The next major federal filing deadline is almost here. The July Quarterly Report is due July 15, 2026, and it covers all financial activity from April 1 through June 30, 2026. For campaigns, PACs, and party committees on the quarterly schedule, this is one of the most important filings of the election year — and in a midterm cycle, the margin for error is thin.

At 9Seven Consulting, we’ve filed more than 4,000 FEC reports and reconciled over 7,500 bank statements. Founder Thomas Datwyler has spent 15+ years serving as an FEC treasurer and compliance advisor to campaigns, PACs, and party committees nationwide. In this guide, Thomas Datwyler walks you through exactly who has to file, what the report includes, the mistakes that trigger problems, and how to walk into July 15 fully prepared.

 

What Is the July Quarterly Report?

The July Quarterly is the second of the regularly scheduled quarterly reports in an election year. It captures everything that happened in your committee’s books during the second quarter — every receipt, every disbursement, every debt, and your cash-on-hand figure as of June 30.

• Reporting period: April 1 – June 30, 2026
• Filing deadline: July 15, 2026
• Forms used: Form 3 (House and Senate), Form 3P (presidential), Form 3X (PACs and party committees)

A useful note for 2026: July 15 falls on a Wednesday, so there’s no weekend or holiday shift to plan around this quarter. The deadline is firm.

Who Has to File?

If your committee is on the quarterly filing schedule, the July Quarterly applies to you. That includes:

• Candidate committees for House and Senate campaigns (Form 3)
• Presidential campaign committees (Form 3P)
• PACs and party committees that elected to file quarterly rather than monthly (Form 3X)

One point that catches new treasurers off guard: in an election year, a quarterly-filing committee will submit at least five reports—even in quarters with no financial activity. A quiet quarter does not excuse a committee from filing. A “zero” report is still a required report, and a missed one is still a missed deadline.

If your committee files monthly instead, you don’t file a July quarterly—your obligation is the July Monthly Report, due July 20, covering June activity.

 

Electronic Filing: Is It Mandatory for You?

Most committees today file electronically, and for many it’s required. Electronic filing is mandatory once a quarterly-filing committee receives contributions or makes expenditures exceeding $50,000 in the calendar year—or has reason to expect that it will.

If you’re approaching that threshold, don’t wait until you cross it to set up electronic filing. Register and test your software well ahead of the deadline. For electronic filers, the report must be received and validated by the Commission by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on July 15. “Submitted but not validated” is not the same as filed, and a rejected upload at 11:50 p.m. leaves no room to fix errors.

 

The Pre-Election Report Trap

This is where quarterly filers most often slip up during a busy election summer.

If your committee makes a contribution or expenditure in connection with an election — and that activity wasn’t already disclosed on a prior report — you may be required to file a pre-election report in addition to your quarterly. For electronic filers, pre-election reports are generally due 12 days before the applicable primary, runoff, or general election.

These reports are considered “election sensitive” by the FEC and carry steeper penalties when they’re late or missed. With primaries and special elections happening across the country throughout the summer, a single contribution to a candidate in a fast-approaching race can create a filing obligation you didn’t see coming.

There’s a related wrinkle worth knowing: the Commission can waive a quarterly report if a pre-election report is due between the 5th and 15th day after the close of the quarter. If that happens, the FEC will publicize it—but confirm your specific obligations rather than assume a waiver applies to you. 

Common July Quarterly Mistakes

Even experienced committees make these errors. Each one is avoidable with the right process:

• Unreconciled bank statements. Filing before reconciling your bank records against your FEC report is the single most common cause of inaccurate filings. Reconcile first, then file — never the other way around.
• Misclassified disbursements. Operating expenditures, contributions to other committees, and independent expenditures all report differently. Getting the category wrong invites questions.
• Incomplete contributor information. Itemized contributions require name, address, occupation, and employer. Missing employer or occupation data is a frequent source of FEC requests for additional information.
• Forgotten debts and obligations. Outstanding invoices and unpaid bills as of June 30 must be reported as debts. Undisclosed debt that later surfaces on an amendment is a documented audit and enforcement trigger.
• Filing amendments carelessly. Changing a previously filed report without filing a proper amendment — or filing amendments that don’t reconcile to your originals — creates exactly the kind of inconsistency that data-driven enforcement now flags quickly.

 

How to Be Audit-Ready Before July 15

1. Close your books through June 30. Capture every receipt and disbursement in the period, including any that posted late.
2. Reconcile every bank account against your accounting records and your draft FEC report. The three should agree to the dollar.
3. Review itemization. Confirm every itemized contributor has complete occupation and employer data and that aggregation is correct.
4. Account for debts and obligations outstanding as of the close of the quarter.
5. Check for pre-election triggers. Cross-reference any election-related activity against the relevant election dates.
6. Validate early. Run your report through your filing software’s validation well before the deadline so any errors can be corrected calmly.

Don’t Wait Until July 14

FEC enforcement in 2026 is increasingly data-driven, which means inconsistencies are flagged faster than ever. The committees that struggle are almost always the ones that start late and rush the reconciliation. The committees that sail through are the ones that treat the quarterly close as a steady, repeatable process.

If you’d rather hand the entire July Quarterly off to a team that files this kind of report every cycle, that’s what we do. 9Seven Consulting, led by founder Thomas Datwyler, provides full-service FEC compliance, contribution tracking, bank reconciliation, and reporting for federal and state committees nationwide — so your report is accurate, on time, and audit-ready.

Contact us for a free consultation and make this quarter the one you don’t have to think about.

FAQ

When is the July Quarterly FEC report due?

The July Quarterly Report is due July 15, 2026, and covers financial activity from April 1 through June 30, 2026.

Who has to file a July Quarterly Report?

Candidate committees (Form 3), presidential committees (Form 3P), and PACs and party committees on the quarterly schedule (Form 3X). Monthly filers file a July Monthly Report instead.

Do I still have to file if my committee had no activity?

Yes. In an election year, quarterly filers must submit their scheduled reports even in quarters with no financial activity. A “zero” report is still required.

Is electronic filing required?

Electronic filing becomes mandatory once a quarterly-filing committee receives contributions or makes expenditures exceeding $50,000 in the calendar year, or expects to. Electronic reports must be received and validated by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the deadline.

What’s the penalty for filing late?

Late or missed reports can result in administrative fines and compliance reviews, with election-sensitive reports carrying higher penalties. Filing accurately and on time is the only reliable way to avoid them.