How do I find and interpret information in Cal-Access relative to committees, political parties, major donors, and slate mailers?

The "Committees, Parties & Major Donors" campaign finance page is the starting point to find out basic campaign financial information regarding state committees, political parties, major donors and slate mailer organizations. To obtain this information, do the following:

  1. Go to the "Campaign Finance" page. (You may also reach this site from the Secretary of State's Home Page - by clicking on "Campaign Finance" under "Political Reform.")
  2. Click on "Committees, Parties & Major Donors." This will bring up the "Committees, Parties, Major Donors & Slate Mailers" page. By default, under "Type," "All" has been selected. By default, the current election cycle has been selected. It will be followed by an alphabetized list of all committees, including political party committees, major donors, and slate mailer organizations. The list will include the name, type and filer identification number of the entity.
  3. You can choose categories other than those selected by default. For example, under "Type," instead of "All," you can select "Major Donors," "Political Parties, "Small Contributor Committees," or "Slate Mailers." Under "Election Cycle," by selecting "Historical," you can select any election cycle beginning in 1999. (Since electronic filing did not begin until January 1, 2000, no electronic reports were filed in 1999.) Note that several seconds may be required for your selection to be processed and for the information to be displayed. If nothing seems to happen when you point and click on a selection, wait a few seconds and the request is likely to be processed and the requested information will be displayed.
  4. An alphabetized list of committees will be displayed of the type and for the election cycle selected. By clicking on the name of the entity whose name is displayed, including political party committees, major donors, and slate mailer organizations, more campaign finance information can be found regarding that entity. For more information about interpreting the material displayed on a recipient committee's campaign finance page in Cal-Access, see the answer to Question 5.