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WASHINGTON -- The Federal Election Commission is making public three
additional cases resolved in the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR)
program. This brings to 93 the total number of cases released thus far. The
program’s goal is to expedite resolution of some enforcement matters, reduce
the cost of processing complaints, and enhance overall FEC enforcement.
Closed ADR negotiated settlement summaries are available in the FEC’s Press
and Public Records offices. For a case to be considered for ADR treatment,
a respondent must express willingness to engage in the ADR process, agree to
set aside the statute of limitations while the case is pending in the ADR
Office, and agree to participate in bilateral negotiations and, if
necessary, mediation.
Bilateral negotiations through ADR are oriented toward reaching an
expedient resolution with a mutually agreeable settlement that is both
satisfying to the respondent(s) and in compliance with the Federal Election
Campaign Act (FECA). Resolutions reached through direct and, when necessary,
mediated negotiations are submitted to the Commissioners for final approval.
If a resolution is not reached in bilateral negotiation, the case proceeds
by mutual agreement to mediation. It should be noted that cases resolved
through ADR are not precedential.
| 1. |
ADR 110 |
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RESPONDENTS: |
Citizens to Elect Yvonne
Christian-Williams, Stanley P. King, treasurer |
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SOURCE: |
MUR 5259: Karen Huey White |
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SUBJECT: |
Failure to include
disclaimers; Failure to disclose expenditures |
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NEGOTIATED
SETTLEMENT: |
$1,000 civil penalty –
terminate committee Respondents acknowledge that an inadvertent
violation of the Act occurred due to the omission of a required
disclaimer. Respondents contend that the omission was due to an
oversight by the vendor, which the Respondents did not notice.
Respondents also state that the expenditures were disclosed in the
appropriate quarterly report. |
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| 2. |
ADR 127 |
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RESPONDENTS: |
Democratic State Central
Committee of Maryland, Gary Gensler, treasurer |
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SOURCE: |
Commission Audit |
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SUBJECT: |
Excessive contributions |
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NEGOTIATED
SETTLEMENT: |
Respondents contend that the
FEC''''s regulations do not expressly address the situation where
contributions received by a state party are allocated between federal
and non-federal accounts or when excessive contributions are transferred
to a non-federal account. Respondents contend they made a good faith
effort to correct the problems as soon as they were discovered, which,
they further contend, was before the Commission''''s audit commenced. In
order to avoid a similar situation in the future, the Respondents agree
to have a staff person attend an FEC sponsored training seminar and
transfer the excessive portion of any contribution within 60 days of
receipt, notify the contributor that the transfer is being made and
offer the donor the option of a refund. |
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| 3. |
ADR 141 |
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RESPONDENTS: |
(a) Rush Holt for Congress,
Inc., Pamela Mount, treasurer (b) Rush Holt
(c) Paul Starr
(d) Christine Stansell
(e) Sean Wilentz
(f) Alan Blinder |
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SOURCE: |
MUR 5331 |
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SUBJECT: |
Failure to include disclaimer;
impermissible contribution |
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NEGOTIATED
SETTLEMENT: |
The ADR Office recommends the
case be closed and the Commission agrees to close the file. |
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