Stricter Campaign Disclosures Approved

The Board of Supervisors agreed today to amend Riverside County's campaign finance regulations so candidates for county office will be required to publicly disclose -- via the Internet -- all contributions of $1,000 or more.

The board, without comment, voted unanimously to formally adopt the new requirements, which become effective Jan. 1, 2014.

Supervisor Kevin Jeffries advocated the change in April, saying the $1,000 threshold, combined with the availability of an easily accessible online database, would ensure the highest degree of transparency during an election while saving the county "time and money."

A county ordinance enacted in 2011 mandated that political contributions of $5,000 or more be posted on the Office of the Registrar of Voters' website during an election cycle. However, a state law that took effect last Jan. 1, Assembly Bill 2452, allows local governing bodies to require that campaign contributions of $1,000 or more be posted online in the interest of public scrutiny.

Jeffries proposed an amendment to the county's campaign finance disclosure ordinance to reflect the change in California law.

"This will make it easier for the media and voters to see who's contributing what," the supervisor said earlier this year.

In April, county Registrar of Voters Kari Verjil called electronic filing a "great success," noting that since it went into effect in 2011, staff workloads have decreased because there's less time spent scanning, copying and filing paper documents.

The revision approved by the board today only affects candidates for assessor-clerk-recorder, auditor-controller, district attorney, judge, sheriff, supervisor, superintendent of schools and treasurer-tax collector, as well as sponsors of ballot measures that are countywide in scope.

A candidate or political action committee will, beginning in January, have to electronically post details of a contribution within 10 days if the amount meets or exceeds the $1,000 threshold.

—City News Service