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| page 3- Quarterly October 15, 2011 ELEC report for candidate Beth Mason's 2011 Municipal Election, Campaign Treasurer Richard Mason, filed on July 19, 2012 |
Since when does a candidate report "pay" to political operatives for "consulting" and "management services" as "In Kind Contributions" to New Jersey's Election Law Enforcement Commission?
I dunno, ask Hoboken Councilwoman Beth Mason's Campaign Treasurer!
Here are those inconvenient things called "rules" a political candidate or committee can find in NJ-ELEC's current "Compliance Manual for Candidates:"
(page 18)Are we clear?
2. In-Kind Contributions
An “in-kind” contribution is a contribution of goods or services contributed to a candidate or committee.
A contribution received in the form of goods is reported in an amount equal to the fair market value of the goods to the candidate or committee receiving them. For example, assume that a printer donates bumper stickers with a fair market value of $700 to Candidate Jones. Candidate Jones must report the receipt of an in-kind contribution from the printer in the amount of $700.
A contribution in the form of “paid personal services” is required to be reported in an amount equal to the amount of salary, compensation, or consideration for the services paid by the contributor to the individual performing the services. Paid personal services are personal, clerical, administrative, or professional services that are not paid for by the candidate or committee benefiting from the services.
Candidates do not make "in-kind" contributions (payments) for consulting, management and other professional services received by third parties. Those kinds of payments to third parties for professional services rendered are expenditures called disbursements.
(page29)Last May, GA reported that Mason's 2011 Municpal ELECs filed after the May 10, 2011 election (current to April 2014) reported an astounding $203,995.85 in receipts and $202,878.10 in expenditures. The receipts were in-kind, currency and loans from Beth Mason.
D. All Expenditures Required to be Made through the Treasurer and
Campaign Depository. All expenditures are required to be made through the campaign treasurer or deputy campaign treasurer of the committee. Furthermore, all expenditures are required to be made through the campaign depository. Payment of expenditures by currency is permissible if the payment is made from the proceeds of a petty cash fund, as discussed later in this Manual.
65% of those receipts were reported as "in-kind contributions." 74% of those "in kind contributions" were to political operative Barry Brendel's LLC, "Cutting Edge Communication," 22% to Ryan Yacco for political consulting, and 2% were to pay for ads in The Hoboken Reporter.
Spreadsheet: Hoboken Councilwoman Beth Mason 2011 Municipal Campaign ELEC Report- Receipts and Expenditures, Quarterly Oct. 15, 2011- Quarterly April 15, 2014 by GrafixAvenger
The above ELEC reports are online at http://www.elec.state.nj.us/ELECReport/SearchCandidate.aspx
They are:
QUARTERLY OCT 15 2011 FILED: 7/19/2012 278 days LATE
QUARTERLY JAN 15 2011 FILED: 7/19/2012 551 days LATE
QUARTERLY APRIL 15 2012 FILED: 7/23/2012 99 days LATE
QUARTERLY JULY 15 2012 FILED: 7/31/2012 16 days LATE
QUARTERLY OCT 15 2012 FILED: 10/15/2012 0 days
OCT 15 2012 AMENDMENT FILED: 2/1/2013 109 days LATE
QUARTERLY JAN 15 2012 FILED: 2/1/2013 383 days LATE
QUARTERLY APRIL 15 2013 FILED: 6/14/2013 60 days LATE
QUARTERLY JULY 15 2013 FILED: 8/26/2013 42 days LATE
QUARTERLY OCT 15 2013 FILED: 10/16/2013 1 day
QUARTERLY JAN 15 2013 FILED: 4/16/2014 456 days LATE
QUARTERLY APRIL 15 2014 FILED: 4/16/2014 1 day
Notice something?
Beth Mason's "in kind contribution" tsunami washed in July 2012 and washed out across 4 ELEC reports backdated to January 15, 2011. "In-kind" contributions do not receive the kind of scrutiny that campaign expenditures are subject to and could be one way to wash money for an expensive political operation. In July 2012?
Well folks, December's historic ELEC fines to Co-Respondents Beth Mason and Treasurer Ricky Mason for "late reporting transactions" on her 2009 and 2011 campaign ELECs have cast a white hot light on other curiosities. For example, the candidate paying political operatives with "in kind contributions."
For your reference:
You realize, GA, that this post features more digging and reporting than the entire staffs of the HR and JJ have done in the past year. Combined.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone in the fifth estate had any balls, this would be a knockout blow to the Masons. Kudos.
After the July 2012 tsunami, Beth Mason put $48,000 in Oct 2012- but look at the dates on the currency and in-kind receipts for that report: July - Sept 1 2012! Talk about feeding the beasts.
ReplyDeleteI'd feel like an utter fool if I paid anywhere NEAR that amount as a lowly city councilor for one ward in a one square-mile town. What a complete pair of suckers she and her husband Ricky are, unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteDon't insult " Utter Fools" like that ;) Just kidding.
DeleteNo wonder Beth has run everything she claims to have been in charge of into the ground. Not to mention allowing that Nitwit Ines to be her treasurer at one point. Beth has a better chance playing Sweeney Todd's wife than being Lt Gov on Steve Sweeney's slate
Where's POG? Where's FOG? Where's The Feds?
ReplyDeleteFrom the Hoboken Reporter article this weekend: "NJFOG President Walter Luers declined to give a comment on Mason’s violations on Thursday."
DeleteBy not saying anything, that says a lot.
Reporting like this is why Mason is assumed to be funding a SLAPP suit for her "Not paid for friendship " associates
ReplyDeleteMason paid Brendel's llc almost $100k "in kind" to "manage" WHAT after the election was over?
ReplyDeleteRicky Mason outsourced the campaign bookkeeping to morons and cant control his crazy wife.
ReplyDelete