SIMI VALLEY : Developer Donation Ruled a Violation

The California Fair Political Practices Commission has determined that newly elected Simi Valley Councilwoman Barbara Williamson broke the law when she accepted a developer’s $500 campaign donation, but the agency has decided not to impose a penalty.

“We have closed the case because she turned herself in, returned the contribution and has had no prior history of violating the Political Reform Act,” commission spokeswoman JeanetteTurvill said Friday.

She said a letter notifying Williamson of the commission’s decision was sent several days earlier.

The commission has the authority to levy a fine of up to $2,000 per violation.

Williamson, a bank vice president who was elected to the council Nov. 3, said shortly after the election that Simi Valley officials told her about a possible violation.

It concerned a donation she received from Casden Co. of Beverly Hills.

A month before receiving the donation, Williamson, as a planning commissioner, voted in favor of a Shell gas station at Yosemite Avenue and the Simi Valley Freeway.

The councilwoman said she was unaware that Casden had a financial interest in the Shell site when she accepted the money.

State law requires an appointed planning commissioner to wait at least three months before accepting a donation of more than $250 from any party whose project has come before the panel.

“I was just politically naive,” Williamson said at the time.