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A Bernalillo County economic development official who did campaign work for state lawmakers supportive of a project he helped to oversee said he will no longer work on individual political campaigns. But he is not giving up on politics totally.
Daniel Gutierrez, Bernalillo County’s economic development coordinator, said Tuesday he is working with the state’s Senate Democratic Caucus. The caucus has hired Connecticut-based consultants to work on Democratic campaigns for incumbent state lawmakers and candidates. Gutierrez says he’s been doing some volunteer work for the caucus by answering questions for the consultants.
“They call, maybe a senator calls, and asks an opinion, but I have no formal contract with them, I do not get paid, and I’ve been to two meetings. So I have no formal relationship with the Senate Caucus and I never have,” Gutierrez said in an interview.
As for working on individuals’ political campaigns, Gutierrez said through a county spokeswoman he is finished working.
“My company will no longer do political campaigns for individuals, but I will continue to work on social justice campaigns,” Gutierrez said through Bernalillo County spokeswoman Liz Hamm.
In a story first reported by the New Mexico Independent and KUNM on Monday, it was revealed that Gutierrez’s company, Two Roads Media and Politics, had received tens of thousands of dollars for work done for several elected officials, including three state lawmakers who supported a project he helped to oversee, as well as for other politicians he calls his friends.
Records show that Two Roads Media and Politics was paid $40,691 for campaign work it provided for three incumbent state lawmakers — state Sens. Linda Lopez and Bernadette Sanchez and state Rep. Dan Silva — all of whom voted to approve the SunCal plans and received contributions from SunCal or its affiliate, Westland Development Corp. The Legislature in its 2008 regular session almost passed legislation that would have allowed SunCal to issue bonds backed by future tax revenue to help pay for infrastructure in the company’s sprawling development on Albuquerque’s west side.
The consulting work Gutierrez provided in the months leading up to this year’s June primary election included helping to create and line up businesses to make mailers, signs and logos.
The work prompted at least one member of Bernalillo County’s ethics board to say that Gutierrez’s outside work raised ethical questions about a conflict of interest.
The county prohibits any of its public officials or employees from engaging in work that is incompatible with their duties or would impair their independent judgment in the performance of those duties.
Others also questioned Gutierrez’s work, including Bernalillo County Manager Thaddeus Lucero, who said it didn’t look good for Gutierrez to do campaign work for elected officials who supported a project Gutierrez had a hand in reviewing.
Lucero said he has met with Gutierrez to talk about the work.
For his part, Gutierrez, who earns $77,505 in his county post, said he had approval from his supervisors to do campaign work on the side. He filled out an outside-employment form prior to doing the work, which Lucero signed.
Gutierrez said in an interview earlier this month that he had done nothing wrong, and that his activity hardly qualified as a conflict of interest. He made about $1,000 in profit from the $40,691 his company was paid for the campaign work, he said. That profit came from a $5,000 bonus he received from Lopez, Gutierrez said. The rest of the money went to pay taxes, as well as printers, designers and other contractors who actually made the mailers, signs and logos.
He paid for the campaign items and then was reimbursed by the lawmakers, he added.
