SettleTalk.com

Campaign finance reports for all candidates on the November 6 primary ballot were due by Tuesday October 9. The reports cover the period from March 1 through September 27.

Candidates for Council District A face incumbent Willie Bradford. He had $1203 at the beginning of the reporting period and he raised $9265. After expenditures, he had $3295 in campaign funds.

Rose Wilson McCulloch was the incumbent in 2014, Bradford beat her in a runoff. McCulloch listed $1948 at the beginning of the reporting period and $478 at the end.

Both District A candidates Llyod Anderson and Cortex Collins did not have a report on the Ethics Administration website as of date.

Council District B is an open seat. The incumbent Jeff Everson is term limited.

Levette Fuller lead all candidates with $10,900 in fund raising. She had $1178 in funds at the end of the reporting period.

Wendy Vance raised $4220 and spent $4008, leaving $412 in the campaign account.

James Carstensen collected $1440 in contributions and had $972 at the reporting time.

Craig Lee had contributions of $600. He loaned his campaign $900 and he had a $300 balance.

District C is an open seat because Oliver Jenkins is term limited.

John Nickelson raised $40,775 in the reporting period. He also had in-kind contributions of $436. These contributions are more than any other local candidate except for Adrian Perkins and Ollie Tyler. Nickelson had campaign funds of $24,967 at the end of the period, with one loan of $383.

Patick Kirton raised $12,567 in contributions and he had $1618 in funds in his campaign account.

The last District C candidate Joseph Carstensen showed $10 in contributions and $10 in remaining funds.

District D is also an open seat. Mike Corbin is term limited.

Grayson Boucher raised $9450 and had in kind contributions of $750. Boucher had $2407 at the end of the reporting period, and one loan of $3,097.

Keith Hanson”s report showed $6830 in contributions and $1591 on hand.

Versa “V.O.” Clark campaign report showed a loan of $2418 and a balance on hand of $414.

The last candidate in this race is Joey Hester. His report showed no money raised and no money spent.

District E incumbent James Flurry is challenged by Quinton Aught. Flurry had $2054 at the beginning of the reporting period. He raised $15,920 and he had $6753 in his campaign account at the end of the period.

Aught’s report showed $769 in contributions which had all been spent.

District F is a re-match between Stephanie Lynch and James Green, who she defeated in 2104.

Lynch did not have a report online as of October 18. Green showed contributions of $2115 which had all been spent.

Campaign contributions to Council candidates are low by all standards, just like those in the mayor’s race.

NOTE: This author contributed to the Bradford and Flurry campaigns. He has not been on any campaign committees.

Steven Jackson’s mayor campaign billboards tout him as the “Champion for the Community”. Maybe the message should be “Champion for my boss”.

Jackson has been employed by David Raines Community Health Center (DRCHC) since the spring of 2015. He was elected to the Caddo Commission in December 2015. He took office in January 2016.

The David Raines Community Health Center and the David Raines Community Center are separate entities housed in the same building, which is owned by Caddo Parish.

In 2017 Jackson was the Commission president. He voted in December 2017 to approve parish funds for 2018 upkeep and maintenance of the building housing his employer DRCHC.

The vote by Jackson is prohibited by Louisiana law. It is an obvious conflict of interest to vote to appropriate funds than benefit your employer.

This should be a no brainer—especially for a college educated elected official with a masters degree. On top of that, Jackson worked two years as an executive assistant for former Shreveport mayor Cedric Glover.

Jackson could have participated in the 2018 budget discussions if he had disclosed his conflict prior to his discussion. The ethics code mandates that Jackson should have recused himself from this vote. He did not.

As an elected official Jackson is required to take a minimum of one hour of education and training in the Code of Ethics each year he is in office. The online records of the Board of Ethics show that Jackson did not take his ethics hour in 2016. He did complete the 2017 training. He has until the end of the year to complete the 2018 training.

Jackson’s vote on David Raines is seemingly reflective of an attitude that “laws do not apply to me.”

He was cited twice last year for the same offenses involving the same car—expired Motor Vehicle Inspection (MVI) certificate and no liability insurance. He also had one citation for switched license plates.

Earlier this year he drove a different car for several months with no liability insurance and an expired MVI.

Jackson also held a mayoral campaign announcement event at Proud Mary’s Restaurant, which is a building owned by the City of Shreveport. The city lease clearly prohibited this event. Proud Mary’s had been advised of the “no political activity” lease provisions prior to the party.

Jackson wants to be the next mayor of Shreveport and manage a budget approaching $500 million dollars. And this does not include planned water and sewer upgrades financed by revenues bond that will exceed $300 million bucks.

Jackson’s campaign push card for mayor touts his progressive leadership enacting “stronger ethics and transparency on the Caddo Commission”. Evidently he forgot to look in the mirror while reciting his civic accomplishments.

Although the latest mayoral campaign reports are somewhat dated, they certainly provide important insight into the campaigns of Ollie Tyler, Adrian Perkins, Jim Taliaferro, Steven Jackson and Lee O. Savage.

The reports were due on Tuesday of this week. They reflect campaign finances from March 1 of this year through September 27. Thus campaign financial activities in the last 12 (plus) days are not available.

The next campaign reports are due October 29 for the reporting period of September 28 through October 17. The primary election is Tuesday, November 6.

The largest cash fundraiser in the reporting period was Adrian Perkins ($132,004 and no in kind contribution). Tyler had cash donations of $114,485 and in kind contributions of $5,838.

These two outclassed Taliaferro ($31,415 cash and $6,066 in kind), Jackson ($25,306 cash and $4,700 in kind) and Savage ($9,855 cash, $6,297 in kind and paraphernalia sales $2,655).

As far as cash on hand, Tyler held the upper hand at $93,557. She had retained funds of $33,386 at the start of the current reporting period. Perkins had $71,966 at the end of the reporting period.

The totals for the others fall off substantially. Jackson’s funds on hand were $23,139, followed by Taliaferro at $6956 and Savage at $3605.

Savage had loaned his campaign $21,246. Other loans include Jackson of $5500 to his effort and Taliaferron $600 to his campaign.

Tyler benefitted greatly from her status as an incumbent. Her reports shows contributions from city contractors/vendors/appointees exceeding $60 thousand dollars.

As far as heavy hitter donors, Perkins had 20 contributions of $2500 (the max) compared to Tyler’s 23. Perkins had more contributors (39) in the $1000—$2499 range than Tyler (27).

Perkins had a total of 216 contributors and Tyler had 158 contributors. Of these Perkins had 20 outside of Shreveport Bossier in Louisiana and 52 from out of state. Tyler had 23 donors outside Shreveport Bossier in the state and 9 out of state donors.

In state contributions for Perkins outside of Shreveport Bossier were $16,653 compared to Tyler’s donations of $17,620. Their out of state contributions were almost equal. Perkins raised $14,590 and Tyler had $16,000.

Money does not vote, but money does affect many votes. More importantly, the reports often influence additional contributions by many political observers who trying to pick a campaign “winner.” Additionally the campaign reports can either boost or dampen campaign momentum.

NOTE: This author has not contributed to any mayoral campaign. He not/has not been on any candidate campaign committees nor does he appears on any campaign finance reports. He has not endorsed any mayoral candidate.

(This article was published in The Shreveport Times on Sunday, October 14, 2018)

Political reality eventually sinks in on even the most hardheaded candidates. Whether or not it has with mayoral candidate Steven Jackson is still an open question. But he should have gotten a big hint this week.

Many political “movers and shakers” attend the monthly meetings of the North Shreveport Business Association (NSBA). Its common for the 100 plus tickets to the luncheon to sell out with a waiting list for cancellations. Such was the case for the mayoral forum on Tuesday (Oct 8).

The NSBA Board decided to only invite 4 candidates. And guess who did not make the cut? Jackson.

Invitations were extended to Ollie Tyler, Adrian Perkins, Jim Taliaferro and Lee O. Savage. The Board considered the most likely candidates to make the run off and limited participation to allow more time for questions to be answered.

Although invited, Savage did not appear. He did not notify anyone that he would be absent, nor provide an explanation before the meeting. He subsequently has posted on social media that he was out of town.

Although Jackson was at the meeting, he was not named as a substitute for Savage. He left the meeting early.

Jackson’s campaign has been marked by ups and downs. And there are more downs than ups.

He kicked off his mayoral bid in June by having an announcement at Proud Mary’s—a venue that was prohibited by its lease from having such an event.

In August, Jackson held a press conference to announce that a threatening flyer was posted on the family home owned by Jackson and his sister. Jackson does not live at that residence.

Two days after this “made for TV” press conference, he turned over the notice to the Louisiana State Police. He stated he did not trust the Caddo Sheriff or the Shreveport Police Department to make an appropriate investigation.

Jackson and his employer the David Raines Community Health Center have refused to answer questions concerning his campaign activities during the business day while on the payroll. His employer is funded with federal dollars.

Jackson was the Commission president in 2107. In December of that year he voted to fund the upkeep and maintenance of the building that houses the health center. Most politicos consider this vote to be a blatant violation of state ethics laws.

There is less than a month to the November 6 primary vote for Shreveport mayor. Its time for forums to be limited to obvious frontrunners.

The NSBA Board was wise in taking this course. Their decision to not invite Jackson was an exercise in good judgment.

Hopefully Shreveport voters will follow course and limit their consideration to serious contenders. Jackson is not in that group.

It’s one thing to say that you believe in yourself, and another to virtually underwrite your campaign. But no one ever accused Lee O. Savage of being a “traditional” political candidate.

Savage has loaned his campaign $21,246.75.

Savage had $3605 campaign funds on hand as of September 27. He has raised only $7200 in contributions.

He had sales of campaign paraphernalia of $2655.

His campaign expenses were $27,496.

He did not have any max $2500 cash contributions and only one cash donation between $1000-$2499.

It may be too early to turn off the lights, but mayoral hopeful Jim Taliaferro’s campaign is almost out of gas.

Taliaferro had campaign funds on hand as of September 27 of only $6956. He has raised $31,415 during this race.

Taliaferro had two max contributions of $2,500. He had one other contribution of $1,000.

Shreveport Republicans are notoriously big on talk but short on funding candidates. Taliaferro, who is the poster child of the Republican hierarchy , is a perfect example.

Mayoral candidate Steven Jackson is long on talk, but short on funds for his campaign.

Jackson has only raised $25,306 for his mayoral race. He has loans of $5500.

Jackson has receipts on hand as of September 27 of $23,139.

Jackson had one max contribution of $2,500. He had 12 contributions of $1,000 to $2,499.

His report confirms that his chances of making a run off are basically slim to none.

Upstart mayoral candidate Adrian Perkins has had great success in raising campaign funds.

His campaign report indicates that he has raised more money this year that incumbent mayor Ollie Tyler.

Perkins has total receipts of $132,004.17 as compared to Tyler’s receipts of $120,323.28

He had funds on hand at the end of the reporting period of $71,966.81. Tyler had $93,557.58; she had funds carry over from last year.

Perkins had 28 contributors of the max donation of $2500. Tyler had 27 max donations.

Perkins had 38 contributions of $1000 to $2499. In this range Tyler had 25.

To say that Perkins has made major inroads in getting local support is an understatement.

He was a virtual unknown when he kicked off his campaign in late April no doubt Perkins is on a roll. This campaign fundraising should spur many others who regularly contribute to political races to contribute to his race.

 

Well, if you don’t have a clue what fantasy sports are, then your answer is probably a big “what?” If you are one of the thousands or maybe hundreds of thousands of sports fans who love to “wager”, not gamble, on sports games, then you are probably all in.

 

In fact, you may be saying what’s the big deal—I am already in several pools with money awards.

 

And if you have lost sleep worrying about going to jail over your favorite hobby of trying to beat
“the spread”, on November 6 you will definitely want to vote “yes” on the Louisiana Fantasy Sports Contests Act.

 

Fantasy sports are popular across the nation including Louisiana. In fantasy football leagues contestants create teams by “drafting” players to fill out different positions on their rosters. A contestant’s roster is comprised of players from different teams across the league. Each player scores points for their fantasy team during the week or over the course of a season based on player stats.

 

Contestants often pool money for prizes. There are several varieties of fantasy sports. Generally the activity focuses on player performance rather than outcomes of the games.

 

The legislation defines “fantasy sports contests” as simulation sports games played through the internet or mobile devices in which participants create teams based on the current rosters of actual amateur or professional sports teams and win prizes and awards.

 

The act was designed to prevent the authorization of fantasy sports contestant from allowing a way to bet on real-world sporting events . It specifically excludes fantasy games that are based on (a) the results of any real sports team or (b0) the performance of any individual athletes in a real sporting event.

 

The votes are tabulated by each parish, and thus approval is by parish. Under this act internet and mobile device fantasy sports contests would be permitted in any parish that votes for it.

 

But guess what? State laws and regulations must first be adopted before these contests become legal. This means sports junkies will be held in ‘betting suspense’ pending favorable action by the Louisiana Legislature next year (hopefully in regular session). After that, the Gaming Control Board must establish regulations for enforcement by the Louisiana State Police.

 

The author of the state wide proposition pitched legalizing fantasy sports as a way to raise money for Louisiana without increasing traditional taxes. The new law does not deal with what fees or taxes fantasy sports entities might pay the state. All other forms of leagal gambling in Louisiana are taxed at relatively high rates.

 

The ballot proposal is silent on whether “traditional” fantasy sport leagues, usually played between friends and coworkers , are or will be legal if passed. The smartphone apps offer daily fantasy sports games played against strangers, rather than season-long leagues. The apps enable fans to play multiple games and spend money more easily than traditional sports setups.

 

Fantasy sports games are legal in Louisiana if no wagering is involved. Several websites such as ESPN and Yahoo allow people to sign up for fantasy sports for no charge and without any related prizes for winning.

 

Those that support fantasy sports online betting argue that people already bet on fantasy football and similar games. Parish approval allows for regulation by state and local government as well as additional government income. Participants in the approved fantasy contest will have appeal rights for complaints.

 

Opponents of legalizing online fantasy sports betting argue that this is an expansion of gambling in the state—plain and simple no matter how it is tagged. Gambling contributes to financial and family issues which increase governmental costs to society which should not be encouraged.

 

For those who want to gamble, then Draftking, Fanduel and other online sites are not currently available for Louisiana residents. Other states that do not allow this internet gambling are Alabama, Arizona, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Montana, Nevada, and Washington state.

 

Nationally sports betting was illegal for many years with the exception of a few states like Nevada. In May 2018 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the federal ban on sports betting was unconstitutional. The ruling that the ban violated the rights of states opened sports betting for all other states.

 

The sports fantasy bill does not address fantasy betting in casinos or other locations on actual sports events. The Supreme Court decision opened the door to this type of gambling. This laws does not address this style of wagering, so more legislative action can be expected in the next session.

 

Daily fantasy sports (DFS) is included in the parish ballot proposal. DFS is a subset of fantasy sports games played across a short period of time.

 

Currently fantasy sports games featuring an entry fee and prizes are illegal in Louisiana. Additionally all online gambling is illegal in this state. All this could change next year, depending on the votes in each parish.

(This article was published in The Forum on Tuesday, October 9, 2018)

All candidates for political office have a campaign finance report that must be filed by Tuesday, October 9.

Shreveport Mayor Ollie Tyler is the only mayoral candidate whose report is presently online.

Tyler has campaign receipts of $120,323.28. The total disbursements $54,314.04.

As of the close of the reporting period, campaign funds on hand were $93,557.58. Tyler started the year with contributions left over from her 2014 campaign as well as additional donations after her election.

The maximum contribution for this year during the primary is $2500. There are 27 max donations listed in the report.

There were 25 contributions listed in amounts of $1,000 to $2,499.

As can be expected most of the contributions are from companies and individuals that have contracts with the City of Shreveport. Such is the power of the incumbency.

The entire Tyler report is available here.