Secretary of State PCC Project Status

Campaign Finance Reporting System

1

CFIS Project OverviewIntroduction Replace the current Political Finance

Reporting System with a more user-friendly Campaign Finance Reporting System for use by candidates for public office, political committees, lobbyists, receipting associated with these functions and to provide better service to the general public.

 

2

3

OVERVIEW

New Mexico Secretary of State’s Office has contracted with RealTimeSites to rebuild the CampaignFinance Information System (CFIS; currently termed PFRS: Political Finance Reporting System).The current PFRS is not meeting expectations in the following ways:

1. Campaign Finance Administrators, who enter the data, find the current system unwieldy anddifficult to use. The workflow is not structured for a smooth and pleasant user experience, andthe Graphical User Interface (GUI) is out‐of‐date.2. Because of the difficulty entering the data, many Campaigns have opted to submit financial datavia Excel Spreadsheets. The NMSoS Ethics Administration is required by law to allow this, butthe current system is unable to integrate the Excel spreadsheets into the database for effectivesearching and reporting. The Excel spreadsheet data is merely converted to PDF for singlecampaignviewing. This leaves the public frustrated by the difficulty of accessing the informationand dissatisfied with the level of transparency.3. The reports generated by the current system are either Campaign‐ or Contributor‐ specific. TheGUI is not user‐friendly or intuitive.4. The PFRS Administration interface is unwieldy. Secretary of State Administrators are not able toadd new Offices when they appear, so the SoS office incurs extra costs every time a new officeor special election is needed. Furthermore, the current admin interface does not allow SoSAdmins to run high‐level reports (this is done through a separate system). A centralized systemwould streamline the process for administrators, saving time and money.

The rebuilt CFIS will solve all of these issues, providing:1. A streamlined, attractive, intuitive interface for Campaign Finance Administrators. This will enhance the user experience, and encourage more campaigns to use the online system2. Integration of uploaded spreadsheets into the database. The data submitted via spreadsheets will now be incorporated in the public reporting and accessible through a single search module. This will make campaign finances easier for the public to access, heightening transparency of campaigns across the state.3. Advanced search functionality that is user‐friendly, intuitive, and focused on improving transparency. The report search module will be modeled after the current Washington State Public Disclosure Commission Database Search – using sorts and filters, and displaying high‐level information. It will also allow public users to search by contributors.4. An enhanced, intuitive interface for SoS Administrators. The new interface will allow SoS Admins to set up accounts/campaigns, track campaigns, and run reports.

4

Planning Phase AccomplishmentsGap Analysis

Defined scope requirement of New Mexico Secretary of State as per the statutory law.

Performed Gap analysis of the Washington system to ascertain if the system would be appropriate for us in New Mexico.

Gap Analysis involved: Consideration of technical aspects of Washington

system Assessment of workflow and graphical user

interface

5

Planning Phase AccomplishmentPMP and other Management Plan and

Technical specification documentDeveloped functional specifications for the

projectAmended project management plans as

requiredIV&V

IV&V has been awarded to PODFirst deliverables report has been

completed

6

Workflow charts

7

Proposed NM CFIS Workflow

Workflow charts

8

CFIS/SOS - Admin Flow Chart

Workflow charts

9

Candidate/PAC Data Input Flow Chart

Workflow charts

10

Lobbyist – Data Entry Flow Chart

Workflow charts

11

Public Reports Flow Chart

Initial Public Reports Screen

List of Contributions by Contributor

List of In-Kind Contributions by Contributor

List of Expenditures

by Vendor

PDF Report in which that

contribution is listed

Select a Candidate/PAC

Click “More Details”

CFIS Project Summary

12

Thank youDiscussion

13