On May 31, 2014, the Federal Election Commission determined that it had overpaid Gary Johnson’s 2012 campaign $332,000 in primary season matching funds. See the 2014 document here.
On April 5, 2016, the FEC rejected the Johnson campaign’s argument that the 2014 decision was in error. See that conclusion here.
It is not uncommon for presidential candidates who receive primary season matching funds to later be found to have been overpaid. For example, in 1992, Lenora Fulani received $2,011,929.42 in primary season matching funds. In 1995 the FEC determined that she had been overpaid $612,557.32. Upon reconsideration, however, the FEC lowered the overpayment determination to $117,269.54.
Johnson received $632,017 in 2012 primary season matching funds. Thanks to Thomas Knapp for the link to the April 2016 document.
It’s amazing that government agencies can declare an error YEARS after the fact, THEIR error, and expect their victims to pay for the error. If there were any justice to their claims, then the person(s) who made the error would pay for the cost to the taxpayers.
This seems very unjust. The burden should not be upon the candidate/campaign.
It wasn’t an error on the part of the FEC.
It is based on a compulsory audit which found that AFTER Johnson received the money, he used it for non-qualified campaign expenses.
That is on the campaign… not a mistake by the FEC.
So Chris… it wasn’t a government agency declaring years after the fact… they declared it the same year as it happened… then after Johnson argued against the decision they reviewed it and found that they were correct and he still owed the money back.
J.R. the burden should of course be on the Candidate/Campaign. They are asking for and received money based on a set guidelines and rules… they are taking hundreds of thousands if not millions of dollars from the Federal Government with little more than a promise that they will use that money exactly how it was intended.
If they use it within the structure which is clearly laid out before they even request the money, they don’t have to repay any… but what they misuse they have to give back… why shouldn’t that be on them?