Paid For By Disclaimer: Campaign Website Basics for Local Races

A paid for by disclaimer is the short line on campaign material that tells voters who paid for it, and often whether the candidate authorized it. It belongs on your website, emails, signs, mailers and ads. The exact wording and placement rules depend on your race and your state, so get one approved line and use it everywhere.

Quick answer: Pick one approved "Paid for by" line, based on your state's rules or your attorney's advice, and put it on every piece of campaign communication: website footer, emails, yard signs, mailers, printed handouts and social ads. Make one person responsible for checking it before anything ships. Federal races follow FEC rules. Local races follow state law.

This is general information, not legal advice. Check your state's rules or ask a campaign attorney.

What a paid for by disclaimer is and why voters see it

The idea is simple. When someone puts a message about an election in front of the public, voters get to know who is behind it. A yard sign on the corner, a postcard in the mailbox, a sponsored post in the town Facebook group: each one should tell a reader who paid.

For a candidate's own campaign, that usually means the name of the campaign committee. Many rules also ask the material to say whether the candidate authorized it. That second part matters more than people expect, because a group that isn't your campaign can spend money talking about your race, and voters need a way to tell the two apart.

It's not a formality. A missing or wrong paid for by disclaimer is one of the easiest things for an opponent, a reporter or a local election official to spot, and it's the kind of mistake that ends up in the paper the week before early voting starts.

Why local campaigns get it wrong

Almost never on purpose. Local campaigns miss the paid for by disclaimer out of habit, speed and handoffs.

The volunteer ordering yard signs reuses a file from the last race, and the committee name on it is two years old. The treasurer changes in August and nobody updates the footer. A supporter makes a slick graphic, you share it, and it goes out with no line at all. Someone copies wording from a candidate in another state because it looked official. A friend offers to boost a post and pays for it personally, which raises its own questions.

Nobody in those stories was trying to hide anything. They were moving fast. That's exactly why the fix is a process, not a promise to be careful.

Where your paid for by disclaimer needs to go

Think about everything the campaign pays to put in front of voters. Then assume it needs a paid for by disclaimer until your state's rules tell you otherwise.

• Your website. Put it in the footer so it shows on every page, not only the home page.
• Emails. Add it to the template so every newsletter and fundraising message carries it.
• Printed pieces. Palm cards, door hangers, flyers for the candidate forum at the library, and anything else volunteers hand out at doors.
• Yard signs and larger signs. Check the proof before you approve the print run.
• Mailers. Postcards and letters, including the ones a vendor designs for you.
• Social ads and boosted posts. Paid placements on social platforms, plus any ad in the local paper or on local radio.

Some rules carve out exceptions for small items or for certain kinds of unpaid posts. Some don't. Don't guess, and don't borrow a neighboring state's exception.

On the website, make the line real text, not part of an image. Text stays readable on a small phone, works with screen readers, and is easy for voters, search engines and AI assistants to find and understand. If your donation page or sign-up form runs on a separate service, check that it shows the line too. Our checklist of what a local candidate website needs puts it alongside the other basics.

What the line usually says

Most versions of a paid for by disclaimer follow the same pattern. They name who paid, usually the committee, sometimes with more detail. Many also say whether the candidate authorized it. Some states ask for additional information, and the order and exact words can matter.

That's why it pays to get the wording settled once, in writing, before the first piece goes out. Read your state's guidance, ask the election office if anything is unclear, or have a campaign attorney sign off. After that, nobody on the team should be writing their own version.

Keeping the line right across every page is one of the jobs our team handles on managed campaign sites, along with updates and hosting. If you'd like that off your plate, tell us about your race. It takes about three minutes.

Federal races versus local races

If you're running for Congress or another federal office, the Federal Election Commission sets the rules. Under them, campaign websites and many public communications need a disclaimer that is clear and conspicuous. The FEC's page on advertising and disclaimer rules for federal campaigns spells out what applies to which kind of communication.

Most of the people reading this are running for city council, school board, select board, county office or a seat on the library trustees. Those races don't follow the FEC. They follow state law, and sometimes a city or county adds its own requirements on top. Wording, placement and which items need a paid for by disclaimer vary from one state to the next, and the rules change over time.

So the federal rule is a useful example of the general idea, not a template for a town election. For local races, start with your state election office, which usually publishes candidate guides covering campaign finance and political advertising. If the guidance leaves you unsure, ask. A short call before printing beats a correction after the mailer lands.

Make the paid for by disclaimer a habit, not a scramble

Here's the system that works for small campaigns. Keep it boring.

1. Write one approved line, based on your state's rules or your attorney's advice.
2. Save it somewhere everyone can find it: the shared drive, the top of the volunteer handbook, the notes on the sign vendor's account.
3. Build it into every template: website footer, email footer, flyer layouts, the sign file.
4. Check it on every proof before anything ships. Print, mail, ad or post.
5. Update it everywhere at once if the committee name or treasurer changes.

When the paid for by disclaimer lives in templates, nobody has to remember it at eleven at night with the print shop closing. It's already there.

Who on the campaign owns it

One person. Not "everyone keeps an eye on it."

On most local campaigns that's the treasurer or the campaign manager, because they already deal with the committee paperwork and the finance reports. The candidate is usually the wrong choice. You're knocking doors, sitting through the school budget hearing and returning calls from the local paper. You won't see every proof.

Give that person sign-off on anything paid for with campaign money. They keep the master copy of the paid for by disclaimer, know where every template lives, and are the one the sign shop calls with a question about a proof. Tell volunteers and vendors that nothing prints or posts without their okay. If a supporter wants to make their own signs or ads with their own money, have the owner talk to them first, because that can raise separate questions under your state's rules. Our overview of campaign compliance for local races covers the other items that tend to land on the same person's desk.

One less thing to remember. With a managed campaign site, our team keeps your approved disclaimer on every page, alongside updates and hosting, so you can stay focused on voters. A real person reads every submission. Start with a few questions about your race.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my campaign website need a paid for by disclaimer?

In most cases, assume yes. A campaign website is paid for with campaign money and speaks to voters, and many rules treat it like other campaign communication. Federal campaigns follow FEC rules. Local campaigns follow state law, which varies. Put the line in the site footer so it appears on every page, and confirm the wording with your state election office.

What exactly should the line say?

Usually it names who paid, typically your campaign committee, and often whether the candidate authorized it. Some states ask for more. Don't copy wording from another state or an old race. Get your version from your state's guidance or a campaign attorney, write it down, and use that exact line everywhere.

Do yard signs and social media posts need it too?

Often, yes, if campaign money paid for them. Signs, mailers, printed handouts and paid social ads are the usual suspects. Some rules exempt small items or unpaid posts, and some don't. Check your state's rules before you order signs or boost a post, and check the proof before anything goes out.

Who should be responsible for the disclaimer on a local campaign?

Pick one person, usually the treasurer or campaign manager. They keep the approved wording, check every proof, and sign off before anything is printed, mailed or posted. If the committee name or treasurer changes, they update it everywhere at once. The candidate is rarely the right owner because they won't see every piece.

What if I already sent something out without it?

Fix what you can right away: update the website and email templates, and hold anything not yet printed. Then call your state election office or a campaign attorney and ask what, if anything, you need to do about pieces already out. This is general information, not legal advice, and the answer depends on your state.