2. Get a bank account.
The Ethics in Government Act requires that candidates for public office deposit any contributions into “a campaign depository account opened and maintained by the candidate or the campaign committee. §21-5-30(c)
This is sometimes easier said than done because most banks are used to dealing with either individuals or business entities with some legal form of existence – a partnership, corporation, LLC, etc. Most campaigns at this level will not choose to incorporate, but to simply organize under the Commission’s Campaign Committee designation.
Here’s my advice: go an meet with your bank’s branch manager and tell him or her what you’re trying to accomplish. “I’m going to run for office and I need a checking account for my campaign. It’s not incorporated, but the account needs to be in the name of the Committee.” Then ask them what you need to do. Some will require a copy of your RC form, or printout of the Commission website showing you have registered your campaign. Or they may suggest opening an account in your name that also bears the name of the committee.
I highly recommend getting a debit card for your campaign account. You will find yourself ordering goods or services online, or paying for a campaign meal at a restaurant that doesn’t take checks. Having a debit card means you can do this without the hassle of paying it yourself and then either reimbursing yourself from the campaign account or accounting for the expense as an in-kind contribution from yourself to the campaign.
I also recommend avoiding both interest bearing accounts and fees. Each of those introduces additional automatic transactions that still have to be accounted for. At this level of campaign, you won’t have enough of a balance to make collecting interest worth the hassle of recording a 23-cent interest payment on your campaign disclosures.