Woo to Return $2,780 in Funds : Contributions: The money came from what are apparently improper donations that the candidate has received from foreign-owned corporations.

Los Angeles City Councilman Michael Woo’s mayoral campaign on Wednesday said it would return $2,780 in apparently improper contributions Woo has received from foreign-owned corporations.

Federal law prohibits foreign firms from contributing to any U.S. election campaign. Woo’s campaign launched a review of several legally questionable contributions following inquiries from The Times and other media.

Garry South, Woo’s campaign spokesman, said the contributions are being returned because they indeed came from “foreign corporations that are not incorporated domestically.” The acceptance of the donations was inadvertent, he said.

Three of the checks, totaling $2,000, were contributed late last year by Israeli and Indonesian banks. The remaining $780 was donated to Woo’s non-campaign officeholder committee in 1991 by banks based in Indonesia and Singapore, as well as an Indonesian airline.

It was the second time in recent weeks that Woo has returned apparently improper donations. After inquiries by The Times last month, Woo sent back about 20 donations totaling nearly $9,000--most of them cash contributions accepted in violation of the city’s election laws.

The city Ethics Commission said it will investigate the cash contributions, collected at various fund-raisers.

The commission also is conducting a routine audit of Woo’s officeholder account, which rivals have claimed he used--perhaps improperly--to help jump start his mayoral campaign before entering the race.

The evidently illegal donations have been an embarrassment to Woo, who is campaigning as the leading champion of tough new City Hall ethics laws. South stressed Wednesday that the returned donations are a tiny fraction of the $1.2 million Woo has raised. Errors are inevitable in a campaign that has “3,000 checks coming through the door,” he said.

Violations of the ban on foreign donations fall under the jurisdiction of the Federal Elections Commission and can lead to fines of up to $5,000, said FEC spokesman Fred Eiland. The agency does not comment on complaints it may be investigating, he said. South said the Woo campaign has not been contacted by federal officials.