Beilenson Admits 5 Checks Overdrawn at House Bank

A chagrined Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Los Angeles), who has carved out a squeaky-clean image during nearly 30 years in public office, disclosed Saturday that he unwittingly wrote five check overdrafts at the House bank.

“I am as careful as anyone I know . . . about writing checks and making sure that I have enough money in there,” Beilenson told about 175 constituents during a town meeting in Canoga Park. “I thought I was the last person in the world” who would have such a problem.

In a subsequent interview, Beilenson acknowledged that the five bad checks, totaling $3,169, could become an issue during what is expected to be a tough reelection fight in a new Republican-leaning district stretching from Malibu to parts of the San Fernando Valley and up to Thousand Oaks. Beilenson has long touted his integrity and independence for refusing to accept special-interest campaign funds and speaking fees.

Beilenson had previously maintained that he had not written any overdrafts at the scandal-plagued bank, which was closed in October. But he said Saturday that he was recently surprised to learn of the overdrafts when he asked the House Ethics Committee about his record. His account had been overextended by a total of $2,600 during the 39-month period investigated by the Ethics Committee.

The eight-term lawmaker said he was among those House members who inadvertently wrote bad checks, and he made a distinction between that group and “the two dozen or so members who clearly were abusers of the system,” writing hundreds of overdrafts, which became, in effect, interest-free loans.

Like many representatives, Beilenson said he was never told that his account was overdrawn. He said he did not know that the bank even had a policy of covering such checks with the deposits of other members. No taxpayer funds were lost as a result of the overdrafts.

Beilenson said that three of the checks, totaling $2,450, were marked overdrawn because the bank failed to post his paycheck until the third day of the month--instead of the first day of the month, when lawmakers are paid. Each overdraft was paid off within days, he said. The bank has been severely criticized for its shoddy management practices.

“Although I’m obviously unhappy about this, I don’t consider myself a less honest person than I did before,” Beilenson said. “I believe that the great majority of voters will understand the importance of this issue. They’ll weigh it along with a lot of other things and give it its proper value.”