CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO
Campaign Finance Audit Report
Ben Matranga for District 7 Supervisor 2020
FPPC ID #: 1424259
January 1, 2020 – December 31, 2020
Introduction
Public disclosure of election campaign activity is essential to voters making informed decisions. The Political Reform Act (California Government Code [CA Gov Code) Section [Sec.]81000 et seq) and supporting regulations, and the San Francisco Campaign Finance Reform Ordinance (San Francisco Campaign & Government Conduct Code [SFC&GCC] Sec. 1.100 et. seq.) and supporting regulations, were established to impose reasonable disclosure requirements to reveal information about election campaign activity. By requiring proper and timely disclosure of campaign activity pertaining to contributions, loans, expenditures, and accrued expenditures, the laws and regulations are designed to inform voters and deter improper practices.
To promote campaign compliance with laws and regulations, the San Francisco Ethics Commission (hereinafter the “Commission”) engaged Macias Gini & O’Connell LLP (MGO) to assist in assessing election committees’ compliance with applicable requirements. This report summarizes the audit results on the Ben Matranga for District 7 Supervisor 2020 Committee #1424259 (hereinafter “the Committee”) covering the period of January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020.
Authority
The Commission has a duty and responsibility under San Francisco Charter Sec. C3.699-11(4) to audit campaign statements and other relevant documents that are filed with the Commission to ensure compliance with applicable state and campaign finance laws and regulations. Under SFC&GCC Sec. 1.150(a), all candidate committees whose candidates have received public financing must be audited and committee that have not received public financing may be randomly selected for audit at the discretion of the Executive Director of the Commission.
Objectives and Scope
The objective of the audit was to reasonably determine whether the Committee substantially complied with requirements of the Political Reform Act Sec. 81000 et. Seq. and supporting regulations, and the San Francisco Campaign Finance Reform Ordinance Sec 1.100 et. Seq. and supporting regulations. The audit was performed based on a review of the Committee’s filing and records covered by the review period to determine, among other things:
- Compliance with campaign activity disclosure and record-keeping requirements, and
- Compliance with applicable campaign activity limits, restrictions, and prohibitions.
As a recipient of public financing, the Committee was subject to mandatory audit.
Nothing in this report shall be interpreted to prevent an enforcement action by the Commission or another appropriate agency for conduct in violation of the law, whether or not that conduct is covered in this report.
The report will be forwarded to the Commission’s Enforcement Division for review to determine whether any further action may be warranted.
Committee Information
Background
The Committee’s primary purpose was to support the election of Ben Matranga to the Board of Supervisors, District 7, of the City and County of San Francisco (“City”) in the November 3, 2020 election. During the period covered by the audit, the Committee’s Treasurer was Ben Matranga. The Committee was established on January 2, 2020, and terminated effective on December 31, 2020.
Committee Reported Activity
| Total Funds Raised | Total Expenditures Made | |
| Private Contributions | $63,516 | $249,918 |
| Public Funds Received | $178,710 |
The Committee activity totals were taken from disclosure statements filed with the Commission covering the period January 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020.
Audit Respondent
The audit respondent identified below was the primary audit contact during the audit and responded to audit inquiries and requests on behalf of the Committee.
Tricia Waineo
View Avenue Group, LLC
393 7th Avenue, Suite 301
San Francisco, CA 94118
Audit Results
The CA Gov. Code Sec. 81000 et. Seq and supporting regulations, and SFC&GCC Sec. 1.100 et. Sec and supporting regulations, require campaign committees to timely disclose information about election campaign activity and adhere to applicable campaign activity limits, restrictions, and prohibitions.
No material findings were noted during the audit.
Conclusion
In our opinion, the Committee substantially complied with the requirements of the Political Reform Act Sec. 81000 et seq. and supporting regulations, and the San Francisco Campaign Finance Reform Ordinance Sec. 1.100 et seq. and supporting regulations.