Ethics Commission fines former Los Angeles Councilman Koretz

Former City Councilman Paul Koretz was fined $2,500 this week by the Ethics Commission for asking a city commissioner to host a fundraising event for him when he was running for city controller last year.

Koretz, who was termed out of the Los Angeles City Council and ended up losing the city controller race to Kenneth Mejia, sought in 2021 to hold a fundraiser at the home of Jill Banks Barad-Hopkins, a Board of Water and Power commissioner. City commissioners are not allowed to fundraise for candidates running for city office.

Barad-Hopkins had already been fined by the commission for the violation.

The fine, handed down on Wednesday, “demonstrates that the Ethics Commission is committed to upholding the laws that protect the integrity of the electoral process and help to foster public confidence in local government,” according to Jeffrey Daar, president of the Ethics Commission.

The Koretz campaign returned all contributions for the fundraiser voluntarily after it was alerted to the violation, according to the commission.

Koretz ran for city controller after serving on the council for the maximum three terms.

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