A. 
No person shall make to any candidate, and no such candidate shall accept from any person, a contribution or contributions totaling more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) in any single off-election year or one thousand six hundred dollars ($1,600.00) in any of the following periods:
1. 
In any primary election period;
2. 
In any general election period;
3. 
In any special election period; or
4. 
In any special runoff election period.
B. 
To the extent that a candidate receives a contribution in excess of the limit imposed in subsection A, such candidate shall remit any amount in excess of the limitations set forth in subsection A to the Registrar of Voters for deposit in the Campaign Reform Fund, or return such amount to the donor, no later than the next date on which the candidate is required to file, or does file, a State or County campaign statement.
C. 
For purposes of this section, and Section 2.115.450, two or more entities shall be treated as one person when any of the following circumstances apply:
1. 
The entities share the majority of members of their governing board;
2. 
The entities share two or more officers;
3. 
The entities are owned or controlled by the same majority shareholder or shareholders; or
4. 
The entities are in a parent-subsidiary relationship.
D. 
For purposes of this section, and Section 2.115.450, an individual and any general partnership in which the individual is a general partner, or an individual and any corporation in which the individual owns a controlling interest, shall be treated as one person.
E. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsections C and D hereof, a candidate shall not be deemed to be in violation of this section if he or she accepts a contribution from a person that was made to such candidate in violation of subsections C and D. It is the intent of this section to make contributors, and not candidates, liable for violations of this section occurring as a result of the applicability of subsections C and D to a contribution.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 1642 § 2, 2019; SCC 1683 § 2, 2021; SCC 1725, 11/7/2023; SCC 1768, 12/16/2025)
A. 
An organization shall not make to any candidate, and no candidate shall accept from any organization, a contribution or contributions totaling more than five hundred dollars ($500.00) in any single off-election year or three thousand one hundred dollars ($3,100.00) in any of the following periods:
1. 
In any primary election period;
2. 
In any general election period;
3. 
In any special election period; or
4. 
In any special runoff election period.
B. 
To the extent that a candidate receives a contribution in excess of the limits imposed in subsection A, such candidate shall remit any amount in excess of the limitations set forth in subsection A to the Registrar of Voters for deposit in the Campaign Reform Fund, or return such amount to the donor, no later than the next date on which the candidate is required to file, or does file, a State or County campaign statement.
C. 
A candidate shall not be deemed to be in violation of this section if he or she accepts a contribution that exceeds the contribution limitations for persons set forth in Section 2.115.300, but conforms to the contribution limitation for organizations set forth in this section, from an entity that does not constitute an organization within the meaning of Section 2.115.255. It is the intent of this section to make the entity and the individuals or persons making up the entity, and not the candidate, liable for violations of this section occurring as a result of an entity not constituting an organization making a contribution in excess of the limitations set forth in Section 2.115.300.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 1683 § 3, 2021SCC 1642 § 2, 2019; SCC 1725, 11/7/2023; SCC 1768, 12/16/2025)
Any candidate making a written solicitation for a contribution for his or her campaign for County elective office shall include the following written warning in no less than ten point type on each such solicitation:
"WARNING
Chapter 2.115 of the Sacramento County Code regulates contributions to campaigns for County elective office. Before making a contribution to my campaign, please read Chapter 2.115, and in particular Sections 2.115.255, 2.115.260, 2.115.300 and 2.115.310, to determine if your contribution complies with Chapter 2.115."
(SCC 683 § 1, 1987)
A. 
Except as provided for in subsection C, no candidate shall accept contributions totaling more than fifty-one thousand dollars ($51,000.00) in any single off-election year. The intent of this section is to impose an absolute limit of fifty-one thousand dollars ($51,000.00) on the total amount of contributions from all sources received by any incumbent or candidate in any single off-election year, even if no single contribution exceeds the contribution limits set forth in Sections 2.115.300 and 2.115.310.
B. 
To the extent that a candidate receives contributions in any single off-election year in excess of the limit imposed by subsection A, such candidate shall remit any amount in excess of the limitation set forth in subsection A to the Registrar of Voters for deposit in the Campaign Reform Fund, or to return such amount to the donor, no later than the next date on which the candidate is required to file, or does file, a State or County campaign statement.
C. 
Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection A, a contribution received by a candidate in an off-election year that is used to repay a loan received by the candidate in the previous election cycle, which loan constituted a contribution subject to the provisions of this chapter, shall not be subject to the fifty-one thousand dollar ($51,000.00) aggregate off-election year contribution limitation.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 0839 § 1, 1991; SCC 1478 § 1, 2011; SCC 1642 § 3, 2019; SCC 1683 § 4, 2021; SCC 1725, 11/7/2023; SCC 1768, 12/16/2025)
Prior to the solicitation or acceptance of any contribution or loan for a campaign for County elective office, an individual who intends to be a candidate for County elective office shall file with the Registrar of Voters a statement of intention to be a candidate for County elective office.
(SCC 0839 § 2, 1991)
A contribution shall not be considered to be received if it is not negotiated, deposited, or utilized, and, in addition, it is returned to the donor within 14 days of receipt.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987)
Beginning October 1, 2021, and subsequently each odd year on October 1st, or as soon as possible thereafter, the Board of Supervisors may authorize the adjustment of: (i) the individual contribution limit for on-election years established pursuant to Section 2.115.300(A); (ii) the organization contribution limit for on-election years established pursuant to Section 2.115.310(A); and (iii) the aggregate contribution limit established pursuant to Section 2.115.320(A). Such adjustments shall be based on the Consumer Price Index for Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
(SCC 1642 § 4, 2019)
A. 
Except as provided in subsection B a loan shall be considered a contribution. If the loan is not secured or guaranteed, it shall be considered a contribution from the maker and shall be subject to the contribution limits of this chapter. If the loan is secured or guaranteed, it shall be considered a contribution from the lender and guarantor, or person whose property secures the loan, and shall be subject to the contribution limitations of this article.
B. 
A loan made to a candidate by a commercial lending institution in the regular course of business on the same terms available to members of the public which is personally guaranteed by the candidate, or the candidate's spouse, or is secured by property owned by the candidate or the candidate's spouse, shall not be subject to the contribution limits of this article.
C. 
The complete terms and conditions of every loan to a candidate shall be contained in a written agreement which shall be filed with the candidate's County campaign statement on which the loan is first reported.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1986; SCC 1642 § 5, 2019)
A. 
Contributions by a husband and wife shall be treated as separate contributions and shall not be aggregated.
B. 
Contributions by dependent children shall be treated as contributions by their parents and attributed proportionately to each parent (one-half to each parent or the total amount to a single custodial parent).
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 1642 § 5, 2019)
A. 
Contributions to a candidate by his or her spouse shall not be subject to the contribution limits of this article.
B. 
Contributions to a candidate by his or her children, or any other family members, shall be subject to the contribution limits of this article.
(SCC 672 § 1, 1986; SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 1642 § 5, 2019)
A. 
The contribution limitations set forth in this article apply only to campaigns for County elective office, and not to campaigns for other elective offices which a candidate for County elective office has sought or may seek in the future.
B. 
If a candidate receives a contribution for a purpose other than his or her campaign for County elective office, the candidate shall file a written statement with the Registrar of Voters describing the purposes for which the contribution was accepted. Such statement shall be filed no later than the next date on which the candidate is required to file, or does file, a State or County campaign statement.
C. 
Any written solicitation by a candidate for a contribution to the candidate for a purpose other than his or her campaign for County elective office shall specify in writing within such solicitation that the contribution being solicited is for a purpose other than the candidate's campaign for County elective office and the purpose(s) for which such contribution may be utilized. Such disclosure shall be on the solicitation in no less than ten point type.
(SCC 683 § 1, 1987; SCC 1642 § 5, 2019)