A congressman from California is asking for an investigation into how $100 million in public donations for Los Angeles hearth victims was spent.
Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) mentioned he discovered not one of the victims obtained funding from the tens of millions raised from FireAid, a celeb live performance held days after the damaging Palisades and Eaton fires in January.
In accordance with Kiley, the cash allegedly went on to quite a few nonprofits, lots of which have little to do with hearth reduction, he mentioned on X July 22.
The congressman posted a letter to Legal professional Common Pam Bondi, asking the Division of Justice to analyze the place the cash was despatched and who benefited from the funds.
“Tens of 1000’s of individuals in Southern California misplaced a lot within the wildfires, together with their properties and family members,” Kiley mentioned in a assertion July 23. “People generously opened their wallets to assist the individuals impacted by the wildfires. Each penny ought to go in the direction of serving to these individuals rebuild their lives.”
Within the letter, Kiley requested the Division of Justice to take pressing motion to “keep and restore confidence that donor intent is revered and that the supposed recipients of those funds are made entire.”
FireAid was held at two venues on Jan. 30 in Inglewood, Calif. The occasion featured performances from Billie Eilish, Inexperienced Day, Girl Gaga, and Stevie Nicks, and several other different well-known entertainers who donated their expertise for the trigger.
FireAid organizers with the Los Angeles-based Annenberg Basis, a household basis that gives funding globally, promised the general public the funds can be used for direct reduction.
“Collectively, we raised an estimated $100 million which were designated for direct reduction and won’t be used for administrative functions,” FireAid acknowledged on its web site.
The group mentioned it awarded $50 million to greater than 120 nonprofits in February as a part of its first spherical of grants. Some funds had been anticipated to achieve residents affected by the January fires by direct monetary reduction.
One other $25 million was dispersed throughout the second part to assist monetary and housing stability, psychological well being and trauma companies, and neighborhood infrastructure.
The group expects to award one other $25 million in a 3rd spherical by the tip of 2025.
Annenberg Basis didn’t return a request for remark about FireAid funding.
California state officers haven’t introduced any plans for an investigation into FireAid. The California Division of Justice didn’t return a request for remark about whether or not the state was contemplating investigating the funding.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s workplace declined to touch upon why an investigation into FireAid was not deliberate. A spokesman pointed to social media posts made by the governor’s press workforce July 22.
“FireAid is an impartial group not affiliated with the state or the Governor,” Newsom’s press workplace posted on X. “The Governor and the state had no function within the FireAid live shows, or the group’s choices to distribute FireAid funds.”
The press workplace additionally referred social media customers to a web based grievance kind when requested about an investigation.
“California has among the strongest charity fundraising and ethics legal guidelines within the nation, and any allegations of impropriety must be directed to the California Division of Justice’s Charitable Trusts Part—a devoted unit liable for overseeing charities and nonprofit organizations within the State, for applicable evaluation,” Newsom’s press workplace acknowledged.
In a separate fundraising effort, Newsom’s workplace mentioned he raised greater than $800,000 for the California Fireplace Basis “in small greenback contributions throughout these fires from individuals throughout the nation who’ve come collectively to assist Californians of their time of want.”
“Not a cent of those donations go to Gavin Newsom or his PAC,” Newsom spokesman Nathan Click on instructed The Epoch Instances in an e-mail.
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