Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Campaign Finance New Georgia topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
State ethics commission approves $300,000 consent order with New Georgia Project after multiyear investigation
Summary
The Government Transparency & Campaign Finance Commission approved a consent order resolving a long-running enforcement case against New Georgia Project and its affiliated action fund, which staff said failed to disclose millions in 2018–19 campaign-related contributions and expenditures; respondents agreed to a $300,000 civil penalty.
The Government Transparency & Campaign Finance Commission voted Jan. 15 to adopt a consent order resolving the agency's enforcement case against New Georgia Project Inc. and New Georgia Project Action Fund Inc., a matter first filed in 2019.
Commission staff attorney Mr. Amati told commissioners the case began with subpoenas issued after the 2018 election and grew after bank records were returned in March 2022. Amati said the commission's amended complaint, filed June 17, 2022, and evidence presented at a 2022 probable-cause hearing showed undisclosed fundraising and spending that, in staff's description, amounted to roughly $4.2 million in unreported contributions and $3.2 million in unreported expenditures during the 2018 election cycle and additional undisclosed activity tied to the 2019 MARTA referendum.
Why it matters: The staff presentation summarized years of litigation, multiple appellate rulings and a federal lawsuit that reached the Eleventh Circuit before the matter returned to state administrative proceedings. Amati described documentary evidence — mailers, field-operation records, vendor invoices and bank entries — that staff said showed fundraising and campaign activity conducted without registration or required disclosures for independent or ballot committees.
Respondents’ statement: David Fox, counsel for the respondents, addressed the commission remotely and said, "we don't necessarily agree with everything that Mister Amati just said," but described the proposed order as "a reasonable resolution of this long standing dispute that will enable everyone to move forward." That statement was read into the record during the Jan. 15 meeting.
Consent-order terms and penalty: The consent order filed with the commission includes factual findings and conclusions of law admitted by the respondents and requires payment of a $300,000 civil penalty. Staff said the order reflects admissions that the New Georgia Project and its affiliated action fund failed to register or disclose tens of thousands to millions of dollars associated with express advocacy and direct voter contact in 2018 and 2019.
Commission response: Commissioners repeatedly commended agency staff and the Attorney General's Office for pursuing the case through protracted litigation. One commissioner summarized the procedural arc, noting subpoenas were issued in 2019, bank records provided in 2022, and appellate litigation that extended the timeline before the matter reached the present consent resolution.
Next steps: The commission adopted the consent order by voice vote and closed the agenda item. The consent order resolves agency administrative proceedings; it does not itself change criminal statutes or trigger separate criminal prosecution. The record indicates respondents signed the order and accepted its terms to resolve the administrative case.
Provenance: Staff presentation and the commission's vote are recorded beginning with the commission's call of case 2019-0050PC (SEG 0988) through the adoption vote (SEG 1799–1803).
