[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 11, Volume 1]
[Revised as of January 1, 2009]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 11CFR106.6]

[Page 140-143]
 
                       TITLE 11--FEDERAL ELECTIONS
 
                 CHAPTER I--FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION
 
PART 106_ALLOCATIONS OF CANDIDATE AND COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES--
Table of Contents
 
Sec. 106.6  Allocation of expenses between federal and non-federal
activities by separate segregated funds and nonconnected committees.

    (a) General rule. Separate segregated funds and nonconnected 
committees that make disbursements in connection with federal and non-
federal elections shall make those disbursements either entirely from 
funds subject to the prohibitions and limitations of the Act, or from 
accounts established pursuant to 11 CFR 102.5. Separate segregated funds 
and nonconnected committees that have established separate federal and 
non-federal accounts under 11 CFR 102.5 (a)(1)(i), or that make federal 
and non-federal disbursements from a single account under 11 CFR 
102.5(a)(1)(ii), shall allocate their federal and non-federal expenses 
according to paragraphs (c), (d), and (f) of this section. For purposes 
of this section, ``nonconnected committee'' includes any committee which 
conducts activities in connection with an election, but which is not

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a party committee, an authorized committee of any candidate for federal 
election, or a separate segregated fund.
    (b) Payments for administrative expenses, voter drives and certain 
public communications--(1) Costs to be allocated. Separate segregated 
funds and nonconnected committees that make disbursements in connection 
with Federal and non-Federal elections shall allocate expenses for the 
following categories of activity in accordance with paragraphs (c) or 
(d) of this section:
    (i) Administrative expenses including rent, utilities, office 
supplies, and salaries not attributable to a clearly identified 
candidate, except that for a separate segregated fund such expenses may 
be paid instead by its connected organization;
    (ii) The direct costs of a fundraising program or event including 
disbursements for solicitation of funds and for planning and 
administration of actual fundraising events, where Federal and non-
Federal funds are collected through such program or event, except that 
for a separate segregated fund such expenses may be paid instead by its 
connected organization;
    (iii) Generic voter drives including voter identification, voter 
registration, and get-out-the-vote drives, or any other activities that 
urge the general public to register, vote or support candidates of a 
particular party or associated with a particular issue, without 
mentioning a specific candidate; and
    (iv) Public communications that refer to a political party, but do 
not refer to any clearly identified Federal or non-Federal candidate;
    (2) Costs not subject to allocation. Separate segregated funds and 
nonconnected committees that make disbursements for the following 
categories of activity shall pay for those activities in accordance with 
paragraph (f) of this section:
    (i) Voter drives, including voter identification, voter 
registration, and get-out-the-vote drives, in which the printed 
materials or scripted messages refer to, or the written instructions 
direct the separate segregated fund's or nonconnected committee's 
employee or volunteer to refer to:
    (A) One or more clearly identified Federal candidates, but do not 
refer to any clearly identified non-Federal candidates; or
    (B) One or more clearly identified Federal candidates and also refer 
to candidates of a particular party or associated with a particular 
issue, but do not refer to any clearly identified non-Federal 
candidates;
    (ii) Voter drives, including voter identification, voter 
registration, and get-out-the-vote drives, in which the printed 
materials or scripted messages refer to, or the written instructions 
direct the separate segregated fund's or nonconnected committee's 
employee or volunteer to refer to:
    (A) One or more clearly identified non-Federal candidates, but do 
not refer to any clearly identified Federal candidates; or
    (B) One or more clearly identified non-Federal candidates and also 
refer to candidates of a particular party or associated with a 
particular issue, but do not refer to any clearly identified Federal 
candidates;
    (iii) Public communications that refer to one or more clearly 
identified Federal candidates, regardless of whether there is reference 
to a political party, but do not refer to any clearly identified non-
Federal candidates; and
    (iv) Public communications that refer to a political party, and 
refer to one or more clearly identified non-Federal candidates, but do 
not refer to any clearly identified Federal candidates.
    (c) Method for allocating administrative expenses, costs of generic 
voter drives, and certain public communications. Nonconnected committees 
and separate segregated funds shall pay their administrative expenses, 
costs of generic voter drives, and costs of public communications that 
refer to any political party, as described in paragraphs (b)(1)(i), 
(b)(1)(iii) or (b)(1)(iv) of this section, with at least 50 percent 
Federal funds, as defined in 11 CFR 300.2(g).
    (d) Method for allocating direct costs of fundraising. (1) If 
federal and non-federal funds are collected by one committee through a 
joint activity, that committee shall allocate its direct costs of 
fundraising, as described in paragraph (a)(2) of this section, according 
to the funds received method. Under this method, the committee

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shall allocate its fundraising costs based on the ratio of funds 
received into its federal account to its total receipts from each 
fundraising program or event. This ratio shall be estimated prior to 
each such program or event based upon the committee's reasonable 
prediction of its federal and non-federal revenue from that program or 
event, and shall be noted in the committee's report for the period in 
which the first disbursement for such program or event occurred, 
submitted pursuant to 11 CFR 104.5. Any disbursements for fundraising 
costs made prior to the actual program or event shall be allocated 
according to this estimated ratio.
    (2) No later than the date 60 days after each fundraising program or 
event from which both federal and non-federal funds are collected, the 
committee shall adjust the allocation ratio for that program or event to 
reflect the actual ratio of funds received. If the non-federal account 
has paid more than its allocable share, the committee shall transfer 
funds from its federal to its non-federal account, as necessary, to 
reflect the adjusted allocation ratio. If the federal account has paid 
more than its allocable share, the committee shall make any transfers of 
funds from its non-federal to its federal account to reflect the 
adjusted allocation ratio within the 60-day time period established by 
this paragraph. The committee shall make note of any such adjustments 
and transfers in its report for any period in which a transfer was made, 
and shall also report the date of the fundraising program or event which 
serves as the basis for the transfer. In the case of a telemarketing or 
direct mail campaign, the ``date'' for purposes of this paragraph is the 
last day of the telemarketing campaign, or the day on which the final 
direct mail solicitations are mailed.
    (e) Payment of allocable expenses by committees with separate 
federal and non-federal accounts--(1) Payment options. Nonconnected 
committees and separate segregated funds that have established separate 
federal and non-federal accounts under 11 CFR 102.5 (a)(1)(i) shall pay 
the expenses of joint federal and non-federal activities described in 
paragraph (b) of this section according to either paragraph (e)(1)(i) or 
(ii), as follows:
    (i) Payment by federal account; transfers from non-federal account 
to federal account. The committee shall pay the entire amount of an 
allocable expense from its federal account and shall transfer funds from 
its non-federal account to its federal account solely to cover the non-
federal share of that allocable expense.
    (ii) Payment by separate allocation account; transfers from federal 
and non-federal accounts to allocation account. (A) The committee shall 
establish a separate allocation account into which funds from its 
federal and non-federal accounts shall be deposited solely for the 
purpose of paying the allocable expenses of joint federal and non-
federal activities. Once a committee has established an allocation 
account for this purpose, all allocable expenses shall be paid from that 
account for as long as the account is maintained.
    (B) The committee shall transfer funds from its federal and non-
federal accounts to its allocation account in amounts proportionate to 
the federal or non-federal share of each allocable expense.
    (C) No funds contained in the allocation account may be transferred 
to any other account maintained by the committee.
    (2) Timing of transfers between accounts. (i) Under either payment 
option described in paragraphs (e)(1) (i) or (ii) of this section, the 
committee shall transfer funds from its non-federal account or from its 
federal and non-federal accounts to its separate allocation account 
following determination of the final cost of each joint federal and non-
federal activity, or in advance of such determination if advance payment 
is required by the vendor and if such payment is based on a reasonable 
estimate of the activity's final cost as determined by the committee and 
the vendor(s) involved.
    (ii) Funds transferred from a committee's non-federal account to its 
federal account or its allocation account are subject to the following 
requirements:
    (A) For each such transfer, the committee must itemize in its 
reports the allocable activities for which the

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tranferred funds are intended to pay, as required by 11 CFR 
104.10(b)(3); and
    (B) Except as provided in paragraph (d)(2) of this section, such 
funds may not be transferred more than 10 days before or more than 60 
days after the payments for which they are designated are made.
    (iii) Any portion of a transfer from a committee's non-federal 
account to its federal account or its allocation account that does not 
meet the requirements of paragraph (e)(2)(ii) of this section shall be 
presumed to be a loan or contribution from the non-federal account to a 
federal account, in violation of the Act.
    (3) Reporting transfers of funds and allocated disbursements. A 
political committee that transfers funds between accounts and pays 
allocable expenses according to this section shall report each such 
transfer and disbursement pursuant to 11 CFR 104.10(b).
    (f) Payments for public communications and voter drives that refer 
to one or more clearly identified Federal or non-Federal candidates. 
Nonconnected committees and separate segregated funds shall pay for the 
costs of all public communications that refer to one or more clearly 
identified candidates, and voter drives that refer to one or more 
clearly identified candidates, as described in paragraphs (b)(2)(i) and 
(b)(2)(ii) of this section, as follows:
    (1) The following shall be paid 100 percent from the Federal account 
of the nonconnected committee or separate segregated fund:
    (i) Public communications that refer to one or more clearly 
identified Federal candidates, regardless of whether there is reference 
to a political party, but do not refer to any clearly identified non-
Federal candidates, as described in paragraph (b)(2)(iii) of this 
section; and
    (ii) Voter drives described in paragraph (b)(2)(i) of this section.
    (2) The following may be paid 100 percent from the non-Federal 
account of the nonconnected committee or separate segregated fund:
    (i) Public communications that refer to a political party and one or 
more clearly identified non-Federal candidates, but do not refer to any 
clearly identified Federal candidates, as described in paragraph 
(b)(2)(iv) of this section; and
    (ii) Voter drives described in paragraph (b)(2)(ii) of this section.
    (3) Notwithstanding 11 CFR 106.1(a)(i), public communications and 
voter drives that refer to one or more clearly identified Federal 
candidates and one or more clearly identified non-Federal candidates, 
regardless of whether there is a reference to a political party, 
including those that are expenditures, independent expenditures or in-
kind contributions, shall be allocated as follows:
    (i) Public communications and voter drives, other than phone banks, 
shall be allocated based on the proportion of space or time devoted to 
each clearly identified Federal candidate as compared to the total space 
or time devoted to all clearly identified candidates, or
    (ii) Public communications and voter drives that are conducted 
through phone banks shall be allocated based on the number of questions 
or statements devoted to each clearly identified Federal candidate as 
compared to the total number of questions or statements devoted to all 
clearly identified candidates.

[55 FR 26071, June 26, 1990, as amended at 57 FR 8993, Mar. 13, 1992; 69 
FR 68067, Nov. 23, 2004]