Legislators Get a Jump on Saving Up Campaign Money

More than a year before their terms are up, local lawmakers are stockpiling cash in hopes of scaring off potential challengers, or at least getting a jump on them.

Campaign records show that Assembly members Tony Strickland (R-Thousand Oaks) and Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) are receiving some of their largest contributions from industries they regulate.

Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) has already amassed $737,000 in his bid to hold onto his seat for an eighth term.

Strickland raised more than $85,000 in the first half of this year, according to records filed with the secretary of state. The vice chairman of the Health Committee, he received more than $15,000 from the health care industry. Strickland, who also sits on the Insurance Committee, raised another $9,000 from insurance companies, according to campaign records.

Port Hueneme Councilman Jon Sharkey, a Democrat, has begun raising money to run for Strickland’s seat. Another Democrat, Roz McGrath, who ran unsuccessfully against Strickland last year, is also being mentioned as a possible challenger.

Any challengers would be competing against Strickland’s proven fund-raising ability. Health care contributors include the California Healthcare Assn. PAC, which donated $1,250; Glaxo Wellcome, a North Carolina pharmaceutical company, which contributed $1,250, and the California Dental PAC, at $2,250.

Other donors included the National Rifle Assn. Political Victory Fund, state GOP treasurer Shawn Steele and SBC Communications, a powerful telephone company that is challenging AT & T for dominance of the industry.

Meanwhile, Jackson raised more than $72,000 through the end of June, records showed.

The chairwoman of the Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials Committee received her largest contribution--$10,000--from DeMenno / Kerdoon, a Compton oil refinery and the state’s largest used-oil recycler.

Jackson, an environmental advocate who pushed legislation to ban all oil drilling off California’s coast and vowed not to accept any money from oil companies, said Wednesday she believes that DeMenno / Kerdoon is doing good things for the environment.

“My understanding is this company is on the cutting edge of recycling,” she said. “I want to support environmentally friendly business.”

She said she doesn’t know precisely what the company wants for its money. “Hopefully, they just want me to do a good job and to be environmentally friendly,” she said.

A DeMenno / Kerdoon spokesman said the company does not refine crude oil, only used oil.

Jackson’s contributors also included traditional Democratic supporters--teachers, labor unions and players in the motion picture industry, including actor Jeff Bridges--as well as Santa Barbara retirees. A former prosecutor, she also received a combined $3,500 from various law enforcement groups.

So far, no one has taken out papers to challenge Jackson.

Meanwhile, Gallegly brought in about $151,000 for his reelection bid during the first half of this year. With money carried over from last year his campaign has received almost three-quarters of a million dollars, according to documents filed with the Federal Election Commission.

Gallegly’s contributors include a who’s-who of area Republican benefactors, from farmers to CEOs.

Conservative religious broadcaster Edward Atsinger III gave $500, and Amgen chairman and chief executive Gordon Binder also contributed $500. Political action committees accounted for about $37,000 worth of Gallegly contributions this year, according to records.

Democratic attorney Michael Case filed paperwork to run for Gallegly’s seat after the semiannual reporting period. He is just beginning to raise money, he said in an interview earlier this week.