Court Action Spurs Commission to Rectify Punishment

News Release from Julia Allen Campaign June 29, 2016

In a special off-agenda proceeding following its regular meeting of June 30, 2016, the Campaign Spending Commission will be forced to deal with a Circuit Court reversal of its decision to impose an excessive fine on The Committee to Elect Julia Allen. The Court found that the Commission’s actions violated the law. On June 7th, Judge Rhonda Nishimura ordered the case remanded to the Commission for correction. The original fine was $200 in Docket No. 15-94.

For fifteen months and to no avail, the Julia Allen campaign has battled the Commission for imposing an unwarranted and excessive fine for a severely mitigated minor infraction.  In addition, Allen was required to pay a $215 filing fee to bring the matter before the court.  The Allen Campaign must now appear before the Commission to seek reimbursement of the $200 fine plus the $215 filing fee it paid. Judge Nishimura stated that the Court lacks authority to compel the fee reimbursement, but Allen believes it is only fair and just that the Commission discharge this obligation.

“Why should we have to suffer a $215 loss to set this right?,” asks Michael Palcic, Chairman of The Committee to Elect Julia Allen, a State House District 20 Campaign Committee.

Moreover, the violation itself was caused by a glitch in CSC software which permitted the erroneous posting of a campaign expenditure to a date in the 15th century. This defect led to filing a spending report four days late, subjecting Allen’s committee to a possible fine.

“The Commission has played fast and loose with the law to maximize revenues, has ignored the mitigation of its faulty software and has even gone so far as to insist that fines be paid to “The Hawaii Election Campaign Fund” when the law provides that fines be deposited into the state general fund,” Palcic added.

Julia Allen has campaigned continuously since 2004 in District 20 to reform state government policies on taxation and spending, small business and employment, as well as the massive bureaucracies in education, health and regulatory agencies. She is a long-serving member of Neighborhood Board #5 and works in the Hawaii State Senate as a Legislative Aide. 

Full disclosure: Julia Allen is married to Michael Palcic.

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LINK: June 30, 2016 CSC Agenda