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Any citizen of Tennessee may file a sworn complaint executed on a form prescribed by the Tennessee ethics commission alleging a violation of laws or rules within the jurisdiction of the commission.
No political party chairman, state or county executive director of a political party, or employee or agent of a political party acting in that person's official capacity may file a complaint with the commission for a violation of laws or rules within the jurisdiction of the commission. Nothing in this section prohibits a private citizen, acting in a private capacity, from filing a sworn complaint with the commission under this section.
A complaint filed under this section shall set forth in simple, concise, and direct statements:
The name of the complainant;
The street or mailing address of the complainant;
The name of each alleged violator;
The position or title of each alleged violator;
A short and plain statement of the nature of the violation and the law or rule upon which the commission's jurisdiction over the violation depends;
A statement of the facts constituting the alleged violation and the dates on which, or period of time in which, the alleged violation occurred; and
All documents or other material available to the complainant that are relevant to the allegation; a list of all documents or other material within the knowledge of the complainant and available to the complainant that are relevant to the allegation, but that are not in the possession of the complainant, including the location of the documents, if known; and a list of all documents or other material within the knowledge of the complainant that are unavailable to the complainant and that are relevant to the complaint, including the location of the documents, if known.
The complaint shall be accompanied by an affidavit stating that the information contained in the complaint is either correct or that the complainant has good reason to believe and does believe that the violation occurred. If the complaint is based on information and belief, the complaint shall state the source and basis of the information and belief. The complainant may swear to the facts by oath before a notary public.
The commission may initiate a complaint upon an affirmative vote that includes three (3) members of the commission who are members of the same party or two (2) members of the commission who are members of different parties.
Any complaint that is filed against a candidate in any election, as defined in § 2-10-102, during the period from thirty (30) days immediately prior to the election through election day shall be considered filed but not verified by the commission. The commission shall take no action relative to the complaint during this thirty-day period. In addition, the commission shall not initiate a complaint during the thirty-day period.
During the thirty-day period, the commission shall stay any proceedings with regard to an ethics complaint filed against a candidate more than thirty (30) days prior to voting for the election; provided, that the candidate may waive the postponement in writing.
For purposes of this subsection (e), any provisions of this chapter setting time periods for initiating a complaint or for performing any other action are considered tolled until after the election at which the candidate stands for elective office.
Within five (5) days after the filing or initiation of a complaint, the commission shall cause a copy of the complaint to be transmitted by return receipt requested mail to the person alleged to have committed the violation.