Sec. 6.

(1) “Expenditure” means a payment, donation, loan, or promise of payment of money or anything of ascertainable monetary value for goods, materials, services, or facilities in assistance of, or in opposition to, the nomination or election of a candidate, the qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot question, or the qualification of a new political party. Expenditure includes, but is not limited to, any of the following:

(a) A contribution or a transfer of anything of ascertainable monetary value for purposes of influencing the nomination or election of a candidate, the qualification, passage, or defeat of a ballot question, or the qualification of a new political party.

(b) Except as provided in subsection (2)(f) or (g), an expenditure for voter registration or get-out-the-vote activities made by a person who sponsors or finances the activity or who is identified by name with the activity.

(c) Except as provided in subsection (2)(f) or (g), an expenditure made for poll watchers, challengers, distribution of election day literature, canvassing of voters to get out the vote, or transporting voters to the polls.

(d) Except as provided in subsection (2)(c), the cost of establishing and administering a payroll deduction plan to collect and deliver a contribution to a committee.

(2) Expenditure does not include any of the following:

(a) An expenditure for communication by a person with the person’s paid members or shareholders and those individuals who can be solicited for contributions to a separate segregated fund under section 55.

(b) An expenditure for communication on a subject or issue if the communication does not support or oppose a ballot question or candidate by name or clear inference.

(c) An expenditure for the establishment or administration of, or solicitation, collection, or transfer of contributions to, a separate segregated fund, or for mailing or shipping of an item or prize purchased under section 55(8), if that expenditure was made by a connected organization of that separate segregated fund as authorized under section 55.

(d) An expenditure by a broadcasting station, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical or publication for a news story, commentary, or editorial in support of or opposition to a candidate for elective office or a ballot question in the regular course of publication or broadcasting.

(e) An offer or tender of an expenditure if expressly and unconditionally rejected or returned.

(f) An expenditure for nonpartisan voter registration or nonpartisan get-out-the-vote activities made by an organization that is exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of the internal revenue code, 26 USC 501, or any successor statute.

(g) An expenditure for nonpartisan voter registration or nonpartisan get-out-the-vote activities performed under chapter XXIII of the Michigan election law, 1954 PA 116, MCL 168.491 to 168.523a, by the secretary of state and other registration officials who are identified by name with the activity.

(h) An expenditure by a state central committee of a political party or a person controlled by a state central committee of a political party for the construction, purchase, or renovation of 1 or more office facilities in Ingham County if the facility is not constructed, purchased, or renovated for the purpose of influencing the election of a candidate in a particular election. Items excluded from the definition of expenditure under this subdivision include expenditures approved in Federal Election Commission advisory opinions 1993-9, 2001-1, and 2001-12 as allowable expenditures under the federal election campaign act of 1971, 52 USC 30101 to 30146, and regulations promulgated under that act, regardless of whether those advisory opinions have been superseded.

(i) Except only for the purposes of section 57, an expenditure to or for a federal candidate or a federal committee.

(j) Except only for the purposes of section 47, an expenditure for a communication if the communication does not in express terms advocate the election or defeat of a clearly identified candidate so as to restrict the application of this act to communications containing express words of advocacy of election or defeat, such as “vote for”, “elect”, “support”, “cast your ballot for”, “Smith for governor”, “vote against”, “defeat”, or “reject”.

History: 1976, Act 388, Imd. Eff. Dec. 30, 1976 ;-- Am. 1989, Act 95, Imd. Eff. June 21, 1989 ;-- Am. 1994, Act 117, Eff. Apr. 1, 1995 ;-- Am. 1995, Act 264, Eff. Mar. 28, 1996 ;-- Am. 2003, Act 69, Imd. Eff. July 22, 2003 ;-- Am. 2012, Act 31, Imd. Eff. Feb. 28, 2012 ;-- Am. 2012, Act 273, Eff. Dec. 30, 2012 ;-- Am. 2013, Act 252, Imd. Eff. Dec. 27, 2013 ;-- Am. 2015, Act 269, Imd. Eff. Jan. 6, 2016 ;-- Am. 2017, Act 119, Imd. Eff. Sept. 20, 2017 ;-- Am. 2018, Act 607, Imd. Eff. Dec. 28, 2018 ;-- Am. 2019, Act 93, Imd. Eff. Oct. 10, 2019 Compiler's Notes: Section 2 of Act 264 of 1995 provides:“If any portion of this amendatory act or the application of this amendatory act to any person or circumstance is found to be invalid by a court, the invalidity does not affect the remaining portions or applications of this amendatory act that can be given effect without the invalid portion or application, if those remaining portions are not determined by the court to be inoperable. To this end, this amendatory act is declared to be severable.”Enacting section 1 of Act 31 of 2012 provides:"Enacting section 1. It is the policy of this state that a public body shall maintain strict neutrality in each election and that a public body or a person acting on behalf of a public body shall not attempt to influence the outcome of an election held in the state. If there is a perceived ambiguity in the interpretation of section 57, that section shall be construed to best effectuate the policy of strict neutrality by a public body in an election."