Pasadena City College: Campaign Finance Report for Board Races

This year, voters in odd-numbered areas will elect four members to represent them on the Pasadena Community College Board of Trustees.

By News Desk

We looked up their campaign finance reports on the L.A. County Registrar’s website to find out who donated to whom and what the candidates spent their money on.  Here is a report based on candidates’ filings on California Form 460.

District 1

– Sandra Chen Lau (incumbent)

At the time of this writing, campaign finance reports for Sandra Chen Lau could not be found on the LA County Registar’s website. Before the filing deadline closed for candidates to file, on March 7,  the Pasadena City College Faculty Association donated $7000 to Chen Lau’s campaign. Currently, Chen Lau is running unopposed.

District 3

– Berlinda Brown (incumbent)

As of April 23, Berlinda Brown raised $13,850, which includes a $3,000 loan to herself. She spent $2536 on mailers and yard signs. At the time of this writing, campaign finance reports for the second filing period from April 24-May 21 could not be found on the L.A. County Registrar’s website.

– Brown’s April 23 CA Form 460 Jan 1-April 23, 2022

Brown’s donors include

• Retired dean of Academic Affairs at Pasadena City College Dr. Jackie Jacobs and her husband: $1000
• Pasadena Unified School Board member Scott Phelps: $500
• Former mayor of Pasadena Terry Tornek: $200
• Seven individuals sharing the same last name as Brown

– Steve Gibson (challenger)

As of May 21, Steve Gibson raised $22,503.

Gibson’s donors include:

• Faculty Association of Pasadena City College: $10,000
• ACT Political: $2000
• Democrats of Pasadena Foothills: $1000
• Daniel Haley, retired PCC librarian: $1000
• Professors, retirees, local scientists, and other local individuals, including Pasadena Councilwoman Jess Rivas

Gibson spent $19,478 on campaign supplies (yard signs, mailers, ads), and a $900 payment to L.A .County Registrar for a campaign statement in the sample ballot publication.

– Gibson’s CA Form 460 Jan 1- April 23, 2022

– Gibson’s CA Form 460 April 23-May 21, 2022

District 5

– Linda Wah (incumbent)

As of May 21, Linda Wah received $44,947 in monetary contributions and loaned herself $20,000. Her donors include retirees, political staffers and politicians (Judy Chu, Thomas Wong, Denise Menchaca, Laura Friedman, John Chiang and others), educational administrators and trustees, engineers, consultants and realtors, and her own $7000 donation.

As of May 21, Wah spent $52,066, mostly on campaign mailers ($33,834),

Consultant Hrag Yedalian ($9925) and Political Data Inc. (PDI): $3400. PDI consolidates publicly available voter data from the LA County Registrar’s Office into a database for phone-banking, canvassing and mailing. There is also an expense in the amount of $13,608 for “multiple expenditures on credit card for campaign” with reference to an attached sheet, but at the time of this writing, no itemized attachment was found.

– Wah’s April 23 CA Form 460 Jan 1-April 23, 2022

– Wah’s May 21 CA Form 460 April 24-May 21, 2022

– Kristine Kwong (challenger)

As of May 21, Kristine Kwong received $97,778 and has loaned herself $20,000.

Kwong’s top donors are

• The Faculty Association of Pasadena City College: $15,000
• Kwong family members: $11,500
• Wayne Lee Development, Inc: $10,000
• Marion DeLellis: $5000
• LA/Orange County Building & Construction Trades Council: $2500
• Current Designed: $2500
• ADAPPS, Inc. $2000
• ACT: $2000
• Michelle LaMar: $2000
• International Union of Operating Engineers: $1500
• Lawrence Tan $1500
• Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters: $1000
• Democrats of Pasadena Foothills: $1000
• Several individuals who donated $1000

Fellow attorneys, accountants, lawyers, acupuncturists, retirees, and educators also donated to the campaign. Between January 1 and May 21, Kwong spent $65,192 for campaign expenses, including consultants, website, yard signs, slate mailers and campaign lit.

• HSG Campaigns for Consulting and other expenses: $16,353
• HSG Campaigns for yard signs and campaign lit: $32,689
• HSG Website: $3500
• HSG: doorhangers: $4480
• HSG: consulting $2000
• William Hacket consultant: $10,000
• Winning Margins: $3000 field organizing
• Political Reporting Plus, accounting: $2031

– Kwong’s CA Form 460 Jan 1-April 23

– Kwong’s CA Form 460 April 24-May 21

District 7

– Anthony Fellow (incumbent)

As of April 23, Anthony Fellow loaned himself $7,000. From April 23-May 21, eight individuals added $1200, and he lent himself another $10,200. According to his first filing, Fellow spent $5,442 on slate mailer voter guides, for example Firefighters Voter Guide and Asian American Pacific Islander Voter Guide.  In the second reporting period, Fellow spent $14,253 on campaign expenses for yard signs, mailings and more slate mailers.

– Fellow’s CA Form 460 Jan 1-April 23

– Fellow’s CA Form 460 April 24-May 21

– Alton Wang (challenger)

As of May 21, Alton Wang received $65,330 in monetary contributions, in addition to a loan to himself of $4000.

Wang’s top donors are

• $15,587 transferred over from his Arcadia School Board race account
• The Faculty Association of Pasadena City College: $12,000
• LA/Orange Counties Construction Trades Council: $2500
• ACT: $2000
• International Union of Operating Engineers: $1500
• Dan Haley, retired librarian of PCC: $1000
• Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters: $1000
• International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers: $1000
• Democrats of Pasadena Foothills: $1000
• Phillip Hu: $1000
• Audrey Long: $1018
• Daphne Kwok, an Asian American & Pacific Islander (AAPI) strategist at AARP: $1000
• Planned Parenthood: $600

From January 1 to April 23, Wang spent $17,467, and from April 23 to May 21, he spent $22,953 on campaign expenses like mailers, postage, banking and credit card processing fees, worker’s comp. insurance, and Political Data Inc (PDI).

– Wang’s CA Form 460 Jan 1- April 23,2022

– Wang’s CA Form 460 April 24-May 21, 2022