HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 09/15/2020 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 109, 2020, AMENDIN Agenda Item 4
Item # 4 Page 1
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY September 15, 2020
City Council
STAFF
Delynn Coldiron, City Clerk
Rita Knoll, Chief Deputy City Clerk
Ryan Malarky, Legal
SUBJECT
Second Reading of Ordinance No. 109, 2020, Amending the Code of the City of Fort Collins to Modify and
Update Requirements and Procedures for City Elections and Campaign Finance in City Elections.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Ordinance, unanimously adopted on First Reading on September 1, 2020, adopts amendments to the
City’s election campaign Code provisions.
On Second Reading, City staff is proposing minor revisions to the Ordinance concerning the campaign finance
violation process. The first revision corrects a minor typographical error in proposed Section 7-143(b)(1). The
second revision is in proposed Section 7-145(d)(6)(c), which establishes factors for the City Attorney to
consider when determining if the respondent to a campaign finance complaint has substantially complied with
their legal obligations under the Code. On First Reading, one factor for the City Attorney to consider was
stated as whether the respondent’s violation appeared to be an “intentional” attempt to mislead the electorate
or election officials. The revision changes “intentional” to “knowing” to maintain consistency with the usage of
terms within the campaign finance violation Code provisions. The term “knowing” is used elsewhere within
those provisions.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading.
ATTACHMENTS
1. First Reading Agenda Item Summary, September 1, 2020 (PDF)
Agenda Item 9
Item # 9 Page 1
AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY September 1, 2020
City Council
STAFF
Delynn Coldiron, City Clerk
Rita Knoll, Chief Deputy City Clerk
Ryan Malarky, Legal
SUBJECT
First Reading of Ordinance No. 109, 2020, Amending the Code of the City of Fort Collins to Modify and Update
Requirements and Procedures for City Elections and Campaign Finance in City Elections.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The purpose of this item is to consider proposed amendments to the City’s election campaign Code provisions.
STAFF RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends adoption of the Ordinance on First Reading.
BACKGROUND / DISCUSSION
In 2015, Council formed an ad hoc committee to review, discuss and recommend changes to the City Code
and Charter regarding elections and other related matters. In 2017, Council made the ad hoc committee a
standing committee of the Council (the Election Code Committee or ECC) for the purpose of identifying and
evaluating ideas for improvements to City election laws and practices and anticipating adjustments that may be
needed to adapt to a rapidly changing legal and technological environment. Mayor Troxell and Councilmembers
Pignataro and Summers are the current members of the ECC. Councilmember Pignataro serves as the Chair.
At the August 25, 2020 Work Session, Council reviewed recommended changes to Chapter 7 of the Code of
the City of Fort Collins related to campaigns and campaign finance in City elections from the Election Code
Committee. The items contained in this Ordinance represent all items the Election Code Committee reached
consensus on, as well as one clean-up item requested by staff. A Work Session summary is attached.
(Attachment 1).
A summary of the proposed amendments follows:
Financial Disclosure Filing Date for Councilmembers (Section 2-636):
Staff is recommending that a change occur to Section 2-636 to align filing requirements for seated
Councilmembers and newly elected Councilmembers so that the filing deadline falls on the same date (May 15
each year). Currently, newly elected Councilmembers must file no later than 30 days after their election. In an
election year, half the Council is filing in early May, and the other half is filing mid-May. This proposed
amendment will cause all Councilmembers to file under the same deadline.
The City Manager and City Attorney are required to file a financial disclosure statement no later than 30 days
after his or her appointment, and then annually no later than May 15. No change is recommended to provisions
affecting the City Manager and City Attorney.
ATTACHMENT 1
Agenda Item 9
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This item was not discussed by the Election Code Committee.
Campaign Contributions/Expenditures (Section 7-135):
Adding Section 7-135(f) clarifies that no issue committee, small-scale issue committee or political committee
shall make a contribution or contribution in kind to any candidate committee.
Elimination of Non-Itemized Contributions (Section 7-136):
Currently all candidate committees, political committees and issue committees must report all contributions and
contributions in kind received in the amount of $20 or more. Members of the public attending ECC meetings
expressed concerns about a lack of transparency resulting from not requiring the same disclosure for
contributions and contributions in kind that are less than $20. One example provided was the use of a jar or
“fishbowl” at election events where contributions are accepted without any documentation regarding the amount
of individual contributions. Such fishbowls or other undocumented small contributions are problematic since
there is no way to ensure a contributor is not exceeding contribution limits. This proposal eliminates anonymous
donations and requires that all donations, no matter the amount, be reported.
Use of Unexpended City Campaign Funds in Non-City Elections and Carry-Over of Candidate Committee
Contributions to the Next Election Cycle (Section 7-138):
Amending Section 7-138(a)(2) will enable unexpended campaign contributions to a candidate committee to be
contributed to a candidate committee established by the same candidate for a subsequent campaign in a federal,
state, county or city election, subject to campaign finance laws applicable to federal, state and county elections.
Currently, the Code allows that unexpended contributions can only be used for a subsequent city campaign. In
order to avoid any effect on current Councilmember committees, the change applies only to Council candidate
committees formed after January 1, 2021.
Amending Section 7-138(e) will make unexpended campaign contributions held by a candidate committee after
an election available for use in a subsequent election if the candidate registers a candidate committee for a City
office in a subsequent election. Currently, candidate committees can contribute unexpended campaign
contributions to a new candidate committee, with a new name, established by the same candidate for a
subsequent election, but must close the current candidate committee no later than 10 days after establishing the
new candidate committee. With this change, the candidate will need to re-register the candidate committee, but
need not form a new committee or change the committee name. This change is intended to reduce the
administrative burden on those candidates and their committees that intend to participate in a subsequent City
election. The carryover funds will be the beginning fund balance for use in the subsequent election and will not
count against any contribution limit attributable to any past contributor in a prior election campaign. If a candidate
does not register a candidate committee for a City office in a subsequent election, the unexpended campaign
contributions may be used as otherwise set forth in Section 7-138.
Changes to the Campaign Finance Violation Process (Section 7-136, Section 7-143, Section 7-145,
Section 7-146, Section 7-150):
This language amends several sections of the City Code to establish a civil infraction process, whereby a set
civil penalty may be imposed against a candidate or committee for certain campaign finance violations.
Most violations would no longer be criminal misdemeanors, meaning there would no longer be a risk of
imprisonment or loss of office. However, the following violations are proposed to remain criminal misdemeanors:
(1) when a person violates disclosure requirements with the intent to fraudulently misrepresent contributions or
expenditures; (2) when a person offers a candidate or candidate committee money or anything of value to
withdraw, or a candidate offers to withdraw for money or anything of value; or (3) when a person commits a
violation or violations after already being found liable for two violations, all in a single election cycle. In the latter
case, the third and any subsequent violation would be a misdemeanor.
Alleged criminal violations would not be subject to the civil infraction process but would remain subject to review
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by the City Attorney’s Office for probable cause.
Under this new civil infraction process, the respondent will be notified of any complaint received. The City
Attorney or their designee will review the complaint for legal sufficiency. If the City Attorney determines the
complaint is sufficient, the alleged violator (the “respondent”) will be notified of the presumptive penalty and given
the opportunity to pay the penalty or have seven (7) days to submit written evidence of correction of the violation
or diligent efforts to correct the violation. If the respondent fails to act, or the City Attorney determines the
respondent has not corrected the alleged violation and otherwise substantially complied with its legal obligations,
the respondent will be given the choice to pay an associated penalty or to contest the complaint through a
hearing before the Municipal Court following the City’s already-established procedures for civil infractions in
Chapter 19, Article V of the City Code. It is expected that an assistant judge would be assigned to handle any
such proceeding in the Municipal Court to avoid any actual conflicts of interest the Chief Judge may have or the
appearance of such conflict of interest.
Just as with other civil infractions, if a penalty is imposed by the Municipal Court but goes unpaid, the City would
have the authority to collect the penalty as a debt to the City. Candidates would be personally liable for penalties.
Candidates would be allowed to use campaign contributions to pay penalties.
Specifically, the proposed changes would:
1. Amend Section 7-136(g) to make reports that are incomplete or inconsistent with Code requirements to be
subject to the penalties and process outlined in Section 7-143.
2. Amend Section 7-143(a) to create a schedule of violations subject to civil penalties with an associated dollar
amount.
3. Create a new Section 7-143(b) to clarify that a misdemeanor, subject to a fine or imprisonment in accordance
with Section 1-15 would continue for the following:
a) A person or committee that violates disclosure requirements with the intent to fraudulently misrepresent
contributions or expenditures; or
b) A person who offers a candidate or candidate committee money or anything of value to withdraw, or a
candidate who offers to withdraw for money or anything of value; or
c) When a person is found liable for a violation after the person is found liable for two (2) or more violations
under Chapter 7, Article V in a single election cycle.
4. Amend Section 7-143(c) to clarify that failure to comply with the provisions of this Article will have no effect
on the validity of any election, except as expressly required by the City Charter.
5. Amend Section 7-145(c) to make it clear that the City Clerk will forward any complaints received that allege
a criminal violation to the respondent as well as the City Attorney.
6. Create a new Section 7-145(d) related to processing complaints that do not allege a criminal violation and
sets out the civil infraction process that will be utilized.
7. Amend Section 7-146 to clarify that the City Attorney will continue to review those complaints that concern
criminal violations as opposed to civil infractions.
8. Eliminate Section 7-150 which currently allows a citizen complainant to bring a civil action in state
district court after either receiving written notification from the City Clerk that the City Attorney determined filing
a summons and complaint is inappropriate, or after one hundred eighty (180) days of filing the complaint,
whichever occurs first. Staff is proposing this be removed due to recent case law calling into question the
constitutionality of similar citizen enforcement mechanisms at the state election level.
The City Attorney will need to use an outside attorney, as in past practice, when a complaint is against a Council
candidate. The Chief Judge will also likely need to use an assistant judge. The need to use an outside attorney
for initial review and a special judge may have some budget implications that have not yet been addressed. The
assistant judge would likely be an outside judge under contract for assistant judge services, as with other
assistant judges in the Municipal Court. The assistant judge contract would be managed by the Chief Judge
and the Municipal Court, while the outside legal counsel for initial review of complaints, as needed, would be
Agenda Item 9
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retained by the City Attorney’s Office.
The ECC discussed two additional issues and encouraged staff to bring them forward to the entire Council for
discussion. These items include regulation of Limited Liability Company (LLC) contributions and limiting
contributions to political committees.
Regulation of Limited Liability Company contributions and placing a limitation on contributions to Political
Committees are moving forward to Council under separate ordinance as requested at the April 25, 2020 Work
Session.
CITY FINANCIAL IMPACTS
Any financial impacts as a result of these amendments will be negligible.
PUBLIC OUTREACH
Meetings of the Election Code Committee are posted on the City’s website in advance of the meeting. Several
members of the community regularly attend Committee meetings and provide input on topics on the agenda and
other items of interest. Draft minutes from these meetings are attached. (Attachment 2).
ATTACHMENTS
1. Work Session Summary (PDF)
2. Election Code Committee Minutes (PDF)
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This Ordinance is amended for Second Reading with minor revisions on page 7.
ORDINANCE NO. 109, 2020
OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS
AMENDING THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS TO MODIFY AND UPDATE
REQUIREMENTS AND PROCEDURES FOR CITY ELECTIONS AND
CAMPAIGN FINANCE IN CITY ELECTIONS
WHEREAS, Chapter 7 of the City Code sets out procedures and requirements for
redistricting of Council districts, for the conduct of City elections, for disclosure of campaign
finance information, and other related matters; and
WHEREAS, in 2015 the City Council formed an ad hoc committee to review, discuss and
recommend the most beneficial changes to the Code and City Charter regarding elections and
other related matters; and
WHEREAS, in January 2017, Council made the ad hoc Committee a standing committee
of Council for the purpose of identifying and evaluating ideas for improvements to City election
laws and practices and anticipating adjustments that may be needed to adapt to a changing legal
and technological environment, for Council consideration; and
WHEREAS, as a result of the Committee’s work (as both an ad hoc committee and a
standing committee), Ordinance No. 021, 2016, Ordinance No. 005, 2017, Ordinance No. 045,
2018, Ordinance No. 077, 2018, and Ordinance No. 113, 2018 were considered and adopted by
the Council to update various provisions of Chapter 7; and
WHEREAS, the Committee continued to meet in 2018, 2019 and 2020, and has
recommended additional clarifications and amendments to Chapter 7; and
WHEREAS, the Committee has recommended that the Code be amended to including
new procedures for the handling of complaints filed by candidates or registered electors of the
City, including amendments such that a majority of campaign finance violations would be
changed from misdemeanor violations to civil infractions; and
WHEREAS, the Committee has recommended that the Code be amended to allow that
unexpended campaign contributions may be used for subsequent federal, state, county, local or
City elections, to the extent permitted by law; and
WHEREAS, the Committee has recommended that unexpended campaign funds
remaining with a candidate committee on the 70th day after the election will be considered
contributions to that candidate committee for the next election; and
WHEREAS, the Committee has recommended that the complainant cause of action in
Section 7-150 be removed from the Code because recent case law raises substantial concerns
about its constitutionality; and
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WHEREAS, staff has recommended that the deadline for filing financial disclosures by
Councilmembers set out in Chapter 2 of the Code be made uniform for those Councilmembers
sitting on Council and for those newly elected, re-elected, appointed or retained
Councilmembers; and
WHEREAS, these amendments generally improve and clarify the City’s campaign
finance disclosure and election requirements and processes; and
WHEREAS, these amendments further the City’s and the public’s interest in shedding
light for the public on the expenditure of money to influence the outcome of City elections, while
respecting the speaker’s interest in freedom of political speech; and
WHEREAS, the Council desires to enact the recommendations of the Committee and
staff to clarify and improve the various provisions of Chapter 2 and Chapter 7, as set forth below.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
FORT COLLINS as follows:
Section 1. That the City Council hereby makes and adopts the determinations and
findings contained in the recitals set forth above.
Section 2. That Section 2-636 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 2-636. Required.
Any candidate for the office of City Councilmember shall, at the time of filing his or her
acceptance of nomination with the City Clerk, file with the City Clerk a written disclosure
statement that conforms to the requirements of § 2-637. Such a written disclosure statement shall
also be filed with the City Clerk by the City Manager and the City Attorney not later than thirty
(30) days after their appointment or retention in office. Each member of the City Council who is
elected, re-elected, appointed or retained in office shall also file such a written disclosure
statement with the City Clerk not later than May 15 of the year in which their election, re-
election, appointment or retention in office occurs. However, any City Councilmember who is
elected or re-elected and who has, prior to said election or re-election, filed a written disclosure
statement within ten (10) days after filing acceptance of nomination, may file an amended
statement with the City Clerk or notify the City Clerk in writing that there has been no change in
the disclosures made therein, since the date of filing of the same.
Section 3. That Section 7-135 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to add a new Subsection (f) to read as follows, with subsequent Subsections
renumbered accordingly:
Sec. 7-135. Campaign contributions/expenditures.
. . .
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(f) No issue committee, small-scale issue committee or political committee shall make a
contribution or contribution in kind to any candidate committee.
(g) Contributions from one (1) candidate committee to another.
(1) No candidate committee shall make a contribution or contribution in kind to, or
accept a contribution or contribution in kind from, a candidate committee of another
candidate.
(2) No candidate committee shall accept a contribution or contribution in kind from a
candidate committee of the same candidate that was established or maintained for a
federal, state or county election campaign or office.
. . .
Section 4. That Section 7-136 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 7-136. Disclosure; filing reports.
(a) All candidate committees, political committees and issue committees shall report to the
City Clerk their contributions and contributions in kind received, including the name and address
of each person who has made a contributions or a contributions in kind; expenditures made; and
obligations entered into by the committee.
. . .
(g) Any report that is deemed by the City Clerk to be incomplete or inconsistent with the
requirements of this Article shall be accepted on a conditional basis, and shall be sub ject to the
penalties and process in § 7-143.
. . .
Section 5. That Section 7-138 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 7-138. Unexpended campaign contributions.
(a) Unexpended campaign contributions to a candidate committee may be:
(1) Contributed to a political party;
(2) Contributed to a candidate committee established by the same candidate for a
subsequent campaign in a City election, or to a candidate committee established
after January 1, 2021, for a non-City election, to the extent permitted by
applicable law. For a City election, such contributions are subject to the
limitations set forth in Paragraph 7-135(g)(2);
(3) Donated to a charitable organization recognized by the Internal Revenue Service;
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(4) Returned to the contributors;
(5) Used to pay for the cost of a recount requested by the candidate pursuant to § 7-
46.
In no event shall contributions to a candidate committee be used for personal purposes
not reasonably related to supporting the election or retention of the candidate.
(b) In addition to any use described in Subsection (a) of this Section, a person elected to the
office of Mayor or Councilmember, or retained in office following a recall attempt, may
use unexpended campaign contributions held by the person's candidate committee for any
of the following purposes:
(1) Voter registration;
(2) Political issue education, which includes obtaining information from or providing
information to the electorate;
(3) Postsecondary educational scholarships;
(4) To defray reasonable and necessary expenses related to mailings and similar
communications to constituents;
(5) Any expenses that are directly related to such person's official duties as an elected
official, including, but not limited to, expenses for the purchase or lease of office
equipment and supplies, room rental for public meetings, necessary travel and
lodging expenses for legislative education such as seminars, conferences and
meetings on legislative issues, and telephone and pager expenses.
(c) A candidate committee for a former officeholder or a person not elected to office shall
expend all of the unexpended campaign contributions retained by such candidate
committee, for the purposes specified in Subsection (a) of this Section, no later than five
(5) years from the date such officeholder's term expired or from the date of the election at
which such person was a candidate for office, whichever is later.
(d) Unexpended campaign contributions to an issue committee or political committee may be
donated to any charitable organization recognized by the Internal Revenue Service,
returned to the contributor, or used to pay for the cost of a recount requested by the
committee's registered agent pursuant to § 7-46.
(e) Any unexpended campaign contributions held by a candidate committee subsequent to
the date of the election shall, upon the registration of a candidate committee for a City
office in a subsequent election, be available for that candidate committee as a beginning
fund balance to use in that election. Such carryover funds will not count against any
contribution limit attributable to any past contributor in a prior election campaign.
Absent the candidate registering a candidate committee for a City office in a subsequent
election, the unexpended campaign contributions may be used as otherwise set forth in
this Section.
Section 6. That Section 7-143 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
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Sec. 7-143. Violations and penalties.
(a) Except as provided in Subparagraph (e) herein, any person who knowingly violates or
fails to comply with the provisions of this Article as set forth in the following schedule commits
a civil infraction and is subject to a civil penalty as follows:
Code Section Penalty Amount
7-134 - Registration of committees;
termination.
$150 first offense; $300 each subsequent
offense
7-135 - Campaign
contributions/expenditures.
$100 first offense; $200 each subsequent
offense
7-136 - Disclosure; filing of reports. $100 first offense; $200 each subsequent
offense
7-137(b) - Reports to be public record. $50 first offense; $100 each subsequent
offense
7-138 - Unexpended campaign
contributions.
$100 first offense; $200 each subsequent
offense
7-139 - Independent expenditures $100 first offense; $200 each subsequent
offense
7-140 - Responsibility for communications. $50 first offense; $100 each subsequent
offense
7-141 - Expenditures for political
advertising; rates and charges.
$50 first offense; $100 each subsequent
offense
(b) Any person who undertakes any of the following commits a misdemeanor and is subject
to a fine or imprisonment in accordance with § 1-15:
(1) Knowingly violates § 7-136 with the intent to fraudulently misrepresent campaign
contributions or expenditures on a disclosure report;
(2) Knowingly violates § 7-142; or
(3) Is found liable for a violation after the person has been found liable for two (2) or
more violations under this Article in a single election cycle.
(c) Failure to comply with the provisions of this Article shall have no effect on the validity of
any election, except as expressly required by the City Charter.
Section 7. That Section 7-145 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 7-145. Allegation of campaign violation.
. . .
(c) For complaints that allege a criminal violation as set forth in § 7-143(b), the City Clerk
will forward the complaint to the respondent and to the City Attorney, who will evaluate
the complaint for probable cause as provided for in this Division 2.
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(d) For complaints that do not allege a criminal violation, the complaints shall be subject to a
civil infraction process as provided herein:
(1) The City Clerk will forward the complaint to the respondent by electronic mail,
notifying the respondent that the alleged violation may be subject to a civil infraction.
(2) The City Clerk will forward the complaint to the City Attorney, who shall review
the complaint to determine whether the complaint:
a. Was timely filed under § 7-145(a);
b. Contains the information required by § 7-145(b); and
c. Alleges sufficient facts to support a factual and legal basis for the
violations alleged.
(3) If the City Attorney determines that the complaint fails to satisfy any of the three
(3) elements in the immediately preceding Subsection (2), the City Attorney shall so
notify the City Clerk who will, in turn, notify the complainant and respondent in writing.
(4) If the City Attorney determines that the complaint satisfies the three (3) elements
in the immediately preceding Subsection (2), the City Attorney shall notify the City Clerk
who will, in turn, notify the respondent in writing of the presumptive penalty in
accordance with § 7-143(a) and that the respondent shall have seven (7) days from the
date of the notice to submit written evidence of its cure or diligent efforts to cure the
violation, including any amendments to any applicable report containing one or more
deficiencies, modified campaign materials or other proof that the violation has been
corrected. The respondent’s written response shall be due to the City Clerk no later than
5:00 p.m. on the seventh (7th) day. In the event the seventh (7th) day is a City holiday, the
response shall be due no later than 5:00 p.m. the next business day.
(5) On receipt of the respondent’s written response, the City Attorney may, through
the City Clerk, ask the respondent to provide more information and may grant the
respondent an extension of time of up to seven (7) additional days to file an amended
response regarding cure in order to respond to any such request.
(6) After the period for cure has expired, the City Attorney shall determine whether
the respondent has cured any violation alleged in the complaint and, if so, whether
respondent has substantially complied with its legal obligations under Chapter 7, Article
5, of this Code. In determining whether the respondent has substantially complied with
its legal obligations, the City Attorney shall consider:
a. The extent of the respondent’s noncompliance;
b. The purpose of the provision violated and whether that purpose was
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substantially achieved despite the noncompliance; and
c. Whether the noncompliance may properly be viewed as an intentional a
knowing attempt to mislead the electorate or election officials.
If the City Attorney determines the respondent has cured any violation or otherwise
substantially complied with its legal obligations under Chapter 7, Article 5, the City
Attorney shall so notify the City Clerk who, in turn, shall notify the complainant and the
respondent and no penalty shall apply for the corresponding alleged violation or
violations, as applicable.
(7) If the City Attorney determines the respondent has not cured the alleged violation
or otherwise substantially complied with its legal obligations, the City Attorney may
conduct additional review or investigation of the allegations of the complaint to
determine whether to file a complaint with the Municipal Court.
(8) If the City Attorney files a complaint with the Municipal Court, the matter shall
be governed by Article V of Chapter 19 of this Code.
(9) A complainant or any other nonrespondent shall not be a party to the City
Attorney’s initial review, cure proceedings, investigation, or any proceeding in the
Municipal Court. A complainant may request permission from the Municipal Judge or
their designee to file an amicus curiae brief.
(10) Any person that commits a violation of shall be personally liable for the penalties
imposed. Any candidate shall be personally liable for penalties imposed upon the
candidate or the candidate’s committee and may use campaign contributions to pay
penalties.
Section 8. That Section 7-146 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 7-146. Evaluation of campaign complaint.
(a) For those complaints that concern a criminal violation pursuant to § 7-143(b), if the City
Attorney determines that no probable cause exists, that the complaint fails to allege an
enforceable violation, or that the requirements of § 7-145 were not met by the
complainant, the City Attorney shall so notify the City Clerk, who will, in turn, notify the
complainant and respondent in writing.
(b) If the City Attorney determines probable cause exists, the City Attorney may notify Fort
Collins Police Services, who, in consultation with the City Attorney, may file and serve a
summons and complaint to the respondent.
(c) The City Attorney retains prosecutorial discretion on whether to ultimately file criminal
charges. If the City Attorney determines filing a summons and complaint is inappropriate,
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he or she shall so notify the City Clerk, who will, in turn, notify the complainant and
respondent in writing.
Section 9. That Section 7-150 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby
deleted in its entirety and held in reserve.
Introduced, considered favorably on first reading, and ordered published this 1st day of
September, A.D. 2020, and to be presented for final passage on the 15th day of September, A.D.
2020.
_____________________________________
Mayor
ATTEST:
_______________________________
City Clerk
Passed and adopted on final reading on the 15th day of September, A.D. 2020.
__________________________________
Mayor
ATTEST:
_______________________________
City Clerk