So, taking advantage of yet another of our great freedoms that we enjoy here in this country, we marched back down to the city clerk's office to learn more about them.  For the record, "Team Newport" is officially registered as a PAC, Political Action Committee, with the city.  So, we pulled the funding statement for the PAC, and weren't surprised to see many of the usual suspects on their campaign statements.

The successful team members collectively raised almost $140,000 (does not include Svalstad's money).  Not bad for a recession.  They all seemed to have a substantial amount of their donations from the real estate/construction industry.  The team members then each donated $9,999 to the "Team Newport" PAC, which collected just over $46,000.  It appears the PAC then spent that money on a mass mailer, by Picture Perfect Campaigns.  The PAC also benefited from direct contributions and indirect promotions from our Newport Beach Chamber of Commerce PAC.

Lastly, they all benefited from the coordination efforts of David Ellis & Associates, which came at a price.  Don Webb, for example, paid over $20,000 for their services.  We did observe however, that many of the team's common donors all donated on the same day.  Could this be just a coincidence, or do you think that they were carpooling?  More likely, we suspect that David had a hand in that one.  Oh yeah, and did we mention that Fritz Duda donated another $500 to the "team"?  (see Tod Ridgeway's contributions).

The Facts:

Other Highlights (*collective contributions):

• Total contributions:  $140,000
• Unreceipted cash:  $26,000 (18% of their total)
• Real Estate/Construction:  $46,000
• Cannery Realty:  $2,250
• Griffin Realty / Burnhart:  $1,600 - real estate / contractor
• Mike Kilbride, LTD:  $1,250 - contractor
• Wynn & Associates:  $1,100 - unknown
• Hewitt & O'Neil:  $1,000 - attorneys

Team Newport PAC Contributions:

In addition, below are the only two documented expenditures of the Team Newport PAC for the entire year of 2002.

Their Expenditures:

Picture Perfect Campaigns
15 Hammone, Suite 307
Irvine, CA  92618
Amount:  $40,000

U.S. Postmaster
3101 Sunflower
Santa Ana, CA  92799
Amount:  $14,014

FreeNewport! contacted Ed Collins of Picture Perfect Campaigns on Tuesday, December 16, 2003.  Although Picture Perfect Campaigns is a private organization and thus has no obligation to share the details of their business with "Team Newport" to FreeNewport!, Ed assured us that Picture Perfect Campaigns is only in the business of preparing and mailing campaign promotions.

In addition, their rates are published on their website at www.ppc2win.com.  Estimating an average of maybe 50 cents per mailer (with postage), it it is probably a safe assumption that this money was spent on sending mailers to our approximately 75,000 residents.

In summary, it appears as though this proclaimed "Team Newport" was not much more than a common fundraising machine and campaign mailer clearinghouse.  It was guided by David Ellis & Associates, and fed heavily on the real estate industry.

We have to wonder though, is it any coincidence that this "team" disbanded on October 3, 2003, just one week after we inquired of it with it's members?  We may never know...

*Includes all team members' and PAC contributors.