David Shiah

Lobbyist Benjamin Collings likened late lobbyist report filing fees to parking tickets… can’t the Ethics Commission excuse the first one?

It was a matter that split the four commission members on a vote to waive the $100 late fee. The October report was due at 5 p.m. Collings turned it in at 5:24.

The debate at Friday’s meeting sounded like a street haggle. Members compromised with a $50 fine.

A Skowhegan couple has to pay back nearly $3,000 in Clean Elections funds because they could not provide documentation proving the purchases were actually made.

Paul Hatch ran for Senate in 2006. His wife, Pamela, ran for the House of Representatives, both as Democrats and Clean Elections Act candidates.

Both lost, and both were selected for random audit by the state’s ethics commission.

The audit, which started in June and was released last week, cited them for a number of violations, the most serious of which was that they did not have proofs of purchases for postage and copies they itemized on their reports.