Equality California Calls for Impeachment of California Fair Political Practices Commissioner

Equality California asked on Feb. 11 for the governor and state legislature to begin impeachment proceedings against Ronald Rotunda, a member of the California Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC), which regulates campaign finance.

Commissioner Rotunda recently asserted in a Sacramento Bee opinion piece that enforcing complete disclosure of personal information from proponents of Proposition 8, as required under current campaign reporting laws, would significantly harm supporters of the marriage ban.
The opposite is true. The victims are same-gender couples who were stripped of their right to marry and often suffer from ongoing harassment discrimination and violence.

Rotunda, as an FPPC Commissioner, is a defendant in a lawsuit against the Commission – ProtectMarriage.com v. Bowen, the outcome of which will determine future campaign finance reporting regulations in California.
In response to the Commissioner’s assertions, Equality California Government Affairs Director Mario Guerrero testified at a FPPC hearing today in Sacramento:

“Mr. Rotunda’s attempt to cast supporters of Proposition 8 as victims is patently absurd, given they backed a measure designed solely to strip away precious freedoms from a targeted minority group that regularly endures harassment, discrimination and violence. In fact, there has been a steady, documented surge in violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community members across California, particularly in Santa Clara and Los Angeles.” 

“The Commission will eventually be asked to determine whether the ‘Yes on 8’ committee violated the law in failing to properly report the source of its campaign contributions and could be required to rule in other similar scenarios.

Commissioner Rotunda admits in his op-ed that the law requires complete reporting. However, in expressing his opinion regarding a current case in which Commissioner Rotunda is technically a defendant, it appears that he has pre-determined that for this particular defendant, and in this particular case, he will not enforce the law as written.”

“We believe Mr. Rotunda should recuse himself from any votes pertaining to the pending lawsuit as well as Proposition 8-related investigations, and we will urge the governor and legislature to begin impeachment proceedings against Mr. Rotunda for dereliction of duty.”

Submitted by Troy on Sat, 02/27/2010 - 6:09pm.

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