal proceeding shall be instituted against any person for any act or omission which was a violation of any provision of subchapter I of this chapter, as in effect on December 31, 1974, if such act or omission does not constitute a violation of any such provision, as amended by the Federal Election Campaign Act Amendments of 1974.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
The Federal Election Campaign Act
Amendments
of 1974, referred to in subsec. (b)(2), is Pub. L. 93–433, Oct. 15, 1974, 88 Stat. 1263. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Tables. Codification Section was formerly classified to section 455 of Title 2, The Congress, prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as this section.
Amendments
2002—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 107–155 substituted “5 years” for “3 years”. 1976—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 94–283, § 115(f)(1), struck out references to section 608, 610, 611, 613, 614, 615, 616, and 617 of title 18. Subsec. (b)(2). Pub. L. 94–283, § 115(f)(2), struck out references to section 608, 610, 611, and 613 of title 18.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
of 2002 Amendment Pub. L. 107–155, title III, § 313(b), Mar. 27, 2002, 116 Stat. 106, provided that: “The amendment made by this section [amending this section] shall apply to violations occurring on or after the
Effective Date
of this Act [for general
Effective Date
of Pub. L. 107–155, see section 402 of Pub. L. 107–155, set out as an
Effective Date
of 2002 Amendment;
Regulations
note under section 30101 of this title].”
Effective Date
Section effective Jan. 1, 1975, see section 410(a) of Pub. L. 93–443, set out as an
Effective Date
of 1974 Amendment note under section 30101 of this title.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
52 U.S.C. § 30145
Title 52 — Voting and Elections
Last Updated
Apr 5, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60