Goodwin says Causey's campaign violates rules in race for Insurance Commissioner

Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin says his opponent hasn't properly reported campaign advertising.

Posted 11:05 p.m. Aug 1, 2012 — Updated 11:05 p.m. Aug 1, 2012

Mark Binker

RALEIGH, N.C. — Insurance Commissioner Wayne Goodwin, a Democrat, charges in a complaint with the State Board of Elections that Republican challenger Mike Causey has violated campaign finance rules.

For those who don't know, Insurance Commissioner is one of 10 statewide independently elected position and will be on the ballot this fall along with candidates for governor and attorney general.

In the complaint, Goodwin alleges that Causey failed to file electronic disclosure reports as candidates who raise more than $5,000 are required to do. And, Goodwin says, Causey has failed to report advertising either purchased or given on his behalf.

Causey, who serves as his campaigns own treasurer, said he did not know about the electronic filing requirement until he got a notice recently from the State Board of Elections.

He said he hadn't heard about the complaint until contacted by WRAL.

Goodwin also charges that Causey did not report ads purchased in Collision Expert News, an industry trade publication for which Causey writes. According to its website, the magazine circulates to more than 6,000 body shops, parts departments and individuals in the insurance industry throughout North Carolina. Goodwin's complaint, which contains a number of exhibits, breaks down along two basic lines:

Ads that appeared with a "paid for" disclaimer do not show up on Causey's reports.
Editorial material that Causey wrote for the publication would seem to further his own candidacy.

A review of Causey's campaign finance statements by WRAL did not identify any ad payments. Causey said that he believed he had reported all ad spending properly by planned to double check after reviewing the complaint.

"If there's something that should have been reported that hasn't been, we'll take care of it," Causey said.

Leveling campaign finance complaints against opponents is not unusual in North Carolina. It tends to get attention from those covering the campaign (witness this blog post) and suggest that ones opponent doesn't know or care about the rules.

"In essence, the complaint is about both fundamental fairness and transparency in our elections," Goodwin said. "He should follow the law and play by the rules the rest of us do."

In an e-mail, Gary Bartlett, director of the State Board of Elections, said his office received Goodwin's complaint Tuesday and is still reviewing it.

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