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Federal Election Commission | United States of America
  • Press Release

FEC Settles Allegations of Misreporting, Prohibited Contributions and Improper Solicitation

August 5, 2010

 

For Immediate Release

Contact:  

Judith Ingram

August 5, 2010

 Julia Queen
  Christian Hilland
  Mary Brandenberger

 

FEC Settles Allegations of Misreporting, Prohibited Contributions and Improper Solicitation

WASHINGTON – The Federal Election Commission announced today that it accepted a conciliation agreement with the American Resort Development Association - Resort Owners Coalition PAC (ARDA-ROC PAC) and Sandra Yartin DePoy, in her official capacity as the committee’s treasurer, for misstating financial activity, receiving prohibited corporate and foreign national contributions and improperly soliciting contributions. Under the agreement, ARDA-ROC PAC will pay a civil penalty of $300,000.

MUR 6129

RESPONDENTS:

American Resort Development Association Resort Owners Coalition PAC and DePoy, in her official capacity as its treasurer

COMPLAINANT:

FEC Initiated

SUBJECT:

In the normal course of carrying out its supervisory activities, the Commission discovered that ARDA-ROC PAC, the political committee associated with the American Resort Development Association - Resort Owners Coalition (ARDA-ROC), a Washington D.C.-based vacation ownership and resort development association, had received prohibited corporate and foreign national contributions, misstated its financial activity on reports filed with the Commission between 2003 and 2008 and solicited contributions from timeshare owners through periodic billings without including required disclaimers.   

OUTCOME:

The Commission found reason to believe that ARDA-ROC PAC and DePoy, in her official capacity as treasurer, violated the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (the Act). Under the Conciliation Agreement, the respondent agreed to pay a $300,000 civil penalty. In addition, the respondent agreed to transfer $562,538.75 to its member homeowners associations and $34,509 to ARDA-ROC, its connected organization. These amounts are equal to the stipulated amount of prohibited corporate and foreign national contributions received by the respondent from 2003 through 2007, less the $18,323 that the respondent already disgorged to the U.S. Treasury.

Under the law, the FEC must attempt to resolve its enforcement cases, or MURs, through a confidential investigative process that may lead to a negotiated conciliation agreement between the Commission and the individual or group. Additional information regarding MURs can be found on the FEC web site at http://www.fec.gov/em/mur.shtml. This release contains only summary information. For additional details, please consult publicly available documents for each case in the Enforcement Query System (EQS) on the FEC web site at http://eqs.fec.gov/eqs/searcheqs.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency that administers and enforces federal campaign finance laws. The FEC has jurisdiction over the financing of campaigns for the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.S. Senate, the Presidency and the Vice Presidency. Established in 1975, the FEC is composed of six Commissioners who are nominated by the President and confirmed by the U.S. Senate.

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This information is not intended to replace the law or to change its meaning, nor does this information create or confer any rights for or on any person or bind the Federal Election Commission or the public.

The reader is encouraged also to consult the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), Commission regulations (Title 11 of the Code of Federal Regulations), Commission advisory opinions and applicable court decisions.