Bainum campaign fined
for radio advertisement
The state Campaign Spending Commission said it will fine mayoral candidate Duke Bainum's campaign $75 for a recent radio advertisement.
In an April 30 letter, commission attorney Grant Tanimoto told the Bainum campaign to pull the advertisement because it does not contain disclaimer language that indicates who paid for the ads and whether the ad is endorsed by the Bainum campaign.
Such disclaimer language is required by law, Tanimoto said.
The ad, part of Bainum's honest government campaign platform, aired on KPOI, KQMQ and KHUI radio stations and featured two local residents who complain in pidgin about sewer spills and potholes on the H-1 Freeway. It also included a voice-over by Bainum urging people to register to vote.
Phyllis Kihara, spokeswoman for the Bainum campaign, said the campaign pulled the ad after receiving the commission's letter. She said the campaign is considering whether to pay the fine or contest it.
Kihara said the ad does not advocate Bainum's mayoral campaign, but is designed as public service announcement to get people to register to vote.
Public service announcements are protected by the First Amendment as free speech and are not regulated by the Campaign Spending Commission as long as they do not advocate or endorse a candidate or identify him directly or indirectly as a candidate.
Prior to airing the ads, the campaign looked at a recent commission advisory opinion on public service announcements and felt that the ad was within legal guidelines, Kihara said.
"We thought that we were following the law," she said.