Investigation: Florida elections loophole empowers special interests

Special interests have used a loophole in Florida law to pump money into Treasure Coast elections while skirting donation caps and obscuring the source of the money.

An ongoing TCPalm investigation found the donors — predominantly real estate and development companies, business owners and political action committees — have contributed $120,000 to local campaigns since 2015 — half of it through the loophole.

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That's a small portion of any given candidate's campaign fund, but the loophole allows a small group of donors to command a disproportionately large share of influence.

“Special interests are not giving campaign contributions in the interest of good government," said Ben Wilcox, research director at the nonpartisan, nonprofit watchdog group Integrity Florida. "They’re hoping that, in the end, the government is going to be good to them."

The loophole, sometimes referred to as "bundling" or "the LLC Loophole," allows donors to give the maximum, allowable amount of $1,000 from each of their subsidiaries or affiliated PACs. Campaign finance reports require the name of the donating LLC or PAC, but not the name of the person behind it.

Among hundreds of campaign donations, that can make it hard for the public and even candidates to know who is giving to their campaign, and how much.

WHO GAVE WHAT?

All three Treasure Coast sheriffs topped their county's list of loophole benefactors.

Martin County Sheriff William Snyder, who declined to comment, benefited more than any other candidate running for public office on the Treasure Coast. He legally received $11,250 over the state limit through the loophole, compared to Indian River County Sheriff Deryl Loar's $7,450 and St. Lucie County Sheriff Ken Mascara's $5,500.

For example, among Mascara's donations were two $1,000 checks on the same day from two companies with the same address: Hillsborough 56 LLC and Aregood LLC. Public records show those companies are owned by Randy Perkins, a fellow Democrat who unsuccessfully ran for a Treasure Coast congressional seat.

When asked whether he knew Perkins owned the companies, Mascara said, "I would never know that." To know that level of detail about every donor, he said, “I would have to research every check that came in."

Scroll down for a complete list of all 25 candidates.

Donations from interest groups were a flashpoint in the Indian River County Commission District 3 race. Incumbent Tim Zorc, who was re-elected Nov. 8, received $4,000 from three companies and one trust — all owned by Robert W. Stork.

The Vero Beach businessman is in the aviation, investment and real estate industries, but Zorc said they met while working at the volunteer ambulance squad and have been friends for over three decades.

Stork has donated more than $12,000 to Indian River County races through his various businesses, his revocable trust and in his own name since 2015. But Stork doesn't stop at the county line. He also has donated to the campaigns of Gov. Rick Scott and Sens. Joe Negron and Debbie Mayfield.

Zorc's opponent, former firefighter Joe Earman, received $2,000 on the same day from two, pro-firefighter PACs with the same chairperson, treasurer and agent. Earman said he wouldn't accept campaign contributions "unless I know who wrote the check.”

He argued his contributions from the Firefighter FactPAC and the Palm Beach County FirePAC represent two different groups, so they're materially different than Stork's multiple contributions.

“He might technically have a point," Wilcox said. "But it’s still the same practice of bundling contributions in order to exceed the contribution limits.”

Susan Adams, who accepted $2,000 through the loophole, was elected to the Indian River County Commission in the Aug. 30 primary with 71 percent of the vote. Asked why she needed to take that money in light of her landslide victory, she said that when a candidate has supporters who want to help, "you always welcome that participation.”

SUPPORT FOR REFORM

Though the Legislature set the $1,000 campaign contribution limit, local governments have the authority to lower it for city and county elections. In 2014, Tallahassee voters approved a referendum capping donations to city commission races at $250.

The Tallahassee law doesn't close the loophole, but it reduces the amount of money big donors can give. Wilcox, who's based in the capital, applauds the law.

“In the end, (we) have our representatives more answerable to the general public than to just the big donors that typically fund city commission races,” he said.

A similar measure to limit campaign contributions to $250 failed to make it onto Miami-Dade County's ballot this year. It enjoyed strong support — supporters signed enough petitions to fill two U-Haul trucks, the Miami Herald reported — but the County Commission opposed it and an appeals court sided with the board.

"I think the general public is sick of the corrupting influence of money in politics," Wilcox said. “I would say the hardest part is getting political leaders to actually enact campaign finance reform."

Though Zorc chafed at the financial and political clout that primarily firefighter unions levied against his campaign, he doubts local-level campaign finance reform will be effective in getting money out of politics.

“It has a lot of moving parts and unintended consequences. When you put regulation on one side, what does it do to the other side?" Zorc asked. "The money doesn’t go away, it just takes a different path."

5 INDUSTRIES THAT USED LOOPHOLE MOST

$30,898: Real estate and development

$23,000: Firefighting and law enforcement PACs

$13,000: Medical

$8,000: Utilities

$6,000: Finance

View the Martin County list below on mobile and tablet devices.

Hover over the dots for the names and amounts.

V iew the Indian River County list below on mobile and tablet devices.

Hover over the dots for the names and amounts.

View the St. Lucie County list below on mobile and tablet devices.

Hover over the dots for the names and amounts.