Political Practices commissioner visits county
by JOHN CRAMER - Ravalli Republic
Montana’s Commissioner of Political Practices took the unprecedented step Tuesday of visiting Ravalli County, where allegations of campaign violations are rampant and the county’s growth policy has become the most contentious ballot issue in the state.
With less than two weeks before the Nov. 4 election, state elections officials conducted a public meeting in an effort to clarify campaign finance rules and slow the barrage of complaints about alleged campaign violations in Ravalli County.
About 30 complaints from across the state are being phoned in daily, half of which are from Ravalli County, said Commissioner of Political Practices Dennis Unsworth.
Nearly all the calls concern the county’s controversial growth policy, which is pitting property rights activists against supporters of land-use regulations in a traditionally rural area that is being transformed by rapid growth.
The state conducted seven formal investigations in Ravalli County in the 2006 election season and has opened four formal investigations this fall, both of which are unusually high numbers in Montana, Unsworth said.
Most of the cases are still being investigated due to a shortage of staffers in the state’s political practices office, which has only one investigator.
Unsworth and two of his four staffers fielded questions for nearly two hours from about 25 people at the Ravalli County administration building.
Before the meeting, they toured the county and found a number of campaign signs from groups that “appeared to be working to avoid disclosure” of their financial supporters, Unsworth said.
“Land-use issues have a long history of being very contentious in Montana, but this is extraordinary,” Unsworth said, “I don’t know if there’s something in the water here, but I think it’s because of the level of growth and the interest by some parties.”
The state’s most pressing investigation in Ravalli County concerns the Higher Ground Foundation, a nonprofit group that is urging voters to repeal the growth policy in an effort to prevent zoning and streamside setback regulations from being adopted later.
Higher Ground officials said they organized informally about a year ago and registered with the Internal Revenue Service as a nonprofit educational group in April.
They said their purpose is to advocate property rights across the state, which includes repealing Ravalli County’s growth policy.
In August, Higher Ground incorporated in Montana and filed with the state’s political practices office as an incidental committee, according to state records.
The state classifies incidental committees as groups that make political contributions but whose primary purpose isn’t to influence elections.
Incidental committees are required to report where they spend their money but not the sources of that money.
Mary Morris, a Darby resident who supports the growth policy, filed a complaint earlier this month claiming that Higher Ground was formed primarily to repeal the county’s growth policy.
The complaint alleges that Higher Ground is actually a ballot issue committee, which is required to disclose the sources of its funding as well as its expenditures.
In an Oct. 10 letter to Higher Ground, state officials said the group had filed “insufficient” information to support its status as an incidental committee.
“It appears Higher Ground, Inc., is more properly classified as a ballot issue committee,” according to the letter.
The state asked Higher Ground to file additional documents supporting its claim to be an incidental committee before Thursday, the last deadline for campaign finance reports before the election.
But Higher Ground officials told Unsworth they didn’t receive his office’s letter until Monday and likely wouldn’t respond until early next week.
Dan Floyd and Terri Daniel, Higher Ground’s treasurer and president, respectively, said they would file additional documents showing that their group is a statewide advocacy group concerned with more than the growth policy in Ravalli County.
“Our whole objective is to educate people around the state about property rights,” Floyd said.
Unsworth said he was uncertain whether his office could make a decision before election day on whether Higher Ground had violated campaign laws.
But he said Higher Ground could be fined if it submits a financial disclosure report on Thursday as an incidental committee but is later determined to be a ballot issue committee.
Fines for violations of Montana’s campaign laws range from $500 to three times the amount of expenditures that are misreported.
Morris said she was uncertain whether disclosure of Higher Ground’s contributors would influence the fate of the county’s growth policy.
“I think it will let people make a more informed decision,” she said. “I’m very concerned about who Higher Ground really is.”
Unsworth also released his decision on a 2006 complaint filed against Ravalli County Citizens for Free Enterprise.
The group supported construction of a Wal-Mart Supercenter north of Hamilton and the successful repeal of an interim zoning ordinance that blocked big-box stores.
Wal-Mart, which later withdrew its controversial plan, contributed $115,000 to the group, whose only other donations totaled $90 from a handful of donors.
Unsworth ruled that Ravalli County Citizens for Free Enterprise was a Wal-Mart front-group that violated financial reporting and record-keeping laws.
“Wal-Mart apparently bought a campaign to influence an election,” Unsworth said.
But he ruled that Ravalli County Citizens for Free Enterprise didn’t violate more serious laws requiring special interest groups to accurately label themselves because the law is based on the number of contributors rather than the amount contributed.
Unsworth said the case could prompt changes in state campaign finance disclosure laws.
Ravalli County Attorney George Corn and Unsworth will decide whether to prosecute the case or seek a settlement
In another case, Unsworth said Residents for Responsible Land Use, a group supported primarily by the Bitterroot Builders Association, appeared to be in violation of campaign record-keeping laws. He said he expects to complete the investigation next month.
To comment on this and other stories, log on to RavalliRepublic.com
Reporter John Cramer can be reached at 363-3300 or jcramer@ravallirepublic.com
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Reader's Comments >>
freedom wrote on Oct 23, 2008 10:22 AM:
Sammy wrote on Oct 22, 2008 1:56 PM:
L. Stewart wrote on Oct 22, 2008 1:22 PM:
Thus is becomes clear that donors to this "Foundation" are anonymous. I would truly like to know who the money is behind this group and why they want to remain anonymous. "
fishing wrote on Oct 22, 2008 12:28 PM:
Your current democratic county commissioners are out of control.
The most important thing missing in this one sided article by John Cramer was Higher Ground's address so I could send them some money. "
Agree with Wizard wrote on Oct 22, 2008 9:40 AM:
Matthew Koehler wrote on Oct 22, 2008 9:36 AM:
Chris Daniel is also owner of InFocus, a local consulting, public relations and marketing firm that put together anti-zoning/streamside setback Ads earlier this year that caused a stir in the Valley. Streamside Setback Committee Chairman Clay Dethlefesen told the Ravalli Republic that the ad was inflammatory and misleading. "It's clear InFocus has no regard for fair play and honest informing. It's a scare tactic and in doing so, they are insulting the elderly and the handicapped. It's outlandish and unfair to the general public."
According to a 10/8/08 article in the Bitterroot Star, another recent Ad against Streamside Setbacks was:
"placed by the Higher Ground Foundation, a non-profit group headed up by Terri Daniel. Tom Robak, a staunch opponent of setbacks who has paid for advertisements against any regulations, said that he was spending a lot of money to run ads to get his input across and they seemed to be successful so far."
Mr. Robak is the founder and board member of the Big Sky Coalition, Environmentalists with Common Sense.
According to a 5/12/08 article in the Republic, "Ravalli County is alleging that one of the founders of the Big Sky Coalition built his house in the floodway of the West Fork of the Bitterroot River. County officials believe that Tom Robak's house sits in the actual floodway, not just the floodplain, and that "significant" amounts of fill have been placed. Placing fill and building in floodplains and floodways is strictly prohibited, and if the county is correct, it will require Robak to move the house."
It's also worth noting that Dan Floyd, treasurer of Higher Ground Foundation, has been accused by Ravalli County Planning Department of violating county floodplain regulations. There is a court case regarding this issue that folks can check out at this link:
It appears that the most vocal opponents of streamside setbacks and zoning have been accused of violating current floodplain regulations. "
John Mills wrote on Oct 21, 2008 11:13 PM:
Wizard of Hamilton wrote on Oct 21, 2008 9:27 PM: