Ward 2 Benefits From Evans's Closed PAC

Council Member Donates Balance in Fund to Local Democratic Organization

When D.C. Council member Jack Evans (D-Ward 2) closed his political action committee last week, he donated all the money in its coffers -- $32, 490.16 -- to the ward's Democratic Party organization.

For the Ward 2 Democrats, it was like winning the lottery.

"We have never had this kind of money," said Linda Greenan, former chairman of the Ward 2 Democrats. "We had about $5,000 in our treasury. We felt rich."

Most of the eight ward organizations in the District operate with budgets of between $2,000 and $3,000 a year and must raise money to conduct voter registration drives, pay for postage and mailings and host events to educate their constituents.

This year in the city, five major Democratic candidates are vying to replace Mayor Anthony A. Williams, and there are races for council chairman and six other council seats. Greenan said she and the Ward 2 Democrats' new chairman, Wayne Dickson, had been brainstorming about letters for a direct mail campaign to raise money for the group when Evans contributed the money.

"I just e-mailed Wayne last week, 'How's fundraising going?' " Greenan recalled. When he replied with news of Evans's contribution, "I said, 'Wow!' " she said.

The $32,490.16 was the balance of the D.C. Fund Political Action Committee, formerly known as the JackPAC, when its officers terminated the fund April 3.

The D. C. Office of Campaign Finance launched a review of the fund last fall to determine whether the PAC's operations violated D.C. laws or regulations. In an audit released last week, the agency questioned several reporting irregularities but determined that the fund was in compliance.

The audit also concluded that Evans had not violated the law by controlling the finances of the political action committee for more than a decade. Evans had used the PAC to make political contributions and to reimburse himself for entertainment and travel expenses totaling thousands of dollars.

One expense the audit recommended that Evans repay was $6,772.72 for the travel and lodging expenses of Marsha Ralls, a close friend and Georgetown art gallery owner, who had accompanied Evans and other District officials on a trade mission to Asia in 2004.

Evans maintains that he did not violate any campaign finance laws when he used the fund to pay some of Ralls's expenses for the China trip, but he repaid the money last week.

He said the D.C. Fund decided to give the balance in its coffers to his ward organization because he knew it was permitted under campaign finance law.

"We chose the Ward 2 Democrats because that's the ward I represent," Evans said.

Other wards were open to accepting contributions.

"Everyone would welcome it," said Anita Bonds, chairman of the Ward 5 Democrats. "If Jack's got any more money hanging around and wants to forge a sister-relationship with Ward 5, we're there."

Mary Parham Wolfe, president of the Ward 8 Democrats, said the group's funds have fluctuated over the past decade between $200 and $10,000. The group now has about $3,000, she said.

Robert Brandon, chairman of the Ward 3 Democrats, said his organization traditionally has not raised as much money as other wards.

"Our budget is relatively small -- a few thousand a year," he said. "We're kind of a bare-bones operation."