The article below discusses a practice in some counties, including Volusia County AND Lake County, where contracted Attorney's for School District Boards are allowed to donate to re-election campaigns of incumbent School Board members. The article mainly centered on a Daytona Beach attorney who is paid up to $285/hour by the Volusia County School Board and had donated $1500 to each of two elected Board members who are running for re-election.
The article does say that some counties and law firms prohibit such donations, but Lake County's School District does allow it. They didn't have any details on whether the contracted law firm for the School District has made such donations, but here is a quote from one of the Board members:
In Lake County, School Board member Cindy Barrow said she would not turn down such a campaign contribution. "Everyone in this country is free to donate to any candidate that they would like to donate money" to, she wrote via e-mail.
The Lake County School District Board should prohibit such election donations from any vendor, not just attorney's, who do business with the School District. Or, there should be a clear, public disclosure of each such donation on the District website. Voters should not have to go through the work of searching contribution databases to determine that a new candidate or re-election candidate is receiving funds from a District vendor, especially when the Board is the one that approves the annual fees paid to the attorney.
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orlandosentinel.com/news/local/volusia/orl-attorney2008apr20,0,4883317.story
OrlandoSentinel.com
Attorney's donations to School Board members' campaigns spur debate
Denise-marie Balona
Sentinel Staff Writer
April 20, 2008
A Daytona Beach attorney whose firm is paid as much as $285 an hour to give legal advice to the Volusia County School Board is donating to the re-election campaigns of two School Board members this year.
Ted Doran's contributions -- he has directed a total of $1,500 each to School Board members Judy Conte and Al Williams -- are legal under state law but wouldn't be allowed in some other school districts in Central Florida because of concerns about appearances and potential conflicts.
Doran, whose firm has been paid $2.1 million since it was hired in 2002, said he has a passion for education and wants to ensure that such "phenomenal" leaders as Conte and Williams are re-elected. Such donations, however, have raised the eyebrows of educators, ethics scholars and government attorneys interviewed by the Orlando Sentinel. The Florida Bar said it would recommend against similar donations. Practices vary by county.
Frank Kruppenbacher, head attorney for the Orange County School District, said he initiated a policy 15 years ago to prevent such donations.
"I don't think it's your role to help finance your boss' position. I'm very firm on that," Kruppenbacher said.
Usher "Larry" Brown's Orlando law firm, which represents the Osceola County School Board, forbids its attorneys from giving to the campaigns of people they work for or could end up working for.
"We just think it's improper to even allow for an appearance that your campaign contributions might influence the decisions of the elected officials," Brown said.
Lake and Seminole allow such donations. Polk doesn't have a policy against them, but C. Wesley Bridges II, general counsel for Polk's School Board, doesn't donate to School Board candidates.
"My professional obligation is to serve the School Board as an entity, an elected body," he wrote in an e-mail. "I make every effort to avoid displaying any sort of personal bias in my efforts on behalf of my client."
In Volusia, Conte and Williams are the only members of the School Board up for re-election. They are running without opposition, though challengers could step forward by the June 20 deadline to get on the ballot. The incumbents said they wouldn't let Doran's donations affect their votes, including when it comes time to renew his contract.
"People know my reputation -- they know I will vote what I think is right whether or not you contribute to me," said Williams, a retired educator who has raised $12,110, including $1,500 from Doran. "If my mother was wrong, I'd vote against her."
Doran; his law firm of Doran, Wolfe, Ansay & Kundid; and his real-estate investment company, Charted Holdings, LLC, each gave $500 -- the most allowed by law -- to Conte and Williams. Doran said he wishes he could give more.
"Unfortunately, in our society, money is what drives candidacies," Doran said. "It's the only way we have to ensure we have good representatives in office, and I don't shrink from it."
Conte has raised $1,750, including $1,500 from Doran. In recent years, Doran has donated to various candidates for county offices, but this year's donations to Conte and Williams are the first to School Board members since his firm was hired as their legal adviser in 2002. He donated $500 to Conte in 2000.
Doran works for the School Board. The school district and Superintendent Margaret Smith have their own in-house attorney, Rich Kizma, who makes $117,311 annually.
Kizma oversees such things as union negotiations, grievances and policy development.
Doran consults with School Board members about matters that will go before them for a vote, attends their meetings and litigates cases on behalf of the School Board.
When he was hired, he earned $100 to $125 an hour, according to his contract. Today, he receives $155 to $285 per hour, depending on the area of law.
Accepting Doran's donations raises "red flags" for Andrew Spar, president of the local teachers union, the Volusia Teachers Organization.
In Lake County, School Board member Cindy Barrow said she would not turn down such a campaign contribution. "Everyone in this country is free to donate to any candidate that they would like to donate money" to, she wrote via e-mail.
Beverly Slough, president-elect to the Florida School Boards Association, said she would take money from attorneys but might not do it if it involved one whose contract she would have to vote on. Cynthia Booth, assistant ethics counsel for The Florida Bar, said she would recommend against it.
"There is no specific rule that would prohibit this," she said, "but we give conservative opinions. And probably it isn't a good idea because the public might not like this . . ."
Denise-Marie Balona can be reached at [email protected] or 386-851-7916.
Copyright © 2008, Orlando Sentinel
