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Executive Director’s Report – April 12, 2010

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
TO THE SAN FRANCISCO ETHICS COMMISSION
For the Meeting of April 12, 2010 

1. Budget. 

As of this writing, tentative agreements have been reached between the Mayor and a coalition of City labor leaders regarding layoffs of City employees.  The layoff date has been extended to June 11, 2010.  Once the tentative agreements are finalized, employees of each union must vote to ratify the agreement, which may take several weeks. 

In addition, the Mayor has announced additional budget reduction targets for departments.  The Commission has been requested to make an additional $11,500 in cuts.

2.  Investigation and enforcement program.

Since its last regular meeting on March 8, 2010 the Commission has received two new complaints.  There are currently 16 complaints in the Commission’s jurisdiction.

Category# of Complaints
Campaign Finance5
Conflict of Interest5
Governmental Ethics1
Lobbyist Ordinance0
Campaign Consultant Ordinance0
Sunshine Ordinance5
TOTAL16

3. Campaign finance disclosure program.

a. Filing deadline.  The most recent filing deadline occurred on March 22, 2010 for the First Pre-Election statement, which covers through the reporting period ending March 17, 2010.  On April 6, staff sent out Second Non-Specific Written Notices (second notice of delinquent filing) to seven candidates/committees who did not file required campaign statements by the March 22 deadline.  These seven candidates/committees have been posted to the Non-Responsive Filers List, which can be found on the Commission’s website.

Staff continues to answer questions from and conduct outreach to candidates and other committee representatives about campaign finance filing obligations.    
b. Collection of late filing fees and contribution forfeitures.  Campaign finance collections as of April 7 for FY 09-10 totaled $53,963, based on filings made during previous fiscal years and the current fiscal year.  By comparison, campaign finance collections as of April 7 in prior fiscal years were as follows:

Fiscal yearCollections by April 7Total collections in FY
02-03$25,319$49,322
03-04$43,552$51,607
04-05$80,799$199,524
05-06$65,146$85,390
06-07$91,579$119,814
07-08$61,373$65,035
08-09$31,681$47,776

The $53,963 amount is based on prior assessments as follows:

FY when assessedAmount collected in 09-10
04-05$8,812.50
05-06$959.88
06-07$480.00
07-08$3,683.75
08-09$27,858.68
09-10$12,168.08
Total:$53,962.89

FY 08-09 waivers, as well as waivers from past years provided for comparison, are as follows:

FY when assessedAmount assessedAmount waived during FY
04-05$907,069$683,086
05-06$546,859$342,901
06-07$181,831$50,347
07-08$217,444$159,880
08-09$322,529$107,176
09-10$139,635$29,438

To date, the outstanding balance of late fees assessed from the current and previous years, including $54,626 in fees that have been referred to the Bureau of Delinquent Revenues, is $200,131, up from $192,047 as last reported. 

The current outstanding balance of contribution forfeitures assessed as a result of the defective reporting of contributor information is $14,714, as last reported.  The $14,714 amount consists of forfeitures from the 2005-2006 filing periods and does not include forfeiture assessments from the 2008 filing period. 

Late fees & Forfeitures – 4.7.10 quarterly update

Late fees – Table 1

#NameFiler IDCurrent balance ( in $)Status (blank = not yet past-due)
1Asian Pacific Democratic Club PAC93155814,416.98Waiver requested
2Barbara Lopez for School Board1312265384.00Past-due
3Bill Barnes For District 512659693,110.00Collections
4Bruce G. WindremPEN118830.00Past-due
5California Nurses Association PAC7806573,370.00Waiver requested
6Calvin Louie for Community College Board122880610.00Past-due
7Care Not Cash12445055,331.00Collections
8Coalition to Elect Chris Jackson to Community College Board1302351883.60Payment schedule ($433.60); Past-due ($450)
9Coalition to Elect Kim-Shree Maufas 4 School Board12845673,736.33Waiver requested
10Coleman Action Fund for Children Committee13117666,265.00Waiver requested
11Committee to Elect Claudine Cheng for District 3 Supervisor13022265,772.50Waiver requested
12Committee to Elect M. Valle for Treasurer12789375,525.00Collections
13Committee to Elect Rebecca Silverberg122043021,086.00Collections
14Committee to Elect Vilma Guinto-Peoro Supervisor District #2129139410.00Collections
15Committee to Re-Elect Dr. Anita Grier1243852350.00Waiver requested
16Committee to Re-Elect Mirkarimi ‘081304606565.00Waiver requested
17CooperationPEN916420.00Collections
18Debra Walker for Supervisor – 20101318110670.00Waiver requested
19DeNunzio for Supervisor13033365,985.00Waiver requested
20Edgar "David" Parker, Jr.PEN608200.00Past-due
21Elect Anthony Carrasco SheriffPEN1395100.00Past-due
22Friends of Own O’Donnell130789410,950.00Waiver requested
23Friends of Phil Ting128681830.00 
24Housing Rights Association1245525100.00Settlement payment schedule since 2006
25James RyanPEN1293100.00Past-due
26Jill Wynns for School Board961189380.00Past-due
27Jim Meko for District 6 Supervisor 20101318471380.00Waiver requested
28Johnnie Carter for Community College Board12262647,215.00Collections ($6,595); Past-due ($620)
29Josh H. WolfPEN1391180.00Past-due
30Joshua KrieselPEN1289100.00Past-due
31Mak 061287595490.00Past-due
32Malia Cohen For Supervisor 20101321410130.00Waiver requested
33Mandelman for Supervisor 20101318949420.00Waiver requested
34Micheas HermanPEN788100.00Collections
35Myrna Viray Lim for Supervisor12566973,855.00Collections
36Myrna Lim for District 11 Supervisor13068821,425.00Collections ($1,180); Past-due ($245)
37No Military Recruitment in Our Schools – No on V13088562,807.60Waiver requested
38Noe Valley Democratic Club963103945.00Waiver requested
39Omar Khalif for School Board12870301,800.00Collections
40Pat  Lakey for Supervisor  District 712553572,225.00Waiver requested in 2004
41People for Tony Hall1298419735.00Payment schedule
42Ramiro Maldonado, Jr.PEN1291100.00Past-due
43Rodney HaugePEN593100.00Past-due
44Rodney HaugePEN1084100.00Past-due
45San Franciscans for Budget Reform: Yes on A1321920360.00Waiver requested
46San Franciscans for Fair & Honest Government12582094,659.22Collections
47San Francisco Housing Fund – Yes on B1306922105.00Past-due
48San Francisco Labor Council – Labor & Neighbor9415627,847.43Waiver requested
49San Francisco Labor & Neighbor Member Education/Political Issues Committee97063017,377.38Waiver requested
50San Francisco Small Business Advocates12265957,500.00Waiver requested
51San Francisco Taxpayers Union Political Action Committee12805894,200.00Waiver requested
52San Francisco Women's Political Committee124371127,328.41Payment schedule requested ($26,373.41); Collections ($955)
53Service Employees International Union Local 1021 Issues PAC1296947970.00Waiver requested
54SF Forward sponsored by San Francisco Chamber of Commerce (formerly San Francisco Chamber of Commerce 21st Century Committee)891575980.00 
55SEIU United Healthcare Workers West PAC7472853,540.00Waiver requested
56Steve FeinsteinPEN127950.00Past-due
57Steven Moss for District 10 Supervisor 2010132143960.00Past-due
58United Educators of San Francisco Committee on Political Education82244810,400.00Waiver requested
59Walter D. ArmerPEN1287100.00Past-due
60Yes on C, Alcatraz Conversion Project13020411,766.00Payment schedule
  Total:200,131.45 

Forfeitures – Table 2 [1]

#NameFiler IDCurrent balance ( in $)Status (blank = not yet past-due)
1Bayard Fong for Board of Education1290444720.00Waiver requested
2Dudum for Supervisor 20061287197240.00Waiver requested
3SF Forward sponsored by San Francisco Chamber of Commerce (formerly San Francisco Chamber of Commerce 21st Century Committee)8915758,624.00 
4Truth on Prop H – Concerned Citizens Against Prop H, Sponsored by: Small Property Owners of San Francisco12920845,130.00 
  Total:14,714.00 

c. Status of accounts to San Francisco Bureau of Delinquent Revenues (BDR).  The following chart provides details on pending accounts referred to BDR:

#Committee/
Filer
ID #Treasurer or Responsible OfficerDate referral effectiveOriginal amount referredLast month’s balanceCurrent balance (Changes are in bold)
1Committee to Elect Rebecca Silverberg1220430Lucia Paulazzo5/6/05$21,086.00$21,086.00$21,086.00
2Johnnie Carter for Community College Board1226264Johnnie Carter6/16/06$9,520.00$6,595.00$6,595.00
3Micheas HermanPEN788Micheas Herman6/26/06$100.00$100.00$100.00
4San Franciscans for Fair & Honest Government1258209Erik Howell10/20/06$4,659.22$4,659.22$4,659.22
5Myrna Viray Lim for District 11 Supervisor1256697Jia Jun Chen4/27/07$3,855.00$3,855.00$3,855.00
6Committee to Elect M. Valle for Treasurer1278937Manuel B. Valle6/14/07$5,525.00$5,525.00$5,525.00
7Committee to Elect Vilma Guinto-Peoro Supervisor District #21291394Vilma Guinto-Peoro6/18/07$10.00$10.00$10.00
8Bill Barnes for District 51265969Alix Rosenthal1/3/08$3,120$3,110$3,110
9Care Not Cash1244505Ronald Jin2/29/08$5,331$5,331$5,331
10Omar Khalif for Board of Educ.1287030Omar Khalif7/30/09$1,800$1,800$1,800
11Myrna Lim for District 11 Sup1306882Myrna Lim7/30/09$1,180$1,180$1,180
12Gregory StephensPEN196Gregory Stephens3/31/05$420$420$420
13San Francisco Women’s Political Committee1243711Giselle Barry5/16/06$1,906$50$50
14San Francisco Women’s Political Committee1243711Giselle Barry8/24/07$905$905$905
TOTAL $54,626.22

d.  Electronic filing.  On April 30, 2009 staff provided notice to committees subject to the electronic filing requirements under section 1.112(b) that they were required to file FPPC Forms 461 (Independent Expenditure Committee and Major Donor Committee Campaign Statement) and 465 (Supplemental Independent Expenditure Report) in electronic format starting July 1, 2009.  Electronically filed forms and data are made available to the public on the Ethics Commission’s web site.  The electronic filing requirement is in addition to the paper filing requirement.  Forms 461 and 465 were added to the San Francisco Electronic Disclosure System (SFEDS) through the Commission’s contract with Netfile. 

4. Revenues report. 

For FY 09-10, the Commission is budgeted to generate $50,000 in revenues.  As of April
5, 2010, the Commission received $93,324 as summarized below.  The figure represents collection of approximately 186 percent of expected revenues for FY 09-10. 

Revenues Received as of April 5, 2010:

SourceBudgeted Amount FY 09-10Receipts
Lobbyist Fees$8,000$22,662
Other Ethics General$1,000$173
Campaign Finance Fines$22,000$52,143
Campaign Consultant Fees$15,000$14,900
Lobbyist Fines$1,000$400
Statements of Economic Interests Fines$1,000$1,380
Other Ethics Fines$1,000$1,565
Campaign Consultant Fines$1,000$100
 
Total$50,000$93,324

5. Public financing/Campaign finance audit program.

Staff continues to review applications for public funds.  As of April 5, the Commission disbursed a total of $97,840 in public funds to five eligible candidates.  Staff is also working on completing audits of candidates who received public funding for the November 2008 election.     

On March 3, staff conducted a workshop for candidates running for county central committee seats in June 2010.  On May 12, staff will conduct a workshop for candidates running for office in November 2010.           

6. Lobbyist program. 

As of April 1, 2010, 39 individual lobbyists were registered with the Commission.  In the FY 09-10, $22,662 in lobbyist fees and $400 in fines have been collected, for a total of $23,062. 

The March 2010 reporting deadline is April 15, 2010.

7. Campaign Consultant program. 

As of April 7, 2010, twenty-seven campaign consultants are active and registered with the Commission.   $14,100 in registration fees and $850 in late fines have been collected in the 2009-2010 fiscal year.  The next quarterly report is due Tuesday, June 15, 2010.  Staff will send reminder notices to the campaign consultants two weeks prior to the deadline.

8. Statements of Economic Interests.

Reminder notices were sent out on March 29 to Filing Officers notifying them of upcoming SEI-related deadlines such as the annual April 1 deadline for the Statement of Economic Interests (SEIs) and the Sunshine Ordinance Declaration.  On March 29 and April 8, Filing Officers were also notified of their Filing Officer Report deadline. 

From March 26 to April 8, approximately 880 SEI-related forms were filed to the Ethics Commission.  Between March 26 and April 6, 337 of the SEI, Sunshine Ordinance Declaration, and Certificate of Ethics Training filings have been entered into the San Francisco Electronic Disclosure System.  Staff continues to work on processing the filings.

9. Outreach and Education.

On March 3, 2010 staff provided a County Central Committee Candidates’ Training for candidates running for county central committee seats in the June 2010 election. 

The Ethics Commission will continue to offer trainings on Statements of Incompatible Activities to City departments. 

The following trainings are the currently scheduled in-person trainings for 2010:

Candidates’ Training:  May 12, July 15, and August 19
Understanding Expenditure Ceilings:  September 21

In addition to in-person trainings, the staff has produced and posted the various web trainings on the Ethics Commission website under “Education.”  The following trainings are currently available on the website:

Training for Treasurers of Non-Candidate Recipient Committees (63 views as of April 7, 2010)
Building Inspection Commission, Access Appeals Commission, Board of Examiners and Unreinforced Masonry Building Appeals Board SIA Training (109 views as of April 7, 2010)
Ethics Training for City Employees (105 views as of April 7, 2010)

On March 15, staff met with a delegation of 23 visitors from the province of Liaoning, China.  The delegation, sponsored by the Triway International Group, discussed ethics issues and investigations. 

The Cross Culture Exchange Corporation has asked two members of staff to participate in a four-day training program for approximately 200 employees of the Beijing Municipal Development and Reform Commission and the Beijing Discipline Inspection and Supervision Bureau.  The focus of the training program, which tentatively will take place in June or July, is combating corruption in government.

Respectfully submitted,

_________________________
John St. Croix
Executive Director       

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[1] This table does not include forfeitures assessed from the 2008 reporting period.

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