Skip Navigation

Thursday, March 18, 2010

Sanction Season

text size A A A

The Texas Ethics Commission has been criticized for timidly enforcing campaign, lobbying and officeholder rules — and for issuing measly fines that did little to prompt better behavior.

That's changing, however. Just ask Jerry Eversole.

The Harris County Commissioner received a $75,000 fine this summer amid accusations that he used political funds for personal expenses.

It was by far the costliest penalty in the commission's history — but also evidence of a trend towards heftier fines, according to records analyzed by The Texas Tribune.

The commission, for example, levied more than $136,000 in fines last year against both ...

Full Story
Comment Policy

The Texas Tribune is pleased to provide the opportunity for you to share your observations about this story. We encourage lively debate on the issues of the day, but we ask that you refrain from using profanity or other offensive speech, engaging in personal attacks or name-calling, posting advertising, or wandering away from the topic at hand. To comment, you must be a registered user of the Tribune, and your user name will be displayed. Thanks for taking time to offer your thoughts.

You must be logged in to leave a comment. Login | Sign-Up

Comments (0)
  • Be the first to comment on this story!