September 16, 2003

Campaign Finance Complaint Filed Against Pontiac School Board

West Bloomfield, MI—After receiving complaints from Libertarian Party members in Pontiac, the Libertarian Party of Oakland County (LPOC) launched their own investigation into the actions of the Pontiac School Board regarding the board's activities in support of the $455.4 million school bond ballot proposal scheduled for a vote on September 23rd.  The bond issue is the third largest ever in the state of Michigan.

"We investigated newspaper ads, direct-mail advertising, and their web site, then consulted with our attorney," said chair Nathan Allen.  "We have determined that there are grounds to request an investigation and civil action from authorities within the state of Michigan, and possibly grounds for criminal action against the school board members themselves."

Libertarians mailed letters to both Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land and Attorney General Mike Cox on September 16th.  A copy of the letter can be found on the LPOC web site at http://www.LpocMi.org/NewsRels/PontiacBond.php

Libertarians allege violation of MCL 169.257(1), which says "A public body or an individual acting for a public body shall not use or authorize the use of funds, ...  computer hardware or software, ...  or other public resources" to support or oppose a ballot question.  The material in question goes beyond merely presenting factual material, but also presents opinion and conjecture.

"If school boards cannot be trusted to handle their budgets properly, perhaps they should be prohibited from participating at all in these kinds of campaigns," remarked chair Nathan Allen.  "Grassroots organizations have neither the time to form nor raise the funds necessary to demand fiscal accountability from bureaucrats run amuck.  It is virtually impossible to compete with the multi-million dollar budgets of the school boards.  Who is going to question the illogical arguments that the school board is using in their slick campaign literature?"

Libertarians urge all Pontiac School District residents to perform their own investigation and also send letters to the Secretary of State and Attorney General.  Multiple complaints will provide additional support for an investigation.

Follow-up: Secretary of State's Response