PAC supporting Missouri Gov. Mike Parson fined by ethics watchdog for improper donation

The political action committee supporting Gov. Mike Parson was hit with a campaign finance violation this week for receiving a $150,000 donation last October from a Republican PAC not registered in Missouri.

The donation to the Uniting Missouri PAC was made by the RAGA Action Fund, the PAC associated with the Republican Attorneys General Association. But the donor was not registered in Missouri, the Missouri Ethics Commission said.

Uniting Missouri was fined $2,000 but only has to pay $1,000 within the the first 45 days of the order, issued Monday. The RAGA Action Fund was fined $1,000.

The PAC supporting Parson also must pay $1,800 because this was its second violation. Last year, it was fined for improperly reporting the fair-market value of two flights Parson took to Washington, D.C. and to Miami for the Super Bowl. Both were on the private planes of businessmen and reported as donations to Uniting Missouri.

The PAC was formed to support Parson’s 2020 election to a full term as governor. Though he is barred from running again in 2024 because of term limits, Uniting Missouri has continued to fundraise to promote Parson’s agenda. The PAC can also be used to pay for Parson to attend political events.

From January through Sept. 30, Uniting Missouri raised more than $476,000. It had $175,567 on hand at the end September.