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Plain-language summaries of federal campaign-finance terms, paired with practical software-reading notes. These are not complete legal definitions or guidance for state or local filings.
Definitions checked against the Federal Election Commission glossary on .[7] Open the Glossary control on the FEC site for the full definitions. The software-reading notes below are original guidance, not FEC endorsements.
The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended. The FEC glossary sometimes abbreviates it as FECA.[7]
Reading a software record: A reference to the Act is a reference to federal campaign-finance law, not to a software product's rules or a local filing system.
A unique identifier assigned to a candidate registered with the FEC. A person running for different federal offices can have separate IDs for those offices.[7]
Reading a software record: An FEC candidate ID is not automatically the same identifier used by a CRM. Keep identifier type and source alongside the value when preparing a handoff.
The FEC definition includes funds in checking and savings accounts, certificates of deposit, petty cash, traveler's checks, treasury bills and other investments valued at cost.[7]
Reading a software record: Do not treat a dashboard label as proof that all relevant balances are included. Ask which records and period the displayed figure uses.
The FEC definition covers money or things of value given to influence a federal election, including gifts, subscriptions, loans, advances and deposits, as well as certain compensated services provided without charge to a committee.[7]
Reading a software record: A contribution is not limited to a credit-card donation. Consult the full definition and applicable rules before categorizing a transaction.
A purchase or payment made by a political committee or another person that is subject to the Federal Election Campaign Act.[7]
Reading a software record: A reporting category and an accounting-system category may not have the same scope. Preserve the source classification rather than silently relabeling it in an export.
For a given federal office, the period beginning the day after the previous general election and ending on the date of the next general election for that office.[7]
Reading a software record: An election cycle is not interchangeable with a calendar year or a dashboard's selected reporting period. The applicable office matters.
The organization or person that employs an individual, not the name of that individual's supervisor.[7]
Reading a software record: Keep employer and occupation in separate fields when a source record distinguishes them. Do not substitute one for the other to fill a blank.
A report, designation or statement submitted to the FEC by a candidate, committee or another entity.[7]
Reading a software record: Downloading a sample CSV or viewing a report does not constitute filing it. This website does not submit filings or establish that an export satisfies reporting requirements.
A contribution of goods, services or property offered free or below the usual and normal charge. The FEC definition also includes certain payments on behalf of candidates or committees, with specified exclusions.[7]
Reading a software record: The valuation and treatment of a non-cash item require the applicable rules, not a guess from a software label. Read the full official definition.
A way to mark a transaction so its dollar amount is not incorporated into the total for the schedule.[7]
Reading a software record: A memo item can appear in an export without contributing to the schedule total. Preserve that indicator during reconciliation instead of summing every row indiscriminately.
A field in FECFile and some commercial software that lets a committee provide additional text describing a reported transaction.[7]
Reading a software record: Free-text context can be important to understanding a record. Check whether an export retains it and whether it may contain sensitive information.
An individual's principal job title or position, including whether the individual is self-employed.[7]
Reading a software record: Occupation describes a person's work, while employer identifies the employing organization or person. A data handoff should preserve that distinction.
A common term for a political committee that is neither a party committee nor a candidate's authorized committee. The FEC glossary distinguishes separate segregated funds from nonconnected PACs.[7]
Reading a software record: PAC is not a single universal account type with one set of obligations. Use official guidance for the relevant committee classification.
An authorized committee designated by a candidate as the principal committee to raise contributions and make expenditures for a campaign for federal office.[7]
Reading a software record: The designation is a legal relationship, not a software permission. Do not infer it from who owns or administers an account.
Anything of value, including money, goods, services or property, received by a political committee.[7]
Reading a software record: Receipt is broader than a payment confirmation or a scanned document. Clarify whether a field refers to value received or to supporting documentation.
The sum of purchases and payments made during a filing period by a political committee or another person subject to the Act, including certain organizations that are not political committees.[7]
Reading a software record: A total is meaningful only with its filing period and scope. Confirm those before comparing it with a budget card or a financial export.
The sum of contributions and other receipts received by a committee during a filing period.[7]
Reading a software record: The phrase includes other receipts, not just contributions. Ask which categories a report includes before interpreting a difference between totals.
A required role for a political committee. The FEC glossary describes responsibilities including registration, receipts, expenditures, contribution monitoring, records and signing and filing reports and statements on time.[7]
Reading a software record: Giving someone an administrator login does not transfer or satisfy legal responsibilities. Confirm the responsible person and applicable requirements outside the demo.
In this FEC glossary usage, a unique title or code a party committee assigns to a program or event for which it reports an allocation ratio, used consistently when reporting that activity.[7]
Reading a software record: This specialized reporting term should not be confused with a generic database ID. Preserve the meaning and source of an identifier when mapping fields.
General operational usage, written for this site. These are not legal definitions and do not come from the FEC glossary. The notes keep the same rule: a screen is not proof of a service.
Scheduled time a candidate or team member sets aside to call current or prospective supporters, usually working from a prepared list with notes recorded per call.
Reading a software record: A call-time screen is a workflow aid, not evidence of a dialer, phone service or call outcome. Ask what is recorded automatically versus typed by hand.
The set of addresses and people a canvassing team plans to visit in a shift, usually grouped by neighborhood or turf and used to record the result of each visit.
Reading a software record: A displayed walk list does not establish a licensed voter file, navigation or offline recording. Confirm the data source and how results sync back.
A defined geographic area assigned to a canvassing team or volunteer so coverage does not overlap and every visit has an owner.
Reading a software record: Turf boundaries in a demo map are illustrative. Ask how turfs are cut, reassigned and reconciled when volunteers miss a shift.
Direct, in-person voter or supporter contact, typically door to door, with each conversation's outcome logged against the household record.
Reading a software record: A contact log entry is only as reliable as the process behind it. Ask how entries are timestamped, attributed and reviewed before they inform reports.
Peer-to-peer texting: one-to-one text conversations sent by team members rather than automated bulk messages, often managed from a shared workspace.
Reading a software record: A message thread in a preview is not a sending service. Ask about carrier registration, consent and opt-out handling, usage fees and delivery reporting before relying on any texting tool.
[7] Federal Election Commission, help and glossary. The official glossary data asset was retrieved from that site on 2026-09-07. These summaries omit details and must not replace the law or full official guidance. Confirm the applicable committee type and jurisdiction with qualified advisers.
BlueRoots does not provide legal advice or a filing service through this website. See the data-handoff checklist for a neutral way to preserve source context.