The following three complaints were filed due to reporting requirements not being met as outlined in the Texas Election Code.
SC-32011247: Dan Stricklin (§254.001, §254.031) – final disposition ordered
SC-32011244: Brian Livingston (§254.037(a)) – final disposition ordered
SC-32011245: Sai Krishna (§254.064) – final disposition ordered
The following complaint was filed due to violations of the political advertising requirements, an intent to hide the true identity of the individual or group that produced the flyer, and false representation of the individual or group that produced the flyer.
SC-32011246: It Is Our Time (§255.001, §255.004, §255.005) – pending
Earlier today, the Frisco PAC sent a formal request for an opinion to the Texas Ethics Commission (TEC) seeking clarification on the responsibilities of enforcement of provisions of the Texas Election Code by the City Secretary, City Manager, and/or the City Council.
This opinion stems from an inquiry made to the City Secretary in regards to her authority to enforce provisions of the Election Code’s requirements for campaign finance reporting. The view expressed by the City Secretary suggested that in her capacity as the city’s election official, that she was not authorized to enforce these provisions. This position was supported by the city attorney, as advised through a response by Mayor Jeff Cheney.
The Frisco PAC is seeking clarification based on the state law and the City’s Ordinances to determine if there is a misunderstanding on this matter.
A complaint was filed with Texas Ethics Commission in November 2020 following receipt of a flyer that was mailed to a number of voters in the City of Frisco that violated multiple sections of the Texas Election Code. The TEC has assigned this as Sworn Complaint No. 32011246 (see below).
Statement of Facts as presented to the Texas Ethics Commission
The attached flyer was received by postal mail today (October 30, 2020). It is purported to be a flyer promoting the candidacy of Sadaf Haq for City of Frisco election, which it is not. The flyer and the postage to residents of the city would exceed $500 (reference Sec. 255.001 (d)(3)).
The political disclaimer on the mailpiece is from “IT IS OUR TIME.” From my search of the Ethics Commission, the City of Frisco and the City of Houston, there is no registered Political Action Committee with this name. The intent of this mail piece is to injure a candidate and influence voters (reference Sec. 255.004(b)).
The flyer does not state a person’s name associated with this group (reference Sec. 255.001 (a)(2)(A)).
The mailing address used for this mailpiece is a UPS Store with mailbox rentals. The box number is not listed on the mail piece. The UPS store will not provide the box number or the registered user of that mailbox as they are a private company and have stated that they do not disclose that information. The intent for this vague mailing address is designed to hide the true source of the communication (reference Sec. 255.004).
The named individuals on the flyer are financial contributors to Sadaf Haq’s campaign, however did not authorize or were aware that their name would be used for this flyer. From my discussion with the campaign treasurer, some of the named individuals contacted have confirmed that they have no connection with the group that has produced and mailed this flyer.
In preparing this sworn complaint, I have attempted to learn the true source of the communication by contacting the UPS store listed as the address on the flyer to determine if the group has any contact information (they do not), searching the Ethics Commission website for registered political action committees to determine if they are registered (the do not appear to be), searched the City of Frisco and the City of Houston webpages for local references to this political action committee (they do not have these listed), and sought direct feedback from the candidate purported to be “supported” by this mail piece to determine her involvement, if any (she has stated that her campaign did not produce this mail piece).
I also contacted the Ethics Commission legal support line in relation to listing a name in the Respondent’s section of the complaint, as this is not known, for reasons shared elsewhere in this complaint. Following that call, I included the name of the Group in the last name field of the form, rather than leaving it blank, or listing this as unknown.
Specific Violations of the Texas Elections Code
This sworn complaint alleges that the following sections of the Elections Code have been violated, by the circulation of an election flyer mailed to residents of the City of Frisco, Texas purporting to support a candidate.
Sec. 255.001 Required Disclosure on Political Advertising
(1) The complaint does come within the Commission’s jurisdiction under subsection 255.001 (d), as the value of the flyer with postage exceeds $500; and (2) The referenced mailpiece does not include the “full name” of the person who paid for the political advertising (reference 255.001 (a)(2)(A))
Sec. 255.004 True Source of Communication
The facts will show that the true source of the communication has not been made available, and deliberately avoids presenting information to determine the true source of this violation.
Sec. 255. 005 Misrepresentation of Identity
(1) The referenced violation suggests that the mailpiece has been sent in support of a candidate, however it is not, and is designed to injure a candidate and influence voters in the City of Frisco election. (2) The named individuals on the flyer were campaign contributors to Sadaf Haq’s campaign and were not asked to have their names listed on this flyer. It appears to add a sense of validity to the flyer, these names were extracted from the campaign’s reports, which would be a violation of this section as well.
