Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Some legislators won't attend Steve Peace's Maui bash

California politicos leery of this weekend's lobbyist schmooze-fest

Steve Peace
Steve Peace

As most of San Diego's political class stays home toiling away on yet another mayoral election, a former Democratic state senator and his politico pals from Sacramento are soon to wing their way to Maui, where the Independent Voter Project's annual legislator and lobbyist bash is about to get under way.

For years, the event, off limits to reporters and other curious outsiders, has provided a November repast of free food, drinks, lodging, and rounds of golf to worthy California lawmakers — in other words, anybody with a vote in the legislature who wants to claim a nice freebie and can handle a little media heat.

Martin Garrick (photo illustration)

Noted local legislators who have attended past events include North County Republican assemblyman Martin Garrick, who got $1951.34 worth of free hospitality at the 2010 shindig.

As reported here in March 2011:

It wasn’t until the first of February of this year, a month before his financial disclosure was due, that Garrick apparently had second thoughts and reimbursed the Peace group for his own expenses, according to his disclosure, filed March 1.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Garrick spokesman Mike Zimmerman said his boss had always planned to reimburse the independent voter group for his expenses and there was no significance to the fact the payment was not made until February

(Later that year, Garrick partied a bit too hearty in Sacramento, where he was arrested in the capitol garage for drunk driving.)

Peace's Independent Voter Project, a so-called 501(c)(4) nonprofit, played a key role in changing the state's primaries from genteel two-party affairs to wide-open horse races. Staging the Maui event, he insists, is just another way he contributes to good government.

Donors to the party have included the state's prison-guard union, a longtime Peace ally, as well as Southern California Edison, big tobacco’s Altria, Pacific Gas and Electric, the California Beer and Beverage Distributors, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, and Chevron.

Jeff Marston

The Independent Voter group's board includes San Diego lobbyist Jeff Marston and Daniel Howle, Sacramento-based director of public affairs for Lilly USA, a subsidiary of the multinational pharmaceutical firm.

According to the voter project’s 2010 disclosure, Howle’s spouse got a $57,000 “fix fee contract” to “arrange, organize and produce” the event.

In today's Sacramento Bee, Howle is quoted as saying that attendance may be off this year due to the recent FBI raid at the Capitol.

Howle said that no legislative leaders are attending and noted that some members have backed out in the aftermath of a leaked affidavit alleging that Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, accepted bribes from an undercover FBI agent.

Calderon, who attended in past years and had expressed interest to Howle in this year's conference, also decided not to attend.

"I don't think it's wise for me to go," Howle said, paraphrasing lawmakers who have dropped out. "There's too much scrutiny."

Legislators can have their hotel and airfare covered, although Howle said not all of the attendees accept reimbursements.

Dan Howle

Howle wouldn't give up the names of those members expected to show, but he assured the paper that nobody would deign to actually lobby anybody at the event.

"We have some specific rules about what you can do in the panels," Howle said. "You cannot have any discussion about specific legislation or pending legislation."

He did note, however, "that the conference will feature a presentation on a Lilly-backed website that addresses counterfeit medications."

And every party has its pooper:

"It's become an unwelcome tradition for California voters," Phillip Ung of Common Cause said of the annual Maui pilgrimage. "Every year they read about it and every year they're sickened by it."

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Didja know I did the first American feature on Jimi Hendrix?

Richard Meltzer goes through the Germs, Blue Oyster Cult, Ray Charles, Elvis, Lavender Hill Mob
Next Article

2024 continues to impress with yellowfin much closer to San Diego than they should be

New rockfish regulations coming this week as opener approaches
Steve Peace
Steve Peace

As most of San Diego's political class stays home toiling away on yet another mayoral election, a former Democratic state senator and his politico pals from Sacramento are soon to wing their way to Maui, where the Independent Voter Project's annual legislator and lobbyist bash is about to get under way.

For years, the event, off limits to reporters and other curious outsiders, has provided a November repast of free food, drinks, lodging, and rounds of golf to worthy California lawmakers — in other words, anybody with a vote in the legislature who wants to claim a nice freebie and can handle a little media heat.

Martin Garrick (photo illustration)

Noted local legislators who have attended past events include North County Republican assemblyman Martin Garrick, who got $1951.34 worth of free hospitality at the 2010 shindig.

As reported here in March 2011:

It wasn’t until the first of February of this year, a month before his financial disclosure was due, that Garrick apparently had second thoughts and reimbursed the Peace group for his own expenses, according to his disclosure, filed March 1.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Garrick spokesman Mike Zimmerman said his boss had always planned to reimburse the independent voter group for his expenses and there was no significance to the fact the payment was not made until February

(Later that year, Garrick partied a bit too hearty in Sacramento, where he was arrested in the capitol garage for drunk driving.)

Peace's Independent Voter Project, a so-called 501(c)(4) nonprofit, played a key role in changing the state's primaries from genteel two-party affairs to wide-open horse races. Staging the Maui event, he insists, is just another way he contributes to good government.

Donors to the party have included the state's prison-guard union, a longtime Peace ally, as well as Southern California Edison, big tobacco’s Altria, Pacific Gas and Electric, the California Beer and Beverage Distributors, Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, and Chevron.

Jeff Marston

The Independent Voter group's board includes San Diego lobbyist Jeff Marston and Daniel Howle, Sacramento-based director of public affairs for Lilly USA, a subsidiary of the multinational pharmaceutical firm.

According to the voter project’s 2010 disclosure, Howle’s spouse got a $57,000 “fix fee contract” to “arrange, organize and produce” the event.

In today's Sacramento Bee, Howle is quoted as saying that attendance may be off this year due to the recent FBI raid at the Capitol.

Howle said that no legislative leaders are attending and noted that some members have backed out in the aftermath of a leaked affidavit alleging that Sen. Ron Calderon, D-Montebello, accepted bribes from an undercover FBI agent.

Calderon, who attended in past years and had expressed interest to Howle in this year's conference, also decided not to attend.

"I don't think it's wise for me to go," Howle said, paraphrasing lawmakers who have dropped out. "There's too much scrutiny."

Legislators can have their hotel and airfare covered, although Howle said not all of the attendees accept reimbursements.

Dan Howle

Howle wouldn't give up the names of those members expected to show, but he assured the paper that nobody would deign to actually lobby anybody at the event.

"We have some specific rules about what you can do in the panels," Howle said. "You cannot have any discussion about specific legislation or pending legislation."

He did note, however, "that the conference will feature a presentation on a Lilly-backed website that addresses counterfeit medications."

And every party has its pooper:

"It's become an unwelcome tradition for California voters," Phillip Ung of Common Cause said of the annual Maui pilgrimage. "Every year they read about it and every year they're sickened by it."

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

San Diego Reader 2024 Music & Arts Issue

Favorite fakers: Baby Bushka, Fleetwood Max, Electric Waste Band, Oceans, Geezer – plus upcoming tribute schedule
Next Article

Angry Pete’s goes from pop-up to drive-thru

Detroit Pizza sidles into the husk of a shuttered Taco Bell
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.