Email WV Code

Email: Chapter 3, Article 8, Section 5F

§3-8-5f. Loans to candidates, organizations or persons for election purposes.

(a) No candidate, financial agent, person or association of persons or organization advocating or opposing the nomination or election of any candidate or the passage or defeat of any issue or item to be voted upon may receive any money or any other thing of value as a loan toward election expenses except from the candidate, his or her spouse or a lending institution. All loans shall be evidenced by a written agreement executed by the lender, whether the candidate, his or her spouse, or the lending institution. Such agreement shall state the date and amount of the loan, the terms, including interest and repayment schedule, and a description of the collateral, if any, and the full names and addresses of all parties to the agreement. A copy of the agreement shall be filed with the financial statement next required after the loan is executed.

(b) Loans may only be made in the regular course of business by a lending institution which is a state bank, a federally chartered depository institution (including a national bank) or a depository institution whose deposits are insured by the federal deposit insurance corporation or the national credit union administration. Such loans shall be subject to the following requirements:

(1) Endorsements or guarantees of such loans may be made by the candidate or his or her spouse;

(2) Endorsements or guarantees of such loans by parties other than the candidate or his or her spouse may be made only to the extent of the contribution limits established in this article; and

(3) No other form of security shall be furnished in connection with such loans by any party other than the candidate or his or her spouse.

(c) The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prohibit a candidate or his or her spouse from lending money to the candidate or to the candidate's political committee: Provided, That the spouse of a candidate may not borrow money from a third party other than a lending institution authorized to make loans under this section for the purposes of lending money to the candidate or the candidate's political committee.