Fundraising Functions
Bill 54: Election Statutes Amendment Act impacts all provincial electoral legislation. This page is being updated to reflect the new legislation, and as such the information below may be outdated.
A fundraising function is any event or activity held by or on behalf of a political participant for the purpose of raising funds. Only eligible contributors for a given political participant can purchase tickets or admission to attend fundraising events for that political participant because, in most cases, a portion of the price paid is considered a contribution.
Political participants include registered parties, constituency associations, prospective candidate associations, candidates, leadership contestants, citizen initiative proponents (applicants), recall petition authorized participants (applicants), recall vote authorized participants (applicants and MLAs), and third party advertisers. The political participant’s chief financial officer (CFO) is responsible for tracking and recording all the revenues and expenses for fundraising functions.
Ticketed Events
The Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act, Citizen Initiative Act, and Recall Act, provide two methods for the CFO for a political participant to determine the contribution receipt portion of a ticket or admission purchased by an eligible contributor. The method chosen must be used consistently for the fund-raising event.
Method 1
- Up to $50.00: Contribution amount is 50% of the ticket or admission price but only if the purchaser requests a contribution receipt (otherwise there is no contribution portion)
- $50.01 to $100.00: Contribution receipt amount is the ticket or admission price less $25
- Over $100.00: Contribution receipt amount is 75% of the ticket or admission price
OR
Method 2
The contribution receipt portion is the amount by which the ticket or admission price exceeds the market value of what the purchaser receives. The political participant’s CFO must calculate the actual per person cost for the event or activity. Assuming the per person cost is less than the ticket or admission price, the difference is considered the contribution portion.
Auctions
Only eligible contributors can donate items for an auction fundraiser because the donation is considered an in-kind contribution, and the donor must receive a contribution receipt. Only eligible contributors can bid on auction items. The winning bidder must receive a contribution receipt for any amount paid over the fair market value of the item.
The CFO is responsible for determining and documenting the fair market value of items donated by eligible contributors.
For more information on eligible contributors, go to Who Can Contribute, When and How Much?