O.C. Supervisor Norby to Pay Campaign Fine

Orange County Supervisor Chris Norby has agreed to pay a $10,000 fine for campaign violations in his 2002 election campaign.

According to a settlement to be approved next week by the state Fair Political Practices Commission, Norby failed to report required contributor information and violated a 2001 state law requiring that contributions of greater than $100 be returned within 60 days if a donor’s occupation and employer information cannot be obtained.

The disputed donations totaled $27,750.

Orange County campaign watchdog Shirley L. Grindle filed the complaint against Norby in 2002 after reviewing his paperwork.

Of about 15 candidates for county office who filed state campaign reports that year, Norby’s stood out because so much of the required information was absent, she said.

“I’m satisfied,” she said of the fine. “Technically, he should have given the money back.”

Norby said his volunteer treasurer had been deluged with more than 2,000 contributions and did the best he could to get the information. All of the required details were eventually disclosed on amended reports, he said.

“Despite the technical bookkeeping oversights cited by the [commission], I remain proud of my campaign team and the success it achieved,” Norby said in a prepared statement.

Grindle filed complaints with both the state commission and the district attorney’s office.

An Orange County ordinance has even stricter requirements than state law does. It stipulates that money cannot be deposited into a candidate’s account until the mandated information is provided.

A June 2002 letter from the district attorney’s office said the office would defer Grindle’s complaint until after the state commission took action.