San Diego City Councilmember Jennifer Campbell has admitted violating city record-keeping rules during her 2022 re-election campaign and agreed to pay a $300 fine to resolve the case brought by the San Diego Ethics Commission.
According to a stipulation posted on the city website, Campbell failed to retain original copies of campaign literature distributed by her campaign.
The agreement says Campbell’s campaign was selected for audit at a random drawing in 2023. When investigators asked for original copies of 12 mailers, the campaign was able to produce only 10, the stipulation says.
“The failure to maintain an original copy prohibited the auditor from determining if the required ‘Ad paid for by’ disclosures were present on the mailers disseminated and, thus, whether the disclosures met local and state requirements,” the agreement says.
The Ethics Commission noted that Campbell cooperated with investigators and produced evidence indicating the campaign worked with its sub-vendor to obtain and maintain original copies of the records.
Part of the agreement also calls for Campbell to “take necessary and prudent precautions” to make sure she follows campaign laws in the future, although she will be termed out of office after her second term expires next year.
The settlement was approved by the Ethics Commission this week.