For release: Friday, March 25, 2016
Contact: Shaista Shaikh (415) 252-3100
As required by the City’s public campaign funding program, Ethics Commission Executive Director LeeAnn Pelham today announced the first certification of a candidate in Supervisorial District 11 to be eligible for public financing for the November 8, 2016 election. Based on a review by Ethics Commission staff of Kimberly Alvarenga’s Qualifying Request and supporting documentation, Ms. Alvarenga’s campaign will now be eligible to receive $20,000 in public funds from the San Francisco Election Campaign Fund once the City’s Department of Elections confirms that her name will appear on the November 2016 ballot.
“The Election Campaign Fund is designed to help candidates engage with San Francisco voters on important issues in their communities,” Pelham said. “Candidates certified for eligibility under the program’s requirements are one step closer to receiving the benefit of public funding for their 2016 campaigns.”
To qualify for public campaign funding, non-incumbent candidates for the Board of Supervisors are required to demonstrate that they have received qualifying contributions ranging from $10 to $100 totaling $10,000 from at least 100 residents of the City. Once the Ethics Commission certifies a candidate’s eligibility, various reporting requirements are triggered for all candidates in that race. To receive public funding, Supervisorial candidates must also agree to abide by a $250,000 campaign expenditure ceiling. They may qualify to receive up to $155,000 in public funds for their campaign depending on the amount of matching contributions they raise. Under the law, only contributions raised from San Francisco residents are eligible to be matched. The Election Campaign Fund is funded through the City’s General Fund with an annual appropriation based on the number of city residents, up to a maximum Fund level of $7 million.
Before receiving any public funds, candidates certified as eligible by the Ethics Commission must also be certified by the City’s Department of Elections as a candidate whose name will appear on the ballot. Under a City law enacted in 2012, candidates may not receive public funds for their campaigns any earlier than 142 days before the election. All candidates who receive public funds are audited by the Ethics Commission at the conclusion of the election.
For regular updates about candidates who are certified as eligible to receive public funds, along with the amounts disbursed to qualified candidates throughout the election, visit the Ethics Commission’s website at: https://www.sfethics.org/ethics/2016/02/campaign-finance-public-funds-disbursements-november-8-2016.html.