EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT
TO THE SAN FRANCISCO ETHICS COMMISSION
For the Meeting of January 10, 2011
1. Budget.
As previously reported, the Mayor has provided a budget target to all City departments, which have been asked to submit a savings equal to 10 percent of the department’s base General Fund support (or $213,023 for the Commission) and a 10 percent contingency cut. Of the 10 percent target, we have submitted the 2.5 percent savings proposal ($53,256) that was due December 21; the remaining $159,767 is due with the budget submission in February. With the 10 percent contingency, the amount of cuts requested from the Commission is $426,045.
2. Public Financing of Candidates – Mayoral Program 2011
Staff has posted manuals and forms for the November 2011 election, including manuals and forms relating to the Mayoral public financing program. Training for candidates running for office in November 2011 will take place on the following four dates in 2011: January 27, April 12, June 23 and August 9. Staff continues to accommodate specific requests for training.
Candidates for Mayor who are interested in seeking public funding may submit an application for public funds beginning February 8. In order to receive public funds, an interested candidate must demonstrate, among other things, that he/she has received at least $25,000 in qualifying contributions from at least 250 individuals who reside in the City.
3. Investigation and enforcement program.
Since its last regular meeting on December 13, 2010, the Ethics Commission has received one new complaint, and resolved four complaints. There are 29 pending complaints alleging violations within the Ethics Commission’s jurisdiction.
| Category | # of Complaints |
|---|---|
| Campaign Finance | 10 |
| Conflict of Interest | 5 |
| Governmental Ethics | 0 |
| Lobbyist Ordinance | 0 |
| Campaign Consultant Ordinance | 2 |
| Sunshine Ordinance | 12 |
| TOTAL | 29 |
4. Campaign finance disclosure program.
a. Filing deadline. The next filing deadline is January 31, 2011 for the Second Semi-Annual statement, which covers the reporting period ending December 31, 2010. 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. In the FY 10-11, as of November 30, the Commission collected a total of $28,000 in campaign finance late fees and forfeitures. Outstanding late fees and forfeitures total $135,680, of which waiver requests are pending for $93,080; and $22,629 is pending at the Bureau of Delinquent Revenues.
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 Officer | Date referral effective | Original amount referred | Last month’s balance | Current balance (Changes are in bold) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johnnie Carter for Community College Board | 1226264 | Johnnie Carter | 6/16/06 | $9,520 | $6,595 | $6,595 |
| 2 | Barbara Lopez for School Board | 1312265 | Mika Cade | 10/12/10 | $350 | N/A | $350 |
| 3 | Committee to Elect M. Valle for Treasurer | 1278937 | Manuel B. Valle | 6/14/07 | $5,525 | $5,525 | $5,525 |
| 4 | Bill Barnes for District 5 | 1265969 | Alix Rosenthal | 1/3/08 | $3,120 | $1,547 | $1,347 |
| 5 | Care Not Cash | 1244505 | Ronald Jin | 2/29/08 | $5,331 | $3,306 | $3,031 |
| 6 | Omar Khalif for Board of Educ. | 1287030 | Omar Khalif | 7/30/09 | $1,800 | $1,775 | $1,775 |
| 7 | Myrna Lim for District 11 Sup | 1306882 | Myrna Lim | 7/30/09 | $1,180 | $1,180 | $1,180 |
| 8 | Myrna Lim for District 11 Sup | 1256697 | Jia Jun Chen | 8/20/07 | $3,855 | $2,775 | $2,775 |
| 9 | San Francisco Women’s Political Committee | 1243711 | Giselle Barry | 5/16/06 | $1,906 | $50 | $50 |
| TOTAL | $22,629 |
5. Revenues report.
For FY 10-11, the Commission is budgeted to generate $78,000 in revenues. As of January 4, 2011, the Commission received and deposited $47,159 as summarized below. The figure represents collection of approximately 60 percent of expected revenues for FY 10-11.
Revenues received and deposited as of January 4, 2011:
| Source | Budgeted Amount FY 10-11 | Receipts |
|---|---|---|
| Lobbyist Fees | $8,000 | $3,500 |
| Other Ethics General | $1,000 | $243 |
| Campaign Finance Fines | $50,000 | $29,490 |
| Campaign Consultant Fees | $15,000 | $9,850 |
| Lobbyist Fines | $1,000 | $750 |
| Statements of Economic Interests Fines | $1,000 | |
| Other Ethics Fines | $1,000 | $1,076 |
| Campaign Consultant Fines | $1,000 | $2,250 |
| Total | $78,000 | $47,159 |
6. Draft regulations related to complaints regarding Sunshine Ordinance and referrals from the Sunshine Ordinance Task Force.
Staff has forwarded draft regulations related to the handling of complaints regarding alleged violations of the Sunshine Ordinance and referrals from the Sunshine Ordinance Task Force. The Commission has received notice from the SOTF indicating that it has made significant progress in the review of the proposed regulations; however, the SOTF has requested that the Commission defer any action on the proposals until sometime this year. The SOTF also asked that the Commission consider conducting at least one joint, open meeting to discuss the proposals.
7. Lobbyist program.
As of January 1, 2011, 46 individual lobbyists were registered with the Commission. In FY 10-11, $3,500 in lobbyist registration fees and $750 in fines have been collected. The December 2010 reporting period deadline is December 15, 2010.
8. Campaign Consultant program.
As of January 4, 2011, 26 campaign consultants are active and registered with the Commission. $9,850 in registration fees and $2,250 in late fines have been collected during the 2010-2011 fiscal year. The annual re-registration report for all active campaign consultants was due January 3, 2011. The next campaign consultant quarterly report deadline is Tuesday, March 15, 2011. Staff will mail and e-mail reminder notices to all active campaign consultants two weeks before the deadline.
The Commission is scheduled to continue its discussion of proposed amendments to the Campaign Consultant Ordinance at its January meeting.
9. Statement of Economic Interests program.
The FPPC has recently posted the 2010/2011 version of the Statement of Economic Interests (SEI) Form 700, which is due on April 1. The Ethics Commission has scheduled SEI Trainings for February 9 and 22.
10. Outreach and Education.
Staff provided an orientation to ethics laws to a supervisor-elect and several legislative aides on December 22, 2010. The orientation covered the Statement of Incompatible Activities for the Board of Supervisors, general conflict of interest laws, gift rules, the Form 700, the Sunshine Declaration, AB1234 ethics training, and the Form SFEC-126.
The Commission continues to offer trainings on Statements of Incompatible Activities to City departments. Currently scheduled in-person trainings will be the SIA training for the Medical Examiner’s Office which was rescheduled for March 3, 2011 and May 5, 2011.
The following are the currently scheduled trainings for 2011:
Candidates’ Training: January 27, April 12, June 23, and August 9
Filing Officer SEI Training: February 9 and 22
Non-Candidate Recipient Committee Training: web training available online
Respectfully submitted,
_________________________
John St. Croix
Executive Director
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