TORRANCE : Council Sets Limits on Election Donations
Candidates for office here won’t be able to accept contributions of more than $1,000 from a single source, under rules established by the City Council on Tuesday.
The new ordinance also prohibits candidates for mayor, council, city treasurer and city clerk from accepting donations except during the election cycle--which begins the day they file a statement of intent to run and ends June 30 after the city election.
Until now, no laws limited the donation period or amount that could be contributed. The council voted unanimously to approve the law.
The ordinance defines husbands and wives as separate contributors, but contributions by children under 18 count as part of their parents’ limits. The contribution limits take effect March 5.
The penalty for violating the ordinance is a $1,000 fine or six months in jail.
City Councilman Don Lee, chairman of the committee that researched contribution ordinances, said they wanted to create a simple ordinance that was easy to understand and enforce.
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