Union pressure pays off as FPPC opens new investigations into Sonoma County Board Supervisor David Rabbit
Thursday, November 20, SEIU 1021 — the union representing thousands of Sonoma County’s social workers, street maintenance crews, veteran services staff, airport operations specialists, and more — released that the Fair Political Practices Commission (FPPC) will investigate Sonoma County Supervisor David Rabbitt for possible ethics violations.
The ethics complaint alleges that Supervisor Rabbit violated pay-to-play (Levine Act) campaign finance restrictions tied to the County’s attempted purchase of the office buildings at 400 Aviation Blvd., Santa Rosa. That purchase would have committed more than $65 million of taxpayer dollars for a facility that county workers, community leaders, and independent analysis agreed was overpriced and moved county services further away from constituents.
Our union notes that the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors recently voted not to proceed with the purchase of the 400 Aviation Blvd. office complex, an outcome that should be attributed in part to the robust advocacy of our members and community allies, as well as scrutiny of Supervisor Rabbitt’s role in the deal. The FPPC’s decision to investigate the alleged ethics violations underscores what SEIU 1021 has asserted all along — that public officials must be held to the highest standards of transparency, accountability, ethics, and stewardship of taxpayer resources. With the investigations now underway, we expect full cooperation from the County and a thorough review of Supervisor Rabbitt’s political contributions to identify other potential pay-to-play violations.
“The FPPC’s decision to investigate confirms what SEIU 1021 has been sounding the alarm about for the past year — that Supervisor Rabbitt may have violated the law when he solicited and accepted campaign contributions from a party set to benefit from the county’s acquisition of an overpriced luxury office building,” said SEIU 1021 Regional Vice President Travis Balzarini. “State ethics laws exist for a reason, and no official should be above them. Supervisor Rabbitt’s conduct shows a troubling disregard for taxpayers and candor to the public. Sonoma County needs transparency and accountability, not backroom deals with politically connected developers.”
SEIU 1021 remains committed to monitoring this matter closely. We urge the FPPC to move swiftly, and we call on local leaders to commit to rigorous oversight and review of Supervisor Rabbitt’s political contributions, so that county contracts are grounded in the public interest and not what is best for political donors. The taxpayers of Sonoma County deserve nothing less.