Well, at last we know. County Split opponents Joan Leon and former County Supervisor Toru Miyoshi called a press conference recently to announce that the 2003 and 2004 income tax statements had become available for Citizens for County Organization (CFCO), the North County group behind the movement to split the county.
According to the April 14, 2006, article in the Santa Maria Times, in October, 2003, CFCO took out a loan of $212,500, money that primarily went to fund the collection of signatures to trigger the study into the feasibility of a county split and place it on the June 6 ballot.
The big news here is that Leon and Miyoshi report that Jim Diani, of A. J. Diani Company, personally backed this $212,500 loan.
Then, in February, 2004, Diani loaned CFCO $19,000 to fund operating expenses. (See also the May 8, 2006, Santa Maria Sun article.)
Leon said that "CFCO passed off its efforts as a 'grassroots campaign,' so she was surprised that almost all of the funding had come directly from Diani and a large loan personally backed by Diani."
Diani said, "Regardless of the circumstances, this isn't an issue that Jim Diani created . . . ."
Sure looks like it from here.
One Tin Soldier
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