District of Columbia Code
Part C - Legal Defense Funds
§ 1–1163.28. Legal defense committees — organization

(a)(1) One legal defense committee and one legal defense checking account shall be established and maintained for the purpose of soliciting, accepting, and spending legal defense funds, which funds may be spent to defray attorney’s fees and other related costs for a public official’s legal defense to one or more civil, criminal, or administrative proceedings arising directly out of the conduct of a campaign, the election process, or the performance of the public official's governmental activities and duties. No committee, fund, entity, or trust may be established to defray professional fees and costs except pursuant to this section.
(2) Attorney’s fees and other related legal costs shall not include, for example, expenses for fundraising, media or political consulting fees, mass mailing or other advertising, or a payment or reimbursement for a fine, penalty, judgment or settlement, or a payment to return or disgorge contributions made to any other committee controlled by the candidate or officer.
(b) Each legal defense committee shall file with the Director of Campaign Finance a statement of organization within 10 days after its organization, which shall include:
(1) The name and address of the legal defense committee;
(2) The name, address, and position of the custodian of books and accounts;
(3) The name, address, and position of other officers;
(4) The beneficiary of the legal defense committee and checking account;
(5) The name and address of the bank designated by the committee as the legal defense committee depository, together with the title and number of the checking account and safety deposit box used by that committee at the depository, and the identification of each individual authorized to make withdrawals or payments out of each such account or box; and
(6) Other information as shall be required by the Director of Campaign Finance.
(c) Any change in information previously submitted in a statement of organization shall be reported to the Director of Campaign Finance within the 10-day period following the change.
(d) Any legal defense committee which, after having filed one or more statements of organization, disbands or determines it will no longer receive contributions or make expenditures during the calendar year shall so notify the Director of Campaign Finance.
(e) Any balance in the legal defense committee fund shall be transferred only to a nonprofit organization, within the meaning of section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code, operating in good standing in the District of Columbia for a minimum of one calendar year before the date of any transfer, or to a constituent-service program pursuant to § 1-1163.38.
(Apr. 27, 2012, D.C. Law 19-124, § 328, 59 DCR 1862; Mar. 13, 2019, D.C. Law 22-250, § 6(dd), 66 DCR 985.)
This section is referenced in § 1-1163.30.
Section 7183 of D.C. Law 24-45 repealed section 10(a) of D.C. Law 22-250 removing the applicability provision impacting this section. Therefore the amendment of this section by Law 22-250 has been implemented.
Section 7183 of D.C. Act 24-159 repealed section 10(a) of D.C. Law 22-250 removing the applicability provision impacting this section. Therefore the amendment of this section by Law 22-250 has been implemented.
Applicability of D.C. Law 22-250: § 10 of D.C. Law 22-250 provided that the change made to this section by § 6(dd) of D.C. Law 22-250 is subject to the inclusion of the law’s fiscal effect in an approved budget and financial plan. Therefore that amendment has not been implemented.

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