Tina Jackson admits ethics violation

Another fine added to the others arising from her 2012 campaign

Also: Jackson stiffs Charlestown Fire District on taxes - Dec. 10 tax auction

Tina Jackson: admits she violated Ethics law

By Will Collette

In the 2012 campaign, Republican Tina Jackson of Charlestown ran against incumbent Democratic state Representative Donna Walsh for the right to represent all of Charlestown and Block Island, plus portions of Westerly and South Kingstown.

Jackson got thumped. Voters chose Donna Walsh’s proven record of long and faithful service to the community over Tina Jackson’s long and impressive record of arrests and convictions for drugs, bad checks and assault that was revealed in the Westerly Sun and GoLocalProv.

Jackson later was picked by the outgoing Republican state Party Chair to pull a coup d’etat over the existing Republican Town Committee. Jackson’s attempted takeover of the Charlestown Republicans was based on a claim they were not duly registered, even though they were, and that they were inactive, which they weren’t.

During the course of Jackson’s campaign, which is still on-going, since she has kept her Campaign Committee active with the state Board of Elections, Jackson also ignored campaign finance law and ethics requirements.

She failed to file the required ethics disclosure report with the RI Ethics Commission, as well as her financial disclosure reports with the Board of Elections.

I filed a complaint against Jackson over her violations of the state Ethics law. Based on my complaint, the Ethics Commission investigated and determined that, yes indeed, Jackson failed to file. That investigation must have taken about five minutes, max.

Since then, the Ethics Commission has given Jackson the chance to sign a settlement agreement with the Ethics Commission or face harsher action.

On November 19, the issue was settled with Jackson signing the Commission’s finding that she broke the law and agreeing to pay a fine of $100.

And that ain’t all

Jackson faces a lot more trouble with the Board of Elections which cited her for failing to file her last six financial disclosure reports. The fines are now around $2,000 and are increasing daily. 

Tina Jackson (left) claims to be the fishermen's friend...but keeps
mismanaging their organization

Typically, the Board of Elections takes candidates to court when they run up fines in the five figures.

Jackson also violated the law by failing to file the simple, one-page annual report with the Secretary of State for her non-profit lobbying group, the American Alliance of Fishermen and their Community. Secretary of State Ralph Mollis revoked the Alliance’s corporate charter and right to operate in Rhode Island.

Mollis sent the revocation almost a year ago and will entail another fine to fix. 

Because Jackson failed to take care of business, the Coastal Resource Management Council kicked her out of the opposition groups challenging the Deepwater off-shore wind farm. The CRMC cited the Alliance’s revoked ability to do business in Rhode Island as grounds to rule that they lacked standing. 

Hey, maybe she can get Maureen Areglado and the Ill Wind group to stand in for her!

Jackson stiffs the Fire District, faces tax sale

On top of everything else, Tina Jackson showed up in the legal pages of the Westerly Sun on November 19 (page B6 - see left and below) because she failed to pay her taxes to the Charlestown Fire District. Her house at 75 Skagerrak Road is now subject to tax sale when the CFD Tax Collector Rita Deane held a tax auction on December 10.

We'll see if anyone bid on her property.

I for one am looking forward to Tina Jackson’s 2014 campaign, presuming she still lives in Charlestown. Presuming she has been living in Charlestown.