Kim files amendment to campaign finance report

Council Member Jennifer Kim filed a minor amendment to her campaign finance report on Wednesday in response to opponent Randi Shade’s call for clarification of Kim’s expenditures. Shade is trying to unseat Kim in the May City Council election.

 

On Tuesday, Shade challenged Kim‘s Jan. 15 filing because Kim reported more than $12,000 in expenditures in lump-sum fashion––two payments to Ignite Consulting for about $10,000 and $2,500 to a fund-raising consultant.

 

Shade threatened to file an ethics complaint against Kim if the incumbent failed to amend her report to show exactly how those expenditures were doled out. Shade also said that Kim had failed to report an expenditure for her campaign kickoff party at Stubbs Bar-B-Q.

 

Wednesday’s amendment states that Kim paid $975.16 for catering at her Dec.  6 kickoff party. However, according to Kim’s affidavit, payment for the party was made after the Dec. 31 reporting period.

 

Kim’s amendment showed that she paid consulting fees of $2,000 on Nov. 20 and $2,875 on Nov. 28 to Ignite Consulting. She also paid Ignite $375 on two occasions for access to a voter database. Printing and mailing cost about $2,800 and design and placement of advertising was listed at $1,490—presumably for an ad in the Austin Chronicle.

 

Kim said she wondered why Shade’s campaign finance report did not show any payments to her consultant, Mark Nathan. Nathan, who works for Shade as well as incumbent Council Member Lee Leffingwell, gave Shade a contribution. Asked whether he had received any fees, Nathan told In Fact Daily that he was not paid during the reporting period but that he has been paid this month.

 

Kim’s amended report shows that her total expenditures were $13,740.94 and the total amount of political contributions maintained as of Dec. 31 where $42,960.06. She reported collecting $56,701 during the reporting period.

 

Shade reported $62,000 in donations as of the end of December, an outstanding $10,000 loan to herself and only $3,300 in political expenditures.