The California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) has adopted higher political contribution limits and public officer gift limits for the 2025-2026 political cycle.  The new limits took effect January 1, 2025.

Contribution Limits

Under the new limits, an individual, business entity, or PAC can contribute $5,900 per election to candidates for state legislature, up from $5,500.  This means that individuals may generally give $11,800 per candidate per cycle, because the primary and general are considered separate elections.  The same limit also applies to a candidate for local office unless the locality has adopted its own limits.  The limit on contributions from an individual, business entity, or PAC to a candidate for governor also increased, from $36,400 to $39,200 per election.  The limit on contributions to PACs that contribute to candidates increased from $9,100 to $9,800 per year, though PACs can also have a separate, non-contribution account with no limit.

The following chart has additional details on the limits for 2025 and 2026:

An individual, business entity, or PAC may contribute to…

Note that factors other than the limits above may influence the amount and permissibility of contributions to California state and local candidates, including contributions by the contributor’s affiliated individuals and entities; the contributor’s lobbying activity; and the contributor’s state or local contracting activity.  California also has several disclosure requirements for contributors and lobbyists that should be examined before making a contribution.

Gift Limits

Additionally, the FPPC raised the limit on gifts to public officials.  For 2025-2026, state and local officials and employees may not receive a gift or gifts totaling more than $630 in a calendar year from certain sources, up from $590; however, the limit on gifts from or arranged by lobbyists is still $10 per month, as that limit is not subject to adjustments for inflation.

Tags: California, contribution limits, FPPC, gift rules
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Photo of Andrew Garrahan Andrew Garrahan

Andrew Garrahan represents and counsels clients at the intersection of law and politics. He guides them through both regulatory compliance issues and government investigations on matters including state and federal campaign finance, ethics, lobbying, and corruption, as well as in congressional investigations.

Andrew’s…

Andrew Garrahan represents and counsels clients at the intersection of law and politics. He guides them through both regulatory compliance issues and government investigations on matters including state and federal campaign finance, ethics, lobbying, and corruption, as well as in congressional investigations.

Andrew’s prior career in political fundraising gives him a unique perspective on the challenges faced by his clients, which include corporations, candidates, government officials, political and nonprofit organizations, and private individuals.

Andrew’s counseling and advisory practice includes:

guiding clients on structuring of and compliance for their state and federal lobbying and grassroots advocacy campaigns;
representing campaigns, Super PACs, corporations, trade associations, and individuals on the applicability of the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA) and state campaign finance law;
counseling on Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) registration and disclosure, and its interaction with the Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA);
helping companies comply with state and federal ethics laws, particularly on gifts and conflicts of interests, and domestic anticorruption; and
auditing corporate political law compliance practices.

Andrew’s investigations and defense work includes:

representing clients in Congressional investigations, including responding to letter requests and subpoenas;
preparing company officers and other individuals for testimony in Congressional investigative hearings;
defending clients in Department of Justice matters related to campaign finance, lobbying, ethics, and public corruption; and
representing clients before the FEC and state campaign finance, lobbying, and ethics regulators.

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Photo of Zoë Brown Zoë Brown

Zoë Brown is an associate in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Zoë is a member of the Congressional Investigations and Election and Political Law Practice Groups, where she assists companies and individuals responding to congressional inquiries and subpoenas for documents, information, and testimony. …

Zoë Brown is an associate in the firm’s Los Angeles office. Zoë is a member of the Congressional Investigations and Election and Political Law Practice Groups, where she assists companies and individuals responding to congressional inquiries and subpoenas for documents, information, and testimony. She also advises clients regarding a variety of political and governmental strategy and compliance matters. Zoë maintains an active pro bono practice with a focus on international issues.

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