State Sen. Kevin de Leon warned of potential probe into donation
SACRAMENTO -- Citing allegations in an FBI affidavit, the state’s ethics agency notified state Sen. Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles) on Thursday that it may launch an investigation into whether he violated campaign finance rules by directing a donation to a nonprofit linked to state Sen. Ronald S. Calderon.
State law requires the state Fair Political Practices Commission to provide 10 days notice before launching an investigation so the potential target has a chance to provide evidence that no violation has occurred and a probe is not warranted. De Leon denied wrongdoing through a spokesman.
Calderon, a Democrat from Montebello, is facing a federal investigation into allegations that he accepted $88,000 in bribes from an undercover FBI agent posing as a movie executive and the former owner of a Long Beach hospital to act on legislation, according to an FBI affidavit.
The affidavit also alleges that De Leon arranged a $25,000 contribution from “Yes We Can,” a political committee affiliated with the California Legislative Latino Caucus, to a nonprofit group run by former Assemblyman Tom Calderon, the brother of Ronald S. Calderon. The Calderons allegedly planned to gain income from the nonprofit, Californians for Diversity, according to the affidavit.
The affidavit alleges De Leon arranged the donation “in exchange for Ronald Calderon agreeing not to challenge Senator [Ricardo] Lara to become the Chairman of the Latino Caucus.”
On Thursday, FPPC Enforcement Chief Gary Winuk wrote a letter to De Leon saying his agency “may initiate an investigation into a donation you may have directed.”
The investigation, Winuk said, would look at whether the donation should have been reported as a gift solicited by De Leon “or if directing the donation could indicate you control the committee thus violating the Political Reform Act’s prohibition against a candidate controlling a committee not associated with an election.”
A spokesman for De Leon denied any wrongdoing by the senator.
“Last year, Sen. De Leon helped resolve a leadership dispute within the Latino Caucus,” said Dan Reeves, his chief of staff. “He did not ask that any contribution be made, nor did he recommend that a contribution be made to any Calderon-related organization as part of that resolution. We are confident that the FPPC inquiry will be resolved once they gather the facts.”
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