2021 Semiannual Reports
|
Report |
Deadline | Reporting Period |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 January Semiannual Report | Friday, January 15, 2021 by 11:59 p.m. | end of previous report* - December 31, 2020 |
| 2021 July Semiannual Report | Thursday, July 15, 2021 by 11:59 p.m. | end of previous report* - June 30, 2021 |
*Notes on reporting period start date:
- 2016 and 2018 candidates are following a regular schedule: The January Semiannual covers from June 30 - December 31; the July Semiannual covers January 1 - June 30.
- 2020 candidates who lost the Primary or withdrew before the General Election will have a January Semiannual reporting period that covers August 19, 2020 through December 31, 2020.
- 2020 candidates for the General Election who ended their campaign with a balance of more than $100 will file the July Semiannual Report, with the period starting December 9, 2020.
Reduce Your Cash Balance
To avoid continuing to file semiannually, candidates may spend their remaining funds to discharge existing debts or loans incurred for the campaign, pay outstanding bills, or to dispose of surplus funds. A cash surplus greater than $100 cannot be converted to personal use and must be disposed of according to the Maine Election Law, within four years of the election for which the funds were received.
Refer to the guidelines for the Disposition of Surplus Funds or contact your Candidate Registrar with questions.
Reducing Loan or Debt Balances
If you have an outstanding loan or debt balance of more than $100, you may:
- Use campaign funds to reduce the amount of the obligation as much as possible. Candidates are permitted to raise funds post-election only to retire existing loans or debts.
- Outstanding loans: the lender may choose to forgive the remainder of the loan, which converts it to a contribution. The $400 contribution limit does apply to forgiven loans, but there is no limit to what the candidate or their spouse/domestic partner may contribute to their own campaign. Many candidates who have loaned personal funds to the campaign choose to simply forgive the remainder to avoid having to file semiannual reports.
- Outstanding debts: the candidate may use personal funds to pay the creditor of the debt, i.e., the vendor. In eFiling, you will report first a cash contribution from the candidate to the campaign in the amount of the payment and then edit the debt to show the payment.
Helpful links for eFiling