Philadelphia’s Campaign Finance Law applies to candidates for City elective office, people and organizations that contribute to those candidates, and others who make expenditures to influence City elections.

City elective office includes:

• Mayor.
• District Attorney.
• City Controller.
• City Councilmember.
• Sheriff.
• City Commissioner.

The law has three main components:

• Contribution limits.
• Required electronic filing of campaign finance reports.
• Rules about how candidates use political committees and bank accounts for their campaigns.

The Board of Ethics administers, interprets, and enforces the Campaign Finance Law.

For more information, visit our guide to campaign finance and FAQs.

Candidates for City elective office have to meet the requirements of the City’s Campaign Finance Law as interpreted in Regulation 1. Candidates also have to comply with the PA Election Code.

If you’re starting a campaign, you can use our checklist to help you comply with these requirements.

You’ll need to submit a Candidate Information Form within three days of declaring your candidacy.

You’ll also need to file campaign finance forms.

Campaign finance forms must be filed by:

• Candidates for City elective office.
• Political committees that make direct or in-kind contributions to candidates for City elective office.
• Political committees or other persons that make expenditures to influence a City election.

To find out which due dates apply to you, visit the latest filing schedule.

To file your forms, visit the Campaign Finance Filing System.

The Board of Ethics publicly posts completed candidate and committee forms.

You can also search the Campaign Finance Filing System. You can search by:

• Contributions.
• Expenditures.
• Campaign Financial Report.

To get updates on the City’s Campaign Finance Law, join our email list below.