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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 9, 2002

Simon Statement Concerning Davis Fundraising Charges

Two days ago at the only debate Gray Davis has agreed to participate in, I asked the governor a simple yes or no question: Has he ever accepted campaign contributions in a government office building. Governor Davis failed to answer the question.

I asked Governor Davis this simple question because for the past year, we have seen a series of ethical and fundraising scandals that have plagued his administration. Gray Davis has a history of using public facilities for campaign purposes. The Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) has even fined him for failing to disclose his donors
adequately. And the media has repeatedly exposed that Mr. Davis' positions on matters of public policy are closely tied to the source of his campaign contributions. Nothing, however, speaks more clearly to these statements than his record itself.

During the energy crisis, Gray Davis raised campaign cash from Enron and other energy providers even though he had declared a self-imposed fundraising moratorium. More recently, a $25,000 campaign check changed hands in a dark bar in exchange for a $100 million computer software
contract that state employees did not want and did not need.

Within the past couple of weeks, we have seen the latest installment of the governor selling out the environment and endangering the lives of Californians for campaign contributions. In this scandal, Tosco gave Davis more than $50,000 so they could increase their dumping of the
cancer-causing chemical dioxin into San Francisco Bay by more than 400 percent.

As we have seen on many occasions, individuals who give Gray Davis money receive appointments to boards and commissions. And once they are in positions of power, they repay the favor by using the associations that stem from their appointments to raise money for the governor's campaign war chest. Just weeks ago, in fact, the chairman of the High Speed Rail Authority organized a fundraiser with the very contractors benefiting from a $10 billion bond signed by Gray Davis only a day before.

And let us not forget when representatives of the California Teachers Association visited Gray Davis, from within the governor's office, he solicited a $1 million contribution. Perhaps more than any other example, this speaks to the tactics Gray Davis is willing to employ for
political contributions. It's also why it did not seem far-fetched that Gray Davis would accept a $10,000 contribution from within the lieutenant governor's office.

Recently, the California Organization of Police & Sheriffs advised my campaign that they believed the governor had received, in violation of state law, a campaign contribution in his state office from their organization. They informed my campaign that they intended to report
their belief to the government agency charged with enforcing the state campaign laws - the FPPC - and subject themselves to an investigation.

I had no reason to question the California Organization of Police & Sheriffs' good faith belief in their charge against the governor: They were confessing error; they were reporting the charge directly to the government enforcement agency; and they claimed that they had documented proof of their charge.

In light of the seriousness of their allegation, during the debate I gave Gray Davis an opportunity to reject it definitively. But he did not do so.

I made the decision to urge the FPPC to investigate the circumstances of this donation only after Governor Davis issued a "non-denial denial" and a respected group of police officers and sheriffs repeated their charge
-- this time producing a photo that they said supported their claim.

The location where the governor received this campaign contribution is now in question.

However, even if the specific claims made by the California Organization of Police and Sheriffs are not sustained, this outcome should not deter the FPPC, other law enforcement agencies, and the media from investigating Gray Davis' aggressive and shady fundraising practices.

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BILL SIMON FOR GOVERNOR
1020 H STREET, SUITE 100
SACRAMENTO, CA 95814
WWW.SIMONFORGOVERNOR.COM