The Vermont Democratic Party has uncovered another misstep by Vermonters First — it says the conservative super PAC violated campaign finance law by failing to report the name of a candidate mentioned in one of their mailings this month.
Jake Perkinson, chair of the Vermont Democratic Party (VDP) has pounced on the mistake. He filed a complaint today with the Attorney General’s Office, recommending that Vermonters First be fined $20,000 and requesting a criminal investigation into possible coordination between the super PAC and the Republican candidates it has been supporting. The VDP also issued a press release, calling attention to what it says is evidence of Vermonters First’s “flippant disregard for state law.”
In its most recent mass media activities filing, Vermonters First listed 38 state legislative candidates whom it targeted in a recent mailing, but left off the list was Maida Townsend — a Democrat running for House representative for Chittenden’s 7-4 District. According to state law, when mass media material mentions a specific candidate, the entity responsible must both inform the candidate within 24 hours and include the candidate’s name in their mass media filing report with the secretary of state. Since Vermonters First neglected to do either, VDP is asking the attorney general to issue a $10,000 fine for each violation.
Tayt Brooks, treasurer for Vermonters First, in an email response to VTDigger, called the missing name an unintended cut-and- paste error and said they have filed a correction with the secretary of state. Brooks also criticized VDP for scrutinizing the super PAC’s activity, stating, “It is telling about the Democratic Supermajority that they spend so much time pouring over filings and complaining about their opponents and no time defending their tax and spend record.”
This is not the first time that the VDP has pinned the PAC for violating campaign finance law. Earlier this month, VDP pointed out that Vermonters First had violated state law by including Vermont’s coat of arms in two of its TV advertisements supporting state treasurer and state auditor candidates Wendy Wilton and Vince Illuzzi.
Both Vermonters First and the VDP have been issuing virulent press releases in response to one another throughout the campaign season. In the statement released today, VDP equated the super PAC’s attacks to the Tea Party’s political tactics and referred to their primary funder, Lenore Broughton, as a “political puppeteer.”
VDP’s complaint to the attorney general’s office also suggests that Vermonters First may be illegally collaborating with the candidates it supports but does not cite concrete evidence.
Assistant Attorney General Megan Shafritz confirmed that the office had received the complaint this morning and told VTDigger, “We expect to review it within the next couple days to determine whether or not it warrants investigation.”
