WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Former councilman: Ethics Commission debt is a "mistake"

Former councilman: Ethics Commission debt is a "mistake"

By Jody Barr - email

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - The man who the South Carolina Ethics Commission says owes more than $500,000 to the state is speaking out.

Richard Johnson was born and raised in Eastover. He decided to run for a council seat in 2000, after friends suggested he do so.

"It really actually took me 4 years to actually learn the process, because someone new coming in don't understand all the different structures; it's a process," said Johnson.

Part of that process was learning ethics laws and ethics forms, something Johnson says he depended on the town's election commission for help.

"I thought everything was good to go because we go to town hall to pick up our paperwork and we're to turn it in to town hall," said Johnson.

In 2005, the State Ethics Commission notified Johnson that he owed thousands of dollars in fines for failing to turn in ethics forms. The commission says Johnson failed to file forms in 2004, 5, and 6.

Johnson now owes more than $533,000 dollars. He says there's no way he'll ever be able to pay off that kind of debt.

Johnson says the commission made a mistake and the elections he won are proof.

"Yes, because the only way a person's name can be placed on the ballot, all documents have to be up to date and turned in fully," said Johnson.

State law requires public officials to file ethics forms.   If they're one day late, it's a $100 fine for each form.

"I sent them in some copies I had at the time, after I had turned it in to town hall, all the paperwork, but they said that those were just copies of it and they said it was something they couldn't use," said Johnson.

Johnson's not alone.

The commission fined State Treasurer Converse Chellis $100 for filing an ethics form one day late.

Chellis says his form was on time, and the commission didn't send him a notice until this past February, more than a year later.

Chellis went ahead and paid his fine, but says he will prove to the commission he filed his form on time.

The commission says it made several attempts to contact Johnson and other officials on the debtors list to clear up the fines.

Johnson says he answered their calls and even drove to the commission's office to work it out.

The commission continues hitting Johnson daily with a $400 fine.

Still he says, he doesn't regret serving his town.

"It wasn't about no personal gain or no money for being," said Johnson. "You got to have a love for the community to do it and yes, if I have to be the scapegoat to bring about changes and to bring about help to the community, so be it."

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