Donor changes his story

Costa Mesa City Council candidate Bill Sneen has filed a complaint against candidate Gary Monahan with the Fair Political Practices Commission for allegedly misrepresenting a large campaign contribution.

The complaint states that Monahan improperly listed $7,000 as a campaign donation from the “Chino Hills Country Club,” while Surat Singh — the man who gave Monahan the money — said it was payment for consulting that Monahan did for him.

Singh owns Angel’s Auto Spa in Costa Mesa and initially said that he gave Monahan the money for helping him develop a country club on a piece of property he owned in the Inland Empire. He later retracted the statement after he found out that Sneen intended to take legal action against Monahan.

When first asked about the donation, Singh told the Pilot that he was paying Monahan for going with him to the city of Chino Hills and helping him lobby for a proposed development.

“He helps me. He works for me whenever I need. We’re doing land development in another city,” Singh said. “It’s not a donation. I’m not so rich I can give donations this big.”

Monahan disputes that claim. He said that he put Singh in touch with former mayor and lobbyist Peter Buffa, for which Buffa gave him a small check, but he never did any direct lobbying on Singh’s behalf.

“I’ve never been on [Singh’s] payroll,” Monahan said. “I don’t have a consulting firm. I don’t consult.”

Singh has since said that the money is a campaign donation.

The IRS taxes income earned for consulting work, but does not tax campaign contributions, and Sneen thinks that one of the men might be skirting tax obligations.

If Singh claims the money as a business expense and Monahan claims it as a campaign donation, neither man would have to pay taxes on it.

“Mr. Monahan should declare the $7,000 as taxable income,” Sneen said in the complaint.

Monahan calls the notion that he’s trying to avoid paying taxes ridiculous. If the money were earned income he would be better served putting it in his own personal bank account rather than putting it toward his campaign, Monahan said.

ALAN BLANK may be reached at (714) 966-4623 or at alan.blank@latimes.com.