1. State and municipal TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of state and municipal printed media publications shall be obliged to ensure equal conditions for election campaigning for registered candidates, electoral associations registering lists of candidates, including presentation of their election programs to voters, and for the referendum initiative group, equal conditions for referendum campaigning in accordance with the procedure established by this Federal Law or any other law. Air time on channels of the said TV and radio broadcasting organizations and space in printed media shall be provided to registered candidates, electoral associations registering lists of candidates, referendum initiative group and other referendum participant groups against payment, in cases and in accordance with the procedure established by this Federal Law, any other law, free of charge as well (free air time, free space in printed media).

(in the version of Federal Laws of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ, of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

11. The law may provide for the electoral association nominating a list of candidates for the nearest previous relevant elections obtaining an amount of votes by participating voters under the number established by this law and not admitted to the allocation of deputy seats, or a candidate who was not elected and obtained an amount of votes by participating voters under the number established by this law, shall not be entitled to use free air time, free space in printed media. The number of votes as established by the law may not exceed 3 per cent of the votes cast by the voters participating at the voting. In such case the law must stipulate that such electoral association shall be entitled, based on respective agreement, obtain the due share or a part thereof of free air time or free space in the printed media out of the total amount against payment, which may not exceed the amount of payment for air time or space in the printed media reserved by state and municipal TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial boards of state and municipal periodical printed media, as per Section 6 of Article 51 and Section 2 of Article 52 of this Federal Law, for purposes of conducting electoral campaigning. The distribution of air time and space in printed media shall be conducted in manner as provided for by this Federal Law for distribution of free air time and free space in printed media.

(Section 11 introduced by Federal Law of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

12. The Federal Law may provide for the free air time and free space in printed media not to be offered to a candidate nominated by an electoral association if in the nearest previous relevant elections the candidate nominated by such electoral association obtained an amount of votes by participating voters under the number established by the federal law.

(Section 11 introduced by Federal Law of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

13. In the elections to a legislative (representative) state body of a Russian Federation subject, to a representative body of a municipality, the electoral association nominating candidates and/or a list of candidates may not be refused free air time, free space in printed media, if in the nearest previous relevant elections:

a) the list of candidates nominated by such electoral association obtained an amount of votes by participating voters no less than the number established by the law, to be determined as per Section 11 of this Article;

b) the electoral association nominated candidates only for single-mandate/multi-mandate electoral districts.

(Section 19 introduced by Federal Law of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

2. Registered candidates, electoral associations, shall not be entitled to use free air time, free space in printed media provided to them for campaigning in favor of other registered candidates, other electoral associations. A registered candidate nominated by an electoral association shall be entitled to use the air time or space in printed media provided to them for conducting electoral campaigning in the same elections in favor of the electoral association nominating him, as well as in favor of the other candidates nominated by such electoral association. The electoral association nominating candidates or a list of candidate shall be entitled to use the air time or space in printed media provided to them for conducting electoral campaigning in the same elections in favor of any candidate nominated by them.

(Section 2 in the version of Federal Law of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ)

3. If more than one election campaign, referendum campaign is conducted simultaneously on the same territory, and the periods of campaigning on TV and radio channels and in printed media of such campaigns coincide, the total amount of free air time and free space in printed media shall not be increased without consent of the TV and radio broadcasting organization, the editorial board of the printed media publication.

4. Non-state TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of non-state printed media publications that were founded no later than a year before the commencement of the election campaign, referendum campaign, and editorial boards of non-state printed media that were founded by electoral associations (including their structural subdivisions) later than a year before the commencement of the election campaign, shall be entitled to provide their air time, space in the respective mass media to registered candidates, electoral associations, the referendum initiative group, other groups of referendum participants. Other non-state TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of non-state printed media publications shall not be entitled to provide their air time, space in printed media to registered candidates, electoral associations, the referendum initiative group, other groups referendum participant.

(Section 4 in the version of Federal Law of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ)

5. The terms of payment for the air time, space in printed media provided by non-state TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of non-state printed media publications shall be the same for all registered candidates, electoral associations, the referendum initiative groups, other referendum participant groups. This requirement shall not apply to the editorial boards of non-state printed media founded by candidates, electoral associations, citizens who are members of the referendum initiative group.

(in the version of Federal Law of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ)

6. At an election, information about the rates charged (in the Russian Federation currency) for air time, space in printed media and other terms of payment shall be published by the relevant TV and radio broadcasting organization, editorial board of a printed media publication no later than 30 days after the day of the official publication of the decision to call the election, and submitted, within the same period, to the election commission organizing the election or a lower commission specified by law together with a notice of willingness to provide air time, space in printed media for election campaigning. At a referendum, such information shall be published and provided to the relevant referendum commission by the TV and radio broadcasting organization, editorial board of a printed media publication not later than one day before the first campaigning material is published thereby.

(Section 6 in the version of Federal Law of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ)

7. Non-state TV and radio broadcasting organizations, editorial boards of non-state printed media publications, editorial boards of state printed media publications that publish new issues less frequently than once a week, specialized TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of specialized printed media publications (cultural, educational, children-oriented, technical, scientific, etc.), and at an election of federal bodies of state power, bodies of state power of subjects of the Russian Federation, at a referendum of the Russian Federation, a referendum of a subject of the Russian Federation, as well as municipal TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of municipal printed media shall be entitled to refuse to provide air time, space in printed media for election campaigning, referendum campaigning. The failure to provide to the relevant commission a notice referred to in Section 6 of this article by the time specified in the said Section shall be regarded as such refusal.

8. Mass media organizations shall keep separate records of the amount and cost of the air time and space in printed media provided for election campaigning, referendum campaigning in the format and in accordance with the procedure established by the relevant commission, and submit such record data to such commission no later than ten days after the voting day.

(in the version of Federal Law of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ)

9. Mass media organizations shall keep the records of free and paid provision of air time and space in printed media referred to in Section 8 of this article for at least three years after voting day.

(in the version of Federal Law of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

10. Costs of state and municipal TV and radio broadcasting organizations and editorial boards of state and municipal printed media incurred in the provision of free air time and free space in printed media for election campaigning, referendum campaigning shall be accounted for in the operational results of these organizations and editorial boards.

11. Free and paid air time on the channels of TV and radio broadcasting organizations and space in printed media shall be provided for election campaigning, referendum campaigning under written contracts between a TV and radio broadcasting organization, the editorial board of a printed media publication and candidates, electoral associations, representatives of the referendum initiative group, other referendum participant groups entered into before such air time, space in printed media are provided.

(in the version of Federal Laws of July 21, 2005, # 93-FZ, of July 19, 2009, # 203-FZ)

12. If more than one election campaign is conducted in the same territory at the same time, and the periods of campaigning on TV and radio channels and in printed media of such campaigns are the same, a registered candidate nominated in more than one election district for different elections shall be entitled to receive free air time in state and municipal TV and radio broadcasting organizations and free space in state and municipal printed media in the amount that does not exceed the amount to which he is entitled at the election of a higher level.