Dateline Commerce –– A Hews Media Group-Community Newspaper expose on Commerce Mayor pro tem Tina Baca Del Rio, exclusively published in May 2015, has resulted in California’s Fair Political Practices Commission levying a record $104,000 fine on the embattled politician.
Ms. Baca Del Rio’s penalty is $64,000 more than the $40,000 fine levied in 2011 on former L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and is the largest ever against a local official.
I am glad the truth finally came out on Baca Del Rio’s Political Reform Act violations,” said publisher Brian Hews. “Ever since we published the article, she denied everything and proceeded to brand (our newspaper) as ‘liars and yellow journalists’ during every Council meeting.”
The number of violations exactly coincided with the number of violations we reported.
This is the second time Ms. Baca Del Rio has violated campaign finance laws. She was fined $26,000 for campaign finance irregularities in 2011.
In April 2011, Ms. Baca Del Rio and her campaign committee, Friends of Tina Baca Del Rio, were charged with seven counts of violating campaign finance laws that occurred between 2007 and 2009.
Ms. Baca Del Rio was recalled from the Commerce City Council in November o 2008, but was surprisingly re-elected in 2009.
Many residents cited the heavy financial support from Commerce-based businesses Justman Packaging and Steve Craig, the owner of Citadel Outlets and Craig Realty Group, as reasons she won back the council seat.
They also tell the newspaper that Mr. Craig helped Ms. Baca Del Rio pay the $26,000 fine by holding a fundraiser for her.
Four of the violations were related to campaign filing and disclosure, 14 were related to late contribution report violations, two indicated she did not pay the annual fee, and most egregious, four violations indicated that Ms. Baca Del Rio used campaign funds for her own personal use.
The campaign filing and disclosure violations occurred between Jan. 1, 2011 and July 31, 2013.
Ms. Baca Del Rio failed to timely file all four reports during that period and also failed to properly disclose required contributions and expenditures on every campaign statement.
Ms. Baca Del Rio was also charged with 14 violations involving late contribution reports.
The total contributions not correctly reported came from some well-known supporters of Ms. Baca Del Rio, and occurred between 2011 and 2013 amounting to $22,000.
$1,000 was donated by Commerce based Justman Packaging and Display. Justman has operated in a building owned by the city of Commerce for the past five years with no rent increase, costing the city over $200,000.
Citadel Outlet Mall Owner Craig, a huge benefactor of Ms. Baca Del Rio, allegedly paid off her last fine from the FPPC by throwing a fundraiser, donated $1,000.
Calls and emails into Baca Del Rio went unreturned.
This story originally appeared at www.loscerritosnews.net
