SLO County supervisor, challenger clash over campaign donations
San Luis Obispo County Supervisor Jimmy Paulding filed a formal complaint against his District 4 opponent, alleging that candidate Adam Verdin violated campaign finance rules.
But Verdin disputes the accusation and says he’s done nothing wrong.
Paulding said the local business owner took twice the county’s legal limit of campaign donations from a major developer in the area, according to a Sunday news release.
Donations to electoral campaigns from individuals, businesses and committees are capped at $5,900 per election in SLO County, according to a county ordinance that’s also aligned with California’s default campaign contribution limit.
A campaign finance report shows Covelop Inc. donated $5,900 to Verdin’s campaign on Sept. 25 and Oct. 10, totaling $11,800 in all.
Verdin, however, told The Tribune that the donations he accepted were “perfectly lawful,” since they were split between the primary and general elections, in accordance with county law.
The Tribune looked into the dispute as part of its Reality Check series.
Paulding files complaint with FPPC
Paulding — the incumbent in the District 4 supervisor race — said that he submitted a formal complaint to the California Fair Political Practices Commission and the SLO County District Attorney’s Office asking for an investigation into “what appears to be a serious violation” of county campaign finance law.
“The voters of District Four deserve transparency, and when I see Mr. Verdin essentially taking double the legal contribution limit, I think that that’s concerning,” Paulding told The Tribune. “Secondly, it’s concerning that it’s coming from a developer.”
Verdin said he did not violate the county’s campaign contribution limits.
“Campaign finance laws exist to protect public trust, not to manufacture controversy where none exists,” he said in an email. “It is disappointing to see the incumbent mischaracterize campaign finance law in order to make a headline.”
According to Verdin’s campaign finance records, the first $5,900 donation from Covelop was allocated to the June primary election, while the second $5,900 contribution from the development firm went toward the November general election.
Verdin said he did not go over the contribution cap due to the county’s “per election” rule.
However, Paulding disagreed with Verdin’s rationale due to the two-candidate nature of the race so far.
He said that if no other contenders jump into the District 4 race, the race will end at the June 2 primary election because one of the candidates will emerge with a majority and a runoff won’t be necessary.
“His logic just does not add up,” Paulding said. “And I think that come the filing deadline next month for any new candidates, he needs to give that money back.”
Verdin said he collected the money from Covelop when the state of the race was still unclear.
If no other candidate steps up to run and the race is decided at the primary, he pledged to send the $5,900 contribution back.
“We don’t have a choice but to return the money to the donor,” Verdin told The Tribune. “We’re not allowed to spend that money unless it goes to the general election.”
Paulding said that the county’s District Attorney’s office was planning to look into his complaint. He had not heard back from the California Fair Political Practices Commission as of Tuesday.
