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April 30, 2010

Casino spokesman fined for ethics violation

By The Mainebiz News Staff

A lobbyist for a casino in Oxford County is facing fines for failing to register with the state and disclose payments he received for his work.

The Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices yesterday ruled that Peter Martin, spokesman for Black Bear Entertainment, should have registered sooner with the state as a lobbyist for his work promoting a proposed casino in Oxford County, according to the Kennebec Journal. State law requires anyone who spends more than eight hours in a month lobbying to register. Martin registered on April 7, after hearing a complaint had been filed against him by Dennis Bailey of CasinosNo! Martin said he believed his work with other casino developers on a competing measure did not count toward the eight hours. The penalty for failing to file on time is $200.

The commission also found Martin was remiss for not disclosing a $50,000 payment the organization made to him. Dan Walker, a lawyer for Black Bear Entertainment, said the oversight was a clerical mistake, but a penalty of as much as $4,806, or 1% of the total amount of expenditures for the reporting period, could still be assessed. Martin told the paper that Black Bear's partners will decide whether to appeal the penalty.

Go to the article from the Kennebec Journal >>

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