Arizona: Sca

Under threat of a $315,000 fine from the Maricopa County Elections Department, Captain Joel Fox of MCSO finally stopped stonewalling and divulged the names of contributors to the Sheriff's Command Association or SCA.  Developer, former  owner of the Phoenix Coyotes hockey team, and close pal of Sheriff Joe, Steve Ellman was one of the largest contributors.  A lot of out of state money was involved, as well as payroll deductions from the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office.  Some of these contributions may well be illegal.  

Sheriff Joe Arpaio's office is denying any involvement in SCA fund raising activities despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.

by David Safier
Now that the Tucson Weekly has expanded the scope of the STO story from Steve Yarbrough to Bob Stump, let's take a look at how Bob Stump figures in.

One of the two School Tuition Organizations housed in Yarbrough's business condo, School Choice Arizona (SCA), deals only with corporate tax credit donations. Yarbrough has no direct connection with School Choice Arizona, though it pays him rent and uses the services of his company, HY Processing.

In 2007, while Bob Stump was a state representative, School Choice Arizona paid him $57,000 for fundraising. Since SCA raises corporate tax credit money, this meant that Bob Stump was going around to corporations asking them to write checks to SCA.

Members of the "Sheriff's Command Association" didn't intend to spend its $105,000 on political campaigns last fall, says Capt. Joel Fox, the group's only known member and a high-ranking Maricopa County sheriff's deputy.

But that is just how Fox spent the money, making two donations to the Arizona Republican Party totaling that amount. The party listed the association as an individual contributor under the name "SCA."

Fox is appealing a $315,000 fine for what the Maricopa County Recorder's Office has determined were illegal contributions because of his refusal to disclose those who provided the money. The state held a hearing on Wednesday, during which Fox argued that a judge must rule on whether SCA is an illegal political committee before the county can assess any fine.

Arizona Secretary of State Jan Brewer has told the Arizona Republican Party that she wants to know who belongs to the Mesa group SCA by Oct. 31, according to her office.

SCA is at the center of a controversy that was sparked when the group, which is not registered with the Secretary of State's office as a political committee and whose membership has yet to be divulged, contributed $105,000 to the Arizona Republican Party's state fund.