Oakland school board director faces up to $95,000 in ethics penalties

"Oakland Unified school board director Mike Hutchinson is facing 19 ethics violations over his failure to file campaign finance disclosures for his unsuccessful 2016 campaign for the school board, the city's ethics commission has found. He could face nearly $100,000 in fines, an unusually large penalty. Hutchinson was elected to the school board in 2020, but had two unsuccessful runs before that, in 2012 and 2016. According to a report prepared by the commission's enforcement chief, he failed to file a key disclosure form, called Form 460, for his 2016 campaign. City records show that Hutchinson's 2016 campaign only submitted various incomplete versions of the Form 410, which candidates and committees file to set up their campaign accounts."

"As Hutchinson hasn't yet closed the campaign account, the filing failures have piled up. The 19 violations are for missing two filing deadlines during the 2016 campaign as well as deadlines that fell every six months after that through January of this year. Form 460 requires candidates to detail who donated to their campaign, what the campaign spent money on, any loans the campaign owes, and the amount of cash a campaign has on hand. Candidates who raise or spend more than $2,000 are required to submit the form semi-annually until their campaign account is closed. The memo cites evidence that Hutchinson's spending exceeded that amount. Each violation could result in a fine up to $5,000, or $95,000 total."

Mike Hutchinson faces 19 ethics violations for failing to file required campaign finance disclosures for his 2016 school board campaign. He ran unsuccessfully in 2012 and 2016 and later won election to the school board in 2020. City records show incomplete Form 410 filings and a missing Form 460, which must report donors, expenditures, loans, and cash on hand. The campaign account remains open, triggering semiannual filing obligations after raising or spending more than $2,000; evidence indicates spending exceeded that threshold. Each violation can carry up to a $5,000 fine, totaling up to $95,000. Hutchinson said he was surprised and plans to contact the ethics commission.

Read at The Oaklandside