PART 113—PERMITTED AND PROHIBITED USES OF CAMPAIGN ACCOUNTS Authority: 52 U.S.C. 30102(h), 30111(a)(8), 30114, and 30116. Source: 45 FR 15124, Mar. 7, 1980, unless otherwise noted. § 113.1 Definitions (52 U.S.C. 30114). When used in this part— (a) Funds donated. Funds donated (b) Office account. (c) Federal officeholder. Federal officeholder (d) State officeholder. State officeholder (e) [Reserved] (f) Qualified Member. Qualified Member (g) Personal use. Personal use (1)(i) Personal use includes but is not limited to the use of funds in a campaign account for any item listed in paragraphs (g)(1)(i)(A) through (J) of this section: (A) Household food items or supplies. (B) Funeral, cremation or burial expenses except those incurred for a candidate (as defined in 11 CFR 100.3) or an employee or volunteer of an authorized committee whose death arises out of, or in the course of, campaign activity. (C) Clothing, other than items of de minimis (D) Tuition payments, other than those associated with training campaign staff. (E) Mortgage, rent or utility payments— ( 1 ( 2 (F) Admission to a sporting event, concert, theater or other form of entertainment, unless part of a specific campaign or officeholder activity. (G) Dues, fees or gratuities at a country club, health club, recreational facility or other nonpolitical organization, unless they are part of the costs of a specific fundraising event that takes place on the organization's premises. (H) Salary payments to a member of the candidate's family, unless the family member is providing bona fide bona fide (I) [Reserved] (J) A vacation. (ii) The Commission will determine, on a case-by-case basis, whether other uses of funds in a campaign account fulfill a commitment, obligation or expense that would exist irrespective of the candidate's campaign or duties as a Federal officeholder, and therefore are personal use. Examples of such other uses include: (A) Legal expenses; (B) Meal expenses; (C) Travel expenses, including subsistence expenses incurred during travel. If a committee uses campaign funds to pay expenses associated with travel that involves both personal activities and campaign or officeholder-related activities, the incremental expenses that result from the personal activities are personal use, unless the person(s) benefiting from this use reimburse(s) the campaign account within thirty days for the amount of the incremental expenses, and (D) Vehicle expenses, unless they are a de minimis de minimis (2) Charitable donations. (3) Transfers of campaign assets. (4) Gifts. (5) Political or officially connected expenses. (6) Candidate compensation. (ii) The use of campaign funds by a candidate's principal campaign committee to pay compensation to the candidate is not personal use, provided that the compensation does not exceed the lesser of: 50% of the minimum annual salary paid to a Member of the United States House of Representatives under 2 U.S.C. 4501, and the average annual income that the candidate earned during the most recent five calendar years in which the candidate earned income prior to becoming a candidate. The committee must calculate compensation, minimum annual salary, and average annual income at the daily rate, rounded to the nearest dollar. (iii) For the purposes of this paragraph, compensation (iv) The candidate's principal campaign committee must reduce the maximum amount of candidate compensation permissible under this paragraph (g)(6) by the amount of any earned income the candidate receives from any other source after filing a Statement of Candidacy under 11 CFR 101.1(a). (v)(A) Compensation shall not accrue or be paid to a candidate before the date the candidate files a Statement of Candidacy with the Commission. See (B) A candidate's principal campaign committee may pay the candidate compensation from campaign funds up to 20 days after the candidate wins the general election, general election runoff, special election, or special election runoff, or otherwise ceases to be a candidate, such as by losing an election or withdrawing from the race. (vi) Any principal campaign committee seeking to settle debts for less than the full value may not pay compensation to the candidate or settle or satisfy a debt to a candidate for compensation. (vii) The candidate must provide evidence of earned income from the relevant years upon the request of the Commission. Any such evidence of earned income must be maintained and preserved for three years after the report disclosing the disbursement is filed, pursuant to 11 CFR 102.9 and 104.14(b). (7) Third party payments. (i) The payment is a donation to a legal expense trust fund established in accordance with the rules of the United States Senate or the United States House of Representatives; (ii) The payment is made from funds that are the candidate's personal funds as defined in 11 CFR 100.33, including an account jointly held by the candidate and a member of the candidate's family; (iii) Payments for that expense were made by the person making the payment before the candidate became a candidate. Payments that are compensation shall be considered contributions unless— (A) The compensation results from bona fide (B) The compensation is exclusively in consideration of services provided by the employee as part of this employment; and (C) The compensation does not exceed the amount of compensation which would be paid to any other similarly qualified person for the same work over the same period of time. (8) Members of the candidate's family. (i) The spouse of the candidate; (ii) Any child, step-child, parent, grandparent, sibling, half-sibling or step-sibling of the candidate or the candidate's spouse; (iii) The spouse of any child, step-child, parent, grandparent, sibling, half-sibling or step-sibling of the candidate; and (iv) A person who shares a residence with the candidate. (9) Recordkeeping. (10) Candidate and federal officeholder security. Usual and normal charge (i) Non-structural security devices, such as security hardware, locks, alarm systems, motion detectors, and security camera systems; (ii) Structural security devices, such as wiring, lighting, gates, doors, and fencing, so long as such devices are intended solely to provide security and not to improve the property or increase its value; (iii) Security personnel and services that are bona fide, legitimate, and professional; and (iv) Cybersecurity software, devices, and services. [45 FR 15124, Mar. 7, 1980, as amended at 56 FR 34126, July 25, 1991; 60 FR 7874, Feb. 9, 1995; 67 FR 38361, June 4, 2002; 67 FR 76978, Dec. 13, 2002; 73 FR 79602, Dec. 30, 2008; 75 FR 32, Jan. 4, 2010; 79 FR 77849, Dec. 29, 2014; 81 FR 34863, June 1, 2016; 89 FR 13, Jan. 2, 2024; 89 FR 78206, Sept. 25, 2024] § 113.2 Permissible non-campaign use of funds (52 U.S.C. 30114). In addition to defraying expenses in connection with a campaign for federal office, funds in a campaign account or an account described in 11 CFR 113.3: (a) May be used to defray any ordinary and necessary expenses incurred in connection with the recipient's duties as a holder of Federal office, if applicable, including: (1) The costs of travel by the recipient Federal officeholder and an accompanying spouse to participate in a function directly connected to bona fide (2) The costs of winding down the office of a former Federal officeholder for a period of 6 months after he or she leaves office; or (b) May be contributed to any organization described in section 170(c) of Title 26, of the United States Code; or (c) May be transferred without limitation to any national, State, or local committee of any political party; or (d) May be donated to State and local candidates subject to the provisions of State law; or (e) May be used for any other lawful purpose, unless such use is personal use under 11 CFR 113.1(g). (f) Nothing in this section modifies or supersedes other Federal statutory restrictions or relevant State laws that may apply to the use of campaign or donated funds by candidates or Federal officeholders. [45 FR 15124, Mar. 7, 1980, as amended at 56 FR 34126, July 25, 1991; 60 FR 7875, Feb. 9, 1995; 67 FR 76979, Dec. 13, 2002; 72 FR 56247, Oct. 3, 2007; 81 FR 94240, Dec. 23, 2016] § 113.3 Deposits of funds donated to a Federal or State officeholder (52 U.S.C. 30102(h)). All funds donated to a federal officeholder, or State officeholder who is a candidate for federal office, shall be deposited into one of the following accounts: (a) An account of the officeholder's principal campaign committee or other authorized committee pursuant to 11 CFR part 103; (b) An account to which only funds donated to an individual to support his or her activities as a holder of federal office are deposited (including an office account). § 113.4 Contribution and expenditure limitations (52 U.S.C. 30116). (a) Any contributions to, or expenditures from an office account which are made for the purpose of influencing a federal election shall be subject to 52 U.S.C. 30116 and 11 CFR part 110 of these regulations. (b) If any treasury funds of a corporation or labor organization are donated to an office account, no funds from that office account may be transferred to a political committee account or otherwise used in connection with a federal election. [45 FR 15124, Mar. 7, 1980, as amended at 79 FR 77849, Dec. 29, 2014] § 113.5 Restrictions on use of campaign funds for flights on noncommercial aircraft (52 U.S.C. 30114(c)). (a) Presidential, vice-presidential and Senate candidates. (1) Commercial travel as provided in 11 CFR 100.93(a)(3)(iv); (2) Noncommercial travel as provided in 11 CFR 100.93(a)(3)(v), and the pro rata share per campaign traveler of the normal and usual charter fare or rental charge for travel on a comparable aircraft of comparable size, as provided in 11 CFR 100.93(c), is paid by the candidate, the authorized committee, or other political committee on whose behalf the travel is conducted, to the owner, lessee, or other person who provides the aircraft within seven calendar days after the date the flight began, except as provided in 11 CFR 100.93(b)(3); or (3) Provided by the Federal government or by a State or local government. (b) House candidates and their leadership PACs. (1) Commercial travel as provided in 11 CFR 100.93(a)(3)(iv); or (2) Provided by the Federal government or by a State or local government. (c) Exception for aircraft owned or leased by candidates and immediate family members of candidates. (2) A candidate, or an immediate family member of the candidate, will be considered to own or lease an aircraft under the conditions described in 11 CFR 100.93(g)(2). (3) An “immediate family member” is defined in 11 CFR 100.93(g)(4). (d) In-kind contribution. [74 FR 63967, Dec. 7, 2009, as amended at 79 FR 77849, Dec. 29, 2014]