An alert reader posted this in the comments to a candidate question last night about public financing:

Of course public funding is good for these candidates. How else can you enrich yourselves and your drinking buddies with public funds?

Take John Branam for example. First week he received his public funds he wrote a check to his campaign manager and friend Phil Busse for $16,000. Now either Busse is being back paid (which is illegal) or he’s being paid about $7000 a month for his work.

Check the public records if you need more info. Given that Busse was forced out of the Mercury for plagiarism I find it hard to believe that his “political operative” experience warrants him being paid probably in the upper echelons of political consultants here in the NW.

Regardless, since 16 grand is what Emily Boyles paid her daughter for “work” I find this spending of public funds very strange. John Branam please explain.

Indeed, Busse was paid $15,000 on February 28. Branam was certified—and able to spend more than the $15,255 he collected in $5 contributions and seed money—on February 21, with the $134,745 check issued on February 27.

I asked Busse and/or Branam to respond. Busse jumped into the comments, addressing the plagiarism and “forced out” allegations (saying they’re both untrue, the worst he’s guilty of is sloppy journalism), but skirting the back pay issue—and saying he’ll be paid $25,000 for the primary period:

And yes, my salary is public and well-earned. It is far less than I made as attorney, but far more than I made at the Mercury. It will amount to roughly $25,000 for the primary season.

Thanks for your interest and misguided accusations.

Phil Busse

The problem is—and I’ve got a call in to the Auditor to double check this—you can’t back pay your staff for work they did earlier in the campaign. That would have generated an “accounts payable” transaction, and those can’t exceed the money you’ve got in the bank from $5 contributions and seed money. (The Branam campaign had no wiggle room for an accounts payable from those initial contributions—my quick calculation shows they spent $15,670.48 pre-certification, a bit more than they’d actually collected.)

I’ve geeked out on city code after the cut, if you want to go in depth on this issue.

It’s possible Busse is simply being paid $15,000 (or $25,000, as he says) only going forward. But that works out to $8,333 a month from February 28—really, the first day Branam could start paying solid wages—to the May 20 primary.

To put that in context, that’s about twice as much as the campaign manager for Adams’ campaign. Dozono’s campaign manager has picked up about $8,000 for two months work.

In Branam’s own race, Amanda Fritz’s campaign manager—working since early January—grosses $3500 a month, as does Chris Smith’s manager.

Jeff Bissonnette’s manager got a $1200 check for six week’s work (before he picked up his city check, so that was from $5 contributions; I’ve got a call in to see if the rate has changed now that they’re certified She makes $3250 a month). Charles Lewis’ manager picks up $1500 a month.

I’ve asked Busse & Branam for further explanation.

From the city code governing public financing. Emphasis is mine:

C. Prohibited Uses. Revenues distributed to a Certified Candidate from the Campaign Finance Fund may not be:

1. Used to make any Expenditures for personal use prohibited by ORS Chapter 260 and Oregon Administrative Rules, including but not limited to:

a. Salary or payment to a Person, unless the Person is providing bona fide services to the campaign and is compensated at fair market value;

...

6. Used to pay for consulting services to a Person, unless the Person is providing bona fide services to the campaign and is compensated at fair market value;

As for back payment, that would fall under accounts payable. Here's the law and definition of that:

A. "Accounts Payable" means an amount owed to a creditor for the purchase of goods or services, or a pledge to make a Contribution, whether or not enforceable. A purchase is made when the obligation is first incurred, even if an invoice is not received until a later time. The date an order for goods or services is placed is the date an obligation is first incurred. The obligation for media buys is incurred when the media time is reserved. For the purposes of City Code Chapter 2.10, an Accounts Payable is considered an Expenditure.

B. The declaration of intent shall specify that the Candidate agrees:

...5. That after filing a declaration of intent and before becoming a Certified Candidate, a Candidate may not:

a. Accept Contributions, except for Qualifying Contributions as described in Section 2.10.070, or Seed Money Contributions and In-Kind Contributions as described in Section 2.10.050 ; or

b. Make campaign Expenditures from funds other than Qualifying Contributions and Seed Money Contributions. A Candidate who has filed a declaration of intent may not make Expenditures from funds received prior to filing the declaration; or

c. Incur Accounts Payable that exceed the total amount of available Seed Money or Qualifying Contributions.

G. To be eligible to become a Certified Candidate,

1. A Candidate shall not make campaign Expenditures from funds other than Qualifying Contributions as described in Section 2.10.070 and Seed Money Contributions as described in Section 2.10.050 during the applicable Qualifying Period.

2. A Candidate shall not incur Accounts Payable during the Qualifying Period unless the Candidate has sufficient Qualifying Contributions and Seed Money Contributions to repay the Accounts Payable.