One month after the most recent filing deadline and one Newhall County Water District director has not filed her campaign finance reports with the county. Barbara Dore will be referred again to the California Fair Political Practices Commission, said Irene Wear, a senior clerk with the campaign finance division with the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder’s office. “Of course I do,” Dore said, when asked if she has an intention to file the documents indicating financial activity for her campaign that got her re-elected to NCWD’s board in November. “I don’t have very much time to do it,” she said. When asked how she had time to campaign to retain her seat but not to file the reports Dore said “If it hadn’t been for (director) Maria (Gutzeit) I probably wouldn’t have left the house. She forced me out.” Dore also sits as an appointed director on the board for the Castaic Lake Water Agency.

Newly elected director B.J. Atkins did, however, file the latest leg of his campaign finance reports with the county. Documents show Atkins raised $7,698 for the period from Oct. 23 to Dec. 31, for a grand total of $45,941. Ending cash balance is shown to be $13,498. Dore said she raised “about $25,000” and spent it all, adding that there is no cash on hand. One of Atkins’ donations is a $4,900 one from the Building Industry Association of Southern California dated Nov. 3. Director Maria Gutzeit’s donation from the same interest group in the same amount was dated on Nov. 8 — Election Day. Dore said she also received a donation in the same amount from BIA “right around” the day of the election. “I don’t think it was the week before, though,” Dore said. “I’m not sure why they wrote them then,” Dore said. “I think they were making contributions and they didn’t do it till the end. I’m not sure why.” Dore was referred to the body that enforces the state’s political campaign laws on Dec. 16 and she said she’d file the reports before the next referral is set to occur. The FPPC dropped 225 cases last year due to budget cuts that cost it about a third of its workforce since 1991. A four-year operations plan adopted by the commission in December calls for a 50 percent increase in funding that would give the agency an additional $3 million. Commission spokesman Chris Espinosa said they receive an average of 1,000 cases each year and that 177 cases were brought to conclusion with fines assessed and imposed during calendar year 2005.

This Story can be found in today’s Signal Newspaper.