Transitioning to a new election cycle requires careful preparation to maintain accurate compliance records while properly separating financial activity between cycles. This process ensures that your reports correctly attribute contributions and expenditures to the appropriate election period as required by regulatory agencies. Starting a new cycle with properly configured settings and clean records helps prevent reporting errors and reduces the administrative burden of managing compliance throughout the cycle. Proper setup now saves significant time and reduces compliance risks later.
Step 1: Review reporting requirements for the new cycle
Before making any system changes, research whether reporting requirements have changed for the upcoming election cycle. Check the Federal Election Commission (FEC) website or your state election board's resources for updated regulations, contribution limits, reporting schedules, or form changes. Document any new requirements that will affect your compliance procedures. Also review your organization's internal policies to determine if any adjustments are needed based on past experience. This preparation ensures your new cycle configuration will meet all current requirements. If you work with a compliance consultant or legal counsel, consult them during this review process.
Step 2: Access the election cycle configuration settings
Log into EveryAction and navigate to the Compliance or Disclosure section. Look for "Settings," "Configuration," or "Election Cycles" in the menu options. You'll need administrative permissions to access these settings, so if you don't see these options, contact your system administrator. Within the settings area, look for an option to create or configure a new election cycle. This might be labeled "Add Cycle," "New Election Period," or something similar. Selecting this option will open a form where you can define the parameters for your new reporting cycle.
Step 3: Configure the new election cycle
In the new cycle configuration form, enter all required information about the upcoming election period. Set the cycle name following your organization's naming convention (typically including the year, such as "2024 Cycle" or "2023-2024 Cycle"). Enter the start and end dates for the cycle based on your jurisdiction's definitions—federal cycles typically run for two years, while state cycles may vary. Select the election type (primary, general, special) if applicable. Configure any cycle-specific settings such as contribution limits, which may change between cycles. If your organization operates in multiple jurisdictions, you may need to create separate cycle configurations for each one with their specific parameters and reporting schedules.
Step 4: Update vendor and committee information
Before recording transactions in the new cycle, verify and update your organization's committee information and vendor records. Navigate to the committee settings section and confirm that all registration numbers, addresses, treasurer information, and other details are current for the new cycle. Then review your vendor list, especially for recurring vendors, to ensure their information remains accurate. Pay particular attention to vendors who provide compliance-sensitive services like advertising or consulting, as their proper categorization is essential for accurate reporting. If your organization has changed banks, filing methods, or registration status, update these details in the appropriate system settings.
Step 5: Establish procedures for cycle attribution
Create clear guidelines for your team about how to attribute transactions to the correct election cycle. For contributions, the determining factor is typically when the donation was received. For expenditures, it's usually when the payment was made, though some jurisdictions have specific rules about allocation. For activities that span cycles (like consulting contracts), document how these should be recorded. Create a reference guide with examples of common scenarios for your team. If your organization maintains separate bank accounts for different cycles, verify that the correct accounts are linked to each cycle in the system. Schedule training for staff members who enter financial data to ensure everyone understands the proper procedures for the new cycle, especially any changes from previous practices.
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