Home → Campaign Manager → Maryland State Report FAQs → How Do I E-File My Maryland Report?
61.1. How Do I E-File My Maryland Report?
The filing process for Maryland requires you to generate two MS Excel files using Campaign Manager and then upload those files to the Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System (MDCRIS) at https://campaignfinancemd.us/.
Generating the files
Go to Compliance >>> Government Reports.
Choose the "Maryland State Report" link from the left side of the screen.
Fill in the appropriate criteria for your report and click "Generate Report".
Once the report has been generated, you will be presented with multiple links to view a PDF copy of the report and the two files that are used to upload to the MDCRIS system. Once you have reviewed the PDF version and are ready to file, download each of the EFiles and save them to your computer somewhere easy to access, like your Documents folder or Desktop.
Uploading the files
1) Login to MDCRIS with a valid username and password.
2) Click on the "Upload Transactions" link on the left side of the screen. Fields marked with * are required.
3) Click on the "Browse" button, next to the "Select a File" field, on the far right-hand side of the Upload File section. This will open a "Choose File" box from which you are able to locate the saved Excel file you downloaded from Campaign Manager.
4) From this "Choose File" box, locate the saved Excel file you want to upload and then click "Open." This will result in the file location being populated into the "Select a File" field.
5) Before you can upload a file, a value must be selected from the "Filing Period Name" drop-down menu and from the "Transaction Type" drop-down menu. These values must agree with the information on the Excel file you are attempting to upload. This can be done at any point before you click the "Upload" button. After you have populated both of these fields, and you have selected an Excel file to upload and that file location appears in the "Select a File" field, click the "Upload" button.
6) A successful upload will result in a message stating, "File Uploaded Successfully," and the file appearing in the "Upload Status" section with a Status of "Uploaded." If the file was not uploaded successfully, a message stating, "Invalid Template: XXX," with a description of the error where the three X's appear, will be displayed. The file will not appear in the "Upload Status" section if it was not successfully uploaded. These, "Invalid Template," errors result from a problem with the overall file itself, not from errors with the data in the file. An example of this type of error is attempting to upload a "Contributions" template when the Transaction Type selected is "Expenditures."
7) After a file has been successfully uploaded, it now must be checked for errors. To do this, click the "Check Status" button. This will result in the Status of this file changing to either "Processed No Errors," in green lettering, or to "Processed With Errors," in red lettering. You are allowed to upload any number of files before you click "Check Status." This way you can check the statuses of multiple uploads at once instead of checking them one at a time.
7a) If, after clicking "Check Status," the file you uploaded has a Status of "Processed No Errors," in green lettering, the file is okay. You do not need to make any changes to it.
7b) If, after clicking "Check Status," the file you uploaded has a Status of "Processed Errors," in red lettering, there are errors on the uploaded file that need to be corrected. These kinds of errors result from incorrect data in the file, not from the file itself. Examples of this kind of error are "Invalid Contribution Date" or "Invalid Contribution Type." To see what errors need to be corrected, click on the File Name of the uploaded file that contains the errors. This is in blue lettering in the Upload Status section. Clicking on this will result in a File Download prompt. Click "Open" in this prompt to open the Excel document. Column W, "Errors," lists the errors that caused the system to label it with a Status of "Processed Errors." Correct all the errors from within Campaign Manager, generate a new set of files from the Compliance menu, and then upload the new files to the MDCRIS system.
Filing the report
1) Click on the "Edit/File Pending Transactions" link on the left side of the screen.
2) Click "Search" to display all outstanding transactions for the filing period, selected by default. The results will include all outstanding obligations and will be listed in the grid below.
3) To file all of the transactions in your search results to the Maryland State Board of Elections, click the "File All To State" button. This will result in a dialogue box that shows the filing period your transactions are in and has the following required fields:
Start Date (the beginning of the filing period)
Reported Beginning Bank Balance (the balance at the beginning of the filing period)
Bank Account Balance (the balance at the end of the filing period)
Reported Ending Bank Balance (automatically generated sum of bank balances)
4) To complete your filing, you must e-sign. If the logged in user is an officer (Chairperson or Treasurer), then they must check the checkbox to confirm the information is correct. The remaining officer may enter their password at this time. If the remaining officer is not available to enter their password, the system will accept the filing and send an email asking the officer to verify/e-sign the filing.