ADLF Files Complaint Against Rick Saccone for Illegal Use of State Campaign Funds
The American Democracy Legal Fund has filed a complaint to the Federal Election Commission against Rick Saccone for illegally using state campaign funds for his campaigns for federal office. Rick Saccone, currently a member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, continued to use funds from his statehouse campaign in violation of FEC rules after declaring his intention to run for federal office.
The complaint to the FEC states that Saccone’s “State Committee continued to make expenditures for campaign-related purposes after Saccone became a federal candidate. In fact, notwithstanding the fact that Saccone was no longer permitted to be a state candidate at the time, Saccone used his State Committee to pay for both his and a staffer’s attendance at the Conservative Political Action Conference…Then, just months later, when Saccone was still deep in his federal Senate candidacy, he appears to have misused his State Committee funds again. This time, on May 30, 2017, State Committee spent $800 on a ‘Full-Page Color Ad.’ On June 9, 2017, State Committee also paid Rick Saccone $145.48 for ‘Campaign Supplies.'”
In addition, Saccone transferred money from his state campaign account to his federal account, possibly in violation of federal law. The complaint states: “Pennsylvania permits individuals to contribute to state candidates in excess of federal contribution limits, and there is no evidence that State Committee’s expenditures were subject to an accounting analysis that limited them to federally permissible funds. Thus, this contribution is likely impermissible.”
Read the full complaint here.