In Case You Missed It:
- Pay-to-Play Conviction: The New Mexico Attorney General announced that a Rio Arriba County Commissioner was convicted for violating the state’s procurement code. The Commissioner failed to disclose campaign contributions he made to an Española Public School Board candidate; the school board gave the Commissioner a no-bid personal services contract, which required the disclosure.
- Fines for Late Reports: The Alaska Public Offices Commission fined the Mayor of Anchorage for failing to report within 24 hours contributions that were received in the final days before an election. The penalty is $500 per day for each day a report is late. One fine was issued for $15,500 (31 days late) and another fine was issued for $18,000 (36 days late).Alaska’s News Source explains that these fines are on top of fines assessed against the Mayor totaling $52,650 issued in July for “failing to accurately disclose campaign finances in a timely manner, and for receiving over-the-limit contributions…”
- Ethics Commission Dustup: According to the Daily Memphian, Shelby County Commissioners overrode the County Mayor’s veto of a measure to create a new ethics advisory panel. The panel would advise county commissioners about the Mayor’s appointees to the county Ethics Commission and about amendments to the county ethics ordinance. The county Ethics Commission investigates complaints against officials and oversees lobbyist registration and reporting.
- Contributions Matriculate: The Washington Examiner questions the timing of contributions made from Congressman Ted Lieu’s campaign funds to Stanford University. The Congressman’s campaign committee gave $50,000 to his alma mater “a few months before his son applied to Stanford.”
- Contribution Follows Contracts: Politico reports that a Utah health company used a lobbyist and fundraiser to secure no-bid contracts with the Florida Governor’s Division of Emergency Management [DEM] “then gave the Republican governor a $100,000 political contribution.” A spokesperson for the Governor said that “the Governor is not involved in the selection of vendors at DEM or any other agency…. This contract and/or contracts were entered into by DEM.”