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Unfair political practices complaint dismissed
by John Tawa
The Fair Political Practices Commission last week dismissed a complaint lodged by former school board member Michele Memmott. The Commission found either no merit in or jurisdiction lacking to evaluate Memmott's allegations that she was the victim of unfair political practices by newly-elected board member Dr. Teri Greene, current board members Lynette Campbell and Peter Alfvin, and former board member LeRoy Nelson, which resulted in her defeat in the November school board election.
In her complaint to the Commission dated Nov. 24, Memmott contended that a full-page advertisement in the Oct. 28 The Beach Reporter supporting Greene's candidacy violated rules governing fair elections by the absence of any words indicating that the ad was a paid political advertisement. The complaint also charged that the two letters appearing in the ad and a campaign postcard postmarked Oct. 30, featuring a photograph of Greene with Nelson, Alfvin and Campbell, violated the California Brown Act, and that the postcard failed to disclose who paid for it.
The Commission, however, reviewed the complaint and decided to close the matter without formal enforcement action.
In a letter to Memmott dated Jan. 11, Colleen McGee, a Political Reform Consultant with the Commission, explained that the Commission lacked jurisdiction to initiate any investigation into possible violations of the Brown Act or the contents of newspaper ads.
The letter also explained that the postcard didn't violate the Political Reform Act the Commission is charged to enforce because it did not constitute a mass mailing (more than 200 pieces) and therefore did not require candidate and campaign committee identification on it.
Memmott, contacted last week, said that she was unaware of any resolution to her complaint.
Greene, however, said that McGee labeled the allegations "ridiculous" and told her they weren't even worth wasting time on. ER