HUNTINGTON BEACH City Council and staff (Tribune photo by Miles Gaskin).

By Miles Gaskin
Orange County Tribune

The Huntington Beach City Council voted 6-0 on Tuesday night to request that the nonprofit group “Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library” be investigated by both the IRS, and the California Fair Political Practices Commission regarding alleged campaign finance and charitable law violations.  Council member Andrew Gruel was not present for the vote.

Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library donated $23,000 dollars to a political action committee called Citizens for Good Governance last year.

In a statement issued last week, Friends of the Huntington Beach Library president Martha Elliott called the allegations “baseless” and “a political stunt intended to distract from the fact that the overwhelming majority of Huntington Beach residents want our beloved Library – one of the finest in the country – to remain public, free of government censorship, and a civic resource available to all city residents and families.”

At the meeting Councilmember Chad Williams said that Citizens for Good Governance used some of these funds to support Dan Kalmick, Natalies Moser, and Rhonda Bolton in the 2024 city council election.

Kalmick, Moser, and Bolton were all incumbent liberals on the city council up for reelection in 2024, and they were all three defeated by conservatives Willams, Butch Twining, and Don Kennedy.

Citizens for Good Governance also donated $10,000 to a new political action committee called “Our Library Matters,” which is dedicated to supporting a yes vote on Measures A and B, that will be on the ballot in June during a special election.

A “yes” vote on Measures A and B would eliminate the Community Parent Review Board previously established by the Huntington Beach city council, which was intended to keep allegedly sexually inappropriate or explicit books out of the hands of minors.

Critics argue the review board constitutes censorship, and that parents, not the government, decide what books are appropriate for their own children. The city council members are opposed to ballot Measures A and B.

According to its website, Friends of the Huntington Beach Public Library is a nonprofit 501(c) (3) organization.  According to the IRS website “A section 501(c) (3) organization may not make a contribution to a political organization described in section 527 (such as a candidate committee, political party committee or political action committee (PAC)),”

However, the website also says that nonprofits can spend money on ballot measures.

“A section 501(c)(3) organization may make a contribution to a ballot measure committee (committees supporting or opposing ballot initiatives or referenda), but it must include such contributions in its lobbying calculations,”

Mayor Pat Burns commented on the investigation request.

“I know as a former policeman I always looked to seek exoneration, I always feared putting someone in jail that was truly innocent.  If they have done something wrong, then they need to answer for it, but if they are innocent, I would like to prove that too.”