§463. Notice of candidacy; campaign finance disclosure; political advertising; penalties

A.(1)(a) A notice of candidacy shall be in writing and shall state the candidate's name, the office he seeks, the address of his domicile, and the parish, ward, and precinct where he is registered to vote. The candidate shall list on the notice of candidacy the name of the political party if he is registered as being affiliated with a recognized political party, "other" if he is registered as being affiliated with a political party that is not a recognized political party, or "no party" or an abbreviation thereof if he is registered with no political party affiliation. No candidate shall change or add his political party designation, for purposes of printing on the election ballot as required by R.S. 18:551(D), after he has qualified for the election.

(b) The candidate shall designate in the notice the form in which his name shall be printed on the ballot. The candidate may designate his given, first, and middle name, the initials of his given, first, and middle name, a nickname, or any combination thereof as the form in which his name shall be printed on the ballot, but he shall not designate a title, designation, or deceptive name, nor shall he designate an occupational or professional description or abbreviation. If the candidate designates a nickname in place of or in combination with his given name or the initials thereof, the nickname shall be set off with quotation marks and shall be placed immediately preceding his surname. A candidate shall include his surname in his designation of the form in which his name shall be printed on the ballot.

(c) When an agent files a notice of candidacy on behalf of a candidate, the agent shall file with the qualifying official an affidavit attesting that the agent has the authorization and consent of the candidate to file the notice.

(d) When a candidate serving in the armed forces of the United States who is stationed or deployed outside of the United States files his notice of candidacy and does not pay any qualifying fees or any additional fee, he shall file with the qualifying official a certification prepared by the secretary of state certifying that at the time of qualifying he is serving in the armed forces of the United States and he is stationed or deployed outside of the United States and that he is eligible to become a candidate pursuant to United States Department of Defense Directive 1344.10.

(2)(a) The notice of candidacy also shall include a certificate, signed by the candidate, certifying all of the following:

(i) That he has read the notice of his candidacy.

(ii) That he meets the qualifications of the office for which he is qualifying.

(iii) That he is not currently under an order of imprisonment for conviction of a felony.

(iv) Except for a candidate for United States senator or representative in congress, that for each of the previous five tax years, he has filed his federal and state income tax returns, has filed for an extension of time for filing either his federal or state income tax return or both, or was not required to file either a federal or state income tax return or both.

(v) That he acknowledges that he is subject to the provisions of the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act if he is a candidate for any office other than United States senator, representative in congress, or member of a committee of a political party and that he does not owe any outstanding fines, fees, or penalties pursuant to the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act.

(vi) That, if he is a major or district office candidate as defined in R.S. 18:1483, he has filed each report he has been required to file by the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act, if any were previously due.

(vii) That he does not owe any outstanding fines, fees, or penalties pursuant to the Code of Governmental Ethics.

(viii) That all of the statements contained in it are true and correct.

(b) The certificate shall be executed before a notary public or shall be witnessed by two persons. If the candidate is serving outside the state with the armed forces of the United States, his notice of candidacy shall be witnessed by a commissioned officer in the armed forces of the United States.

(c) For the purposes of this Paragraph:

(i) "Outstanding fine, fee, or penalty pursuant to the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act" shall mean a fine, fee, or penalty equal to an amount of two hundred fifty dollars or more assessed by order of the Supervisory Committee on Campaign Finance Disclosure or its staff or by final decision of an adjudicatory panel of the Ethics Adjudicatory Board pursuant to the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act for which all requests for waiver or appeals have been exhausted or a judgment of a district court assessing civil penalties pursuant to the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act for which all appeals have been exhausted.

(ii) "Outstanding fines, fees, or penalties pursuant to the Code of Governmental Ethics" shall mean a fine, fee, or penalty equal to an amount of two hundred fifty dollars or more imposed by the Board of Ethics or by final decision of an adjudicatory panel of the Ethics Adjudicatory Board pursuant to the Code of Governmental Ethics for which all appeals have been exhausted.

(iii) "Outstanding fine, fee, or penalty" shall not mean any fine, fee, or penalty that has been paid in full as of the time of the filing of the notice of candidacy.

(3) The notice of candidacy also shall include a certificate, signed by the candidate, certifying that he is knowledgeable of the laws governing election offenses as provided in Chapter 10 of this Title and that he is knowledgeable of the prohibitions relative to erecting, displaying, or posting political campaign signs on any highway right-of-way, publicly owned property or right-of-way, or to or on any public utility pole or stanchion, as provided in R.S. 48:347(D), R.S. 30:2544, and R.S. 18:1470. Except as provided in R.S. 30:2544, whoever so erects, displays, or posts political campaign signs on any publicly owned property or right-of-way, or to or on any public utility pole or stanchion shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not in excess of one hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both.

(4) An agent who files a notice of candidacy without the authorization or consent of the candidate to file such notice of candidacy shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be fined not in excess of five hundred dollars or imprisoned for not more than thirty days, or both.

B. Repealed by Acts 2008, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 1, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 2009.

C. On the forms for notice of candidacy which are prepared, printed, and distributed by the secretary of state, a notice shall be printed below the signature line which shall inform the candidate that copies of the forms and pamphlets of explanation and instruction which are distributed by the Supervisory Committee on Campaign Finance Disclosure are available from the clerk of court or the committee, and that information contained in the notice of candidacy may be posted on the website of the secretary of state as determined by the secretary of state.

D. Not later than the Friday before the opening of the qualifying period for any primary election, the Supervisory Committee on Campaign Finance Disclosure shall deliver a sufficient number of informational packets containing reporting forms and instructions to all officials with whom candidates will qualify for such primary election. The informational packet shall include a notice to the candidate that questions concerning the Campaign Finance Disclosure Act should be addressed to the Supervisory Committee on Campaign Finance Disclosure, not the official with whom the candidate qualifies. If a candidate qualifies in person, such informational packets shall be distributed to each candidate upon receipt of the candidate's notice of candidacy by the official with whom the candidate qualifies for office. If a candidate qualifies by submitting his notice of candidacy by certified mail, commercial carrier, or agent, such informational packets shall be mailed to the candidate at his mailing address or, if no mailing address is provided, the address of his domicile as set forth in the notice of candidacy within two business days after receipt of the notice of candidacy.

E.(1) A candidate who has filed a notice of candidacy may change the information contained therein by filing a new notice of candidacy and paying the qualifying fee required by R.S. 18:464 during the qualifying period; however, a candidate who is serving in the armed forces of the United States who is stationed or deployed outside of the United States shall not be required to pay the qualifying fee.

(2) No changes to the information contained in a notice of candidacy shall be made after the close of qualifying, except to correct an error made by the qualifying official who entered the information contained in the notice of candidacy into the database of the Department of State.

F. The Board of Ethics shall work in conjunction with the attorney general to create informational packets summarizing provisions of the laws relative to dual officeholding and laws under the jurisdiction of the board applicable to public officials relative to conflicts of interest and prohibited transactions, payments, contracts, and employment. The Board of Ethics shall provide such an informational packet in the same manner as provided in Subsection D of this Section to any candidate who qualifies for office.

Acts 1976, No. 697, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1978. Amended by Acts 1978, No. 292, §1, eff. July 6, 1978; Acts 1980, No. 786, §2, eff. Jan. 1, 1980; Acts 1982, No. 747, §1, eff. Aug. 2, 1982; Acts 1982, No. 778, §1, eff. Aug. 4, 1982; Acts 1983, No. 519, §1, eff. July 8, 1983; Acts 1984, No. 672, §1; Acts 1984, No. 225, §2; Acts 1988, No. 909, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 1989; Acts 1989, No. 768, §2; Acts 1991, 1st E.S., No. 1, §1, eff. Sept. 1, 1991; Acts 1995, No. 300, §1, eff. June 15, 1995; Acts 1999, No. 1130, §1; Acts 2001, No. 47, §1; Acts 2003, No. 529, §1, eff. June 27, 2003; Acts 2003, No. 1220, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2004; Acts 2004, No. 526, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2005, and §2, eff. June 25, 2004; Acts 2004, No. 829, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2005; Acts 2004, No. 896, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2005; Acts 2008, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 1, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 2009; Acts 2008, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 16, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2009; Acts 2010, No. 827, §1; Acts 2011, No. 152, §1; Acts 2012, No. 533, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2012, No. 609, §1, eff. June 7, 2012; Acts 2012, No. 758, §1, eff. Jan. 1, 2013; Acts 2012, No. 778, §1, eff. June 12, 2012; Acts 2013, No. 383, §1, eff. June 18, 2013; Acts 2015, No. 307, §1, eff. June 29, 2015; Acts 2016, No. 281, §1, eff. May 31, 2016; Acts 2018, No. 584, §3, eff. Jan. 1, 2019.