A pair of out-of-state nonprofits will pay the largest fine ever in California for election-rule violations.
An investigation revealed they failed to divulge the donors of an $11 million contribution during the 2012 elections.
Ann Ravel, chair of the Fair Political Practices Commission, says donors used two organizations to funnel money to conservative causes: The Center to Protect Patient Rights and Americans for Responsible Government.
“The fact that outside interests that actually were circuitously routed through the Koch brothers network... is an issue in this case,” Ravel said.
The groups will pay the state $1 million for filtering donations to anti-tax and anti-union efforts on last November’s ballot.
Malcolm Segal is the attorney for the Center to Protect Patient Rights. He says there was never an intention to break the rules: “The regulations in this state are fairly draconian and it’s important in the future to make sure that there’s full compliance.”
The Fair Political Practices Commission says it’s now pursuing a $15 million penalty from two other out-of-state nonprofits.
