Alioto to Disclose Personal Finance Records; Announces Filing of Ethics and Corruption Complaints Against Newsom

March 28, 2003

SAN FRANCISCO – On Monday, March 31, 2003, at 10:30am Mayoral candidate Angela Alioto will hold a press conference in her law office at 700 Montgomery Street, San Francisco, where she will provide a financial disclosure including details of her home mortgage and stock portfolio. Alioto will be calling on Supervisor Newsom and other mayoral candidates to do the same. During the conference, a former state board member of Common Cause will outline complaints being filed against Newsom.

“I believe that it is important for voters to know who I owe money to, how much, what I am paying in interest and how much my monthly payments are,” said Alioto. “It’s about credibility.”

“Supervisor Newsom, in my opinion, has not only failed to provide a complete financial disclosure but has repeatedly violated the law. Given the recent questions that have been raised about Supervisor Newsom’s reported $11 million in loans from Gordon Getty and others, he owes it to the public to disclose who holds the mortgages/loans on his businesses and properties, and the precise terms of his arrangement with the Getty family.”

Alioto will be joined at the press conference by San Francisco attorney Neil Eisenberg, former board member of Common Cause, who will file an ethics complaint against Newsom as well as a complaint with the FPPC, related to Newsom’s apparent violation of state and local laws. Eisenberg will also ask the San Francisco District Attorney’s office to investigate Newsom for violation of local election laws, the Attorney General of the State of California to investigate Newsom for violation of state ethics laws and the U.S. Attorney for potential violation of federal anti-corruption laws.

Alioto will call upon Supervisor Newsom to release details of his loans from billionaire Gordon Getty and anyone else who has loaned him money while he has been an elected official or an appointed official of San Francisco.

“The public has a right to know the details of the loans, especially in light of Supervisor Newsom’s failure to properly disclose the loans and then falsely blaming the error on unnamed City Attorneys.” (Both current City Attorney Dennis Herrera and former City Attorney Louise Renne dispute Newsom’s claims.)

Alioto said she will be releasing details of her own home mortgage, which is held by the First Republic Bank as well as her stock portfolio. “I am committed to cleaning up city government and rooting out waste and corruption. Gavin Newsom represents the monied interests of this city and his sweetheart loans/gifts are an example of what’s wrong.”