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Article 1. For the enforcement of this law, the following terms shall have the following meaning:
1° political party: association of natural persons, with or without legal personality, participating in the elections stipulated by the Constitution and required by law, presenting, according to article 117 of the Election Code, candidates for the representative and senator mandates in each (electoral division) within a Community or Region and that, within the boundaries of the Constitution, law, decree or ordinance, intends influencing the expression of popular will as defined by its statute or programme.
(Bodies, associations, groups and regional entities within a political party, that are directly related to this party, irrespective of their legal form, are included in the political party, namely:
- study services;
- scientific bodies;
- political institutes;
- producers of conceded political broadcasts;
- the institution referred to at article 22;
- entities established within districts and/or electoral divisions for the federal chambers elections and for (Community or Regional Parliements);) <L 1998-11-19/42, art; 2, Effective with: 11-12-1998> <L 2006-03-27/34, art. 83, 008; Effective with: 21-04-2006>
(- political groups within the Federal chambers, (Community and Regional Parliements) and provincial councils, and institutions established as an association without lucrative purpose, collecting the subsidies or grants awarded by these assemblies to political parties or political groups;) <L 2003-04-02/34, art. 2, 005; Effective with: 01-01-2003> <L 2006-03-27/34, art. 83, 008; Effective with: 21-04-2006>
2° revenue of a political party (and of its components) : <L 1998-11-19/42, art. 2, Effective with: 11-12-1998>
- grants awarded according to chapter III of this law (and/or according to another similar legal provision or regulation); <L 1998-11-19/42, art. 2, Effective with: 11-12-1998>
- (...);
- gifts, donations or legacies;
- contributions of groups within the Chamber of representatives, Senate (Community or Regional Parliements) or provincial councils); <L 2003-04-02/34, art. 2, 005; Effective with: 01-01-2003> <L 2007-03-23/31, art. 2, 009; Effective with: 28-03-2007>
- members' contributions;
- revenue from movable and immovable assets;
- revenue from events and publications, as well as collections from advertising campaigns;
- contributions granted by the party components;
- various services with pecuniary value or that can be expressed in a pecuniary value;
3° expenses of a political party (and of its components) : <L 1998-11-19/42, art. 2, Effective with: 11-12-1998>
- expenses with employees;
- operating costs;
- publications;
- subsidies granted to party components;
- expenses related to election propaganda;
- expenses related to buildings;
- other expenses;
(3°bis political representatives: natural persons members within a parliamentary assembly or within an executive body of the European Union, Federal State, Community, Region, province, municipality or intracommunal district or appointed by one of these assemblies or executive body, with the exception of agents related to them, to hold a mandate within a public or private legal entity;) <L 2003-04-02/34, art. 2, 005; Effective with: 16-04-2003>
(4° The Commission of control: a commission equally composed of members of the Chamber of representatives and of the Senate, and presided by the presidents of the Chamber of representatives and of the Senate. (After each complete renewal of the Chamber of representatives and of the Senate, the two assemblies appoint their representatives within the Commission of control. The commission is invested after appointment of the representatives and approved based upon a report signed by the presidents notifying their assembly. The commission fulfills the responsibilities undertaken as required by law starting with its investiture date.) <L 2008-01-18/30, art. 2, 1°, 010; Effective with: 23-01-2008>
The Commission of control defines in its articles of incorporation methods related to its structure, its functioning methods and methods used to make decisions, without prejudice of the majority conditions stipulated by the law, and establishes internal by-laws in order to fulfill the responsibilities undertaken as required by law. These articles of incorporation, as well as its internal by-laws, are both published in the Belgian Official Gazette.
The Commission of control is bound to consult, under the conditions stipulated by this law, the Audit Office both for the control of election expenses of political parties and individual candidates and for the control of financial reports drawn up by political parties and their components. If necessary, the commission can also request the report of the Audit Office for the fulfillment of its other legal duties.
(Terms applicable for the fulfillment of the duties undertaken by the Commission of control are suspended during the dissolution of the Federal Chambers. Terms are renewed starting with the date the commission is invested.) <L 2008-01-18/30, art. 2, 2°, 010; Effective with: 23-01-2008>
Except for the term stipulated at article 4bis, § 2, paragraph 3, the terms stipulated for the fulfillment of the duties undertaken by the Commission of control are suspended during the holiday periods set forth according to article 10, § 1, 3°, Law of April 6, 1995 organizing the Parliamentary Consultation Committee stipulated at article 82 in the Constitution and amending the laws on the State Council, reunited on January 12, 1973.) <L 2003-04-02/34, art. 2, 005; Effective with: 20-01-2003>
(other amending references:
- L 1993-06-18/34, art. 13
- L 1994-05-19/62, art. 2)