New proposal would allow Oklahoma candidates to spend campaign money on caregivers

OKLAHOMA CITY — The Oklahoma Ethics Commission has proposed a new policy to allow political candidates and elected officials to spend campaign funds on child care or other caregiving expenses.

The commission released a draft opinion Friday in response to a request from Sen. Jessica Garvin, R-Duncan, who has said the policy could reduce barriers to elected office for parents of young children.

The opinion, if approved, would allow candidates and officeholders to spend privately raised campaign funds on care of their dependents — such as children, elderly relatives or a person with a disability — as long as the caregiving costs would not have been incurred if they had no campaign or elected position.

The five-member board governing the Ethics Commission is accepting written public comment on the proposal and will have a public hearing at 10 a.m. Friday for anyone who wishes to speak to the commissioners in person.

The commissioners have the option to enact the policy during their scheduled meeting Friday, which would immediately encode it in Oklahoma campaign finance regulations, or they could wait to make a decision at a later date, said Lee Anne Bruce Boone, executive director of the Ethics Commission.

The Ethics Commission oversees campaign spending and writes and enforces rules for state employees and elected officials.

Thirty-three states have approved use of campaign funds for child care, according to the Vote Mama Foundation, which is advocating to bring the measure to all 50 states. The policy also is allowed for candidates running in federal elections.

Bruce Boone said it’s a timely topic for Oklahoma to consider with other states and federal officials examining the same issue.

“I do think it’s definitely a subject matter of great interest,” she said. “We’ve had a lot of questions come in even during this election cycle about it, and it is something that’s allowed by the Federal Election Commission. So, I definitely think there is other authority out there interpreting rules to allow this.”

Garvin requested more than a year ago that the Ethics Commission establish an opinion on the issue. The commissioners agreed in September to look into the matter.

Garvin filed legislation in 2023 that would allow candidates to spend campaign funds on child care, but she said an Ethics Commission ruling is the better route to enact the policy.

She said the regulation could be “huge” for Oklahoma parents, both men and women, who are considering a campaign.

“My hope is that it would encourage diversity and bring in some younger generations into running for office,” Garvin said.

Garvin’s campaign for office already has come to an end. She lost her bid for reelection in a Republican primary June 18.

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