Millersville fire board member fined for distributing campaign fliers

The Missouri Ethics Commission fined a member of the Millersville Rural Fire District board of directors $1,100 in connection with campaign fliers distributed during the last election.

In April, campaign fliers endorsing Janice Robertson, who successfully challenged incumbent fire board member Lori Aufdenburg, were distributed to Millersville residents in their monthly water bills.

Aufdenburg filed a complaint with the ethics commission shortly before the election. In an Aug. 12 decision, the commission found that Robertson and John Haimes, a member of the Public Water Supply District No. 2 board, violated state laws in distributing the fliers.

According to the facts laid out in the written ruling, Robertson entered the water district office with a box of fliers she had paid for and asked the board to enclose them in water bills for April.

The matter was discussed and it was decided that the district's money would not be used to send the fliers, but the clerk, who gets an hourly wage of $11, inserted the flier into the monthly billing statements.

It took about 10 hours to do the mailing, and the cost of postage and envelopes for 500 mailings came out to about $328.70.

Both Haimes and Robertson stipulated the facts highlighted in the ruling.

Haimes received a letter of reprimand from the commission saying the water district board erred in using public funds to stuff the fliers into envelops and mail them to residents.

Robertson was fined $1,100 for failing to mark the fliers as "paid for by candidate" and in not reporting the $328.70 as a campaign contribution.

Robertson disagreed with the decision in a phone interview Wednesday, saying the distribution of the fliers did not cost the water district any extra money. She declined further comment on the commission's decision.

Haimes did not return a call seeking comment.

bdicosmo@semissourian.com

388-3635